Easy grilled bone-in pork chops are the perfect centerpiece to any summer BBQ. Ready in minutes, with just the right simple seasoning and hint of sweetness these pork chops will have your whole family clamoring for more.
Prepped in just moments and just a few minutes on your outdoor grill, these easy grilled pork chops will be the highlight of any summer grilling occasion. Seasoned with only salt, pepper, brown sugar, and olive oil your guests will have no idea just how easy these grilled bone-in pork chops were to prepare.
Serve these grilled pork chops with an easy green bean salad. It’s the perfect dinner!
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Summer barbecue season. So many things to grill so little time. Once you’ve tried these easy grilled bone-in pork chops however you may have a new grilling staple in your household. Memorial Day? Independence Day? Labor Day? Father’s Day? Flag Day? Summer Solstice? National Marshmallow Toasting Day? Why not grill these beautiful pork chops for all of them? You just may want to. Trust me. Let’s get cookin!
How To Make Easy Grilled Pork Chops (Bone In)
Grilled (bone-in) pork chops could not be easier, y’all. Simply coat both sides of the pork chop in olive oil and then gently rub with salt, pepper, and brown sugar and they are ready for grillin’! Oh also, after rubbing the pork chops with the seasoning wash your hands. Safety first. I mean, c’mon, we’re not animals.
What You Need:
Here’s what you’ll need from the store. The exact amounts are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Kitchen Tools Needed:
Ingredients Needed:
- Bone-In Pork Chops (atleast 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick)
- Salt
- Fresh ground black pepper
- Brown sugar
- Olive oil
Tips For Easy Grilled Pork Chops (Bone-In)
How Long To Grill Pork Chops?
On a medium preheated outdoor grill, place your pork chops and let them sizzle away for approximately four minutes with the lid closed. At four minutes the brown sugar should have caramelized and the pork chops should no longer stick to the grill. This is also a sign the first side is cooked perfectly.
Flip your chops and grill for another three to four minutes again with the lid closed, depending on thickness. For a 1/2″ to 3/4″ bone-in pork chop, this should be perfect.
A couple of things to note. First, ALWAYS preheat your grill. A cold grill will not give you the ideal sear and your bone-in pork chops will take longer to cook. Without that perfect sear and a longer cook time, your pork chops will easily overcook leaving you with a dry unpleasant piece of meat and guests who may never come back for dinner again.
Second, an instant-read digital meat thermometer is a home cook’s best friend. When you believe your pork chops to be done (aka after you’ve flipped the pork chops and cooked for an additional three minutes), simply remove one from the grill and immediately check the temp. A bone-in pork chop is done at 145 degrees.
As always, allow any cooked meat to rest for at least 5-10 minutes to let the meat finish cooking and redistribute all of its delicious juices.
What Temp to Grill Pork Chops
For an outdoor gas grill, turn your gas grill to medium heat and allow it to preheat for 10-15 minutes. After it is preheated give it a good scrape with your grill brush and give it another 5 minutes or so to burn off the last little baked-on bits and you are ready to go!
For an outdoor charcoal grill, a trick to attaining medium heat is to simply use less charcoal. As opposed to using a full grill and waiting for the heat to dissipate. If using a charcoal chimney starter (which I highly recommend) only fill the chimney 1/2 to 3/4 full of charcoal.
When the charcoal is ready evenly distribute the coals, replace the cooking grill and allow 5-10 minutes for the charcoal to burn off and baked on bits from ghosts of barbecues past.
Don’t have an outdoor grill? Or weather has taken a turn and it looks like your barbecue is going to get rained out? No worries. Simply try this alternate cooking method (link to Oven Baked Bone-IN Pork Chops)
Can I Use Boneless Pork Chops?
Short answer. Yes. Another short answer. I wouldn’t unless I had to.
Bone-in pork chops are better for grilling than boneless pork chops. Quite simply they are easier to cook on a grill than boneless. Bone-in helps ensure a juicy and succulent finished pork chop. A boneless pork chop is much easier to overcook and hence dry out very quickly making bone-in chops a little more foolproof.
But, but, but I can’t even think about eating meat on the bone, you say. It’s gonna be ok.
When using a boneless pork chop, look for a center-cut rib or center-cut loin chop as opposed to a sirloin chop. The center-cuts have a bit more fat for flavor and are more tender than a sirloin. Also, when using a boneless pork chop, err on the side of thicker.
A 1-inch thick boneless center-cut pork chop is ideal for grilling. Keep in mind, a thicker pork chop will take longer to cook. For a 1-inch thick boneless pork chop, cook 8-12 minutes turning every 3-4 minutes with the lid closed, and again after removing from heat allow resting for at least 5 minutes before cutting.
Do I Need to Oil My Grill?
No. With a pork chop always remember to oil the meat, not the grill. Coating the chops in olive oil will prevent them from sticking once the brown sugar has caramelized. The olive oil will be particularly helpful if you opt to go the boneless route as boneless pork chops have less fat and can stick to the grill if not oiled.
Out of olive oil? No worries. Canola oil or grapeseed oil will work just as well in a pinch.
5 from 1 vote
Easy Grilled Pork Chops (Bone in)
Print Recipe
These bone in pork chops are delicious- perfect for any BBQ or summer gathering!
Prep Time:5 minutes mins
Cook Time:8 minutes mins
Total Time:13 minutes mins
SERVINGS
2
Equipment
Grill
Grill Tongs
Ingredients
- 2 piece pork chops bone-in. Chops should be 1/2″ to 3/4″thick for best results.
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
Instructions
Preheat your grill to medium heat.
Coat both side of pork chops with olive oil and rub in salt, pepper and brown sugar.
Place pork chops on grill and grill on first side for approximately 4 minutes. The pork chops will stop sticking to the grill after this time and that means the first side is grilled perfectly.
Flip pork chops over and grill for another 3-4 minutes, depending on the thickness. That’s it!
Nutrition
Serving: 1piece | Calories: 234kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 90mg | Sodium: 646mg | Potassium: 509mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 8IU | Calcium: 14mg | Iron: 1mg
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: grilled pork, pork chops
Servings: 2
Calories: 234kcal
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More Pork Recipes
If you enjoyed this grilled pork chops recipe then you will love these pork recipes next:
- Easy Oven-Baked Pork Chops (Bone-In)
- Easy Brown Sugar Glazed Pork Chops Recipe
- Quick Pork Chops On George Foreman Grill
- Easy Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin
