Maple Pepper Glazed Pork Chops Recipe from 'Brown Eggs and Jam Jars'

Photo: Tim and Angela Chin

From Yahoo Food’s Cookbook of the Week: Brown Eggs and Jam Jars

Maple Pepper Glazed Pork Chops
Serves 4

My children would prefer to drench nearly all their food in maple syrup, and come sugaring-off season, it almost feels natural to let them. This recipe lets us meet halfway, with crispy seared pork chops and a simple sauce featuring the local specialty. I use bone-in pork chops because I find them to be more flavorful and less inclined to dry out during cooking.

4 bone-in pork chops, about ¾-inch (2 cm) thick
½ teaspoon (2 mL) fine sea salt
1 tablespoon (15 mL) olive oil

For the glaze
2 tablespoons (30 mL) cider vinegar
1/3 cup (75 mL) pure dark maple syrup
1 ½ teaspoons (7 mL) freshly ground black pepper

PREPARE THE PORK CHOPS Pat pork chops dry with paper towel and season lightly with sea salt. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork chops and brown on both sides, about 2 minutes per side. Reduce heat to medium and cook for another 3 minutes.

Remove pork chops from pan and place on a plate. Tent loosely with foil.

MAKE THE GLAZE WHILE PORK CHOPS REST Return the pan to medium heat and add cider vinegar, scraping any browned bits off the bottom. Allow vinegar to come to a boil. Add maple syrup and pepper; bring to a boil again, stirring constantly. Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. The sauce should be quite thick and syrupy, but still pourable.

Place rested pork chops on a platter and drizzle extravagantly with maple pepper glaze. Serve at once.

More ways to enjoy pork:

Watch: How to make pan-seared pork chops

Is pink pork safe to eat? America’s Test Kitchen finds out

Momofuku’s iconic pork buns