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These juicy, tender pork chops are cooked in a flavorful honey garlic sauce. Served on their own or over a bed of rice with veggies, it’s a meal the whole family will enjoy!
If you know me, you know I’m a farm girl at heart. I’d prefer to see the stars instead of city lights. To see the sunset over the corn field rather than over skyscrapers every night. And most of all, to witness our kids experience farm-life, hard work, the beauty of rural Iowa and the wide open spaces.
Being on the farm, there’s no shortage of pork in the freezer. It’s fun to think up different ways to use pork chops and this recipe I dreamed up is one we’ll make again and again!!
My recipe for Honey Garlic Pork Chops uses simple ingredients and comes together super quick. I love slicing them thin, placing them on a bed of white rice and drizzling the leftover sauce on top. My mouth is watering just thinking about these….ah! You’ve just gotta try it!
Ingredients Needed
- Vegetable Oil – You can opt to use olive oil instead.
- Pork Chops – You can use boneless pork chops OR bone-in pork chops for this recipe. Both work great and are delicious options when cooked properly (more on that below!).
- Salt & Black Pepper – Or seasoned salt.
- Butter – I used salted butter.
- Minced Garlic – You can buy minced garlic from the grocery store, cut up your own garlic cloves or opt for garlic powder (see notes in recipe card below)
- Honey
- Water
- Vinegar – You can use white vinegar, apple cider vinegar or rice wine vinegar.
- Red Pepper Flakes
How to Make Honey Garlic Pork Chops
You’ll start by searing the pork chops over medium-high heat until golden brown on each side. This will help lock in the moisture and create a lovely caramelized flavor.
With all cuts of pork, it’s critical that they aren’t overcooked. We want juicy pork chops….not tough, dry chops! Therefore, once they’re seared, you’ll remove them from the pan.
Next you’ll create a simple honey garlic sauce in the skillet. Go ahead and use the same skillet – nobody likes extra dishes!
You’ll cook the sauce for just 3-4 minutes, or until bubbly. The longer you cook the sauce, the thicker it’ll be.
Lastly, you’ll add the pork chops back to the skillet and let them cook in the most amazing honey garlic sauce!
The cooking time will depend on how thick the pork chops are. If you have thin-cut pork chops, they’ll take just a few minutes to an internal temperature of 145F. Thin pork chops and boneless chops will cook more quickly than thick, bone-in chops.
Baste the chops with the saucy glaze as they cook and serve right away!
Should I use bone-in chops for this recipe?
It’s up to you. Personally, I really like bone-in chops as I think it makes a more flavorful cut of pork. However, both bone-in and boneless would work great and be delicious options if cooked properly!
If you prefer boneless chops, go that route. If your grocery store has a sale on bone-in chops, go that route. This recipe easily lends itself to minor changes like that, giving you the option to adapt to what you’ve got!
What temperature should I cook my pork chops to?
Any whole muscle cut should be cooked to an internal temperature of 145 degrees F. That includes pork chops, pork loin, pork tenderloin, etc. This will guarantee the most tender pork chops.
If you don’t currently have an instant-read thermometer, I highly recommend getting one. It’s by far the best tool you can use to guarantee perfectly cooked pork! Do you have a meat thermometer, but aren’t sure if it’s accurate? Learn how to calibrate it!
You can serve them over rice, brown rice, cauliflower rice, mashed potatoes or nothing at all. I like to enjoy these on a bed of rice and a side of bright green vegetables like green beans or Brussels sprouts! If it’s summer, I love having garden lettuce with my favorite dressing for a quick healthy meal.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Other Favorite Pork Recipes
- French Onion Pork Chops
- Pork Chops with Cream of Mushroom Soup
- Dr Pepper Pulled Pork in the Crockpot
- Pork Nuggets
- Smothered Pork Chops
- Bacon Wrapped Pork Chops
- Ground Pork Tacos
Honey Garlic Pork Chops
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- pork chops (2 thick bone-in chops or 4 thin chops)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tablespoons vinegar white, apple cider or rice wine vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper optional
Instructions
- Pour the vegetable oil in a large skillet and turn the burner on medium/high heat.1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- Season the pork chops with salt and pepper.pork chops, salt and pepper
- Once the skillet is hot, add the pork chops. Cook uncovered for 3 minutes on each side to sear the outsides of the chops; remove the chops from the pan and set aside.
- Turn the burner down to low/medium heat.
