Smothered Pork Chops!

In our family we do love our pork chops and I am always trying different recipes for them.   This recipe for "Smothered Pork Chops" is a favorite!  It is down home, comfort food at it's best. It's not a difficult recipe to make, but I will warn it's not a quick one either.   It takes some time to properly cook the pork chops and gravy!   Here is what you will need for these pork chops:

6 boneless pork chops (1/2 inch thickness is about right)

1 tsp. Cajun seasoning (I use Tony Chachere's)

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup flour

1/4 cup olive or vegetable oil

2 Tbs. butter

1 medium sweet onion, sliced and separated in rings

2 cups chicken broth

1  1/2 cups buttermilk

In a shallow pan, like a pie plate, combine the flour, Cajun seasoning, black pepper, and salt.  Rinse the chops with water.  This makes the flour stick better.   Dredge each chop in the flour and shake the extra off. 

Place the oil in a deep skillet that has a lid over medium high heat.  Add the chops and brown well on both sides.   Make sure your oil is hot when you add the chops or the breading will not stay on.  Once they are all browned, remove them to a plate.

Add the butter to the oil left in the skillet and loosen any bits that might be stuck to the skillet.  Add the onion rings when the butter has melted.  If your family is a bit onion phobic, like mine, you can diced the onion instead of using the rings and it will be more palatable to them.  Saute the onions just a minute or two. 

Add two heaping tablespoons of the leftover flour you used to dredge the chops in, to the skillet.  Cook for just a minute.   Whisk in the chicken broth and bring the mixture to a boil.  When it starts to thicken, lower the heat to simmer and whisk in the buttermilk.  I think the buttermilk is a big key to the flavor or this recipe, so I would advise using it, but if you don't have buttermilk you could use half and half or milk.   Add the pork chops back to the pan, cover and cook on low heat for about 1 hour.  The pork chops should be fork tender and the gravy nice and thickened!

These are good served with mashed potatoes or rice!