Hands down, these are the best pork chops ever. Not only is this recipe savory, delicious, and elegant, it is ridiculously easy to make. A lot of people claim that pork chops are boring because of their dry texture and bland flavor, but I assume these individuals are not properly cooking them. The trick here is to use a thick pork chop, a piping hot cast iron skillet, and not over cooking the chops (yummy ingredients don’t hurt either). In this recipe, sage and garlic infuse velvety butter that marries with the left over pan juices to create a fabulous restaurant style sauce. Whether you want to up your weekly night pork chop game or you want to seriously impress guests at your next dinner party, these pork chops are your ticket.

This recipe makes two pork chops, but can easily be doubled. Just sear all the pork chops you wish to make in batches of two. Remove all cooked pork chops to a plate and cover with foil. Then make the sauce separately in the skillet and drizzle over pork chops.

Ingredients

3 teaspoons vegetable oil
2 bone-in pork rib chops, 1½ inch thick (it is okay if the tenderloin is attached)
3 tablespoons butter, unsalted
6-8 sprigs of sage or thyme
2 garlic gloves, peeled and smashed
Salt and Pepper

Instructions

With a paper towel, pat dry pork chops and liberally salt and pepper on all sides. Heat vegetable oil in a 12-inch cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. When oil is shimmering, add pork chops and cook for 3-5 minutes on each side (make sure the pan is hot enough to create a deep golden brown color on ALL sides). Check the internal temperature of each pork chop by inserting an instant-read thermometer in the thickest part of the chop. When the thermometer reads 135 degrees, remove pan from heat.
Add butter, sage, and garlic to the pan. Tilt the skillet and spoon melted butter, sage, garlic, and drippings over the pork chops. Repeat this process several times making sure both pork chops are covered with sauce. Transfer pork chops to a platter, cover with the remaining sauce, and let rest for 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Chef’s notes: The key to cooking meat perfectly is to cook it 5-10 degrees below its safe internal temperature, then let the meat rest out of the pan. Letting the meat rest allows the juices the settle within the meat. Resting also allows the internal temperature to rise 5-10 degrees reaching its perfect doneness. I highly recommend purchasing a meat thermometer from the grocery store or from Amazon (you don’t need to purchase a super expensive thermometer either, they never work properly).

Post Written by Kayla V.

Pork Chops with Sage and Butter