Marinated Brined Pork Chops Recipes

MOLASSES BRINED PORK CHOPS

Steps:

• Combine salt, molasses, cloves, and boiling water in a large container. Stir until molasses and salt are dissolved; let cool to room temperature.
• Pour cold water into molasses mixture; stir to combine.
• Completely submerge pork chops in molasses mixture. Cover container and refrigerate for 6 hours.
• Remove pork chops from brine and pat dry with paper towels. Lightly oil each chop.
• Preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat and lightly oil the grate.
• Place pork chops on the hottest part of the grill; cook each side until browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a medium-high area of the grill and cook pork until it is slightly pink in the center, 6 to 8 minutes per side. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the chop should read 145 degrees F (63 degrees C).

PORK CHOPS IN MILK MARINADE

Steps:

• Generously sprinkle the pork chops with salt. Place them in a shallow, glass casserole dish (like Pyrex, Note 2).
• Stir marinade: Grate the garlic and mix it with about one cup of milk.
• Marinade pork: Pour this milk carefully over the pork chops. Pour more milk until the pork chops are completely covered with milk. Cover the dish with plastic foil and place it in the fridge for several hours or overnight.
• Remove the dish from the refrigerator about one hour before cooking the meat.
• Prepare chops for cooking: Take them out of the brine and dry them very well with kitchen paper. Coat them lightly with the flour, sprinkle generously with salt, pepper, and sweet paprika powder on both sides.
• Heat the oil in a skillet or another pan. You should have a thin oil film on the entire bottom of the skillet; two tablespoons were enough for my 12-inch skillet.
• Cook pork: Add the pork and cook for 3 minutes on one side until golden; turn and continue cooking for another 2 minutes until golden. You might add one minute or so if the chops are on the larger side.
• Check internal temperature; it should be 145°F/ 63 °C.
• Rest meat: Transfer pork chops to a warm plate, cover loosely with foil and rest for a few minutes.
• Serve: Place the meat on serving plates and pour some of the meat juices collected in the platter over the rice and the meat. Serve immediately.

SAVORY BRINED PORK CHOPS

Steps:

• Crack about 1/2 of the peppercorns. Add peppercorns, salt, sugar, garlic, and mustard to boiling water. Mix thoroughly until all dry ingredients are dissolved. Slowly add vinegar, olive oil, and lemon juice until blended. Pour mixture into a shallow glass or ceramic dish.
• Add ice if the brine is hotter thank lukewarm. Add pork chops, cover, and marinate at room temperature for 2 hours, turning occasionally.
• Heat olive oil, garlic, pepper, and chile powder in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Remove pork chops from the brine and add to the pan. Cook for 2 minutes per side. Flip chops, reduce heat to a simmer, and cover. Cook, checking for doneness every 5 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center reads 160 degrees F (71 degrees C), 10 to 15 minutes more.

CIDER-BRINED PORK CHOPS WITH PERFECT PAN SAUCE

Steps:

• For the brine: combine the salt, brown sugar, peppercorns, coriander, mustard seeds, allspice berries, bay leaves, thyme and 1 1/2 cups water in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and stir to dissolve the sugar and salt, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat and pour in the cold cider. Let the brine cool to room temperature.
• Put the pork chops in a large resealable plastic bag and pour in the brine. Press out excess air and seal tightly. Put the bag in a shallow container so it can lay flat and refrigerate for 30 minutes and up to 4 hours.
• Drain the chops, rinse and pat dry. Discard the brine.
• Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the chops (work in batches if necessary; do not crowd the pan) and cook, turning occasionally, until they are golden brown and cooked through, 13 to 14 minutes. (If the chops are browning too quickly or the pan drippings start to burn, lower the heat.) Remove to a plate.
• For the sauce: Discard all but 1 tablespoon fat from the pan. Add 1 tablespoon of the butter and place over medium heat. Add the garlic, rosemary and thyme and cook until sizzling, about 30 seconds. Sprinkle in the flour and stir to make a paste. Whisk in the cider and bring to a simmer.
• Simmer until very thick, about 1 minute. Add the stock, bring to a simmer and cook until slightly thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Whisk in the cream and simmer to bring the sauce together, about 1 minute. Stir in the remaining 1 tablespoon butter, vinegar and parsley. Season to taste with salt. Add the chops to the pan and simmer, turning occasionally, until just heated through, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve garnished with fresh thyme and rosemary sprigs.

