Braised Pork Chops with Vinegar Peppers is a simple but delicious Italian-American dish that’s easy enough for weeknights, but special enough for Sunday dinner.
I’ve been eating pork chops and vinegar peppers, also known as cherry peppers, for years and find the combination of pork and pickled peppers to be one of the best matches ever!
These pork chops are great served with a side of garlic sauteed broccoli rabe, and a starch, like crispy roasted potatoes or rice pilaf, and crusty bread to mop up the sauce!
How to make it
- Dry the pork chops off with paper towels and season with salt and pepper on both sides.
- Picture of the vinegar or cherry peppers. These are hot as indicated on the bottle. They are about 5000 on the scoville scale. You can sometimes find sweet cherry peppers. Often they use high fructose corn syrup to take out some of the heat.
- Chop 4 large cherry peppers into quarters and remove most of the seeds.
- Chop 4 cloves of garlic and mince 1/4 cup fresh parsley.
- Heat pan to medium-high heat and add a touch of olive oil. Sear the chops for 2-3 minutes per side. Do not crowd the chops and/or sear in batches to avoid them touching.
- Set chops aside when finished searing.
- Lower pan heat to medium, add 3 Tbsp of olive oil and saute the garlic. After 2 minutes add the vinegar peppers and cook for 1 minute more.
- Next, turn heat to high and add 3/4 cup of white wine. After 2 minutes, add the 3/4 cup chicken stock and 1/4 cup of vinegar from the jar. Let the sauce boil for a minute.
- Turn the heat down to medium-low
- Add the chops into the sauce, spreading them out.
- Cover and cook for 1-1 1/2 hours minimum or until tender. Make sure to turn the chops over every 30 minutes to achieve even cooking.
- When the chops are finished they will be smaller and more tender. If they are not quite tender enough, feel free to cook them for another 15- 30 minutes or so. Finish by mixing the fresh parsley into the sauce.
Top tips
- The pork. Premium pork chops with a lower fat content will not need to be braised that long. A standard blade chop will take over an hour to braise and become tender so bear that in mind. You can also use a pork tenderloin cut into 1″ thick slices.
- Peppers. Cherry peppers are a bit spicy so if you don’t enjoy heat, you can use sweet vinegar peppers instead.
More pork recipes
Here are a few more pork recipes I think you’ll love!
- Pork chops Milanese – classic breaded chops for any day of the week!
- Grilled pork chops – with a simple balsamic glaze.
- Pork chops with apples – with maple syrup, cinnamon, sage, and apples.
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Pork Chops with Vinegar Peppers
Ingredients
- 6 1″ thick bone in pork chops
- 4 cloves garlic
- 4 large cherry peppers
- 1/4 cup parsley
- 3/4 cup dry white wine
- 3/4 cup low sodium chicken stock
- 1/4 cup vinegar from cherry peppers
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 cup olive oil
Instructions
- Pat dry and season pork chops on both sides with total of 1 tsp kosher salt and 1/2 tsp black pepper evenly. Chop 4 cloves garlic and quarter 4 vinegar peppers removing seeds.
- Heat a large pan to medium-high and sear pork chops in 1 Tbsp olive oil on both sides for 2-3 minutes. Remove chops and set aside.
- Lower pan heat to medium and saute the garlic in the remaining olive oil for 2 minutes. Next, add the cherry peppers and give the pan a stir. Add the wine, stock and vinegar to the pan and turn heat to high. Bring the sauce to a boil for 2 minutes then lower heat down to medium-low.
- Place all the pork chops into the sauce spreading around evenly. Cover and let simmer for 1-1 1/2 hours or until the pork is very tender. Every 30 minutes, turn the chops over to achieve even cooking.
- Mix the parsley into the sauce. Serve the pork with sauce spooned over the top of each chop. Enjoy!
Notes
- The chops cooking time will vary based on thickness. The longer they cook the more tender they will get. 60-90 minutes will ensure a tender chop.
- If all the sauce evaporates towards the end of braising process just add a 1/2 cup of water and stir to combine.
- Serve with extra vinegar and peppers on the side, along with a loaf of Italian bread for the pan drippings.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This was one of our favorite meals. Going to make it today. Thanks.
i have made this recipe from my younger years it is one of my favorites!
I asked this question before, however I was not emailed an answer and I don’t remember the recipe I asked it under. How do you tell a good Virgin Olive Oil that you use sparingly with all the Extra Virgin Olive Oils on the market today? Do you go by price or is there a specific thing one should look for?l.
Your recipes are wonderful and easy to follow.
Hi Barbara, you asked this question in the comments section of the Chicken Marsala recipe on January 12 to which I responded suggesting you listen to the podcast Jim recorded where he discusses all things olive oil. Here’s the link: https://www.sipandfeast.com/podcast-episode-004/
Just want to say thank you for all your great recipes. This is one of our favorites and we’ve made it a number of times already. Making it tonight! Love the show and your style. Thank you!
Hi Mark, we’re so happy you’re enjoying the recipes! Thanks for the comment!
This is one of my family’s favorite recipe. I grow and can my own cherry peppers for this recipe too. James & Tara keep the recipes coming, we have enjoyed several other recipes as well. Just did the pot roast last Sunday, 5 stars ⭐️
Hi Chris, we’re so happy you enjoyed this one and really appreciate the comment!
This is a really good Fall recipe. The entire family enjoyed it.
Hi Jeff, we’re so happy you enjoyed this one and really appreciate the comment!
This was excellent, didn’t even need a knife to cut the pork chops. Sauce was outstanding. Made this with your Italian potatoes recipe. Dipped the potatoes in the sauce, outstanding! Only thing I forgot was the crispy bread! This is probably the fifth or sixth recipe I have made off of your site, they are all great.
Hi Rob, thanks for the comment and so happy you enjoyed this recipe as well as the others!
Jim, I am a bit unclear re the pork cut. A blade would braise maybe as long as your indicated time, about 1 1/4hr or so. This slow braise will also make a flavorful sauce. If using a tenderloin or loin chop, and if lucky enough to find Berkshire, as you say, probably 140 is more like it. My question is, since a leaner chop needs very little time to reach desired temp, won’t the sauce be less tasty? Would it be wise to let the sauce cook a bit without the meat to reduce and develop flavor and then put the chops back to finish. I would love some feedback from you on this as I’m sure you’ve had experience with a variety of pork cuts when doing this dish. I’m not sure which way to approach this. Thank you.
Hi Den, You can cook the sauce in advance and put the chops in at the end, especially if you are using Berkshire or other great chops. Most of the time, in restaurants, this dish is served with grilled or pan fried chops to medium. It really is great both ways.
I made these pork chops yesterday, they were excellent. Made many of your recipes, very happy with all of them. Thank you!
Hi Carlene, I’m so happy you enjoyed the pork chops and really appreciate your comment!
We have made this several times. It is definitely a family favorite! Pork chops are tender and the sauce is so flavorful.
Hi Carol, thanks for the comment and so happy this is one of your family’s favorites!