Pan-Fried Pork Chops w/ Garlic Butter

This is a recipe for Pan-fried Garlic Pork Chops and is an all-time favorite of my family. It’s one of those recipes that’s easy to make and never goes out of style and people of all ages love pork chops, especially when they are smothered with garlic and butter! 

Some people don’t eat pork chops because they don’t know how to cook them. As a result, they dry them out thinking they must have to cook them to death in order for them to be done. The key is not to overcook them or they will be dry. If you cook them properly they will melt in your mouth and will become one of your family’s favorite meals. 

Garlic Butter Pork Chops are very tender and juicy and have so much flavor due to the savory garlic and creamy butter. They are super easy to make and so delicious to eat. 

My family asks for fried pork chops often and we will show you how you can cook them so they soon become one of your family’s favorites too.

What are Pan-Fried Pork Chops?

Pan-Fried Pork Chops are just what they sound like….pork chops that are fried in a pan. You can fry them in olive oil or in butter, and you can season them any way that you want to. 

When you fry them it keeps your pork chops tender and juicy because it sears the juices in especially when you are using a cast-iron frying pan. 

What is the Best Way to Cook Pork Chops?

After years of cooking pork chops, I feel one of the best ways to cook them is to season them and then pan fry them with butter and garlic. What you do is cook them on a high temperature quickly on both sides, it’s called searing them, and then put them in a baking dish or baking tray and finish cooking them in the oven.

When you do it that way it seals in the juices, and by pouring the excess butter from the frying pan over the chops it helps to keep them moist. 

If you own a cast iron frying pan you can cook them in there and then instead of transferring them onto a baking sheet you can just leave them right in the same pan and bake them the rest of the way in the oven.

What Ingredients are in Garlic Butter Keto Pork Chops?

Pork Chops – We like pork chops with a bone, the center cut loin chops. They have more flavor because of the bone and a little fat, rather than boneless ones.

Salt – The salt gives the meat flavor and helps to tenderize the pork chops.

Pepper – A must with salt for flavor and a slightly spicy taste.

Garlic Powder – The best flavor for the pork chops. You can also throw in some whole garlic cloves while you fry the pork chops.

Parsley – A mild but flavorful seasoning which also gives the pork chops some added color.

Butter – Who doesn’t like the taste of rich butter poured all over your pork chops while baking? 

Olive Oil – A good way to fry food, especially helpful if a person can’t have dairy, butter. You can also brush the olive oil all over the pork chops so that the garlic powder and parsley will stick better. 

Garlic Cloves – Optional.

What Type of Pork Chops Are Best?

There are several types of pork chops that you can use to make the pan-fried garlic butter pork chops.

Loin Chops – Another name is rib chops. They have less meat than the center cut chops and are cheaper too. They seem to be the most popular of the bone in version and are readily available at most stores without the help of a butcher.

Center Cut Chops – This is the best cut of pork chops with a bone. It’s the same as the loin/rib chop on one side and then on the other side of the t-shaped bone, there is a piece of pork filet, which is usually a good size. It sort of reminds you of a T-bone steak.

These chops are more expensive than the rib chops but not too much, and buying them on sale can be very beneficial. 

Boneless Chops – Some people like boneless chops because they don’t like to cut the meat off the bone and don’t like any fat on their chop. They are certainly leaner than bone-in.

Thin-sliced Chops – These tend to have a bone and are the cheapest of the chops. They are too thin for baking because by the time you get them into the oven they are cooked on the inside but had no time to sear up well. 

Thick-sliced Chops – In my opinion, the best use for this cut is when you want to make stuffed pork chops, but some people prefer thick-cut for this recipe.

To summarize, I think it’s all preference what kind you use but personally, I like a pork chop with a bone and some fat around the edges and a medium thickness. 

Sometimes there’s a good sale on one type vs another so if the price is a factor then go with the sale.

Bone-in vs Boneless Pork Chops

Boneless chops are more convenient, there’s no cutting the meat off the bone. Boneless chops are leaner which means they are easier to dry our and have less flavor. Boneless is good if you don’t want the bone or fat.

The bone-in chops have more fat which means they have more flavor. They are less expensive to buy because the butcher did not have to take extra work to cut the meat off the bone, whereas the boneless is more expensive because of the extra work involved in cutting it off the bone.

Rib chops that have a curved bone are the most common of all of the chops that have bones, and you can readily get them in most stores. They also have less meat than the center cut chops, so therefore they are less expensive to buy.

Properly Thawing Pork Chops

If you are making the pan-fried pork chops from already frozen meat, be sure to thaw them out properly. The best way to thaw meat is to take it from the freezer and put it right into the refrigerator to thaw slowly. This way bacteria will not form.

