These paleo, Whole30-compliant pork chops with cranberry-apple compote are made for nights when you come home already hungry: they’re easy, satisfying, and fast. They can be ready in 30 minutes, and there’s a shortcut version that’s even faster!
I’m on Day 11 of my Whole30 and, at the risk of jinxing myself, it’s been smooth sailing so far! I’ve been drinking my coffee with homemade almond milk most days and occasionally making it into a chai ghee “latte” when I want something a little more indulgent.
I’ve gotten a little tired of having eggs for breakfast, but mixing in the occasional dinner for breakfast has helped make eggs seem appealing again the next day. And I’ve done a pretty good job of making big batches of meals like bacon and sweet potato chili and cracklin’ chicken so that I can have leftovers for the next day.
I’m not quite as on top of my meal planning game as I’d like to be, though, so there have been several nights when I left work already hungry and didn’t have any leftovers ready to just heat up when I got home. That’s where these seared pork chops with cranberry-apple compote come in.
This whole recipe takes less than thirty minutes, and there’s even an abridged version where the compote is stripped down to its most essential ingredient. That version is in the recipe notes and can be accomplished in 15 minutes flat if you work efficiently.
Since they’re coated in a delicious dry rub made from the spices pictured above, these pork chops are also great on their own. Ben always has his plain because he’s averse to the texture of cooked apples (I’m all about that because it means more compote for me!).
The dry rub gets smokiness and a little heat from the paprika and savory earthiness from the cumin and garlic. There’s also sea salt, pepper, and just a tiny bit of cinnamon as a nod to the apples that are in these pork chops’ future.
