Braised pork chops puttanesca are absolutely delicious. Braising makes the most tender pork chops and the punchy puttanesca sauce is wildly flavorful. This is an Italian twist you have to try next time pork chops are on the menu.
½cupmixed olives (your favorite green and/or black)halved
2tbspcapersdrained and rinsed
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 375F.
Remove the pork chops from their packaging. Dry well with a paper towel. Then season all sides of the pork chops with salt and pepper.
Heat a heavy, high-sided, oven-proof skillet (like cast iron) over medium-high heat. Add ½ tbsp olive oil to the pan. Sear the pork chops on each side until golden brown. This will take about 3-minutes on each side as long as your pan is hot enough.Remove the seared chops to a plate.
Add the remaining ½ tbsp of olive oil to the pan and add the shallots. Reduce the heat to medium. Cook until the shallots soften and start to brown, about 3-minutes.Add the garlic, crushed red pepper, and anchovy. Cook for a minute. Then add the white wine. Bring the heat back up to medium-high heat and cook for about 5-minutes until the wine has reduced by half. Then add the tomatoes, chicken stock, thyme leaves, grape tomatoes, olives, and capers. Bring to a heavy simmer.
Nestle the pork chops into the sauce so that they are at least halfway covered in the sauce. Cover your pan with an oven-proof lid or tightly cover with foil. Put the skillet on the middle rack of the oven and cook for about 30 minutes or until the pork chop is fork tender and hits 190-200F with an instant read thermometer.
Remove the skillet from the oven. Remove the pork chops and set aside. Cover with foil or the skillet lid to keep warm. Place your skillet on a burner set to high heat. Let the sauce reduce by about half or until the sauce has thickened to your liking. This will likely take about 10 minutes. Stir the sauce frequently while it's reducing.
If you are serving with pasta, remove the pork chops and about 1 cup of sauce to serve over the chops. Add about ½ lb of cooked pasta to the skillet and stir to coat.Slice pork into ½-inch slices and top with remaining sauce.
Notes
I find that 2 large pork chops can serve 4 people a reasonable portion (especially if you are pairing with pasta). If you want larger servings, cook 3 or 4 chops. Just increase the salt and pepper for seasoning. This recipe makes enough sauce for up to 4 total chops.