Forget Pork — Here's How To Pair Your Steak With Applesauce

Pork chops and applesauce are a classic combination in the canon of classic American cuisine. You might even have air fryer pork chops with your favorite store-bought applesauce on the weekly dinner rotation for an easy meal. No offense to this comforting meal, but applesauce also pairs deliciously with steak. In fact, there are many ways you can combine any type of steak dish, be it pan-fried or grilled, with the sweet apple sauce in your fridge.

Think about it: Steak is a rich, red meat that packs flavor, especially when you cook it with the right ingredients. Meanwhile, applesauce is refreshing, mildly sweet, and fruity to balance your steak's richness. It's also about the contrast between the savory meat and sweet sauce for even more of a balance on your palate. The difference in temperatures also works in the same way warm grilled steak functions atop a cold chopped salad. Use chunky applesauce for more texture or a cinnamon variety for a different flavor. To keep it easy, you can simply pair one of our best steak recipes with store-bought applesauce — but there are more ways to combine these two foods.

If you want to make the sauce from scratch to pair with your steak, step it up with our sweet and spiced applesauce or Instant Pot applesauce recipes instead of using a store-bought option. To keep it as a side dish, consider pairing it with a pan sauce made of Dijon mustard and white wine to balance the sweetness of the applesauce. Otherwise, keep it on the side with other small dishes that will complete the meal. Some starchy options include mashed potatoes or honey roasted sweet potatoes. If you want a dose of veggies to meld with the meat and fruit, consider a savory option like citrus-roasted broccoli or asparagus to cut through both the richness and sweetness of the rest of the meal.

Another technique to combine steak and applesauce is to use it in a marinade. Many marinades have an element of sweetness like honey to temper acidic ingredients, and applesauce is a worthy alternative. Use store-bought applesauce or apple puree with ingredients like mustard, soy sauce or barbecue sauce, and dried herbs like rosemary to flavor and tenderize your steak. You can even add applesauce to our tenderizing steak marinade. And should there be any leftover applesauce, we know plenty of ways to use a jar of it, including on pancakes for tomorrow's breakfast.