Baked Pork Chops

I recently made these oven-baked pork chops, and I can assure you that I loved the outcome; they were super juicy and had an incredible flavor.

I know that for many, it can be somewhat difficult to achieve juicy pork chops. Believe me, I’m aware of this because I struggled with it initially, but after several attempts and cooking methods, I’m ready to reveal the secret.

In fact, in the upcoming posts, I’ll share other recipes with pork chops featuring different flavors and cooking methods, and in all of them, we’ll achieve the result we’re looking for: lots of juiciness.

How to Make Your Oven-Baked Pork Chops Very Juicy?

The secret to achieving very juicy pork chops primarily lies in using the best chops.

In this regard, bone-in chops are most recommended, and the thicker they are, the better they retain their juices.

Another important trick to achieve this result is not to pierce them and to cook them in the last few minutes under the grill mode as I explain in the recipe. This way, in addition to retaining their juices well, they will have a much more appetizing color.

However, you should never neglect the cooking time. Only bake the chops as necessary because if you overdo it, you will end up drying them out.

To check if they are cooked and juicy, verify their internal temperature with a cooking thermometer. I will explain this in detail below.

Moreover, it’s advisable to position the tray about 20 cm (8 inches) from the heat source, so they bake faster and remain juicy.

And the last trick, but not least, is that you can even remove the chops before they reach the indicated internal temperature because the steam will continue cooking them once you take them out of the oven.

When you do this, cover them with aluminum foil for at least 3 minutes to retain all that steam and keep them very juicy.

Besides this, I want to explain a couple of details to make this oven-baked pork chop recipe perfect for you.

Firstly, never use dark soy sauce, as the flavor is too strong and would alter the result. I’ve used Kikkoman soy sauce; if you don’t have this type, you can replace the amount I give you with 2 1/2 teaspoons of light soy sauce.

And the second point is that if you don’t have apple cider vinegar, you can replace it with another vinegar of mild or neutral flavor, but never use balsamic vinegar in this recipe; the taste won’t be the same.

How to Know When the Oven-Baked Chops Are Ready?

As I explained in the preparation method, the cooking time for oven-baked pork chops should not be long because they would dry out too much.

The indicated time always depends on the size of the chops, but one aspect that never changes is their internal temperature. What is the appropriate temperature for juicy chops? It’s 145°F / 63°C.

This is the ideal internal temperature that the chops should have. Here I clarify an important detail.

I used chops of 120 and 155 g each, and weight is important since the thicker they are, the juicier they will be, and the longer the cooking time will be.

Therefore, I recommend that you weigh your chops, and if they are heavier and thicker, bake them for a few more minutes but never stop checking their internal temperature.

For example, for 350g chops, bake for 15 minutes on one side and 10 on the other side under grill mode. You can even give it an extra minute to achieve a more intense caramelization color.

What to Serve with Oven-Baked Pork Chops?

This time I served the chops with potatoes, but you can also do it with vegetables of your choice.

Likewise, rice is an excellent complement when serving them. In this sense, even if you use white rice, you will have a delicious dish.