Slow Cooked Smothered Porterhouse Chops

adapted from this recipe and shared by Carrie of Gingerlemongirl.com

free of gluten, dairy, eggs, and soy

Pork Ingredients:

4-6 porterhouse loin chops

4 slices of thick cut bacon, diced into small pieces

1 large yellow onion, sliced thinly

2 teaspoons freshly minced garlic (about 2 small cloves)

1/4 cup water

2 bay leaves

Initial Sauce Ingredients:

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

2 cups low sodium chicken stock

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce (Lea & Perrins is gluten-free)

Later Sauce Ingredients:

2 tablespoons water

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon dried parsley (+ more for serving)

Directions:

1. Add a sprinkling of salt and pepper over the raw pork on both sides. Set aside.
2. Heat a heavy-bottomed skillet on medium high heat. Once the pan is hot add the diced bacon. Cook for 5-6 minutes until the fat has rendered from the bacon and the diced bacon bits are golden and crispy. Remove the bacon bits onto a paper-towel lined plate and allow them to cool. Then refrigerate bacon bits until serving the pork.
3. Add the pork chops to the hot pan of bacon fat and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side just until browned. Add pork chops to the slow cooker.
4. Add the sliced onions and 1/4 cup water to the same pan of bacon fat and cook onions until softened and translucent, about 5-6 minutes. While the onions are cooking, stir around the pan getting up all the brown bits from the bacon and pork. Then add garlic and cook just until fragrant, about another minute. Pour this mixture over the chops in the slow cooker along with the bay leaves.
5. In the same pan add the chicken stock, brown sugar, Worcestershire, and Dijon mustard. Whisk until dijon is combined into the stock and cook on high until the sauce mixture is boiling. Pour over the meat in the slow cooker.
6. Cook browned pork and sauce on high for 4 hours or on low for 8 hours.
7. Once the pork is fully cooked and you're ready to serve, remove the pork, most of the onions, and the bay leaves from slow cooker. Discard the bay leaves. The pork chops should be tender enough to pull away from the bones. Cover the pork chops with aluminum foil and put in a hot oven while you continue to prepare the sauce.
8. Pour the remaining sauce from the slow cooker into a large sauce pan and place on medium-high heat.
9. In a small bowl mix together the cornstarch, 2 tablespoons of water, cider vinegar, and dried parsley. Whisk into the sauce.
10. Allow the sauce to cook until boiling. Cook an additional 5-6 minutes until sauce has thickened to your likeness. If you want it thinner add a bit more water. If you prefer it thicker, add a bit more cornstarch that's been added to a little bit of water (a cornstarch slurry = 1 tablespoon cornstarch + 1 tablespoon water.)
11. When ready to serve sprinkle each piece of pork with some of the crispy bacon bits and then ladle the thickened sauce over each chop. Also, you can add additional parsley sprinkled over each serving. We ate this with seasoned rice and broccoli. Refrigerate any leftovers for up to 3 days.

NOTES:

• Alternately, instead of using a slow cooker you could bake the browned pork chops in a large casserole dish with the initial sauce, covered with aluminum foil at 300 degrees for 3-4 hours. Finish the sauce as directed above.
• I had a hard time finding the exact type of pork chop that was needed for this post. The pork chops I found were simply listed as QUARTER LOIN CHOPS, which I think is an older term that's not used in all grocery stores anymore. But they worked great for this recipe, so don't sweat it if you can't find the exact bone-in cut called for.
• If you want an even more flavorful, smooth, and silky sauce/gravy, you can stir in 2 tablespoons of butter when you're ready to serve the sauce. Allow it to melt and dissolve into the sauce and you're ready to go.