This dish comes from a friend of mine from Puerto Rico, except his version uses cilantro in place of the sage. I changed the herb—sage being a quintessential autumn flavor—to shift the dish more toward fall. If you want to substitute cilantro for the sage and add a squeeze of lime, the chops will have a lighter flavor, which is great for a spring or summer meal.–Deborah VanTrece
Pork Chops with Tomato-Sage Gravy
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon Lawry’s Seasoned Salt*
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 6 (6 to 8 ounce) pork chops
- 1/2 cup mild vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 cups store-bought or homemade chicken broth
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 can (14.5 ounce) diced tomatoes
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh sage
- 8 to 10 whole fresh sage leaves, reserved for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
- Place the flour in a shallow bowl. In a separate small bowl, combine the seasoned salt, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, and cayenne and mix well. Rub the spice mixture onto both sides of the pork chops. Stir any excess seasoning into the flour.
- Dredge the seasoned pork chops in the flour, shaking off any excess. Set the remaining flour aside for use in the gravy.
- In a large cast-iron skillet over medium heat, warm the oil until hot. Place 3 pork chops in the skillet and cook until browned, about 4 minutes. Flip and cook on the other side until evenly colored, about 4 minutes more. Move the pork chops to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Repeat with the remaining chops.
- To make the gravy, pour off all but 1/4 cup of oil. Whisk 1/4 cup of the remaining flour into the drippings in the skillet over medium heat, cooking until it forms a paste.
- Whisk in the chicken broth, garlic, and tomatoes and cook until the gravy thickens, 2 to 5 minutes. Return the pork chops to the skillet, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 5 minutes to let the flavors meld. Add the chopped sage and cover the skillet with an oven safe lid or foil.
- Move the skillet to the oven and bake until the meat is tender, about 30 minutes. If the gravy is too thick, stir in 1/4 to 1/3 cup water and bake for 5 minutes more, covered.
- Remove from the oven and let the chops rest for at least 10 minutes. Garnish with sage leaves and serve.
Notes
*What is Lawry’s Seasoned Salt?
Seemingly ubiquitous to some of us, you may not be familiar with this blend of herbs and spices that’s a flavor shortcut in a bottle. It’s a mixture of salt, sugar, paprika, turmeric, onion, cornstarch, garlic, and a couple of long-term storage preservatives. All in all, it’s a pretty basic seasoning blend. There are also lots of copycat recipes online if you’re not in the mood to go out for a bottle of seasoning.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
These pork chops with tomato-sage gravy are a delicious, flavorful centerpiece of a hearty meal. Two of my husband’s favorite things, pork chops and tomato gravy made this a “fan favorite” at my house. I did substitute cilantro for sage because we prefer the flavor. The variety of seasonings used in the meat rub make for quite flavorful meat. Be generous with the rub.
There is some time and preparation involved, but the end result is well worth it. I used bone-in pork chops, but if you are someone who likes to get every bite of meat off the bone (like my aforementioned husband) these are a little messy to pick up and clean off the bone! I served these with garlic mashed red skin potatoes and fresh beets. You’ll definitely want something to soak up the gravy.
Once everything but the sage was added, the gravy quickly came together and resembled chunky tomato soup. Since my pork chops were on the thinner side, I skipped the baking step and simply added them to the sauce and let them reheat through. This was delicious and brought a hint of fall on a sweltering July day.
The spice blend definitely imparts a kick–and even with no-salt-added diced tomatoes, this was plenty salty. Next time I make these pork chops with tomato-sage gravy, I may add a scant bit less cayenne and salt…but there will definitely be a next time.
This recipe for pork chops with tomato-sage gravy is an easy way to prepare delicious, tender pork chops with savory gravy. It is a nice dish for fall with the flavor of sage. I garnished with sage leaves and served the pork chops with rice, steamed broccoli, and Pinot Noir.
The description of “lots of garlicky, sage filled sauce” with tender pork chops is right on the mark. Pork chops are my husband’s favorite meal and this recipe did not disappoint. We appreciated the technique of seasoning the pork chops first and then dredging with flour because all that flavor stayed on the pork chop instead of ending up in the sauté pan. My visions of thick tomato sage flavored gravy to smother atop mashed potatoes and pork chops was happily realized. I suggest keeping this recipe in your top 10 pork chop comfort meal list!
Thanks, Deb! That’s very high praise. We’re delighted that you enjoyed them so much.
So good! I used boneless chops since that’s what I had and cooked 4. Kept the sauce amounts the same so I would have plenty of sauce for serving over parsley noodles.
You can’t go wrong with extra sauce, Carlin!