Seared Pork Chops with Sage Brown Butter and Squash
Pork chops seared golden in butter, then finished with a quick sage brown butter pan sauce. Roasted butternut squash and sweet onion round out a savory, high-protein dinner.
- Total
- 59 min
- Prep 15 · Cook 39 · Rest 5
- Serves
- 1
- Difficulty
- Medium
You'll practice: Searing · Pan sauce
- Savory
- Stovetop
- Oven
Instructions
-
Heat the oven to 220°C. Peel the butternut squash, cut it into 2 cm cubes, and slice the onion into 1 cm wedges. Toss both on a sheet pan with the olive oil, 0.5 tsp salt, and 0.25 tsp black pepper.
~10 min
Cutting squash into uniform 2 cm cubes ensures even roasting, so smaller pieces don't burn before larger ones turn tender.
-
Roast the squash and onion until the edges are browned and the squash is tender when pierced with a knife, 25 to 30 minutes.
~30 min
Roasting at high heat caramelizes the natural sugars in squash and onion, deepening their flavor and browning the edges.
-
While step 2 cooks
While the vegetables roast, pat the pork chops dry and season both sides with the remaining 0.5 tsp salt and 0.25 tsp black pepper. Pick the sage leaves from the stems.
~5 min
Drying the pork chops removes surface moisture, allowing the meat to sear and brown rather than steam.
Dry the pork chops well before searing. Surface moisture steams the meat and prevents the deep browning that builds the fond for the pan sauce.
-
Heat a large skillet over medium-high. Sear the pork chops until deeply browned, 3 to 4 minutes per side, then transfer to a plate. The chops should reach 63°C in the thickest part; they will finish cooking in the sauce.
~8 min
Searing over medium-high heat triggers the Maillard reaction, creating a deeply browned crust and flavorful fond for the pan sauce.
Searing Pat meat dry and use a hot skillet to get a deep brown crust. Don't move the chops until they release easily; crowding or flipping too soon steams the meat.
-
Lower the heat to medium. Add the butter and sage leaves to the skillet and cook until the butter foams and smells nutty and the sage crisps, about 2 minutes.
~2 min
Butter browns when its milk solids toast, developing a nutty flavor; adding sage at the foaming stage crisps the leaves without burning.
Add the sage only once the butter is foaming. If the butter browns before the sage crisps, the leaves turn bitter.
Pan sauce After searing, lower the heat and add butter and sage to the fond. Swirl and spoon the foaming butter over the meat to build a glossy sauce without burning.
-
Return the pork chops to the skillet and spoon the sage brown butter over them. Cook until the chops reach 63°C, about 2 minutes per side. Rest 5 minutes before serving with the roasted squash and onion.
~9 min
Spooning the hot sage brown butter over the chops bastes them, adding flavor and helping them reach a safe internal temperature evenly.
Pan sauce After searing, lower the heat and add butter and sage to the fond. Swirl and spoon the foaming butter over the meat to build a glossy sauce without burning.