Name: The Best Pork Chops
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 27 min
Yield: 2 servings
Ingredients: 2 chops (about 12 oz each) bone-in pork rib chops, 1.5 inches thick; 2 tsp kosher salt; 1 tsp black pepper, freshly cracked; 1 tbsp neutral oil (grapeseed or canola); 3 tbsp unsalted butter; 3 garlic cloves, smashed; 4 fresh thyme sprigs; 1 fresh rosemary sprig

The Best Pork Chops

Prep

15m

Cook

12m

Total

27m

Bigly says

Listen to me. We need to talk about pork chops. Specifically: how YOUR pork chops have been a disaster, a disgrace, a sad gray slab next to a pile of unloved applesauce. I have eaten more pork chops than anyone alive — probably more than anyone in recorded history — and I'm telling you, ninety percent of the pork chops being served in this country are OVERCOOKED. Hockey pucks. Shoe leather. A betrayal of a perfectly good pig. We're fixing that today.

Here's what nobody tells you. The USDA — and I respect the USDA, very smart people, very thorough, the smartest — moved the safe internal temp for pork down to 145°F years ago. YEARS AGO. And there are still chefs out there, grown adults with hats and aprons, cooking their chops to 170. SEVENTY. They are turning pink, juicy, magnificent pork into beige sorrow. It's a crime against the pig. It's a crime against you. Other so-called chefs won't say it. I will. Pull the chops at 140, let them carry over to 145, and you will eat the greatest pork chop of your life. Hands down.

My grandmother made pork chops every Sunday. Believe me, she was a tough woman. She'd salt them the night before — she called it 'waking the pork up,' which is the most accurate phrase ever applied to seasoning — and the chop she'd put in front of you on Sunday afternoon would change the trajectory of your week. That's the technique I'm giving you. Dry brine. Hot pan. Butter baste. Rest. Four steps, four words, one perfect chop. Tell your friends.

Ingredients

2 chops (about 12 oz each)bone-in pork rib chops, 1.5 inches thick(thin chops are not chops, they are pork wafers)
2 tspkosher salt(for the dry brine)
1 tspblack pepper, freshly cracked
1 tbspneutral oil (grapeseed or canola)
3 tbspunsalted butter
3garlic cloves, smashed
4fresh thyme sprigs
1fresh rosemary sprig

Steps

1
At least 4 hours and up to 24 hours before cooking: pat the chops bone-dry with paper towels. Sprinkle both sides evenly with the kosher salt. Place on a wire rack over a plate and refrigerate uncovered.
2
30 minutes before cooking: remove the chops from the fridge to take the chill off. Pat dry again. Season both sides with black pepper.
3
Heat a heavy cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat for 3 minutes until it is just smoking. Add the oil and swirl.
4
Lay the chops away from you into the pan. Sear undisturbed for 3-4 minutes until a deep golden crust forms. Flip and sear the second side for 2 minutes.
5
Using tongs, hold each chop on its fatty edge against the pan for 30 seconds to render the fat cap.
6
Reduce heat to medium. Add butter, garlic, thyme, and rosemary to the pan. Once foaming, tilt the pan and spoon the melted herb butter over the chops continuously for 1-2 minutes.
7
Check the internal temperature in the thickest part, away from the bone. Pull the chops at 140°F (60°C).
8
Transfer to a warm plate. Tent loosely with foil and rest for 7 minutes. The chops will carry over to 145°F.
9
Spoon any remaining brown butter from the pan over the top before serving.

One more thing

And there you have it. Two chops, fifteen minutes of actual cooking, and a result that will make your dinner guests stop talking mid-sentence. Slice into one and watch the juices puddle on the plate — that puddle is the receipt, the proof, the medal you earned. Serve with something sharp and bright: apple slaw, a quick mustard sauce, a roasted endive if you're feeling fancy. Don't drown it in gravy. The chop is the star. Let the chop be the star. Now go eat.