Cast iron skillet, Fall Apart Tender Pork Chops & Gravy Over Rice, is comfort food to feed the soul! A handful of ingredients come together in the frying pan and oven, creating a dish to be remembered for years to come that uses simple pantry ingredients you probably already have on hand! Perfect weekend dinner food that fills your house with good old-fashioned, mouthwatering aromas!
With fall right around the corner, comes warm and comforting skillet meals, casseroles, and crock pot concoctions to warm the tummy and stick to your ribs weeknight meals after work, school, sports, and just plain too much to do!
And along with school starting, in come the never-ending colds and flus.
This recipe is a cure-all for whatever is troubling you! So let’s make this!
This starts with just a few basics, and any can be subbed & swapped for whatever you personally enjoy!
Just make sure that you use a deep-sided pan that can tolerate both the stovetop as well as the oven.
I start with my favorite butter!!! REAL butter, that I don’t think I could cook (or bake!) without! For this I used Minerva Dairy’s Garlic & Herb Butter, but you can use their regular butter if you’d prefer.
(Or use whatever butter that makes you smile, of course.)
Now. We like an obnoxious amount of gravy, especially for this dish. So I only used 4 boneless pork loin chops. You can certainly stretch this to 6 chops, but just make sure that you use a big enough pan.
But trust me. The gravy is AWESOME and you’re going to want a LOT of it.
So just melt your butter, and sear your chops on both sides. When gorgeously browned on each side, remove them to a plate.
Don’t wipe out the pan. Add the rest of the butter and toss in your mushrooms and thyme.
Sauté them until they’re nice and golden-delicious!
Then evenly spoon them over the tops of your pork chops that you have resting.
Again, leave all the butter and juices in the pan! Don’t wipe out all the good stuff!
Add your sliced onions, and toss them to coat with all that incredible yumminess!
Place your chops back into the pan, right over the bed of onions, and make sure that they’re all topped nicely with the mushrooms.
Next, in a bowl, whisk up your sauce.
(*If you’ve heard of “browning sauce” and didn’t know what it is, this is it.)
VERY good stuff, but use it SPARINGLY. A little goes a very long way!
(I never measure over the pan, so that if I accidentally pour too fast and overflow my measurement, it doesn’t go into my dish and be too much. So be careful when adding it!)
Then pour your sauce slowly and carefully over your chops and mushrooms.
Place a tight-fitting lid on it, pop it into a fairly low oven, and bake for 2 1/2 hours. (3 if they’re super thick!)
Towards the end of your baking time, make your rice.
When the chops are done, melt-in-your-mouth-tender, and falling apart when you cut one…..
….place your rice onto a serving platter.
Then carefully lift your chops out of the pan and place them over your rice. TENT with foil to keep them warm.
*You’ll have a lot of sauce in the pan that will be a little thin at first. Grab a whisk and stir, whisking vigorously, until it cools down and thickens a bit.
Ladle more sauce over your chops. Don’t skimp. Go for it!
Then garnish with finely chopped parsley if you have some on hand. A little greenery always makes a dish look finished and that you took the time to really care.
Always remember, we eat with our eyes first! Make it pretty!
Reserve the rest of that gravy sauce for when your serve up platefuls!
Let everyone ooh and ahh for a sec, then pile up your plates while it’s hot!
Ladle more gravy, LOTS and LOTS of it, onto each serving!
The rice will start to absorb it, and each bite of pork chops and rice are heavenly dipped in it!
Be prepared to lick your plate. Not that I do this. (Ha!)
But, pssst!, I have been known to finger-swipe my plate when no one is looking. 😉
And I’m betting you and your family will, too!!
This stuff is just sooooo good!! These Fall Apart Tender Pork Chops & Gravy Over Rice are perfect for weeknight and Sunday dinners that the entire family will enjoy! And I’m sure will become a fall and wintertime favorite!
Hope you all enjoy!
*Peas can be added to gravy sauce if desired. Or simply serve with a vegetable or salad on the side.
Fall Apart Tender Pork Chops & Gravy Over Rice
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
**Also delicious served with/or over mashed potatoes instead of rice.