By Brayden is one hundred and fifty-five weeks old. Eden is thirteen weeks old. The cooking class week-two pizza-from-scratch lesson Wednesday September 11 was a hit. The kids loved the small dough-shaping-and-topping freedom. The bean and pork chop bake was the small Sunday-comfort dish for the family.
The bean and pork chop bake is a small one-pan baked dish — thick-cut pork chops, layered over a bed of canned baked beans, brown sugar, mustard, onion, baked at three-seventy-five for forty-five minutes until the pork is cooked through and the beans are bubbling.
The technique question is the pork-chop placement. The chops sit on top of the beans so the chops cook in the oven-heat from above and from the radiant-heat of the bean-base below. The small accumulated chop-juices flavor the beans during the bake.
Sunday I made the bake. Dustin had two chops. Brayden had a small piece. Eden was in the bouncer.
The Sapulpa-Elementary cooking-class continues. The small Wednesday-afternoon rhythm has settled. The small kids are progressing through the small twelve-week curriculum. Tracy Patton has been the small partnership-and-support presence the program needed.
The Pantry Rules cookbook companion has been selling at its small steady-trickle pace. The catering-cookbook continues at its small steady-pace too. The small online-store revenue is the small additional-revenue-stream the catering business has built.
The small Sunday-cooking is now the small family-of-four event. Brayden helps. Eden watches from the bouncer (later from the high-chair). Dustin handles the small dishes-and-cleanup. The small kitchen has become the small family-stage. The small role of the small Sunday-cook has shifted from the small individual-creative-act to the small family-orchestration-act.
The small recipe-archive of the blog continues to grow. The small ten-year-anniversary in March 2026 is the small approaching-milestone. The small five-hundredth-post was in October 2025. The small archive is now in its small thousand-post-trajectory.
Bean and Pork Chop Bake
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 1 hour | Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 4 bone-in pork chops (about 3/4 inch thick)
- 2 cans (15 oz each) navy beans or great northern beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven. Heat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish and set aside.
- Sear the chops. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season pork chops on both sides with salt, pepper, and smoked paprika. Sear 2–3 minutes per side until golden, then transfer to the prepared baking dish.
- Build the bean mixture. In the same skillet over medium heat, cook onion until softened, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Stir in beans, diced tomatoes, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, and thyme. Simmer 3–4 minutes, stirring to combine.
- Assemble and bake. Pour the bean mixture over and around the pork chops in the baking dish. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 45 minutes.
- Finish uncovered. Remove foil and bake an additional 15 minutes until pork chops are cooked through (internal temperature of 145°F) and the top has a slight caramelized color.
- Rest and serve. Let rest 5 minutes before serving. Spoon beans generously over each chop.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 420 | Protein: 38g | Fat: 12g | Carbs: 38g | Fiber: 9g | Sodium: 680mg