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!
Delicious! You nailed it! Thanks to you my hubby thinks I did too. ????
This was great! I couldn’t believe how juicy and moist they were. I didn’t have paprika so I left that spice off. Thank you and we will have this again!
Plan on making these tonight. Have thin boneless chops.
Do they brown enough?
What rack position do you recommend?
Don’t expect the chops to brown, especially if they are thin. But the spice rub on them makes them look great, even if they’re not browned. 🙂
Do I need to cover the chops
Nope! Uncovered. 🙂
Do you bake them open or covered?
Open (uncovered) 🙂
These are really good! I would probably use a little less paprika but that’s just a matter of taste. Quick easy and yummy!
Meat turned out so tender, I could cut it with a spreading knife.
Love this recipe! So easy to fix , so juicy and tasty. Will make it again soon.
first, let me say, it sounds really good. But in one spot, you say 7-8 minutes and in another spot, you say 18 minutes to cook them. Is it 7-8 minutes per side (14-16 mins total)? Or is it 18 minutes without turning them? Please clarify. Thank you!
Hi Enza. You’ll want to cook the boneless chops for 7 minutes per half-inch of thickness. Pork chops vary widely in thickness so you’ll want to pull out your measuring tape and do a little math. 14 minutes for 1-inch chops. 18 minutes for 1 ½ inch chops. 22 minutes for 2-inch chops. 🙂
Thank you for this recipe! I have made it once, and it was a big hit with the fam . . . but I have a question: do you recommend cutting the salt if I brine the chops first? I’m planning to make them tonight, and will have time to brine for a few hours (which I don’t always).
I’ve never tried brining these first, but it will definitely make it saltier. Probably best to skip the salt in the rub. You can always add more at the table if you think they need it. 🙂
Delicious recipe. I used smoked paprika instead of regular paprika.
Loved this! Has a kick, but the flavor is great!
I made some chops with your spice mix, they were super tasty. I also made your smokey potatoes with feta on top. The sauce from the chops was really good on the potatoes
3/4 inch thick….did it for 10 mins. Nowhere NEAR done, but my thermometer said it was. Also people in the comments talk about the sauce….I didn’t have any sauce. Not sure what on earth I did wrong.
At 140/145 degrees the pork will still look a little pink. I know that it can be a bit off-putting if you grew up (like me!) in an era of overcooked pork. But if you prefer yours more well-done, then absolutely cook it longer.
I did not like the seasoning. I used Hungarian paprika, don’t do that!! They were juicy. I did have to cook two times longer because they were so close together in the pan.
So easy to put together my 14 yr old did it herself tonight and we all devoured every last chop. I thought we’d have leftovers, but there weren’t enough. Definitely serve with something to soak up the sauce. We had them with couscous and butternut squash that roasted at the same time. We used thin sliced pork loin chops because that’s what we had on hand. Using the internal temp helped get them just right. I broiled for a few minutes at the end to get a little browning since the thin ones cooked so quickly. This is definitely the way to cook chops!