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Thick, bone in pork chops, stuffed with caramel apples, seasoned and smoked over lump charcoal before being charred with a beautiful sear (the reverse sear method). Once the chops are sliced, more caramel is drizzled over the top to make this an extra sweet treat of caramel apple stuffed pork chops.
If you have kids like I do, then somehow these caramel apples wind up on the counter in the Fall:
I have no idea who brings them into my house. All of my kids and my wife deny bringing them in. And the biggest problem is that I rarely ever see anyone eating them. So they sit on my counter. And sit and sit and sit.
I love everything about a caramel apple. I like the crunch of the nuts and the sweet of the caramel and tart of the apple itself. But they are a bit of a mess and REALLY sticky. I’ve got the solution right here.
Use the apples as an ingredient for an epic meal.
A couple THICK pork chops, some salt and a little BBQ seasoning and those caramel apples disappear with this caramel apple stuffed pork chops recipe.
Caramel Apple Stuffed Pork Chops Ingredients
- 4 caramel apples – nuts optional
- 4 two inch thick, bone in pork chops
- Salt to taste
- Your favorite BBQ rub
- Caramel drizzle – optional
Before we get started here, light the grill and get it raging at a medium high heat. Somewhere in the 375F-425F range and set an oven save frying pan over the heat. A cast iron pan works wonders here.
Also, if this looks familiar, I cooked these the same day I cooked those candy corn stuffed pork chops.
And a couple years ago I tried something similar to these apple stuffed pork chops but it was only recently that I found the convenience of using caramel apples for this.
The basic rule here is one caramel apple per pork chop. So for this recipe, you will see me only grill three pork chops. But this recipe isn’t all that complicated so it could easily be two chops or twelve without much calculus.
First thing, grab one of these things:
This thing is brilliant for this recipe.
Also, if you want to eat a caramel or candy apple without getting sticky, use the apple slicer.
Just put the stick right in the middle:
Here are my three apples:
Cook the Apples
Now drop those caramel apple slices into that hot pan:
While the caramel and apples are warming up, let’s cut a pocket in our pork chops.
Take a long slender knife and cut into the middle of the side opposite the bone:
I wasn’t kidding when I said thick pork chops. These monsters are a full two inches.
Run that knife over to just short of the bone and work it back and forth to create a big pocket, while leaving the opening no wider than an inch or inch and a half.
Then take the softened apples and jam them into the opening:
And here’s another one:
Be sure to set the pan with any remaining apple slices on another grill or on the top of this one to stay warm.
Trust me. This will come in handy later.
Once the chops are stuffed to the brim with warm apple slices, season with salt and your favorite barbecue rub and set aside:
Since I’m using my Hasty Bake Legacy 131 it doesn’t take much time or effort to switch it from grilling hot and fast at 375F-425F to smoking low and slow. There’s a crank on the side that allows me to drop the coal bed down well over a foot. So I drop the coals down and bank them to the far side.
Then I throw a chunk of smoke wood, pear in this case, on the coals and put the chops at the opposite end of the grill where there is no direct heat
How to Reverse Sear Pork Chops
Smoke the pork chops at 300F (+/-25F) until they reach an internal temperature of 130F then crank up the heat on the hot side of the grill (or spark up another grill) and sear the chops all the way around until they reach 145F (yes, 145F is all you need for pork now according to the USDA).
Scroll down for picture-by-picture, foolproof instructions on how to reverse sear pork chops.
The stuffed pork chops on the cool side of the grill:
Coals and smoke wood toward the bottom of that pic and pork chops on the side with no direct heat near the top.
Boom! Instant smoker.
If you don’t have access to pear wood and are curious as to what woods you can find pair with what meats, I can help with this.
I have the most extensive list of smoke woods and what they pair with on the innerwebs.
Here’s a close up of the pork chops on the smoker:
Close the lid and let the smoke and heat and time transform these caramel apple stuffed pork chops into something magical.
About thirty minutes in, my chops are glistening and gorgeous:
We are reverse searing these pork chops which means we get all that amazing smoke flavor and then we sear the chops. Do that in the opposite order and there just isn’t much smoke flavor imparted on the protein. Since the USDA has put out that pork only needs to be cooked to 145F (which means it will be juicier than those old well done hockey pucks we all choked down at one point or another) we are guaranteed to have juicy chops.
So we smoke these to 130F before searing and finishing up the cook.
Time to Sear
Here’s what they look like at 130F and ready to sear:
So now I crank up the coal bed to right below the grill grates (adding some more Rockwood charcoal if need be right here)
When I have a raging hot fire I slap the caramel apple stuffed pork chops right on the coals:
Then, get some nice char on both sides:
Don’t forget to crisp up the fat along the outer edge:
Once the reverse seared pork chops have char all the way around, and they have reached an internal temperature of 145F, remove the stuffed pork chops from the grill and allow to rest for five minutes or so.
Then slice:
Check out the smoke ring!!!
Check the drip AND the puddle!
Remember me saying to keep the remaining apples in the pan someplace warm like on another grill on low or on top of the Hasty Bake?
Here’s why.
Pile more apples on top for garnish and flavor:
Also, you just might want some extra caramel:
Caramel Apple Stuffed Pork Chops Run Down
Dessert and dinner all rolled into one!! Indeed, this is why I’m fat!
If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below or send me an email.
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Recipe Card:
Caramel Apple Stuffed Pork Chops
Equipment
- 1 Apple slicer
- 1 cast iron pan Substitute any oven safe pan
Ingredients
- 4 Caramel apples Nuts optional
- 4 2 inch thick pork chops Bone in preferred
- Salt to taste
- Your favorite barbecue rub
- Caramel drizzle Optional
Instructions
- Place the oven safe pan over the hot coals (or lit burner) and allow to preheat
- Placing the stick of the caramel apple into the center of the apple slicer and push down, dividing the apple into eight pieces
- When the pan reaches 375F-425F, place the apple slices in and allow to soften
- While the apple cook, using a long, slender knife, cut in through the side opposite the bone and create a pocket in each pork chop
- Once the apples soften and the caramel melts a little, stuff each pork chop with apples
- Place the pan with the remaining apples aside on another grill to stay warm or even on top of this one.
- Set the grill for indirect grilling with coals on one side and nothing on the other
- Place smoke wood chunks (we used pear) on the hot coals and place the pork chops on the side with no direct heat and close the lid
- Once the pork chops reach 130F crank up the coals or burners on the side with direct heat till the grill grates are north of 400F
- Sear the chops top and bottoms and even on the sides as they are 2 inches thick
- Once they have some nice char all the way around and have reached 145F internal temp, remove from the heat and allow to rest for five minutes
- After the chops rest, slice and top with more apples and optional caramel drizzle
Video
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