Juicy pork chops are topped with pears in an orange-sage sauce and served with spicy mustard greens for a healthy one-pan dinner.
Pork Chops and Pears with Mustard Greens
Boneless pork chops cook on the stove with sweet D’Anjou pears in a fresh orange juice and sage sauce. The sauteed mustard greens with garlic and crushed red pepper are a nice alternative to spinach with their bold, bright taste. The pears’ sweetness balances out the greens’ spiciness, but feel free to reduce the red pepper if you’d like a milder meal. For more savory pear recipes, try this Kale and Butternut Squash Salad with Pears and Almonds and Stuffed Chicken with Prosciutto, Pears, and Brie.
If you prefer to use other greens, spinach or chard can be used here instead.
How to Cook Pork Chops on the Stove
To ensure even cooking, don’t cook the pork chops straight from the fridge. Pull them out about 20-30 minutes before and season the chops with salt and pepper for juicy meat with heightened flavor.
Boneless center cut pork chops cook pretty quickly, so make sure to watch as they get close to finishing. To test for doneness, hold the chop with tongs for stability and insert an instant-read thermometer into the side of the chop through to the center. The temperature should register 145°F.
Variations:
- Swap out mustard greens for baby spinach or kale.
- If you aren’t a fan of heat, reduce the crushed red pepper to 1/4 teaspoon.
- For more piquant flavor, sprinkle the greens with a little vinegar before serving. Malt, apple cider, or balsamic vinegar are all good choices.
More Pork Chop Recipes You’ll Love:
- Pork Chops with Mushrooms and Shallots
- Pork Chops with Dijon Herb Sauce
- Crispy Breaded Pork Chops in the Air Fryer
- Stuffed Baked Pork Chops with Prosciutto and Mozzarella
- Pork Chops and Applesauce
Pork Chops and Pears with Spicy Mustard Greens
Ingredients
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
- black pepper to taste
- 4 boneless center cut pork chops, trimmed of excess fat, 6-ounce, about 3/4-inch thick each
- 1 pound mustard greens, or spinach, chard, etc
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
- 2 large garlic cloves, chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1 1/2 medium firm D’Anjou pears, cut into 16 wedges
- 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
- 4 medium fresh sage leaves, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Season the pork chops with salt and black pepper to taste. Set aside.
- Cut the stems from the greens and discard. Fill a large bowl with water and fully plunge the leaves and agitate gently. Lift the greens from the water and place in a colander.
- Empty the water from the bowl and repeat to ensure ensure that all sand is washed from the greens. Do not shake away the excess water.
- Cut the greens crosswise into wide ribbons (about 2 1/2 inches).
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium, add garlic and cook, stirring for 1 minute.
- Add greens and crushed red pepper and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until wilted and the excess moisture is evaporated and the greens are tender, 8 to 10 minutes.
- Transfer to a serving dish and keep warm.
- Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil in a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat.
- Add pork chops and cook until the bottom is side is golden brown, about 3 minutes.
- Flip chops and reduce heat to medium and continue to cook until done (145°F), about 6 more minutes.
- Transfer to a plate and keep warm.
- Reduce pan heat to medium-low and add pears in a single layer.
- Cook until golden, turning once, about 2 minutes per side. add orange juice, 3 tablespoons water and sage.
- Stir to loosen the any browned bits from the pan bottom. Add pork chops and any accumulated juices from the plate back to the pan and let cook for 1 minute before removing from the heat.
- Serve pork chops topped with pears and pan juices and alongside the greens.
First, I probably added 3/4 to 1 tsp of red pepper just based on looks, it was the right call for me. If I did this again, I would not add the water to the sauce, just leave the oj and juices to do their thing, the sauce wasn’t saucy. Other than those tweaks, solid recipe and would make again.
This was delicious. Mixed the mustard greens with collards to even out the taste. It was a hit with the family.
Delicious recipe. Definitely had to use a vinegar to make the greens edible. But would definitely make again.
The pork chops and pears with the liquid are amazing! The mustard greens are NOT! I love kale but the mustard greens are bitter and have a weird texture. Next time I will do the spinach- ended up dumping the greens. 😢
Agreed. The mustard greens were so bitter and ruined it for me. I also dumped them and switched for spinach. Luckily they weren’t wasted, my chickens seem to love them
I didn’t have mustard greens so I just swapped the greens for steam in bag green beans.
I made the pork chops with pears and sauce just as recipe specified. It was a big hit among 4 adults. It’s also very fast and easy.
👍 It’s a keeper
Great!
Is there a meat substitution for the pork chops? Can this be made with chicken breast or thighs instead?
Sure chicken thighs would be great.
This is SO good. I made it for dinner this evening and it was a hit. I had pork chops and pears on hand, and substituted baby spinach for the mustard greens. Amazing.
I am so thankful for your recipes and I recommend your website to everyone. When my doctor asked what I had done to lower my A1c, I told her it was all thanks to skinnytaste.com (and a tiny bit of willpower.)
Thank you Teresa!!
This was super delicious and satisfying! So full of flavor! I seasoned the chops with a bbq rub which kicked it up another level. Definitely a keeper!
I don’t have orange juice, what would be a good substitute?
Can’t wait to try this one soon, though I might swap the greens for spinach. Not sure.
I would never ever eat meat and fruit together until I started making your recipes, now I love the different combos! Still not sold on ham and pineapple pizza though 🤣
My husband would think I’d lost my mind if I served him 1 piece of pork this size. 🤷🏻♀️🤯 I don’t eat pork so I’d try this with chicken and double the pears mixture and maybe add figs or apples.