You do not want to thaw them out in the microwave to speed up the thawing process because the meat starts to turn grey and cook around the edges and gets tough….no one will want to eat those pork chops!!

Preparing Garlic Butter Pork Chops

Now let’s see how to cook these garlic butter pork chops. In this next section, we will see the first 2 steps which are how to dry the chops and how to marinate them and the advantages of both steps.

Drying

First, you need to take the pork chops out of the package and then gently dry off the meat with a paper towel which will absorb the excess moisture. If you were to bread the pork chops it would help the breading to stick better to the meat. 

Also if you are going to freeze the chops, by removing the excess moisture it will protect them from getting freezer burn easily.

In this recipe, by drying the meat first it allows you to get a better, more even sear in the pan.

Marinade/Seasonings

Pork chops are easy to dry out if you aren’t careful. The reason some people don’t like them is that when they are overcooked they get dry. So in that case, if you use a marinade before cooking it can help increase the flavor and keep your pork chops tender and juicy.

There are a lot of store-bought marinades that you can buy but most of them have some sort of carbs in them, also sometimes artificial ingredients. To keep it mostly carb-free, the marinade that I like the best is just olive oil and salt and pepper.

Since these are garlic pork chops you need to also use the garlic powder as part of the marinade, to get the most flavor from the garlic.

So what I do is to take the pork chops and place them in a Ziploc bag, as many as can comfortably fit in the bag at one time:

Take the spices, the salt, pepper, garlic powder, and parsley and add them to the bag too.

Lastly, pour your olive oil into the bag:

Shake the bag and move the meat all around so that it gets well coated.

Place the pork chops in the refrigerator to marinate until you are ready to cook them.

You can season the pork chops in the morning before going out to work for the day and when you come home they will be seasoned and tender. Even the night before would be ok too so that they really get flavored up well. But even if you forget to season them that many hours ahead of time, just an hour or two ahead will still produce good results.

How to Cook Pan-Fried Pork Chops 

Now we get to the fun part learning how to make yummy garlic pork chops.

After you have prepared your meat now it’s time to cook it. 

Get your favorite frying pan, a cast-iron one of you have it.

Turn your skillet on medium-high to high and preheat it so when you fry the meat you will get a good sear on them. Melt the butter and now you are ready to fry them.

Place as many as will comfortably fit into the pan without crowding them so they will cook better.

Brown them about 2 minutes on each side till golden brown, not burnt. If you are going to throw in a few cloves of garlic now would be a good time to do so.

Then transfer the chops into a baking dish or baking tray or keep them in your cast iron pan and bake them at 375 degrees.

How Long Do Pork Chops Take to Cook?

It doesn’t take too long to cook pork chops, especially since you don’t want them to dry out. In this recipe, when you perform the first step frying them, make sure to heat up the pan to medium-high to high. Searing them only takes 2-3 minutes on each side. 

Then when you bake them for the rest of the cooking process, it only takes about 15 minutes.

How to Tell When Pork Chops are Done?

The sure way to tell when the pork chops are done is to stick a meat thermometer into them. Take a thermometer and stick it in the thickest part of the pork chop and check it until the thermometer reads 135 degrees. 

When the thermometer reaches 135 degrees the chops are done.  

Cooking time can vary depending on the thickness of your chops so that’s why if you use the thermometer then you have less of a chance of overcooking them.

Once you cook them quite a few times you get to know the look of them when they are done without having to use a thermometer, but that comes with practice. When you become a pro at it you will be able to feel when it’s done by pressing on it you will have a slight resistance when you press on it with your finger. 

When done take them out of the oven and cover them with foil to keep them warm and let the rest for 10 minutes.

Correct Internal Temperature for Pork Chops?

The desired internal temperature for pork chops is 145 degrees. Once the temperature reaches 150 degrees it has dried out completely. At this point, this is where people give up making pork chops. 

What I have found to be the best is to take them out of the oven when the thermometer reaches 135 degrees because they keep cooking and will eventually reach the desired temperature.

Resting the Meat

Once the pork chops come out of the oven it’s important to let them rest for about 5-10 minutes. When you cut into the meat right away the juices tend to run out hence drying out your chops. Instead, when they rest for a few minutes the juices soak into the meat so when you go to eat them they will be more tender.

Do not overcook the meat because when it is resting it will continue to cook, just like beef does. So it’s important to use a meat thermometer to avoid overcooking in the first place.

That’s why it’s important to take the pork chops out of the oven when they reach 135 degrees because as they rest the temperature will go up another 5-10 degrees, which is the desired temperature before eating.