MARINATED BRINED PORK CHOPS

Steps:

• Bring 1 cup water to a boil in a saucepan. Add salt, sugar, sage, and garlic powder. Remove from heat and stir until mostly dissolved. Add cold water to cool the brining mixture. Place pork chops in a plastic freezer bag or other airtight container. Add brining liquid, close tightly, and refrigerate for 6 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease a baking dish with about 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil.
• Drain pork chops, discarding brine. Place chops in the prepared dish and brush lightly with remaining olive oil.
• Bake in the preheated oven until chops are no longer pink in the center and juice is clear, about 40 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read 145 degrees F (63 degrees C).

BUTTERMILK-BRINED PORK CHOPS

Steps:

• For the pickled red cabbage slaw: In a small saucepan, add the vinegar, sugar, bay leaves, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 cup water and bring to a boil. Put the onions and cabbage in a large heatproof bowl or container and pour the boiling liquid over them. Toss to coat. Let the mixture sit for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator and up to overnight. Right before serving, add the parsley.
• For the pork chops: In a large bowl, combine the buttermilk, hot sauce, granulated garlic, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Add the brine and pork chops to a large ziptop bag, making sure the pork chops are evenly coated. Close tightly. Allow the chops to sit for 2 hours on the counter and up to 4 hours in the refrigerator.
• Set up a breading station with one plate of the flour, one bowl of the eggs and one plate of the breadcrumbs.
• Remove the pork chops from the brine and allow any excess to drip off. Bread the pork chops by evenly coating them in the flour, followed by the egg and finishing with the breadcrumbs.
• Fit a rimmed baking sheet with a wire rack. Pour enough oil into a 12-inch cast-iron skillet to come halfway up the sides of the pork chops and heat over medium heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the pork chops to the skillet in batches and shallow-fry until golden brown or a thermometer reads 135 degrees F, 3 to 5 minutes per side. (If the pork chop breading is getting too dark while cooking in the oil, finish the pork chops in the oven at 350 degrees F until an internal temperature of 135 to 140 degrees F is reached.) Remove the chops to the baking sheet and season with salt.
• Serve the chops with the slaw and mustard.

HOW TO "DRY-BRINE" PORK CHOPS

Steps:

• Mix kosher salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper together in a small bowl to make the dry brine. Generously apply mixture to both sides of pork chops. Transfer chops to a rack on a paper towel-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate uncovered 18 to 24 hours.
• Preheat grill to medium or medium-high heat. Brush pork chops on each side with a few drops of vegetable oil.
• Grill chops until internal temperature reaches 135 degrees F (60 degrees C), turning to evenly brown on each side. Transfer to platter and allow to rest 5 minutes.

BRINED PORK CHOPS WITH FENNEL

Steps:

• Make the brine: Put salt, sugar, bay leaves, peppercorns, allspice and fennel seeds in a bowl. Whisk in 4 cups water to dissolve salt and sugar.
• Put pork chops in one layer in a glass or plastic container. Pour brine over to completely submerge chops. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, preferably longer, up to overnight. Remove chops from brine and pat dry. Discard brine.
• Cook the chops: Heat oven to 400 degrees. Set a wide, heavy skillet over high heat and add olive oil. When oil is wavy, add chops in one layer and let brown for about 3 minutes per side.
• Remove chops from pan and set aside. Reduce heat to medium-high and add sliced onion and fennel, stirring to coat with oil. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring, until beginning to color, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and crushed fennel seeds and turn off heat.
• Lay the chops on top of the onion-fennel mixture (alternatively, transfer all of it to a baking dish) and place pan, uncovered, in oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until the internal temperature of chops is 140 degrees.
• Remove chops and let rest for about 5 minutes. Transfer onion-fennel mixture to a platter and keep warm. Cut chops into 1/8-inch slices and add to platter. Sprinkle with parsley and garnish with fennel fronds. Serve with lemon wedges.

ULTIMATE GRILLED PORK CHOPS

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, combine salt, sugar and 2 cups water; cook and stir over medium heat until salt and sugar are dissolved. Remove from heat. Add 2 cups ice water to cool brine to room temperature., Place pork chops in a large resealable plastic bag; add cooled brine. Seal bag, pressing out as much air as possible; turn to coat chops. Place in a 13x9-in. baking dish. Refrigerate 8-12 hours., Remove chops from brine; rinse and pat dry. Discard brine. Brush both sides of chops with oil. In a small bowl, mix rub ingredients; rub over pork chops. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes., Grill chops on an oiled rack, covered, over medium heat 4-6 minutes on each side or until a thermometer reads 145°. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.