Pork chops and apple sauce are a classic combination made with pork loin chops seasoned with paprika, sage, thyme, and garlic powder, lightly pan-fried and served with my homemade applesauce.
Pork Chops and Applesauce
While my applesauce was simmering in the crock pot, I knew I would serve it with pork chops for an easy fall-inspired meal. The rich, savory pork pairs nicely with the sweet, tart applesauce. This 20-minute dinner is great on nights when you’re short on time. Since I used thin, boneless pork chops, they cook faster than bone-in chops.
Why This Pork Chops and Applesauce Recipe Works
This pork chops with applesauce dish is full of sweet, savory autumn flavors that remind you that Thanksgiving is just around the corner. I love cooking with seasonal ingredients like apples, thyme, and sage. With just a few more staples, you’ll have a delicious, comforting meal on the table in no time.
Done in 20 minutes: Thin pork chops cook quickly in one pan for a simple weeknight dinner.
Kid-friendly: My kids always loved this meal when they were younger.
Healthy: This recipe is low-carb, keto, and gluten-free, with 20 grams of protein per chop.
Ingredients You’ll Need
A few pantry staples elevate these pork chops, making them a dinner you’ll make on repeat. See the recipe card below for the exact measurements.
Pork chops: I used boneless, center-cut pork loin chops, about 3.5 ounces each. They’re lean but still flavorful and juicy when seasoned and cooked properly.
Since center-cut pork loin chops are pretty lean, be sure not to overcook them so they don’t dry out. See the recipe card at the bottom for printable directions.
Season the pork chops with all the spices and dried herbs.
Coat the chops in flour: Pat the flour on the pork, shaking off any excess.
How long to cook thin pork chops: Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Then cook the chops for 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Once they reach 145°F (checked with a meat thermometer), remove them and let them rest for a few minutes before slicing.
Tips from Gina’s Test Kitchen
Pork options: I used boneless pork chops since they cook so quickly, but this recipe would work just as well with bone-in chops, which stay even juicier. You’ll just need to cook them for a few extra minutes.
To prevent the chops from sticking, fully preheat the pan and use just enough butter to coat it.
Cook to a safe temperature: According to the USDA, cooking pork to 145°F and letting it rest for three minutes gives you juicy chops that are safe to eat.
Variations
Seasoning: If you don’t have one of the herbs, substitute dried rosemary or parsley. You can also swap garlic powder for onion powder.
Keep it dairy-free: Replace butter with olive oil or vegan butter.
Meal prep: Season the pork with the spice mix up to 24 hours in advance. You can also make the applesauce a day early.
Repurpose the leftovers: The pork is delicious on its own, so it’d also be great sliced and served on salads, in grain bowls, or in sandwiches.
Refrigerate the pork chops and applesauce in separate airtight containers for up to 4 days.
Reheat in the microwave. You can also air fry the pork at 350°F and heat the applesauce in a small, covered saucepan over low heat until warm.
Freeze both in airtight containers for up to 3 months. If you want smaller portions of applesauce, freeze it in an ice cube tray, then store the cubes in a ziplock bag once frozen.
½cupapple sauce for serving on the side, homemade or store bought
Instructions
Season pork chops with paprika, garlic powder, sage, thyme, salt and fresh pepper to taste.
Place flour on a small flat plate and lightly pat the chops with flour, shaking off any excess flour so they are lightly coated.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add butter when the pan is hot.
When the butter melts, place chops in the skillet and cook 3 ½ to 4 minutes.
Turn over and cook an additional 3 – 4 minutes, or until the internal temp is 145° F.
Remove from the pan and set on a platter to rest for three minutes.
Last Step:
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This is my simple ‘go to’ recipe I use for pork chops. It’s easy and delicious! You just cannot beat the combination of pork with applesauce!! The seasoning is perfect. I keep a small container of the spice combination in my cabinet to use often. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
This was an excellent and easy recipe! I used pork loin chops, a little thicker than called for, cooked a little longer — but superb taste and texture. We eat a lot of “the other white meat” and this recipe will definitely be used again (and again).
If I could rate this 10 stars, I would! I had pre-brined a couple of chops for dinner but then got side-tracked doing stuff around the house and needed a quick and easy recipe. This was fabulous and full of flavor – I did cheat and used herbes de provence along with the garlic, salt and pepper. So quick and easy! This will be my go-to for pork chops going forward.
Excellent pork chops! I cut the time on the 2nd side a couple minutes and added a half cup of apple cider vinegar at the end on high for a couple minutes to reduce. Served with mashed potatoes and roasted asparagus. Amazing, best chops and combo ever! This is now in our weekly rotation! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Excellent! Quick and tasty with ingredients I already had on hand. Definitely a keeper. Our family of four includes 2 teens and both said it was great. I used bone-in thin pork chops since they seem to stay juicier than boneless.
Seasonings great, easy to do. served with roasted veggies, and had barley too, lookingat skinny taste recipe in meal prep for barley veggie bowls-which I can have as leftovers. flavorful, easy recipe.
Made these pork chops tonight. What a fabulous tasting recipe. Easy weeknight meal. Delicious! Family favorite. Served with roasted potatoes and string beans. Skipped the crockpot applesauce, and opened a jar. 🤷🏻♀️
Five stars for sure!!!
Fantastic recipe. Easy preparation, quick to cook, and a delicious result.
One tip is to cook the pork chops only until they’re just done and no longer. They should be tender enough to cut with a fork and they’ll stay wonderfully juicy.
(My other tip is that if you’re not crazy about apple sauce – I love it with pork chops – consider using this recipe to make pork chops for sandwiches. )
Thank you for this excellent week night meal! Easy prep and clean up and we all loved it. Even my 10 month old devoured the salmon, broccoli, and peppers! This is a recipe keeper for sure!
This is my ultimate favorite pork chop! Me and my family have been making this for years… I recommend this to everyone! Amazing flavor burst! I can’t get enough. Thank you!
This is delicious! I skipped the applesauce, and instead sliced my pork and laid it over your Autumn Salad with Pears and Gorgonzola (recipe here: https://www.skinnytaste.com/autumn-salad-with-pears-and-gorgonzola/). I subbed goat cheese for the gorgonzola and added a hard boiled egg and a handful of blueberries. Meal prep on POINT this week!! 🙂
I made this last night for dinner, and my kids loved it! My six year old actually said yum with every forkful! Will definitely have to make this more often.
Yum, I really want to try this!! Unfortunately my boyfriend doesn’t like pork. I’m sure I could substitute his for chicken, but would it be weird to serve the applesauce with chicken? Or should I just leave it off his plate?
My chops came out dry…I don't know if they were too thick or if I cooked them too fast. I will definitely try it again with thinner chops. The drippings, however, made a nice gravy to put over the chops so they didn't seem dry!
I just got done cooking these, but when I flipped them they kinda stuck and the brown crunchy part came off. What can I do different? Love ur recipes they are so yummy and glad they are healthy. Thanks for the yummy food!!
Usually my family makes pork chops with nothing but seasoned salt for the seasoning but we gave these a try last night. My husband and nine year old son are VERY bland eaters and preferred the old way (although they did eat their meal) but I LOVED the seasoning combination in this recipe. I'll definitely be making mine like this in the future.
I have made about 4-5 dishes from here. I have to say, they are coming out super YUMMY! My favorite is your carnitas. I am Mexican and one thing I hated giving up was street tacos. Well, your crock-pot carnitas made it possible for me to go there again (maybe I should be writing this on your crock pot carnitas page). I am making these pork chops with your garlic mashed potatoes tonight. I have not had one bad recepie from your website…so super thumbs up from me. I hope these are just as good, I'm sure they will be, if not, there is a high chance it was user error. I will check back and give my feedback tomorrow. Wish me luck 😉
Made these tonight and they were DELICIOUS! Subbed Old Bay for paprika and basil for thyme (didn't have any), but they were so good. My husband says he doesn't care for herbed pork…he does now!
Chloe ate them Gi! Max picked as usual! They came out good…not a huge fan of pork- everyone else really liked them! I'll try them on the grill next time.
I did something similar …adobo, dried oregano and cilantro, packet of sazon, fresh garlic and a little olive oil. Marinate for about 30 minutes then I put in 250* degree oven for about 15-20 min then broiled on each side about 3-5 min or just when start to brown. So moist and yummy flavor!
