Easy Baked Pork Chops with Bell Peppers

Rustling up dinner during the week can get tricky what with everyone being so busy throughout the day. No one wants to slave in a hot kitchen for hours on a weekday, right? So here’s a quick meal featuring some easy baked pork chops to set you up for the next couple days.

But first…

Get Your Sides Together

My son is almost always up and about while I’m cooking so I have to find the most effective way to get everything cooked and ready at the same time. This means, depending on how long my meat will take to cook, I get whatever sides I’m gonna use prepped.

This particular evening, I decide to go with rice. Since the first time I tried cooking my rice in the microwave years ago, I’ve never turned back. It comes out perfect every time! I’ve recently begun substituting broths for water just to give my white rice a little flavor.

Since it’s just the two of us:

• 1 1/2 cups plain white rice
• 3 cups chicken or beef broth
• 1 tbsp butter
• pinch of salt

Mix together in a microwave safe bowl and set timer for 15 minutes (at the same time you put your pork chops in the oven). That’s it!

Prep Pork Chops for Baking

My local meat store didn’t have the thicker cut that I wanted so I settled for these thin cut pork chops. Generally, with a cut this thin, you’ll wanna just pan sear/fry them. But, again, I needed to tend to the kid so in the oven they go!

What You’ll Need (measurements approximate)

• 4 Pork Chops
• Salt & Pepper or All-Purpose Seasoning
• 1/3 Yellow + 1/3 Red Bell Peppers
• 1 tbsp Rosemary
• Parsley
• 2 tbsp Olive Oil
• 3-4 tbsp Butter
• 1/4 cup Onion

Preheat oven to 350°. Chop and/or thinly slice bell peppers and place on the side.

After rinsing off your pork chops, lightly season (because these are thin) both sides with salt and pepper or all-purpose seasoning and place in your baking dish. Add the peppers, rosemary flakes and parsley. Rosemary is usually used with lamb but I like the flavor that comes out with pork as well.

Once your pork chops are seasoned, drizzle a little olive oil over each piece. Place butter in between the chops and on the sides of the pan. This combo makes a nice sauce/gravy to go over the rice. Here is where I’d also add the onion but I was rushing so that didn’t happen.

Set your oven timer for 20 minutes and pop ’em in uncovered. Go sit down, scroll through social media or do the alphabet with the little one while they cook.

Keep in mind that a thinner cut will cook faster than it will brown on top, so if you wait for browning, you could end up with rock chops. This is why searing in a pan first is often recommended. So be sure to check on the pork chops periodically just to make sure you don’t overcook them.

And… Voila! Easy baked pork chops and rice in about 30 minutes, if you count the prep time. Add some fresh baby spinach as your veggie side and you’re good to go! A quick, tasty meal that you can easily fit into your weekday grind.

Some Quick Notes

My favorite all-purpose seasoning (above) is very flavorful, so because I was working with a thinner cut of meat, I tried not to be too heavy-handed with it… not tryna kill hubby with all that salt! So be mindful of that when seasoning your pork chops as well.

You’re more than welcome to use just one type of bell pepper but I love mixing it up for some presentation and prettiness… makes me feel like a real chef. 🙂 Plus, I find that they each have slightly different flavors which will be brought out nicely once the meat has cooked.

If you’re not a pork eater, you can just as well do this with chicken thighs or breasts.  In this case, I would definitely brown the chicken in a pan before placing it in the oven to cook for another 30 minutes or so at about 400°.

Have your own quick weekday meal ideas? If you’ve got links, leave ’em below… I’d love to try some new recipes!