Juicy Baked Pork Chops (easy recipe that always turns out tender)
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These oven baked pork chops are the most popular baked pork chop recipe on the internet for good reason: they’re easy to make, tender, super juicy, and flavorful. A few simple ingredients and pantry-staple spices are all you need to make this incredible dinner.
I’ve been told I’m an expert at making pork chops and have more than 16 pork chop recipes for you. Try these smothered pork chops and pan-fried pork chops next. Or go for my popular baked pork tenderloin!
Let’s give it up for easy and delicious pork chop recipes! This is one of my family’s favorite dinner recipes, and we go back to it repeatedly. The flavorful pork chops always turn out tender and juicy. After you make these baked pork chops, you’ll make them again and again. The recipe is speedy and easy to prepare and is a great one to keep in your back pocket for when you need dinner stat or can’t figure out what to make tonight. You can use boneless or bone-in pork chops – it’s your choice!
In this recipe, I keep it simple and don’t sear the chops on the stove. Instead, they go straight into the oven. From my experience, this makes the chops more tender and saves an extra step of work. And with the gorgeous color of the spices, you won’t miss the sear. Serve these with a big salad and some potatoes roasted in the oven at the same time as the pork chops. It makes for the best dinner.
Why you’ll love these baked pork chops
- 100% juicy pork chops. ← truth!
- With these chops, in just over 20 minutes you can be sitting down to a delicious dinner.
- The easy spice rub, made with spices you probably have in your pantry right now, makes the chops taste amazing.
- Pork chops are a budget-friendly protein option. Knowing how to cook them so they don’t dry out will make your dinners less expensive and more delicious.
- The kitchen-staple ingredients mean you shouldn’t have to run to the grocery store to make our recipe.
- Easily made with bone-in or boneless pork chops. Choose whichever you like best!
How long do pork chops take to bake at 400 degrees?
The biggest trick to making oven-baked pork chops is not overcooking them. Since pork chops are lean, they will dry out if left in the oven for too long. But don’t worry, here’s an easy way to know exactly how long you should cook your chops.
Boneless pork chops should cook for 7 minutes per ½-inch of thickness in a 400-degree Fahrenheit oven. If you use bone-in pork chops, cook them for 8 minutes per ½ inch.
- Boneless pork chops 1 ½ inches thick should be baked for 21 minutes.
- Bone-in pork chops 1 ½ inches thick should be baked for 24 minutes.
If you’re new to roasting pork chops, using an instant-read meat thermometer is the best way to determine whether they are fully cooked. Pork should be cooked to an internal temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit. We use our meat thermometer to make sure the meat doesn’t overcook.
What spices are the best with pork?
This spice blend is made with simple ingredients and you can use it on both chicken and pork. It’s a delicious way to create flavorful pork chops. It’s my go-to recipe and I’ve made it so many times and never get tired of it. Here are the pantry staples it is made with:
- Paprika
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Oregano – you can substitute Italian seasoning if you’d like
- Salt – sea salt or kosher salt
- Black pepper
It’s a basic spice rub that takes only a couple of minutes to make and has so much flavor. I recommend doubling (or tripling) the amounts so you can have some on hand for other dinners. Try sprinkling a little bit on some potatoes or sweet potatoes and baking them at the same time as your chops.
Pork recipes often call for brown sugar, but it is really not necessary. There is no reason to take a lean cut of meat and add a bunch of sugar. These chops are sugar-free and delicious.
What to serve with your oven baked pork chops
I like to serve these with a simple green salad and a veggie side that gets roasted on a baking sheet in the oven alongside these delicious pork chops. For a great meal that the whole family will love, try adding one of my favorite side dishes:
- Crispy Roasted Potatoes
- Roasted Asparagus or Roasted Broccoli
- Basmati Rice or brown rice
Store and Reheat
Store: I love a good pork chop sliced over a salad for lunch, so sometimes I make extra to have leftovers. They will keep for 3-4 days in an airtight container in your fridge.
Reheat: I like to slice them thin and warm them briefly in a pan over medium heat. You can also use a microwave.
Freeze: Yes! If you’d like to meal-prep, these baked pork chops will keep for at least three months in the freezer.
Watch how to make baked pork chops:
Juicy Baked Pork Chops (easy recipe that always turns out tender)
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
- 4 boneless pork chops
Instructions
- Turn your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Measure the thickness of your pork chops so you know how long to bake them – see notes.
- In a small bowl, mix together the paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and oregano.1 tablespoon paprika, 2 teaspoons onion powder, 2 teaspoons garlic powder, 1 teaspoon oregano, 1 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon salt
- Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over both sides of the pork chops. Sprinkle the spice mix evenly over both sides of the pork chops, then place them in a baking dish – see notes. Drizzle them with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil.2 tablespoons olive oil, 4 boneless pork chops
- Bake the pork chops uncovered for 7 minutes per ½ inch of thickness, or until they reach an internal temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit – for 1 ½ inch pork chops, you'll bake them for 21 minutes. Once you remove them from the oven, let them rest in the pan for 5 minutes before serving.
Last step:
- After you make this recipe, take a picture with your phone and share it in the comments section below. I love seeing it when you make my recipes!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
Delicious! Made this exactly as instructed. So tasty and juicy. Husband loved it and wants it again very soon. Thank you for sharing this. Definitely a keeper!
Made this tonight. Dang it I didn’t take a picture. But…. kids loved it!! My daughter (15) pickiest eater ever and she really liked it!! I only had smoked paprika on hand and it was great!! i don’t know if that matters…. Super easy and fast! I made mashed potatoes (boxed… all I had on hand) and green beans. I had 8 chops and I am thankful I have 2 leftover for lunch tomorrow! I made thin cut chops.
Thank you for this recipe! Love it!!!
Made these for dinner tonight. Followed the directions. Everyone loved them. They were moist and just the. Right amount of spice. I am not known for making tasty pork chops, This is a keeper. Thank you.
I am making these tonight I will let you know how they turn out.
Some of the best pork chops I have had. My new go to for Pork Chops.
I found that the oregano left an unpleasant flavor with the pork. i’m not sue if using less would help, but this recipe is not a keeper for me.
It was pretty good. The family enjoyed it. Not sure I’ll put it into the dinner rotation, but it’s a great simple and inexpensive occasional meal that’s worth giving a try.
Made these per recipe, ok, but not that great. I’ll pass doing this again…
This was a very simple easy recipe to follow. The meat was flavorful and juicy. I’m already thinking about my next meal with pork chops using this recipe.
We loved this pork chop recipe. So easy, with tender, tasty results. We used bone-in chops and can’t imagine they could have been better boned.
These were delicious, or in my hubby’s words, “seriously good!” I was a bit skeptical when I saw how much spice there was, but after reading the reviews, I decided to give them a try and I’m so glad I did! I’ll definitely be making them again. My chops were 3/4 inch thick with the bone in. I baked them for 20 minutes which was just right.
can i use bone c=pork chop with your recipe
Do you mean bone-in pork chops? If you do, you can use them but they will need to cook for 8 minutes per ½ inch of thickness. 🙂
I plan on making these tonight. Can you tell me if I need to flip these halfway through? Thank you!
Nope! Just let them cook on one side. 🙂
When the kids were small I opted for pork tenderloin over chops – it was just easier. Now that I have a bit more time, I wanted to give chops another chance. This recipe is simple and tasty. Unfortunately, I have to agree with others, the cooking time is definitely off. This worked in my favor and now I have a new favorite way of browning. My 1/2 inch bone-in my chops were raw at 8 minutes so I added 5 more and could tell they weren’t going to look the way I wanted so I pulled them and finished in a pan on the stove to a perfect 140 degrees (they were about 128 when they came out of the oven). This worked out well because like most meat, the chops weren’t all the same size and I was able to do two rounds of browning for the thicker and thinner to prevent overcooking the smaller chops. I also got a lovely crust on the outside. This will be my weeknight go-to recipe, but in the future I am going to plan on ending the cooking with a pan browning. **Other notes: I brined my chops all day and let them reach 70 degrees before cooking.
Easy, quick and very tasty! I’ve made these a few times now and very pleased.
First let me say I loved this recipe and method of cooking the chops! Absolutely delicious, juicy, quick and easy like the recipe says! I have a question though… it seems like I have so much of the dry rub that sprinkling the chips isn’t really the word I would use if I were to use it all, more like drowning them in it lol. I sprinkle it on and then rub it in on both top and bottom and the sides. My question is should I be rubbing it in or really just sprinkle, and if I am just sprinkling, should I only use enough of the rub to do that? Or use it all mo matter what?
I use all of the spice mix! Lots of sprinkling lol. 🙂
i made these last night using a different seasoning combo i’ve used and loved before for baked chops, but before, when i baked them without oiling them, they came out dry. but with your method of oiling both sides of the chops, they were so juicy, plump, and beautiful!
to reduce cleanup and keep my fingers clean, i poured ~1 T of the olive oil in the baking pan, placed the chops in the puddle of oil with a fork, one at a time, and turned them over with the fork to oil the other side. then i sprinkled my seasonings on top, and drizzled the remaining 1T of olive oil over the seasonings – such a great idea of yours!
the seasonings i used were a sprinkling of salt, then a very thorough sprinkling of thyme to cover the chop, then dried onion flakes. thyme and onion go so well with pork chops.
they were juicy and delicious.
served with peeled, chunked, boiled, and then mashed bright yellow rutabagas, with a little butter mixed in. and bright green steamed zucchini with a little butter.
my mother used to make sauteed pork chops cooked with fresh onion slices on top. she made a gravy with the pork chop juices, a little flour smoothed into the fat after the chops and onions were removed from the pan, and then rutabagas cooking water slowly stirred and simmered in to finish the gravy. so delicious!
but your recipe for baked chops is so much easier than making gravy with the pork fat. and so flavorful, cooked your method, it rivals mom’s.
next time i’ll use your seasonings.
thank you for a quick, super simple, tasty pork chop recipe!