Best Ever Pork Chops

Best ever low calorie laden

If you’re looking for a low-calorie or low-carb recipe for pork chops, keep moving.  This is not for you.

If you’re looking for scrump-dil-i-icious, then hang with me and I’ll show you what I do.

I make this dish once (or twice) a year.  The way my man works, he deserves this when it’s November his birthday.

I used to serve it when we had our kids’ teachers come for an end-of-the-year meal.  It was fun to fix and fun to watch them (and their husbands) put these pork chops away. Especially the  husbands – they could put them away! We had one gentleman who visited with his wife. I found myself wondering where he was putting those chops because he kept going back for more – and more – and more.

Getting started

So let’s get started. Buy some good pork chops. Get bone-in chops if you can. They will be moister and more tender.  I’ve been making these for thirty years, and I know what I’m talkin’ about.

You’ll need a good heavy skillet. I use my 10-inch cast iron skillet, and I fry these babies on low heat, because once that skillet gets hot, it stays hot.

Slice an onion into thin slices. Put some butter in your skillet and let it melt. Dredge each pork chop in flour. Yes, really. It doesn’t take that much flour to do a light dusting on the chops.

Slap those chops into that skillet and fry them, then flip them over until both sides are nicely browned.

Toss some onions on top of the chops and add pepper.  I don’t add salt because I figure there’s enough salt in the pork.

If you’re into salt, go ahead and throw some in there.

As the chops are browned, move them to a platter and add more chops.  Add butter or margarine to the skillet if necessary.  You can add a little water to the skillet so that you don’t need to add as much butter or margarine.

Making the gravy

Once all the pork chops are fried, add some water to the skillet and stir up all the pieces of pork and onion left in the skillet. It might look like dirty water to you, but it makes some mean gravy.  Give it time to simmer a little so it can absorb all that flavoring (I said I do this once a year, remember?).

Put a tablespoon (or two) of flour in a bowl and add enough milk to make a thin paste.

Bring the skillet mixture to a boil and then slooowly add the milk/flour paste to the mixture, stirring constantly.

Turn the burner down and stir some more until the gravy thickens.  You can add more water or more milk if it gets too thick. If it needs some salt or more pepper, toss it in there.

Put the pork chops with onions into a roaster, bean pot, or a container with a lid, and pour the gravy over all.

Bake and serve

Bake, covered, at 250 for three to four hours.  If the pork chops are cold when they go into the oven, turn the oven to 400, and once it reaches that temperature, turn it down to 250.  This helps get the heat through the pork chops.

I usually serve this with mashed potatoes so the gravy has a place to go on the plate.

One thing I like about this recipe is that I can fry up the chops and put them (with the gravy) into a pan (or a freezer bag) and stick it in the freezer. When I’m ready to serve it, I get  it out of the freezer, give it time to thaw, and put it in the oven.

All the mess from this dish has been long washed away. Plus, I buy the pork chops fresh and fix them when I get home, so I’m not unthawing and re-freezing anything.

The recipe

I first posted this recipe exactly five years ago. It has climbed up to one of the top food posts, right behind Hickory Nut cake.