Pork Chops with Apples: A Cozy Fall Dinner

I love fall food. There’s just something about this time of year that makes me want to cook meals that are warm, cozy, and actually make the house smell good.

Pork chops with apples are one of those dinners that just make sense to me once fall rolls around. You have the savory pork, the sweetness from the apples, the onions, a little cinnamon, and that hint of maple in the sauce. It’s simple, but it feels like a real dinner.

I’m also a big fan of recipes that don’t require a million ingredients or every pot and pan in the kitchen. Give me a skillet, some good ingredients, and something I can put on the table without making myself crazy, and I’m happy.

I’d probably make this on one of those cooler evenings when I’m staying home, have something playing on the TV, and want to make dinner without turning it into a whole event. I’d serve it with mashed potatoes because, honestly, I’m not sure there’s a better way to eat this sauce. You need something to soak it all up.

That’s what I like about this recipe. It feels like fall without trying too hard to be fall.

Pork Chops with Apples

Tender pork chops cooked with sweet apples and onions in a simple maple-apple pan sauce. Cozy, savory, a little sweet, and an easy fall dinner that comes together in one skillet.

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Course Main Course

Ingredients

  

• 4 boneless or bone-in pork chops
• 2 apples cored and thinly sliced
• 1 small yellow onion thinly sliced
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup apple cider
• 1–2 teaspoons maple syrup
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• Salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

 

• Pat the pork chops dry with a paper towel and season both sides generously with salt, pepper, and thyme.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the pork chops and cook for about 4–5 minutes per side, depending on their thickness, until they have a good golden-brown sear and are cooked through. Transfer them to a plate and set aside.
• Lower the heat to medium and add the butter to the same skillet. Add the sliced onions and cook for about 3–4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they start to soften.
• Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds, just until fragrant. Because honestly, I put garlic in pretty much everything.
• Add the sliced apples and sprinkle the cinnamon over them. Cook for another 4–5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the apples start to soften and get a little caramelized. You don’t want them completely mushy.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the chicken broth, apple cider, maple syrup, and Dijon mustard. Pour the mixture into the skillet with the apples and onions.
• Let the sauce simmer for a few minutes, scraping up all those browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Let it reduce slightly and thicken.
• Return the pork chops to the skillet and spoon the apples, onions, and sauce over the top. Let everything cook together for another 2–3 minutes so the pork can soak up some of the sauce.
• Serve warm with the apples, onions, and plenty of that pan sauce spooned over the pork chops.

Notes

If you want the sauce a little richer, add a splash of heavy cream at the end. You could also swap the thyme for rosemary if that’s more your thing.

And if you’re like me and think mashed potatoes make almost everything better, definitely serve these with mashed potatoes. The sauce was basically made for them.

What to Serve With It

• Mashed potatoes
• Roasted Brussels sprouts
• Green beans
• Roasted sweet potatoes
• Butternut squash
• Warm crusty bread 

Keyword comfort food, fall recipes, pork chops

At the end of the day, this is just a really good fall dinner.

I can see myself making this on a cool night, putting something on TV, and sitting down with a plate of pork chops and mashed potatoes. That sounds pretty good to me.

Sometimes that’s all I really want from dinner. Something warm, something good, and something that makes me happy to be home.

What’s a meal that always makes you feel at home?

“A recipe has no soul. You, as the cook, must bring soul to the recipe.” — Thomas Keller

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