This turned out EXCELLENT! Even my picky boyfriend loved, though he thought the apple sauce was "weird" but it was still great without it! I will for sure make this in the future!
My family loves these all the time! My kids are picky eaters when it comes to meat but this is their favorite. I get no complaints. Thanks so much!!!!!
I need help. 2nd time back on WW and want to make it all right this time. I found this recipe and it looks awesome but when i put the ingred in ww recipe builder comes up 6 pts. what am i doing wrong?
Thank you so much for sharing such a great, comfort food light recipe! I never thought to make my own applesauce, it really brightened up my old pork chop standby. Thank you!! I loved it!!
I made this last night for supper, except I used your pumpkin butter instead of the applesauce. Delicious! I didn't have any sage, but I didn't really miss it.
I made this last night and it turned out great! It's always hard to know what to do with those thin pork chops so they don't dry out! I'll definitely be making this again!! The only think I noticed is that my second batch came out better than the first because the pan was hotter.
This looks yummy. My first thought when I read the title of the recipe was also about the Brady Bunch episode. I'm glad I'm not the only weird one. I've been saying "pork chops and applesauce" all day. Lol
This Will Be Dinner Tonight! My Dad LOVES Applesauce With His Porkchops. He Is Very Picky And Has Loved The SkinnyTaste Recipes. Thank You For Helping Me Find Healthy Foods My Picky Diabetic Dad Will Eat!
Sorry for teasing you, I haven't posted the buttermilk mashed yet but it's coming soon. The salad recipe is linked above. Lots of Thanksgiving side dishes coming soon!
Anonymous asked for mashed potatos. It wasn't until her thank you to Gina that she mentioned buttermilk ones. Great recipes this is going to be dinner tomorrow night. 2 thumbs up.
Hi Gina, I couldn't find the recipe for buttermilk mashed potato either. There is one with garlic but it has sour cream, not buttermilk. Would love it if you could post the buttermilk one. Thanks!!!
I made these tonight but substituted your spices for old bay, a southern favorite! They were amazing! I also made your apple sauce. I thought it was great! My husband said I used too much spices! Oh well, you can't win them all!
This looks (and sounds) so GOOD! I have been getting so tired of chicken and really need something different. This is great, I don't know why I didn't think of it myself. Thanks!!
I am 4-for-4 using your excellent recipes this week: sesame crusted chicken tenders, the roasted peppers, onions, potatoes, and sausage dish, the broccoli mac and cheese, and the chicken cordon bleu. I cannot wait to try the pork chops paired with the autumn pear salad!
This looks mouth watering! My boyfriend just mentioned he loved Pork Chops with Applesauce and I thought he was crazy…never heard of applesauce with meat. lol. Do you have a receipe for mashed potatoes? I've looked and looked but couldn't find one. Thanks!
This looks really good!!! It's going on my next menu plan!
On a side note – the post title brought me back to a particular Brady Bunch episode where Peter Brady must have repeated that phrase a dozen times. LOL.
Fantastic and simple recipe that yields such juicy and tender pork chops. I really liked the subtle crust provided by the dusting of flour.
This is my simple ‘go to’ recipe I use for pork chops. It’s easy and delicious! You just cannot beat the combination of pork with applesauce!! The seasoning is perfect. I keep a small container of the spice combination in my cabinet to use often. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
Loved it! Delicious flavor and so quick & easy.
This was an excellent and easy recipe! I used pork loin chops, a little thicker than called for, cooked a little longer — but superb taste and texture. We eat a lot of “the other white meat” and this recipe will definitely be used again (and again).
Glad you enjoyed it!
What a quick, easy and tasty meal! I did have to double the seasonings, but this was a perfect meal for a weeknight.
good seasoning
The thin, boneless pork chops were tender and moist! It’s so quick and easy to whip up a good pork chop recipe. My husband loved them.
Sounds good
If I could rate this 10 stars, I would! I had pre-brined a couple of chops for dinner but then got side-tracked doing stuff around the house and needed a quick and easy recipe. This was fabulous and full of flavor – I did cheat and used herbes de provence along with the garlic, salt and pepper. So quick and easy! This will be my go-to for pork chops going forward.
Thanks Ronnie!
Excellent dish! Added to my monthly rotation for sure! Thank you so much for sharing ❤️.
Love this recipe. It’s easy to make and tastes delicious!
Excellent pork chops! I cut the time on the 2nd side a couple minutes and added a half cup of apple cider vinegar at the end on high for a couple minutes to reduce. Served with mashed potatoes and roasted asparagus. Amazing, best chops and combo ever! This is now in our weekly rotation! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Excellent! Quick and tasty with ingredients I already had on hand. Definitely a keeper. Our family of four includes 2 teens and both said it was great. I used bone-in thin pork chops since they seem to stay juicier than boneless.
Seasonings great, easy to do. served with roasted veggies, and had barley too, lookingat skinny taste recipe in meal prep for barley veggie bowls-which I can have as leftovers. flavorful, easy recipe.
Made these pork chops tonight. What a fabulous tasting recipe. Easy weeknight meal. Delicious! Family favorite. Served with roasted potatoes and string beans. Skipped the crockpot applesauce, and opened a jar. 🤷🏻♀️
Five stars for sure!!!
Fantastic recipe. Easy preparation, quick to cook, and a delicious result.
One tip is to cook the pork chops only until they’re just done and no longer. They should be tender enough to cut with a fork and they’ll stay wonderfully juicy.
(My other tip is that if you’re not crazy about apple sauce – I love it with pork chops – consider using this recipe to make pork chops for sandwiches. )
Easy 5-star recipe!
Great!
Thank you for this excellent week night meal! Easy prep and clean up and we all loved it. Even my 10 month old devoured the salmon, broccoli, and peppers! This is a recipe keeper for sure!
I used almond flour and it turned out amazing!
This is my ultimate favorite pork chop! Me and my family have been making this for years… I recommend this to everyone! Amazing flavor burst! I can’t get enough. Thank you!
my family loved this recipe , finally moist pork chops, yay!
This is delicious! I skipped the applesauce, and instead sliced my pork and laid it over your Autumn Salad with Pears and Gorgonzola (recipe here: https://www.skinnytaste.com/autumn-salad-with-pears-and-gorgonzola/). I subbed goat cheese for the gorgonzola and added a hard boiled egg and a handful of blueberries. Meal prep on POINT this week!! 🙂
I made these tonight for dinner and they were so good! Thank you for another amazing recipe. Question- how do you recommend reheating them?
Thank you in advance!
I would probably microwave them. Careful not to dry them out, so glad you liked them!
I always reheat them with a damp paper towel over them. Keeps them from drying out
Made this last night. Has to be my favorite way to cook pork chops. It was very good! Juicy!!
I made this last night for dinner, and my kids loved it! My six year old actually said yum with every forkful! Will definitely have to make this more often.
Love when the kids enjoy it too!!
Yum, I really want to try this!! Unfortunately my boyfriend doesn’t like pork. I’m sure I could substitute his for chicken, but would it be weird to serve the applesauce with chicken? Or should I just leave it off his plate?
It certainly goes well with pork, never had it with chicken
Do you hear up applesauce?
*heat
You can if you would like. Your choice. 🙂
My chops came out dry…I don't know if they were too thick or if I cooked them too fast. I will definitely try it again with thinner chops. The drippings, however, made a nice gravy to put over the chops so they didn't seem dry!
Try try till you get it right!
Sounds like they cooked too long.
Delicious and recommended! Tonight is my time using this recipe in less than 2 weeks.
Replying to my own post for a correction. It should read "Tonight is my SECOND time using this recipe in less than 2 weeks."
Dinner tonight!
I just got done cooking these, but when I flipped them they kinda stuck and the brown crunchy part came off. What can I do different? Love ur recipes they are so yummy and glad they are healthy. Thanks for the yummy food!!
Usually my family makes pork chops with nothing but seasoned salt for the seasoning but we gave these a try last night. My husband and nine year old son are VERY bland eaters and preferred the old way (although they did eat their meal) but I LOVED the seasoning combination in this recipe. I'll definitely be making mine like this in the future.
I have made about 4-5 dishes from here. I have to say, they are coming out super YUMMY! My favorite is your carnitas. I am Mexican and one thing I hated giving up was street tacos. Well, your crock-pot carnitas made it possible for me to go there again (maybe I should be writing this on your crock pot carnitas page). I am making these pork chops with your garlic mashed potatoes tonight. I have not had one bad recepie from your website…so super thumbs up from me. I hope these are just as good, I'm sure they will be, if not, there is a high chance it was user error. I will check back and give my feedback tomorrow. Wish me luck 😉
Loved these! We were skeptical of the applesauce with the chops but was DELICIOUS! And so tender. We will definitely be making these again.
These were awesome — and so easy to make!!
made this for dinner last night, it was a hit and soooo good! thanks for sharing your recipes 🙂
Awesome recipe, my husband loved them (so did I)! He couldn't believe they were from a website called "Skinnytaste." Thank you for the yummy recipe!
Made these tonight and they were DELICIOUS! Subbed Old Bay for paprika and basil for thyme (didn't have any), but they were so good. My husband says he doesn't care for herbed pork…he does now!
Chloe ate them Gi!
Max picked as usual!
They came out good…not a huge fan of pork- everyone else really liked them!
I'll try them on the grill next time.
I did something similar …adobo, dried oregano and cilantro, packet of sazon, fresh garlic and a little olive oil. Marinate for about 30 minutes then I put in 250* degree oven for about 15-20 min then broiled on each side about 3-5 min or just when start to brown.
So moist and yummy flavor!
If I were to get my pork loin chops made out of a pork loin (on sale at Publix this week) how many inches thick should I ask for? 1/2 inch?
Sorry, I read the values closer and saw the applesauce listed there. Sorry about that.
Does that 4 point value include the applesauce listed under the ingredients?
These were awesome and are now in the weekly rotation! Best chop recipe and so easy to make! Thank you for sharing!😋
This turned out EXCELLENT! Even my picky boyfriend loved, though he thought the apple sauce was "weird" but it was still great without it! I will for sure make this in the future!
Everyone LOVED it!!!! My husband said it was the best meal I have ever cooked… We also had sweet corn on the cob..YUM!!! Thanks for the great recipe!!
Made this tonight, and my 2 year old kept asking for more! Thanks so much!!!
This was delicious! I used smoked paprika instead of regular paprika, but I'm sure it's great with normal paprika too!
Made this last night very very good. I too didn't have the dried sage but I did have the Thyme and it was delish….
Thank you.
These are awesome! Super easy and fast. I didn't have the dried sage and thyme so I subsituted poultry seasoning.
My family loves these all the time! My kids are picky eaters when it comes to meat but this is their favorite. I get no complaints. Thanks so much!!!!!
Yum… I tried these tonight, SO good!
I need help. 2nd time back on WW and want to make it all right this time. I found this recipe and it looks awesome but when i put the ingred in ww recipe builder comes up 6 pts. what am i doing wrong?
OH GOODNESS I just figured out what i was doing wrong duh me I can't wait to try these. i also have picky kids
These were great! thanks for a making and ordinary pork chop so delicious for us! Can't wait to try more of your recipes!
We made these tonight and they were so good. My porkchops are often dry but these were perfect! Thanks!
This was what was for dinner tonight. Super yummy and real easy to make, even my 6 year old loved it!
Thank you so much for sharing such a great, comfort food light recipe! I never thought to make my own applesauce, it really brightened up my old pork chop standby. Thank you!! I loved it!!
This…….was AMAZING!
Awesome 🙂
Making this tonight with your makeover corn casserole and roasted broccoli! It is a Skinnytaste kinda night!! Thanks for being fabulous!!!
I love that this meal (with your skinny mashed) is so quick to make but feels special! I will definitely be making this more often!
Pork Chops were delicious, even my picky 5yr old ate them up.
Made this tonight excited to try if. We have loved all your recipes I even got my sis in law hooked!
these are delicious. thanks gina!
making this tonight with roasted acorn squash as a side! perfect fall dish for Halloween!
i am making this tonight with the crockpot apple sauce and mashed potatoes! i can't wait!! thanks gina!
Love the pork and apple sauce flavor combo! Yum! Pork looks fantastic =D
I made this last night for supper, except I used your pumpkin butter instead of the applesauce. Delicious! I didn't have any sage, but I didn't really miss it.
You can just leave the sage out, add more thyme.
I made this last night and it turned out great! It's always hard to know what to do with those thin pork chops so they don't dry out! I'll definitely be making this again!! The only think I noticed is that my second batch came out better than the first because the pan was hotter.
Are there any good substitues for the sage? I think I have every herb but that one!
Brady Bunch is the first that popped into my mind when I saw it. Then my mouth started to drool. I can't wait to try these.
This looks yummy. My first thought when I read the title of the recipe was also about the Brady Bunch episode. I'm glad I'm not the only weird one. I've been saying "pork chops and applesauce" all day. Lol
This Will Be Dinner Tonight! My Dad LOVES Applesauce With His Porkchops. He Is Very Picky And Has Loved The SkinnyTaste Recipes. Thank You For Helping Me Find Healthy Foods My Picky Diabetic Dad Will Eat!
Sorry for teasing you, I haven't posted the buttermilk mashed yet but it's coming soon. The salad recipe is linked above. Lots of Thanksgiving side dishes coming soon!
Anonymous asked for mashed potatos. It wasn't until her thank you to Gina that she mentioned buttermilk ones. Great recipes this is going to be dinner tomorrow night. 2 thumbs up.
Hi Gina,
I couldn't find the recipe for buttermilk mashed potato either. There is one with garlic but it has sour cream, not buttermilk. Would love it if you could post the buttermilk one. Thanks!!!
currently living in france and i'm thinking that the french need to be introduced to this very americana recipe! i'll try it out soon! xo
I made these tonight but substituted your spices for old bay, a southern favorite! They were amazing! I also made your apple sauce. I thought it was great! My husband said I used too much spices! Oh well, you can't win them all!
Gina thank you so much for ALL your great recipes! Do you have the salad recipe here as well? Thanks.
Love the spice blend on this pork and can't wait to try it. For some reason I always forget to make pork but this looks delicious.
Oh those look amazing! I need to make pork chops more often!! Thanks for the recipe!
Porkchops and applesauce is one of my favorite fall entrees! Thanks for sharing a new flavorful take on it!
Looks yummy can't wait to give this a try, thanks.
Thanks, Gina! I found the ones that were garlic but not buttermilk! I love garlic so that works out!
Thanks again! Ever receipe I've ever tried has been amazing! My momm sister, and friends now use your website!
Too funny, I was coming to the site to look for a Pork Chop recipe and it was right in front of me! Thank you!
Pork chops and applesauce, so American! Lol about the Brady Bunch episode!
Yes, the chops weighed 3.5 oz each, 14 oz total.
And yes, I have mashed potatoes, do a search at the top right for skinny mashed, it should come up.
This looks (and sounds) so GOOD! I have been getting so tired of chicken and really need something different. This is great, I don't know why I didn't think of it myself. Thanks!!
Lauren
http://laurensweetnothings.blogspot.com/
I am 4-for-4 using your excellent recipes this week: sesame crusted chicken tenders, the roasted peppers, onions, potatoes, and sausage dish, the broccoli mac and cheese, and the chicken cordon bleu. I cannot wait to try the pork chops paired with the autumn pear salad!
Looks delicious! I will definitely try this one!
I can't say this enough and find myself saying this everyday to you through the screen….
I LOVE LOVE LOVE you!
Heather-NY
This looks mouth watering! My boyfriend just mentioned he loved Pork Chops with Applesauce and I thought he was crazy…never heard of applesauce with meat. lol. Do you have a receipe for mashed potatoes? I've looked and looked but couldn't find one. Thanks!
are the loin chops supposed to be 3.5oz each then? 14oz for a total of 4?
Pork Chops and Applesauce a great combo, and the phrase always conjures up that Brady Bunch episode for me too…LOL
That looks so good, but I'm always so nervous to cook pork. I might have to put my nervousness aside and try this because it looks really really good.
Definitely started drooling at my desk. Can't wait to try this recipe out!
This looks really good!!! It's going on my next menu plan!
On a side note – the post title brought me back to a particular Brady Bunch episode where Peter Brady must have repeated that phrase a dozen times. LOL.
@Lauren thats exactly what I thought! =)
Hahaha, too funny. I was looking for a Brady Bunch reference in the intro to the recipe. I'm glad someone mentioned it down here.