This recipe for baked pork chops comes out moist, tender, and juicy!
Boneless pork chops are soaked in a quick brine, seasoned, and oven-baked to tender perfection. Made with pantry staples, this great meal is just a few simple steps away!
Why We Love This Recipe
Easy to prep and perfectly juicy, oven-baked pork chops are a favorite and made with pantry staples!
Brining the pork first adds lots of flavor and keeps it tender!
The spice rub in this recipe is quick to make and adds a hint of sweetness while the outside caramelizes beautifully.
Ingredients & Variations
The brine (just like a turkey brine) is a savory blend of salt, sugar, and peppercorns and really makes meat tender and flavorful. Brine breaks down the tougher proteins while allowing the meat to absorb the flavors.
Try experimenting with other seasonings that might be in the pantry. Why not try slices of fresh garlic, jalapenos, or even lemon slices in the brine?
The rub for baked pork chops is made up of just four ingredients!
- Brown Sugar: If brown sugar isn’t in the cupboard just sub with less white sugar since it tends to be sweeter.
- Garlic Powder: For an oniony flavor sub out half the garlic for onion powder. Or rub the pork with a clove of garlic!
- Mustard Powder: Ground oregano can be subbed for mustard powder if preferred.
- Paprika: Smoked paprika lends an interesting twist to the flavor. Or change it up with cayenne for an extra kick.
If there’s no time for brining, just add one teaspoon of kosher salt to the rub!
How to Make Pork Chops
These delicious pork chops are made more flavorful by brining, seasoning, then broiling!
Pork Chop Brine:
Brining makes boneless or bone-in chops extra juicy and tender no matter how thick the meat is! Just two hours in the brine is all it takes!
- Bring all the ingredients to a boil then cool completely (per recipe below).
- Marinate the chops at least 30 minutes but up to two hours.
- After the brining is complete, pat dry with a paper towel.
Pork Chop Rub:
Once brined, rub the chops with the spice mix below. Keep in mind that the brine has salt so I skip the salt in the rub. If you skip the brining, you’ll want to add some salt.
Tips for Perfect Chops
This recipe uses 3/4″ thick boneless chops, if your chops are thicker or thinner, the time will need to be adjusted.
The brine keeps these tender and adds flavor. If you skip the brine you will need to add salt to the rub.
Do not overcook! Use a meat thermometer to ensure the pork reaches the right temperature without overcooking.
Pork should reach 145°F, just like pork tenderloin, it’s ok if the chops are a little bit pink in the middle.
Tip: Choose pork chops uniform in size and thickness so they all cook at the same rate.
How Long to Bake Pork Chops
Depending on the side dish being baked with these pork chops you can alter the cooking times for the oven temperature.
But since the bake time will also depend on thickness, use a meat thermometer to test for doneness. Pork chops should be baked to an internal temp of 145°F.
- 450°F – bake 14-16 minutes
- 400°F – bake 17-19 minutes
- 375°F – bake 22-25 minutes
- 350°F – bake 35 minutes
I broil for the last 2 minutes to add a little color and seal in the juices!
Serve baked pork chops with garlic mashed potatoes, sauteed brussels sprouts, and a crisp, green salad! Top it all of with some homemade peach crisp for dessert.
Tender & Juicy Pork Chops
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- Pork and Sauerkraut Bake
- Instant Pot Pork Chops
- Honey Glazed Mushroom Pork Chops
- Crock Pot Pork Chops
- Air Fryer Pork Chops
- Pan Seared Pork Chops
Did you love these Baked Pork Chops? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Juicy Baked Pork Chops
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 boneless pork chops 3/4" thick
Rub
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon mustard powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
Brine
- 4 cups water
- ¼ cup kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon peppercorns
Instructions
- Combine brine ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Once sugar and salt are dissolved, remove from heat and cool completely.
- Pour cooled brine over pork chops and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Remove pork chops from brine and dab dry with a paper towel.
- If the pork has a fat cap on one side, cut slits into the fat.
- Combine rub ingredients and rub over pork chops.
- Bake 16 minutes. Turn oven to broil and broil the pork chops 2-4 minutes or until they reach 140°F.
- Remove from the oven and let chops rest 5 minutes before serving (the temperature will continue to rise to 145°F).
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dinner, Lunch, Main Course
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Best pork chops I’ve ever made! Making them for the second time tonight!
Excellent recipe!
I’m a working Teacher-Mama. :) Can I leave the pork chops to brine all day while I’m at work?
