Slow Cooked Peach Barbecue Smothered Pork Chops ~ once you try these you’ll never go back to cooking pork chops any other way, they’re fork tender!
There’s some kind of primal switch that gets turned on when I hear the words slow cooked, smothered, and pork chops in the same sentence. I’ve had these in mind ever since I saw Ashley’s recipe on Center Cut Cook. I’m so glad I tried this method because they turned out AMAZING and they’ve renewed my faith in pork chops. I never ever think to buy them because my only experience has been with dry and overcooked meat. These pork chops are the exact opposite. They fall off the bone, and you can eat them with a spoon. A spoon. This will be the way I make pork chops forever after.
I just love to make the occasional hearty meal in the middle of summer, it feels like a real luxury after weeks of light eating. These are double the luxury because, after a quick browning you set them and forget them. Need another excuse? When else are you going to find fresh ripe peaches except in mid summer? You have no choice but to make this now. And in fact that peach barbecue sauce is so wonderful, you might want to double the recipe and use the extra on grilled chicken or ribs. It’s that good.
TIP: Use peach or apricot preserves when fresh peaches are out of season.
Peach Barbecue Smothered Pork Chops
Equipment
- slow cooker
Ingredients
- 2 bone-in center cut pork loin chops, about 1 — 1/2 lbs You can also use boneless
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 small Vidalia or Maui onion, peeled and chopped
- 1 large shallot, peeled and minced
- 2 garlic cloves, smashed
- 2 ripe peaches, peeled and chopped
for the sauce
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup bourbon
- 1 Tbsp dark brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
garnish
- fresh parsley, minced
Instructions
- Season the chops on both sides with salt and pepper. Coat the bottom of a skillet with the oil and heat on medium high heat until quite hot but not smoking. Brown the chops on both sides and remove to the crock pot.
- Lower the heat and add the onions and shallots and garlic to the pan with a dash of water and saute for a couple of minutes. Scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the onions to the chops in the crock pot, making sure to get all the juices from the pan.
- Add the peaches to the crock pot as well.
- Whisk together the sauce ingredients and pour over the peaches and chops. Cook for 6-7 hours on low.
- Carefully remove the chops from the cooker. The meat will be falling off the bone, so if you want them to stay intact, use extra care. Set the meat aside.
- Check the remaining liquid for any bone fragments and then puree in a blender or food processor. Taste and adjust the seasonings if necessary.
- Serve the chops topped with the sauce and garnished with fresh parsley.
Notes
- Beef lovers try my Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon. And, if you like things spicy, try my Slow Cooked Hatch Pepper Chili.
I’m new at sending reviews but my husband and I thoroughly enjoyed this recipe. The peaches made savory, complimented the pork perfectly. Although I had 8 boneless pork chops I made your recipe as if there were 5 chops. I goofed up on the vinegar grabbing red wine vinegar even though I had apple cider vinegar. It came out OK but I’m certain it will be better with the correct ingredient! I also used peach bourbon. I’ll surely made this again.
Hi, How much peach preserves or canned sliced peaches do you recommend to substitute for the fresh peaches?
Not good, too much vinegar, it was the only flavor that came through. Pork, peaches, everything was cider vinegar.
Sorry this recipe wasn’t for you Kevin. I always recommend tasting as you go because individual preferences vary so much.
Can I substitute Canned peach slices so this can be an all season recipe?
Yes, that will work.
Mine came out a little tough. I’m not a very experienced crockpot cook and my pot has settings 1 through 4. I set it on 2, cooked it for a couple hours, then put it in the fridge overnight. I took it out this afternoon and put it back on for another 4-5 hours. It isn’t falling apart, but I don’t know if that means 2 was too high or if refrigerating it in the middle is a no no. Any feedback?
I’m not sure what went wrong Latchan. I think as long as you cook pork chops long enough, in low heat, in liquid, they should come out tender. Since I don’t know all the variables in your case I’m not sure what to suggest. I don’t usually break up my slow cooking the way you did, so that might have been the issue.
You need to cook for 5 hours
What can I substitute for bourbon in the peach recipe?
This looks easy (sort of) and flavorful! So its November in NY. I see you mention preserves, but not canned or jarred peaches, why not? I have them in house and would like to use them. Can I use them? If so, please let me know if I should adjust the recipe in any way or avoid using and just go out and buy preserves.
Many Thanks!
Could this be done in pressure cooker?
I’m sure it could, Charlotte, but I’m afraid I’m not an expert in pressure cooking, I plan to get up to speed this winter!
I’m an experienced cook but not too experienced with slow cooking.
What is the best way to triple this recipe? Obviously, triple the chops — but, what about the rest of the ingredients? I know the amounts of liquid influence the final product in a slow cooker.
Have been reading your blog for quite a while and enjoy it tremendously.
Thank you!
Well, if your slow cooker can hold it, I think you could triple all the ingredients. If the sauce is too much, you could boil it down before pureeing, or boil it after pureeing. But from looking at the ingredients, there isn’t an excess amount of sauce, so I’d say triple the whole thing.