One hundred and fifty years ago, home cooks and commercial food processors relied on brining (along with salting and smoking) to prevent meats, fish, and vegetables from spoiling. Today, brining is making a comeback. Brined chicken and pork dishes appear on upscale restaurant menus. Cooks are rediscovering that brining is a simple way of improving texture and flavor. Since brining causes meat to absorb liquid, a seasoned brining solution makes meat juicier and tastier than it would be otherwise, a godsend for ultra-lean American pork and even for turkey.
我的朋友南希·奥克斯,老板圣法郎isco restaurant Boulevard, gave me her recipe for brining , which I've adapted for this easy dish. I like to serve these pork chops with Versatile Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes and Fiery Garlicky Greens.
If there are leftovers, cooked chops will keep for several days in the refrigerator. Their low fat content makes it too easy to dry them out during reheating, so I prefer to use them cold. Trim the meat off the bone, remove any fat remaining along the outer edge, and then slice the meat as thin as possible. Use in a sandwich or a salad, or as part of a cold meat plate, with Roasted Pear Chutney or Herbal Mayonnaise. (All these recipes mentioned can be found in the book).
Twelve hours is the optimal time for brining the chops, so plan on making the brine and marinating the chops the night before you intend to grill them. Brining them for slightly less time is fine, but longer than 12 hours, and the chops will start to take on the texture and flavor of ham. Once brined, however, they can be refrigerated for several days before cooking.
Ingredients
Makes 4 entrée servings
For the brine:
For the pork chops and grilling:
Step 1
1. Mix all of the brine ingredients together in a nonreactive pot and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat and stir the brine to ensure that the salt, sugar, and maple syrup have dissolved. Let the brine cool, then put it in a large nonreactive container and add the pork chops. Cover and refrigerate for no more than 12 hours.
Step 2
2. Remove the pork from the brine and pat dry (without rinsing).
Step 3
3. Prepare a grill with hot and medium cooking areas. A grill is hot when you can't hold your hand near the grill surface for longer than 2 seconds without pulling it away; it's medium when you can't hold your hand there for longer than 4 seconds.
Step 4
4. Season the chops with pepper (not salt — remember, the brining solution is salty) and brush with the oil. Sear the chops directly over the hottest part of the open grill for about 1 1/2 minutes on each side. Then move the chops to the medium area of the grill, cover the grill, and cook to the desired doneness. Use an instant-read digital thermometer to check the internal temperature of the chops. A reading of 145° to 150°F will give you a pink, moist chop, 160°F is well-done. Serve immediately, accompanied by the chutney, if using.
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Reviews (76)
Back to TopWe LOVE this recipe. It never fails to turn out perfectly moist chops. My CSA sells big fat boneless chops that get very happy in the brine. I keep juniper berries on hand just for this recipe. Definitely don't cook until "well done" but medium.
happyirish
Cleveland OH
6/28/2019
I'm typically not a big pork fan, but this recipe was truly delicious. I brined the chops for about 9 hours, which was plenty. I thought I had juniper berries in my pantry, but found I didn't and don't know what difference they would have made. The meat was juicy, tender, and not the least bit dry.
mellook
Bay Area
6/17/2019
I reduced the salt to half and brined some local free range chops for 2 1/2 days. The flavour was stunning!!! We have never had pork chops in high-end restaurants as good. However, they did not sear they way I would have liked them to, even though blotted well. I think they were still too wet. Next time I will drain them on a rack overnight before grilling. Absolutely delicious and so tender you could cut them with a spoon. My husband was in pork heaven.
Anonymous
Calgary, Alberta
10/29/2016
One of our family's favorites. You can substitute chicken breast for the pork and it's quite good (though not quite as good as if you use the pork). Fuggeddabout brining. Just marinate with all the ingredients except the salt, leave as much marinade on the meat as possible before grilling, spoon more over after you turn. Broiling works well too.
thatcherfreund
Portland, Maine
11/18/2015
I don't like the brining, I don't do the brining. Just mix up mustard, garlic, ginger, rosemary, cloves, and real maple syrup (juniper berries are fine but not necessary), and marinate the loins in it. Grill. It works to broil them too. Fabulous.
thatcherfreund
Portland, ME
5/4/2015
巨大的冲击我们的年度晚宴庆祝秋天。Succulent, tender, flavorful -- a real crowd pleaser. Everyone also went crazy for the Roasted Pear Chutney that pairs with it. I highly reccommend taking the time to make it. I also incorporated the chutney into an appetizer - serving it with goat cheese on crackers - another thumbs up from everyone. You will LOVE this recipe!!
marinchef
Marin County, CA
1/26/2015
Did a half recipe for 3 big double loin pork chops (would have been enough for another one or two) with a bit less than half proportional salt. Used bourbon instead of juniper berries and added nutmeg, and brown sugar instead of white. Brined for about 3-4 hours and grilled - delicious. Best pork chops we've ever made. I served with a reduction sauce of pork Demi-glace with maple syrup, salt, pepper, cloves (go easy on those though - can quickly get overwhelming), bourbon, butter and cream. Phenomenally decadent!! Definitely will make again.
Anonymous
Ontario
1/1/2015
Way too salty. I've never had this happen with brining so it was a surprise. In fact the chops were not edible.
gensmith
CA
5/13/2014
This recipe was AWESOME. Based on previous reviews I did the following: 1) cut the brine in half. There was enough to brine 3 thin bone in chops and one pork tenderloin. 2) I cut the kosher salt in HALF 3) brined for 6 hours 4) rinsed the meat off. It was cold outside so I pan fried the pork and finished in convection oven. I also made the chutney and would highly recommend you do so. It really compliments the pork. I tasted the pork without the chutney and didn't find it too salty and could also taste the other elements of the brine. For those cople of people that thought it was too salty, adjust the brine and try again you won't be disappointed.
xmatch
Charleston WV
3/13/2013
Are you supposed to add water to the brine mixture?
CookinFairview
Texas
5/28/2012
It was way too salty. I couldn't taste anything else except for the salt. I only used 1/2 kosher salt. I also only made 1/2 of the recipe. It was not worth the work. It was not bad but it wasn't good. The pork was moist. There are better recipes on this site. Honestly, it was a waste of good ingredients.
Anonymous
5/17/2012
I left out the juniper berries, and the gin, and it was still superb.
thatcherfreund
4/19/2012
Fabulous - even broiled. And the kids loved it too.
thatcherfreund
Portland, Maine
4/19/2012
Wonderful taste and tenderness. I substituted gin for juniper berries at 2 tablespoons of gin for 1 tablespoon of juniper berries.
Gastrophysicist
Houston, TX
7/10/2011
Oh man! This was absolutely fantastic! I dont(didn't)even like pork that much. I cut everything in half, was short on time, so I only marinated for 3 1/2 hours. Still, worked beautifully. Cooked on my Weber charcoal grill until 150 degrees. I let the pork rest and then used the drippings to add to a demi-glace(More than Gourmet). This is a great recipe. I also learned the benefits of an instant read thermomenter. I have always overcooked my pork in the past, which is why I never really liked it that much. This changes everything. This will be a dinner party menu in our home. Fantastic!
snibb
Draper, Utah
5/22/2011
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