Apricot & Apple Dijon Pork Chops with Wild Rice
A fall-inspired recipe with boneless pork chops, full of Autumn flavors.
My son gave me a “pork pack” for Father’s Day, consisting of all kinds of Good Rancher pork products, including bacon, pork meatballs, pork belly, bone-in pork rib chops and boneless pork loin chops. Admittedly, I had as much fun playing with the dry ice it was packed in as I did cooking all of that lovely pork. But eventually, I got down to last item, purposefully left until the end becasue I’ve never had particularly good results with boneless pork loin chops. It tends to be a very lean cut with little marbling, and the times I’ve attempted to cook them in the past have yielded a dry chop that missed the mark.
These chops, however, did have a nice fat-cap and this recipe, a Kitchen-Tapestry original, worked really well. The trick was in cooking the chops with a fast sear, then a short braise in a savory sweet potion of apples, apricot preserves, herbs and port wine. The result worked especially well alongside wild rice as fall weather set in for the first time this season.
Apricot & Apple Dijon Pork Chops with Wild Rice
A fall-inspired recipe with boneless pork chops, full of Autumn flavors.
Ingredients
- 4 boneless pork loin chops (8 oz each)
- 1 medium firm sweet apple peeled, cored and cut into small chunks (like, Honeycrisp or Fuji)
- 1 small cup no sugar added apple sauce (like, Mott's)
- 1/2 cup apricot preserves (like, Bonne Maman)
- 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1/2 cup ruby port wine
- 1/2 cup chicken stock (like, Swanson's or Kitchen Basics)
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tsp garlic, minced
- 1/4 tsp ground rosemary
- 1/4 tsp dried ground thyme
- 1/4 fine sea salt
- 8-9 grinds freshly cracked black pepper
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter, divided
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp cornstarch mixed with 3 tbsp cold water (if needed)
- 1 cup uncooked pure wild rice
- 3-1/2 cups chicken stock, (like, Swanson's or Kitchen Basics)
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter, divided
- 1/4 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tbsp dried parsley
- 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
- 8-9 grinds freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Season both sides of all chops with salt and pepper.
- Whisk together apricot preserves, apple sauce, Dijon, vinegar, Worcestershire, chicken stock, rosemary and thyme. Set aside.
- Heat olive oil and 1 tbsp butter in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown chops approximately 2 minutes per side. Remove to a plate.
- Reduce the heat to medium. Add the remaining 1 tbsp butter and the apple chunks. Sauté 3–4 minutes until lightly golden but firm. Add garlic during final 30 seconds. Remove apples to bowl.
- Add the port wine to the Dutch oven. Scrape up browned bits and simmer 1–2 minutes, reducing by half.
- Add the prepared sauce and return the apples to the Dutch oven and bring to gentle simmer.
- Return the pork chops and any accumulated juices to the Dutch oven. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer gently for 15 minutes. Check the chops with a probe instant read thermometer to 135°F internal temperature.
- If needed, remove the chops to a platter, and thicken the sauce with the cornstarch slurry. Taste and adjust for seasoning.
- 8. Spoon apples and apricot-Dijon sauce over chops. Accompany with butter-toasted wild rice.
- Rinse the wild rice and drain thoroughly. Blot dry if necessary.
- Melt half the butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add wild rice and sauté 2–3 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Carefully add the chicken stock and thyme. Bring to boil, reduce heat to medium low and cover. Simmer for an hour,
- Check if the rice is tender and the grains are opening. Simmer for an additional 5-10 minutes if needed.
- Drain any remaining liquid and blend in the rest of the butter. Add the parsley, fluff with a fork and serve.
