So I’m sure lots of you are familiar with that apple butter pork loin recipe–it seems like it is one of those recipes like funeral potatoes (cheesy hashbrown casserole, if you’re not familiar with the lingo) that everyone has and no one knows where it came from. I’ll be honest. I want to like it so badly. It sounds so yummy. But I can’t handle that much one-note sweetness with meat.
Awhile back, Sara and I were accidentally shipped some apple products from Musselman’s
(hey, I’m not complaining!) and I remembered apple butter pork loin. And I remembered my feelings of longing and wistfully not fitting in because I’m not 100% crazy about it. So I decided to do something about it and dress up that apple butter pork loin recipe, making it something company-worthy and keeping a lot of the sweetness, but also adding a lot of my favorite savory flavors.
You’ll need a really high-quality apple cider–something where you can’t see all the way through it, like this Musselman’s cider or Simply Apple.
Also, some apple butter. This is super easy to find–it’s usually near the jams, jellies, and peanut butter.
In a small bowl, whisk together the apple cider, apple butter, some Creole or coarsely ground mustard,
and a whole bunch of fresh garlic.
Whisk it all together and set it aside.
Next, whisk together some all-purpose flour, kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, and garlic powder and set it aside.
To get your pork chops, you can either buy pre-cut boneless pork chops, or you can partially freeze a pork sirloin roast (which is very lean and inexpensive) and then cut 4 3/4-inch slices out of the thickest part of the roast, then just save the ends for a lean alternative to pork shoulder in BBQ Pork Sandwiches.
Preheat your oven to 375.
Prepare half of a recipe of caramelized onions (so you’re just using 1 large onion here) in a large, oven-safe skillet. When you’re done caramelizing your onions, remove them from the pan and set them aside. Return the skillet to the stovetop and heat 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil over medium-high heat.
While the oil is heating, dredge your pork chops in the flour/garlic powder mixture.
When the oil is very hot (like sizzling if you flick some water into it), place the pork chops in the hot skillet and cook them for 2-3 minutes per side or until they are brown and crispy.
Whisk the apple cider mixture again and then pour it over the pork chops. Cook for 1-2 minutes or until the sauce begins to thicken. Divide the caramelized onions evenly among the pork chops,
cover the pan with a lid, and place the pan in the oven for 30 minutes. If you don’t have a large, oven-safe skillet with a lid, just place them in a 9×13″ baking dish and cover with foil, it’ll just be another dish to wash. Remove the pan from the oven and place each pork chop on a plate with a few spoonfuls of sauce. Serve with your favorite veggies or a tossed green salad.
Sweet & Savory Apple Butter Pork Chops
Recipe by Our Best Bites
Ingredients
4 boneless pork chops (about 1 lb. I just got a sirloin roast, partially froze it, and cut 4 chops about ½”-3/4” thick)
¼ c. all-purpose flour
½ tsp. kosher salt
½ tsp. black pepper
½ tsp. garlic powder
1 c. high-quality apple cider
¼ c. apple butter
1 tablespoon water
1 ½ tablespoons Creole or coarsely ground mustard
1 tsp. pressed garlic
1/2 recipe of Caramelized Onions
Directions
Preheat oven to 375.Combine the flour, salt, pepper, and garlic powder together in a small bowl. In a large, oven-safe skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat. Dredge the pork chops in the flour mixture and then brown the pork chops for 2-3 minutes on each side or until they’re brown and crispy.
While the pork chops are browning, combine the apple cider, apple butter, water, garlic, and mustard. When the pork chops are done browning, add the cider mixture to the pan and cook for 1-2 minutes or until the sauce begins to evaporate and thicken. Remove from heat and evenly distribute the caramelized onions over the pork chops. Cover the pan with a lid and place in oven for 30 minutes. Serve with rice and veggies or salad.
Freezer Meal: Sweet & Savory Apple Butter Pork Chops
Recipe by Our Best Bites
Ingredients
4 boneless pork chops (about 1 lb. I just got a sirloin roast, partially froze it, and cut 4 chops about ½”-3/4” thick)
¼ c. all-purpose flour
½ tsp. kosher salt
½ tsp. black pepper
½ tsp. garlic powder
1 c. high-quality apple cider
¼ c. apple butter
1 tablespoon water
1 ½ tablespoons Creole or coarsely ground mustard
1 tsp. pressed garlic
1/2 recipe of Caramelized Onions
Directions
Combine the flour, salt, pepper, and garlic powder together in a small bowl. In a large, oven-safe skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat. Dredge the pork chops in the flour mixture and then brown the pork chops for 2-3 minutes on each side or until they’re brown and crispy.
While the pork chops are browning, combine the apple cider, apple butter, water, garlic, and mustard. Add the cider mixture to the pan and cook for 1-2 minutes or until the sauce begins to evaporate and thicken.
Transfer the pork chops and sauce to a 9×13″ disposable aluminum pan. Evenly distribute the caramelized onions over the pork chops. Cover the pan tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil and freeze.