- To the skillet, add the butter and garlic. Let the garlic cook for about a minute.2 tablespoons butter, 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- Next, stir in the honey, water, vinegar and crushed red pepper. Let cook for a few minutes or until the sauce begins to thicken.1/4 cup honey, 1/4 cup water, 2 tablespoons vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- Add the chops back to the pan and cook for 5-10 minutes, basting frequently with the sauce. The pork chops are done when they register an internal temperature of 145°F. Let rest for 3 minutes before slicing.
- Thinly slice the chops and serve over a bed of rice; drizzle the remaining sauce over the pork.
- Garnish with parsley and additional crushed red pepper, if desired.
Notes
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic = 6 medium garlic cloves
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic = 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder*
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic = 1 1/2 teaspoons granulated garlic*
So I have LOVED every recipe off your blog. However, this one I had a little trouble with. Your sauce looks so thick, mine is like water. What do you think I did wrong??
First off, I’m so glad to hear you’ve been loving the recipes!! And I’m so glad you mentioned the sauce not being 100% what you expected it to be. I’m going to go back and edit the recipe to clarify. I doubt you did anything “wrong.” What I’m going to do is recommend that those making the recipe cook the sauce a bit longer before adding the chops back in. When it cooks longer, more water will evaporate out and make a thicker sauce!
I cooked the sauce until it was like syrup. When I put the pork in the pan with the glaze the pork released additional liquid. I removed the pork a second time, cooked the sauce again until it thicked then spooned it over the pork for a final time.
Super delicious! Amazing!
So glad you enjoyed it, Angela!!! Thanks for supporting my small business – reviews like this help more than you know!! <3
So I was debating between making this recipe or a drunken stove top recipe, but seeing that you’re from Iowa (where I lived till I was 19! Around the Waterloo, Dysart, Vinton area), and that totally made my decision for me lol can’t wait to make this for lunch for my husband and his coworker today 😁 thank you!
Hi Sarah!! I’m actually in Northeast Iowa, too! How’d the recipe turn out??!
It came out amazing! The guys left the house after lunch stuffed! Haha everybody loved it! I did add half of a red onion with garlic and sauteed them together (I LOVE red onions lol), but it was amazing – thank you for sharing the recipe! My almost 3 year old loved it too, so you have her approval too 😀
It turned out very nicely. Thank you. I did add a little more honey and garlic, we like bold flavors.
So happy to hear, Chanin!! 🙂
Just made this for my 96yr old client and she loved it! Savory sweet tangy & delicious thin loin chops for breakfast! Thank you!
Delicious chops! This easy recipe is a keeper!
Woohoooo so glad you enjoyed them, Beth!! 🙂
Great! Tasted so good ! Thank you.
I just had these. OMG So good!
I just have to say, I have always been intimidated cooking pork because the worry it will come out dry. I tried this recipe for my first time cooking pork and wow! It was so flavorful, juicy and delicious. I appreciate the minimal ingredients and it was so simple to make. My husband loved it as did I. Thank you!! I would make this again.
Hands down best pork recipe. We all loved the sauce! I used thin boneless pork chops so I cooked it the full 10 minutes. I was skeptical about the chili pepper because I don’t like spicy but it was the perfect blend! Thank you it was delicious
Entire family loved this recipe. Even a finicky 7 year old. Made a double recipe to have one for my lunch but there was nothing left on the table.
Awww so happy to hear that even a picky eater enjoyed this dish!! 🙂 Thanks for sharing! -Kelsey
Tried the honey glazed pork chops. FANTASTIC. I never have any lick with pork chops usually too dry but these were delicious and perfect.
Woohoo!! SO happy to hear that! -Kelsey
I topped the chops with some steamed&pan seared broccoli & Goat Cheese under white rice. Best recipe ever!
Loved it
Taste wonderful! Most of my pork chops went bad so I could only make two. I will definitely be making these again 🙂
I did try it . It was very good but sauce did not thicken so what can i do to thicken it.I just tried it with deiced boneless chicken.
These were super easy to make and were a hit in my house. Unlike most recipes I try from various food blogs, I wouldn’t change a thing about this one! Thanks for posting.
I was scanning the internet for a recipe using thin pork chops, that I bought by mistake. I found this recipe. So easy and quick to make. It was delicious! My husband says it’s a keeper!!
WOW! I got it right the first time. I didn’t put in an additional ingredients. I liked it just the way it is. Thank you for such an easy user friendly recipe. My husband enjoyed his supper very much today. He is such a picky non cooking know it all eater.
Easy to make. The sauce was amazing!