October is here and, because of its cooler, shorter days, I always declare it to be the start of comfort food season. A good time of year to start making such things as hearty soups, rib-sticking stews and sumptuous dishes baked in a casserole, what I did in today’s recipe.
I started the process of making it by buying some boneless, pork loin chops; a moderately priced type of meat that can be use in a range of tasty ways.
In my recipe, I choose to use those chops in a Southern-style dish, first coating them in seasoned flour, like you would when making fried chicken. The chops were then seared in hot oil until richly browned, and then transferred to a casserole dish.
In the skillet you seared the pork in, you make a rich, sour cream-flavoured gravy to pour over the chops, smothering them. The casserole is then covered with foil and the chops are baked until mouth-wateringly tender.
I served the pork with boiled miniature potatoes and steamed broccoli. But you could also serve the chops with mashed potatoes, buttered egg noodles or rice, and any other vegetable you think would work with them.
My recipe for smothered Southern-style pork loin chops served two. But it could be doubled and baked in a larger 13- x 9-inch casserole if feeding a larger group, or want leftovers that you could freeze, thaw and reheat at another time.
Smothered Southern-style Pork Loin Chops
Seasoned flour-coated pork chops, seared in hot oil, set in a baking dish, smothered with a sour cream-flavoured gravy, and baked until deliciously tender.
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: about 85 minutes
Makes: two servings
3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp ground sage
1/4 tsp garlic powder
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• pinch ground cayenne pepper
4 (about 85 grams each) boneless pork loin chops
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
3/4 cup + 2 Tbsp chicken stock
1/4 cup sour cream
• chopped freshly parsley or sliced green onion, to taste
Make seasoned flour by combining the flour, onion powder, garlic powder, sage, salt, pepper and cayenne on a sided plate. Set out an 8-inch square casserole/baking dish. Pat pork chops dry with paper towel. With a sharp knife, make a few slits into the fat/rind side of each chop. This should prevent the chops from curling up when they cook. Preheat oven to 325 F.
Dredge and coat each pork chop in the seasoned flour. Pour oil into a large skillet set over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, sear the chops, until richly browned, about three minutes per side (reserve the leftover seasoned flour on the plate). Set the seared chops in a single or slightly over-lapping layer in the casserole.
Place stock and 1 Tbsp of the remaining seasoned flour in a bowl and whisk until smooth. Drain the oil/fat from the skillet you seared the chops in, and then set back over medium-high heat. Pour the stock/flour mixture into the skillet and bring to a simmer. Whisk in the sour cream, and then pour this gravy over the chops. Cover baking dish with foil and bake chops 75 minutes, or until very tender.
To serve, set two chops on each of two dinner plates. Top and smother the pork chops with the gravy left in the baking dish, sprinkle with parsley (or green onion), and serve.
Eric Akis is the author of eight cookbooks. His columns appear in the Life section Wednesday and Sunday.