When ready to cook, preheat oven to 350. Bake, covered, for 1 hour or until the pork chops are tender. Serve with rice and a green salad or veggies.
Supply List:
9×13″ disposable pan
Heavy-duty aluminum foil
Rice
Vegetables
Ingredients for green salad
Salad dressing
Questions & Reviews
I tried this last night for dinner and used my homemade spiced peach butter instead and it was so yummy! I have 4 picky boys at my table and the only problem was that we ran out!!! Thanks for a great pork chops idea!
We made this tonight. It was really quick to prepare and was fabulous! My husband came home from work from lunch to gobble the leftovers. Next time I will let the sauce cook down a little more. Otherwise it was GREAT!
P.S. I used bone-in pork chops that were on sale for $1.38 at Safeway and they were GREAT in this!
I just made these tonight. HEAVEN! It was soooooo delicious! The flavor of the sauce was perfect – a better texture than straight apple sauce (nothing against apple sauce)!
Thank you!
Oh my word, I've been scrolling through your blog and I want to eat EVERYTHING I see! Your recipes sound amazing and I can't wait to try them. Thank you, thank you!
I swear you guys are mind readers becuase I know this has happened before here. But I just got a box of apples and decided I was going to make apple butter but besides putting it on toast and giving it as gifts I didn't have a clue what I would do with all that apple butter. This looks delicious! Beats the heck out of my dad's straight apple sauce with pork chops.
Wow, I will try these soon 🙂
That actually sounds good! I'm gonna try it.
Oh, and BBoyBassman–I'm so glad you loved it! Next time I happen across a Trader Joes, I think I'm going to have to try that cranberry apple butter; it sounds amazing!
Mary, see if you can find Zatarain's Creole Mustard. It is FABULOUS (definitely my favorite mustard) and is perfect in this recipe. If not, even Walmart brand has a really good coarse mustard.
This recipe was fantastic! It has now become one of my go-to pork recipes because its A) SUPER simple and B) SUPER delicious!! I loved the way the flavors came together especially with the carmelized onions (which, thanks to you, I am much more confident in making).
One alteration I made (out of necessity) was to use Trader Joe's Cranberry-Apple Butter instead of regular apple butter. But it ended up working perfectly and added another level of flavor with the slight tartness from the Cranberries.
Thanks again for posting this!
LOL, sorry Kate, no other mustards here but plain regular yellow…I wasn't even aware that coarsely ground mustard existed prior to yesterday LOL. So I'm guessing I should go with plan B – Kate's spapeggy and meatballs?
You just combined two things that make me VERY happy – apple, butter, and pork! Oh yes, I can see how this is nothing less than delicious.
Oh, no, Mary! I probably wouldn't use regular yellow mustard. What other kinds of mustard do you have?
Okay so I got everything to make these tonight when I realize I don't have coarsely ground mustard. Can I substitute regular mustard or just wait til I go to the store next and make this as written?
Oh, My Yum…….!
I think I have to try this this weekend. Sounds delicious!!!!
I love pork and apples together. This looks wonderful!
These look so delicious! I havent had pork chops forever, Im gonna give this a try : )
i just had pork chops tonight and mine were no where near yours in taste(probably) or looks! going to make these. thanks!
Kaseface–Yep, it's 7 points per pork chop, plus 1/4 of the sauce in the pan.
We eat lots of pork chops around here, so I will definitely be adding this recipe in the rotation because it sounds (and looks) delicious!
Wow this recipe sounds great! Okay, I have to admit it is great because it is almost IDENTICAL to my mom's recipe. In years past she would take this and put it over a pork roast on a bed of cabbage/chopped apple/onion which she cooked slowly in the oven or crockpot! Talk about heaven!!
Looks great! I am so glad you are doing Weight Watchers pointsplus since I am doing those too! Could you be more specific on what the points are for? Is it 7 points per pork chop? Thanks!
Looks and sounds yummy. We call the hashbrown casserole "church potatoes" because you always see them on the line for dinners after funerals.
LOL…it sounds like me with ranch dressing. I feel like such an outcast because I hate the stuff & it seems like I'm the only one who doesn't love it!
Sounds great…I'm always looking for new ways with pork loin/boneless chops since we live in the south and it's the other white meat 😉 I so agree with you on being too sweet…I like a balance of sweet and spicy. Just modified a recipe this weekend for Green Chili Pork Stew that I got from "Shed's Spread"…you know the imitation butter spread! It was great served with brown rice and sour cream and also rolled up in flour tortilla wraps. I'll be posting the recipe on my blog soon.
This is awesome! Can't wait to try it – and thanks for the Weight Watchers point tally – is that for
the Points Plus or the old program?
I've been waiting years for this recipe and didn't even know it … Thanks for another awesome dinner!!
Thanks! I really need more pork recipes! I actually have some apple butter I need to use, so this is great! Apples and pork go so well together. 🙂
Pefect timing, I bought some pork chops this weekend and didn't know what to do with them!
Looks delicious! My DIL loves the Musselman's Apple Butter and she won't eat anything but that (not even my homemade!).