Hi Natalie, I recommend brining for no more than 4 hours because the pork chops are at risk of getting mushy. Other readers have tried to brine their pork chops for upwards of 12 hours though with success. If you try it I would love to hear how it turns out!
Great job
Going to try this recipe this weekend. I’m an inexperienced cook so this is a rookie question, but can someone please go into more detail about the broiling process at the end of the bake? I’ve never done that before! Many thanks!
Most ovens will have a broil setting which is about 500°F (on a high setting). Broiling is often used towards the end of cooking to brown the top of a dish.
In this case, I turn the broiler on to high (or 500°F) and allow it to get hot, the element in the top of the oven will usually turn red. Add the pan to a rack closer to the top of the oven so the chops are about 5 inches from the element (be sure it doesn’t have parchment paper as it can burn). Keep a close eye on it as it can go from brown to burned quickly!
On my oven, if it gets too hot, the red element may turn off so I open the oven door just a bit to keep it the element on the top red hot. Please let us know if you have any other questions.
Thanks Holly, it worked great! My oven has a hi broil option. I did sear the top side a bit (user error, too close to the element) but they still tasted delicious!
Can you use a baking sheet/cookie sheet to bake these or does it have to be more like a 9×13 casserole dish?
Hi Whitney, a baking sheet will work great for this recipe too!
Instead of a wet brine, try dry brining. To do this take your pork chops out of the fridge about 5 -6 hours before you want to cook them and sprinkle with salt on both sides. The amount of salt you use is about 20% more than you would use if you sprinkled them with salt just before cooking. You can also add your dry rub ingredients at the same time. Put the chops back in the fridge on a rack and pull them out just before cooking. With wet brining, you need to let the brine cool before using it. Dry brining is a simpler and far less labour intensive method that produces exactly the same result as is mentioned in the recipe. I know from dry brining how tender this makes the chops and wet brining will do the same.
Thanks for sharing, Ric!
Yes Ric your way works really good. I also dry brine my less tender steaks this way.
Can I use bone-in …?
Hi Ruth, we have only tried this recipe with boneless but it should work with bone-in as well. Other readers have had good results with bone-in pork chops.
Tried this recipe because it had one of the highest ratings. The reviewers did not lie! The pork chops came out so moist and tasty. Thank you so much for sharing.
Yay! So happy you loved it!
Made this tonight, cutting the recipe in half for 2 chops. Timing was perfect and the flavor delicious!
HELP!!! I’M ACTUALLY MAKING THIS TONIGHT FOR DINNER AND I HAVE FOLLOWED ALL THE INSTRUCTIONS TO A T, Now I’m ready to bake but I’m not sure if I need to cover while baking??? do you recommend using a casserole glass dish or a baking sheet aluminum pan???
thanks so much!
These are baked uncovered. I usually use a baking pan with a rim but as long as your dish is large enough so they aren’t touching, you can also use a casserole dish.
I’ll be making the pork tenderloin tonight. Your ‘jump button’ and scrolling are easy to do. I usually ‘speed read’ large recipe blogs because I’ve been cooking a long time.
Can I use ground pepper in place of the peppercorns? – I don’t have any!
Hi Cathy, for best results we recommend using peppercorn in the brine mixture.
Omg..the BEST recipe for pork chops ever..infact we had it lady night and we are having it again tonight !!
What if you do not have a meat thermometer? Is there a guide to how long to cook thicker chops at the various temperatures?
Hi Vanessa, since pork is very easy to overcook, I strongly recommend using a thermometer, especially since the bake time will also depend on thickness. Pork chops should be baked to an internal temp of 145°F. 3/4″ chops should take approximately:
450°F – bake 14-16 minutes
400°F – bake 17-19 minutes
375°F – bake 22-25 minutes
350°F – bake 35 minutes
I have an inexpensive themrmometer I bought on Amazon and I think it works great! I use this one for quick temps (although this one is also highly rated if you’re looking for another option) and this one with a probe to leave in the meat as it cooks.
None of them are overly expensive but I’ve found the two I mentioned I have work great. You can also usually find them fairly inexpensive at the grocery store too.
I made this for the couple I do care giving for and they loved it. Usually they talk during dinner but they didn’t say a word. Too busy stuffing their face with a great recipe.
Can the chops be baked in a casserole pan instead of using a cookie sheet? It seems like the sheet pan would dry them out quicker. I am using your recipe today with 9 extra thick chops.
That should work well as well. Enjoy!
Glad you said to use a meat thermometer. I used 400 for 20 minutes and my pork chops internal temperature was still below 100. It took 40 minutes.
Fantastic!
Simply amazing and mouthwatering porkchops. This is now my go-to!