Apple Butter Pork Chops with Skillet Potatoes

September is a funny month in Georgia because everywhere you look people are talking about fall while the weather is still doing its best impression of July. The stores have pumpkins everywhere, somebody online is wearing a sweater, and I’m looking at the temperature wondering exactly where they’re finding all this cool weather.

I still start wanting fall food, though.

Not necessarily the really heavy meals that sound wonderful when it’s cold outside. I’m not ready for a giant pot of chili simmering all afternoon when the air conditioner is still working overtime. I do start wanting apples, cinnamon, roasted vegetables, and those dinners that make the kitchen smell like fall even if Mother Nature hasn’t decided to cooperate yet.

That’s where these Apple Butter Pork Chops with Skillet Potatoes come in.

Apple and pork have always been good together, but apple butter makes the combination even better because so much of the work has already been done for you. You get apples, warm spices, and sweetness without peeling or chopping a single apple. Add a little Dijon mustard, garlic, and apple cider vinegar and it turns into a sauce that’s sweet without making your pork chops taste like dessert.

The skillet potatoes make this a full dinner without requiring much else. I might add green beans or a salad if I have them, but there have certainly been nights when the skillet went straight to the table and everybody helped themselves.

Those are often the best dinners anyway.

Don’t Save Apple Butter for Biscuits

I love apple butter on a warm biscuit or piece of toast, but that’s probably where most of us stop using it. A jar gets opened for breakfast, goes back into the refrigerator, and then sits there waiting for somebody to remember it exists.

This recipe gives that jar another job.

Apple butter is especially good for sauces because it’s already thick. You don’t have to stand over the stove waiting forever for it to reduce, and you don’t need a long list of ingredients to get plenty of flavor.

I use about half a cup in this recipe. That gives the pork chops a good apple flavor without overwhelming everything else. The Dijon mustard adds a little tang, while the vinegar cuts through the sweetness. Garlic makes its way into the skillet too because, as we’ve already established around here, I’m not afraid of garlic.

If your apple butter is particularly sweet, you can add a little extra Dijon or vinegar. If it’s homemade and more tart, you may decide you want the tablespoon of brown sugar I’ve listed as optional.

Taste the sauce.

Recipes aren’t contracts.

If you think it needs something, add it.

Pork Chops Don’t Need to Be Dry

I think a lot of us grew up eating pork chops that were cooked until there wasn’t a drop of moisture left in them. You could practically use one as a coaster.

For years pork was routinely cooked much longer than necessary, and I think that’s why some people decided they didn’t particularly like pork chops.

The easiest way to avoid that is to use a meat thermometer.

I prefer thick-cut boneless pork chops for this recipe because they’re a little more forgiving, but bone-in chops work beautifully too. The important thing is not cooking them forever.

We’re going to brown them first, remove them from the skillet, and then return them near the end so they can finish cooking in that apple butter sauce.

That gives you plenty of flavor without turning dinner into shoe leather.

Those Potatoes Are Going in the Same Pan

The potatoes are one of my favorite parts of this meal because they pick up everything left behind after the pork chops are browned.

Don’t clean the skillet.

Please don’t.

All those little browned bits on the bottom are flavor, and we’re going to use them.

Baby potatoes work best because they cook fairly quickly when they’re cut into halves or quarters. If yours are particularly small, halves are fine. Larger ones need to be quartered so you aren’t waiting until bedtime for dinner.

I give the potatoes a little head start before making the sauce. By the time the pork chops go back into the skillet, they’re almost tender.

Once everything comes together, the potatoes get a little of that apple butter sauce on them too.

I’m certainly not complaining about that.

Apple Butter Pork Chops with Skillet Potatoes

Serves: 4
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: About 35 minutes

Ingredients

For the pork chops:

• 4 thick-cut boneless or bone-in pork chops
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

For the skillet potatoes:

• 1 1/2 pounds baby potatoes, halved or quartered
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/3 cup chicken broth

For the apple butter sauce:

• 1/2 cup apple butter
• 1/3 cup chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar, optional
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• Salt and black pepper, to taste
• Fresh parsley or thyme for serving, optional

Instructions

Pat the pork chops dry with a paper towel. Season both sides with the salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and smoked paprika.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the skillet is hot, add the pork chops and cook for about 3 to 4 minutes on each side until they’re nicely browned. They don’t need to be completely cooked at this point because they’ll finish later in the sauce.

Transfer the pork chops to a plate and set them aside.

Reduce the heat to medium and add the butter to the same skillet. Add the potatoes, salt, pepper, thyme, and garlic powder. Toss everything together so the potatoes get coated in the butter and all those good browned bits from the pork.

Cook the potatoes for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they begin to brown.

Pour in 1/3 cup chicken broth and cover the skillet. Reduce the heat slightly and let the potatoes cook for another 8 to 10 minutes. Give them a stir once or twice while they’re cooking. You want them almost fork-tender before moving on.

While the potatoes cook, whisk together the apple butter, remaining 1/3 cup chicken broth, Dijon mustard, apple cider vinegar, minced garlic, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar if you’re using it, and thyme.

Once the potatoes are nearly tender, move them toward the edges of the skillet and return the pork chops to the center.

Pour the apple butter mixture over the pork chops and around the potatoes. Bring the sauce to a gentle simmer and cook for another 5 to 8 minutes, spooning some of the sauce over the pork as it cooks.

The exact cooking time will depend on how thick your pork chops are. They’re ready when the center reaches 145°F on a meat thermometer.

Remove the skillet from the heat and let the pork chops rest for about 3 minutes before serving. The sauce will thicken slightly as it sits.

Spoon plenty of the apple butter sauce over each pork chop and add the skillet potatoes alongside it. Sprinkle with fresh parsley or thyme if you have some.

What I’d Serve With It

You really don’t need much because the potatoes are already there. Green beans would probably be my first choice, especially if they’re simply cooked with a little butter, salt, and pepper.

Roasted broccoli works too, as does a basic green salad.

If you’re feeding people with bigger appetites, warm rolls wouldn’t hurt anything. They also happen to be very useful for getting the last of that apple butter sauce off the plate, which I consider an excellent reason to serve them.

Save the Leftovers

If you happen to have leftovers, keep the pork chops, potatoes, and sauce together in a covered container in the refrigerator. The sauce helps keep the pork from drying out when it’s reheated.

I would warm everything gently in a skillet with a splash of chicken broth rather than putting the pork in the microwave for too long. You can use the microwave, of course, but heat it in short intervals.

Nobody wants to turn a perfectly good pork chop into that coaster we talked about earlier.

This is one of those meals I’ll start making in September and continue making straight through the colder months. It has enough apple and warm spice to satisfy that first craving for fall food without feeling like something that should only be served when there’s frost on the ground.

Considering Georgia may still be giving us eighty-degree afternoons well into the month, that’s exactly the kind of September dinner I need.