Best Tips for Cooking Pork Chops

• If you fry the pork chops in a cast iron fry pan or skillet, you can actually bake them in the same pan and not have to transfer them onto another pan.
• Take the pork chops out of the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking them. Bringing them closer to room temperature will allow them to absorb the spices better.
• If you are using a pork chop with a bone it may take a few minutes longer to cook them than a boneless chop the same size. 
• No matter which cut of pork that you use, be sure to keep your eye on the thermometer….it’s more reliable than just relying on how many minutes to cook them. DO NOT OVERCOOK YOUR CHOPS.
• Unless you have a problem with salt, to flavor the meat before cooking which will make the chops more tender and flavorful. Also, use salted butter because it will give your pork more flavor and the salt in it helps to keep the meat tender.
• If you add any chopped garlic, wait a while until the pork is at least half cooked because you don’t want to burn the small pieces of garlic while waiting to complete the cooking process.
• Always allow your pork to rest a few minutes before serving to trap in the juices.
• Preheat your cast iron skillet first before adding the meat, it’s crucial to get the best sear.

Perfectly Searing Pork Chops

The start of making the perfect pork chops is searing them properly on the outside. When you sear a piece of meat you seal in the juices at the same time browning up the outside. 

If you have a cast iron fry pan it does a great job searing them. This is an essential step for flavor and after all, who wants to eat grey, blah pork chops when you can eat brown and juicy ones?!

Keeping Pork Chops Tender

In order to keep something tender, you need to make it tender to start with, which is where the marinade comes in.

Also, your garlic pork chops will stay tender if you don’t overcook them. 

Only cook them until the thermometer reaches 135 then when you take them out of the oven cover them with foil and let rest for 10 minutes….they will stay tender while the temperature rises a bit.

Different Variations of Pork Chops

Two yummy things to add to the frying pan while cooking the pork chops are onions and apple slices. Both onions and apples have some carbs so just don’t eat too much, but both can flavor the meat real well even if you don’t actually eat the onions or apples.

One of my all-time favorite things with pork is to cook it in tomato sauce. Prepare the chops the same way and then cover them in the skillet with the sauce and simmer until tender. You will love them.

Another good way to cook pork chops is to cook them the same way in the cast iron pan and throw in some chopped cabbage or sauerkraut and simmer. The cabbage will flavor the meat without a lot of added carbs or calories. A good low carb dinner.

What to Serve with Pork Chops

There are so many side dishes and vegetables that will complement pork chops. Let’s share a few choices.

Coleslaw made with oil and vinegar is a good choice. The same with sauerkraut and any cabbage dish.

We have some yummy side dishes on our site like that would be perfect:

• Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Bacon 
• Roasted Broccoli
• Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes
• Cauliflower Mac and Cheese
• Roasted Green Beans
• Butternut Squash Casserole
• Keto Cranberry Sauce
• Creamed Spinach

What Diets is this Recipe Good for?

• Gluten-Free – This is a wonderful recipe for gluten free…no gluten 
• Low Carb – There are hardly any carbs in the pork chops. The only carbs come from the garlic.
• Dairy-free option – Just use olive oil to cook the chops if you can’t eat dairy.
• Nut-free – There are no nuts in these garlic pork chops

How to Store Pork Chops

As with all meat, the best way to store pork chops is in an airtight plastic container, in the refrigerator. Store them for up to 4 days for the best freshness.

You could also store them on a plate and cover them tightly with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and then put them in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

How to Reheat

I have found that the best way to reheat an already cooked pork chop is in the oven. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with foil. Lightly brush the meat with some olive oil or melted butter so that the pork does not dry out while being heated up. 

It should only take about 10 minutes to heat, but that all depends on how thick your pork chop is or how hot that you like it.

Can You Freeze Pork Chops?

The best way to freeze pork chops is to take them out of their packaging from the store and pat them dry with a paper towel. It’s best to freeze them in plastic Ziploc bags in the amount that you will use at one time.

For example, if the package has 8 chops and you will use 4 at each meal then freeze them in 2 separate bags. You could also freeze them individually, each in their own bag.

They can stay safely in the freezer for 3 months if wrapped properly.

More Keto Recipes

If you’re in the mood for some other Low Carb Recipes then try our:

• Keto Buffalo Chicken Wings
• Low Carb Meatloaf
• Oven-Baked Ribs
• Spiral Ham with Keto Glaze
• Perfect Roast Turkey
• Best Prime Rib Roast in the World

They all are Keto-friendly and low carb, and will be a hit at your next meal!

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