Southern-Style Smothered Pork Chops

Main Course

Recipe courtesy of Multicooker Perfection from America's Test Kitchen

Serves 4

Ingredients: 
  • 2 tablespoons Lawry's Seasoned Salt 
  • 1 tablespoon onion powder 
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder 
  • 1 teaspoon paprika 
  • Pepper 
  • 4 (8- to 10-ounce) bone-in blade-cut pork chops, ¾ to 1 inch thick, trimmed 
  • ¾ cup all-purpose flour 
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 
  • 2 onions, quartered through root end and sliced thin crosswise 
  • 1¾ cups water 
  • 1 tablespoon cider vinegar 

Southern-Style Smothered Pork Chops

Southern-Style Smothered Pork Chops

Click image to enlarge

Method: 

Combine seasoned salt, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, and 1 teaspoon pepper in bowl. Cut 2 slits about 2 inches apart through fat on edges of each chop. Pat chops dry with paper towels and sprinkle each chop with 1 teaspoon spice mixture (½ teaspoon per side). 

Combine ½ cup flour and 4 teaspoons spice mixture in shallow dish. Dredge 1 side of chops lightly in seasoned flour, shake off excess, and transfer to plate. 

Using highest sauté or browning function, heat oil in multicooker for 5 minutes (or until just smoking). Place half of chops floured side down into multicooker and cook until well-browned on 1 side, 3 to 5 minutes; return to plate. Repeat with remaining chops; transfer to plate. 

Stir remaining¼ cup flour into fat left in multicooker. Cook, stirring· constantly, until roux is color of peanut butter, 3 to 5 minutes. Add onions and remaining spice mixture and cook, stirring constantly, until onions begin to soften slightly, about 2 minutes. Slowly stir in water, scraping up any browned bits and smoothing out any lumps. Nestle chops into multi­cooker, adding any accumulated juices. 

To pressure cook 

Lock lid in place and close pressure release valve. Select high pressure cook function and cook for 15 minutes. Turn off multicooker and quick-release pressure. Carefully remove lid, allowing steam to escape away from you. 

To slow cook 

Lock lid in place and open pressure release valve. Select low slow cook function and cook until meat is tender, 2 to 3 hours. (If using Instant Pot, select high slow cook function and increase cooking range to 4 to 5 hours.) Carefully remove lid, allowing steam to escape  away from you. 

Transfer chops to serving dish, tent with aluminum foil, and let rest while finishing sauce. Cook sauce using highest sauté or browning function until thickened, 3 to 5 minutes. Turn off multicooker. Let sauce settle, then skim excess fat from surface using large spoon. Stir in vinegar and season with pepper to taste. Spoon sauce over chops and serve. 

 

About the recipe:

"Smothered" pork chops, which are cooked in a rich gravy until the meat is fall-off-the-bone tender, are a classic Southern dish. We knew the multicooker would be the perfect way to achieve a thick gravy and moist chops with great flavor. We started by choosing the best type of pork chops, landing on thick-cut bone-in blade chops; their higher fat content made them a perfect candidate for multicooking, since their collagen melts easily into gelatin during pressure or slow cooking. To give the chops and the gravy bold flavor without having to add a pantry full of spices, we made a simple mixture of Lawry's Seasoned Salt (a Southern favorite), onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, and pepper, and we used the mixture in three places: on the chops, in the flour dredge for the chops, and in the gravy. vVe first browned the coated chops on one side and then built a gravy in the multicooker pot by adding flour right to the rendered pork fat. vVe cooked the roux until it was the color of peanut butter so that our gravy would have great depth of flavor. We nestled the chops into the gravy to cook, then allowed them to rest while we thickened the gravy and stirred in a bit of cider vinegar for brightness.


 

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Comments

<p>I made this for Sunday dinner the other night. My husband and I made our own homemade Mozzarella cheese on Saturday night. We read that we could use the excess acidic whey to marinate meat. So I used Country style pork ribs and marinated them in the acidic whey and they turned out so tender and juicy - amazing. You could probably use buttermilk as well. Love this recipe..</p>