Gollita’s Mexican Pork Chops with Tomato Sauce and Onions
Another great collaboration with Familia Kitchen! This time I got to try Gollita’s Mexican Pork Chops with Tomatoes and Onions. I was amazed at how this combination of ingredients creates such a tasty and juicy pork chop. Now, I must say that when I saw the recipe, I wondered if I would like it because it is so different than what I am used to. I was so wrong because I ate 2 pieces and could have totally gone with a third!
This is the intro for this recipe at Familia Kitchen:
“This Mexican pork chops recipe—a Familia Kitchen community favorite—was sent in by Brian Quaid of Chicago. He learned how to make these chuletas from his mother in law, Gregoria González—called “Gollita” by all, and one of our favorite Mexican abuela cocineras. Gollita loves to cook and teach her family to make her traditional Mexican recipes—and one of her best students is Brian. At family fiestas, he parks himself in her kitchen, watching Gollita add a little this, a little that—to make sure he masters her family-famous recipes.
These sweet and savory pork chops are one of Gollita’s most-requested meals: a go-to dinner favorite when all her kids and grandkids come over. Gollita grew up in San Luis Potosí, Mexico, and learned to cook from her mother, who was a great cook. Gollita lives close to Brian and daughter Ana in Illinois. She takes pride in passing on her family-famous recipes to the next generation—so they can cook their way home, too.
This dish kicks off a Familia Kitchen series we’ll call—at Brian’s suggestion—“Guero Corner.” Today, Brian walks us through how he learned to make Gollita’s authentic Mexican chuletas simmered in a rich, stewy tomato sauce and caramelized onions. Cumin adds just the right amount of smoky flavor. His one tweak is using slightly less tomato sauce, reducing the amount from 30 oz to 20 oz, so that the chops are a little bit less saucy and more texturized.
If you like this recipe, check out more recipes from Gollita’s family: her daughter Sagra’s shrimp, cucumber and chiles ceviche, her daughter Gracie’s chilaquiles verdes, her daughter Ana’s nopales with pickled jalapeños, her sister Nata’s pozole rojo, and—last but the opposite of least—her Familia Kitchen Recipe Contest-winning Gollita’s essential guacamole!”
Gollita’s Mexican Pork Chops with Tomato Sauce and Caramelized Onions
Ingredients
- 6 pork chops bone-in
- 2 tbsp adobo or any all-purpose seasoning salt
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp onion powder
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 1 twist black pepper freshly ground
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 tbsp canola oil
- 1 white onion large, chopped
- 20 oz tomato sauce
- 1 tbsp sugar
Instructions
- Blend spices in a bowl and generously season both sides of chops.
- Add canola oil to a pan on medium-high heat. When the oil is shimmering, add pork chops—in batches if you need to, so as not to crowd.
- Brown the pork chops, about 3 to 4 minutes on each side.
- Add the onions, stirring them on and around the pork chops. Sauté for 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add the tomato sauce and sugar. Stir, cover and simmer for about 5 minutes, on medium heat.
- Serve with warm corn tortillas, freshly sliced avocado, black beans, Mexican rice, hot sauce and your favorite salsa.
