Smothered Pork Chops

After a wonderful holiday season, a move from Boston to Shreveport, Louisiana and the celebration of Tony's first birthday, I finally have the time to update my blog again! Will, Tony and I spent Christmas in Alabama with my in-laws, who very graciously entertained 2 adults, a baby and a mischievous beagle. Not to mention, we were treated to some fabulous Southern home cooking! Before we left, I was given 2 beautiful cast iron skillets and a couple of recipes (since we'll be living in the South for at least 2 years, I decided I needed to learn to cook like a Southern girl!). One of the recipes I received was my father in law's recipe for smothered pork chops. This was the perfect weeknight dish; the prep was very simple, and the pork chops just simmered in the gravy for a few hours while I took care of Tony. Naturally, I served this dish with some amazing homemade cornbread (that skillet is already coming in handy). For the marinade, you can use any kind of sauce that strikes your fancy. I chose a ginger lime marinade.

Ingredients

2 large pork chops
Marinade of choice
Extra virgin olive oil
Panko breadcrumbs
1/2 cup white onion, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup bell pepper, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/2 cups water or stock (I used chicken stock)

Directions

1. Marinate pork chops in sauce (I kept them in the marinade for about 7 hours, but it doesn't have to be that long).

2. Dredge the pork chops through the bread crumbs, making sure they're coated evenly.

3. In a large pan, heat the oil over medium high heat. Brown the pork chops on each side. Remove from the pan, and set aside.

4. Sauté the vegetables until they are soft and the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.

5. Add the stock to the pan, and stir to combine.

6. Add the pork chops to the mixture in the pan.

7. Cover and turn the heat down, and let the pork chops simmer for about 2 hours. They should look like this when they're done: