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The holidays are a time of indulgence and celebration and I try to carve out a couple days a week during this busy season to have a family dinners.  I want the dinners to be special and delicious, but I am always so exhausted during December that the recipe must be easy!  This Pancetta Stuffed Pork Chop is very fancy, but is really easy.  There is no sauce needed and that cuts down on the kitchen time.  Start to finish including baking time (read sit down and have a glass of wine time) is about 55 minutes.

I bought my chops at Trader Joes and they were “frenched”, which means the bone was left on the chop and it was cleaned.  It just makes for a pretty presentation, but not necessary.  You can do it yourself with a paring knife if you can’t find it already done or you can just buy chops without the bone. You just want thick cut chops so that you can stuff them.  And speaking of stuffing it is very easy to cut the slit in the chop.  Just take a very sharp paring knife and insert it into the side of the chop.  Cut a pocket, pretty deep-not so deep that you come out the other side, but deep enough that you can put a fair amount of stuffing.

I serve this with something easy like steamed peas with a tablespoon of butter melted over top or a salad or roasted brussels sprouts.  I hope you can take some time during this season to enjoy some good food and family time.

Happy Holidays!

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Pancetta Stuffed Pork Chops

Take pork chops to another level with this easy stuffed pork chop recipe.  Delicious and easy! 

Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 4 bone-in pork chops (1- 1 1/4" thick)

Marinade

  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • 1/2 lemon juiced
  • 2 Tablespoons rosemary, minced
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Stuffing

  • 4 oz pancetta, cubed
  • 1/2 large onion, chopped
  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil
  • 1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
  • 2 teaspoons rosemary, minced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9"x13" baking dish. 

  2. Combine all marinade ingredients in a zip top bag.  Add chops and marinate for as long as you can up to 6 hours. Even 15 minutes in the marinade makes a difference. 

  3. In a large skillet, saute pancetta and onion in a Tablespoons of olive oil until the pancetta starts to crips.  Add rosemary, garlic and breadcrumbs.  Sauté for another 5 minutes.  Add lemon juice and stir to combine.  Remove from heat. 

  4. Remove chops from marinade. Spoon 1/4 of the stuffing into each pocket of each chop. Use your fingers to make the pocket bigger if necessary. 

  5. Place stuffed chops into prepared baking dish and bake for 35-40 minutes depending on how thick your chops are.  You can test the temperature by using an instant read thermometer inserted into the meat closest to the bone, but not touching the bone or inserted into the stuffing. You want a temperature of 155 degrees. 

  6. Allow to rest for about 5 minutes.  Serve with a side of buttered peas, roasted brussels sprouts or salad.