This slow cooker 3-ingredient foil wrapped apricot pork chops recipe is exactly the kind of hand-me-down church recipe that gets passed around at potlucks and Sunday dinners. A neighbor from my church actually showed me this trick: tuck everything into little silver foil packets, set it, and forget it. As the pork cooks low and slow, the apricot and dressing melt into a thick, sticky, sweet glaze that makes the chops incredibly tender—like you barely need a knife. It’s a lifesaver on busy weekends when you want a comforting, homey meal without babysitting the stove all afternoon.
These apricot-glazed pork chops are rich and sweet, so I like to balance them with simple sides. Spoon the extra sticky sauce and fruit chunks over fluffy white rice, buttered egg noodles, or creamy mashed potatoes so nothing goes to waste. Add a crisp green salad or steamed green beans for something fresh and crunchy on the side. If you’re feeding a crowd, warm dinner rolls or crusty bread are perfect for soaking up every last bit of that glossy glaze in the foil trays.
Slow Cooker 3-Ingredient Apricot Pork ChopsServings: 4
Ingredients
4 boneless pork chops (about 1 inch thick, 1 1/2 to 2 pounds total)
1 15- to 18-ounce jar apricot preserves
1 0.7- to 1-ounce packet dry Italian salad dressing mix
Directions
Lay out 4 large sheets of heavy-duty aluminum foil, each big enough to fully wrap a pork chop into a sealed packet. Lightly crimp the edges up just a bit to help catch any sauce while you assemble.
Place one pork chop in the center of each piece of foil. If the chops are very thick, you can lightly pound them to an even thickness so they cook more evenly, but keep them at least 3/4 inch thick for best texture.
In a medium bowl, stir together the apricot preserves and the dry Italian salad dressing mix until well combined and smooth. It will be thick and glossy.
Spoon the apricot mixture evenly over each pork chop, making sure to get some on top and around the sides. Scrape all the mixture out of the bowl so each chop gets plenty of sauce and fruit chunks.
Bring the long sides of the foil up and over each pork chop, then fold them together tightly to seal. Fold up the short ends as well, crimping firmly so the packets are completely closed. You want them snug so the steam and sauce stay inside and create that sticky, tender glaze.
Arrange the foil packets in a single layer in the bottom of a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker. If you need to overlap them slightly, that’s fine; just avoid stacking more than two high so they cook evenly.
Cover the slow cooker with the lid and cook on LOW for 4 to 5 hours, or until the pork chops are very tender and reach an internal temperature of at least 145°F. Avoid opening the lid during cooking so the heat and steam stay trapped in the packets.
When the cooking time is up, carefully use tongs to lift the foil packets out of the slow cooker and transfer them to a rimmed baking sheet or directly to plates. Open each packet carefully, facing it away from you, to avoid hot steam.
To serve family-style in small foil trays, open each packet fully and slide the pork chops and all their sauce and apricot chunks into 4 individual foil trays or small baking pans. Spoon the glossy glaze over the top so the meat is well coated and surrounded by the thick, sweet sauce.
Serve the apricot pork chops hot, right in their foil trays or transferred to plates, ladling extra sticky sauce and cooked fruit over each chop.
Variations & Tips
For a little tang, you can swap half of the apricot preserves for orange marmalade while still keeping the recipe to three ingredients. If you like a hint of heat with your sweet, sprinkle a pinch of red pepper flakes over the chops before sealing the foil packets (this technically adds a fourth ingredient, but it won’t change the core recipe). Bone-in pork chops also work well; just make sure they’re at least 3/4 inch thick and add about 30 minutes to the cook time on LOW. To make cleanup even easier, you can set your foil packets into disposable foil trays inside the slow cooker so they lift out neatly and look like the image of glossy, golden brown chops nestled in sweet sauce. For food safety, always start with fully thawed pork, keep the pork refrigerated until you’re ready to assemble the packets, and wash your hands and any surfaces that touch raw meat. Use a meat thermometer to confirm the pork reaches at least 145°F in the thickest part, and refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours in shallow containers. Reheat leftovers until steaming hot before serving.
