How Do I Make Baked Pork Chops?
Baking pork is a healthy way to prepare the meat without messing with popping grease in a skillet or heating a grill. When prepared properly in the oven, pork chops come out moist and flavorful, making them the focal point of the meal.
Baking pork is a healthy way to prepare the meat without messing with popping grease in a skillet or heating a grill. When prepared properly in the oven, pork chops come out moist and flavorful, making them the focal point of the meal. Overcooking the pork makes it tough and dry with less flavor, so watch the pork closely and bake it only as long as necessary to cook it through completely.
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F before you begin preparing the meat. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
Cut away the leftover fat around the edges of the pork chops. You can leave the fat on and cut it off after you finish cooking the pork, but trimming it off ahead of time reduces the overall fat content of the meat.
Drizzle the pork chop with oil. Brush it around so all surfaces of the meat are covered. Add a dash of salt and pepper to each chop. Add more seasonings, such as grated Parmesan, dry mustard, cayenne or oregano, depending on your preferences for pork seasonings.
Lay the pork chops in the greased pan without overlapping any of the edges. Bake the pork for 30 to 35 minutes at 375 degrees F. Turn the pork chops over once during the baking.
Cut into the thickest pork chop to ensure no pink remains in the meat. If the pork isn't cooked through, place it back in the oven for an additional five to 10 minutes and check again.
Remove the cooked pork chops from the oven and let them rest for five minutes before you transfer them to plates for serving.
Tip
For a crunchy pork coating, dip the pieces in a mixture of egg white and milk. Dip the pork into crushed cornflakes or Panko bread crumbs seasoned with your choice of herbs and spices. Bake the chops like you would without the coating.
Soak pork chops for 4 hours in marinade of your choice if you wish.
warning
Pork must be cooked to an internal temperature of 145 degrees to kill any bacteria, according to FoodSafety.gov.