Skillet Pork Chops

These pork chops are simple and delicious.

I think the key to good pork chops is two fold. One, get the thick cut. I don’t feel that it matters if it has a bone or not. The thicker cut pieces are more juicy and tender, compared to the thin cut. Second, don’t overcook them. We use a Habor thermometer, identical to this one linked here. It takes all the guess work out of cooking it correctly, and it means you only have to poke the pork chop with a thermometer instead of slicing into it with a knife to confirm that it’s done.

We always cook our pork chops in a skillet. We don’t have a grill and figuring out the timing in the oven is too tricky to bother with since pork chops are all so different. In fact, sometimes individual chops from the same package come out of the pan at different times, so how would you do that without easy access? We add a little olive oil, season them with salt and pepper, and that’s it folks. They are divine.

You really don’t need any fancy toppings or sauce, but if you’re interested, I found this delicious glaze the other day which reminds me of a thick teriyaki sauce. I debated on whether to include it or not because I think the pork chops on their own are great (with a little cinnamon apple sauce on the side, according to my husband) and that’s how we enjoy them all the time. However, the glaze is a nice touch so I wanted to give you the option. Consider this two recipes in one today. 🙂

We enjoyed these pork chops with spicy roasted carrots and couscous. The thick cut pork chops tend to be big pieces so we usually have leftovers. I’ve enjoyed the leftovers with salad for lunch the next day and my husband has made sandwiches. There are so many ways to enjoy pork chops that it’s hard to go wrong (not impossible, so please don’t try to prove me wrong).

Skillet Pork Chops (with an optional glaze) Recipe
(Makes 2 servings)

Ingredients for Pork Chops:

2 pork chops (I have used a variety from thick cut to thin cut, and bone in or boneless. The directions are written to apply to any of them. Today’s pork chops are thick cut and boneless.)
sprinkling of salt
sprinkling of pepper
1 teaspoon oil (I use olive oil.)

Ingredients for the Glaze:

3 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 and 1/2 teaspoons spicy mustard
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme

Directions for Pork Chops:

Season the pork chops on each side with salt and pepper.
In a skillet, heat the oil on Medium-High heat.
Lay the pork chops in the skillet and cook them until they are browned on the first side. The timing will be different based on the thickness of your pork chops, but you can usually tell because the chop will start to be a different color on the side about half way up.
Flip the pork chops over and continue to cook them until they reach an internal temperature of 145 degrees.
When the pork chops are done cooking, transfer them to a plate and let them rest for a couple minutes.

Directions for the Glaze:

Mix the maple syrup, cider vinegar, mustard, and thyme in a small bowl.
Reduce heat to Medium. Using the same skillet (without cleaning it) add the glaze mixture. Stir everything together, scraping up any brown bits in the pan as you go. Cook it until it’s thickened a little. (About 2 to 4 minutes.)
When you are ready to serve the pork chops, pour the glaze on top.

Slightly adapted from: The Complete Cooking For Two Cookbook

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