There are millions of baked pork chops recipe’s online. But wait a minute, not all of them work! Some say brine and then bake, while other say brine, apply dry rub, then broil…Well, you cannot afford to experiment with expensive meat and you want a recipe that is perfect every time. What do you do?
No worries; here are our top tips for perfect pork chops every time!
• Fresh — Of course, fresher the meat, the better the taste. Find a butcher who cuts his own meat. We recommend center cut pork loin rib chops. Ensure that the cut has a generous layer of fat on one side and a small evenly-sized bone on the other end. The meat should have an even marbling of fat through it but if you prefer it lean, you can leave off the fat. Try to find chops that are atleast ¾ of an inch to 1 inch thick.
• Trim — Fat is good but trim the fat to about ¼ of an inch. Too much can result in a an oily chop that is difficult to eat.
• Recipe — We recommend a simple recipe. Pork chops can become tough and dry if they are overcooked and tasteless if the recipe and oven temperature are not carefully selected. Stick to tried-and-tested recipes from top chefs like Nigella, Ina Garten, or Jaime Oliver and you should be ok.
• Brine — This is an optional step. We rarely brine any meat but if you have the time, you should consider soaking the chops for 30-90 mins (not more than 4 hours) in a salt or herb soak. Other flavorings like garlic, black pepper, cinnamon, cloves and ginger are optional.
• Internal temperature before cooking — Do not cook the meat directly from the refrigerator. Take the meat out of the fridge for 30 minutes prior to cooking so that they can reach room temperature.
• Resting the meat —If you have brined your meat, drain the brine, dry the meat and let it dry at room temperature for 5 mins. This ensures a dry crisp cover on the meat. The quickest way to cook meat is to pan-fry it and then finish the cooking in a preheated oven. Remember to preheat the oven as you panfry the meat for 5 mins on each side. After cooking, rest the meat for anywhere from 5 -10 mins for better distribution of meat liquids.
Pork chops are extremely versatile and easy to cook. With our top cooking tips, you will be creating perfect chops at every attempt. Just make sure you combine our tips with a simple baked pork chop recipe and you are guaranteed impressed dinner guests.
