// How to marinade and grill the BEST Pork Chops //
I admit it… I LOVE to grill! Well, my husband and I love to grill. We are a team really. I work on creating amazing marinades for our meat and veggies and he is the grill master. It’s a perfect partnership. From the minute the weather starts to warm up we fire-up the grill and it’s hard at work until the first snow flies. I have been known to grill some fabulous steaks standing in a snow storm a few years back. We don’t prescribe to the Memorial Day to Labor Day idea, that’s for the birds! Any day that you don’t have to completely bundle up in a parka is fair game in my book.
This week has finally started to warm up and of course we busted out the grill and had one of our favorite dinners, grilled pork chops with a fresh green salad. My secret to these pork chops is an amazing marinade. This one is super simple with only a handful of ingredients, namely… olive oil, white wine, garlic, dried oregano, dried basil, bay leaf, salt & pepper. That’s it!
To start, I grab a nice head of garlic, olive oil & white wine.
Now, I ‘m not a wine drinker so, I don’t really know to much about wine. What I typically do is find a lower to average priced wine for this purpose. Under $10 a bottle for sure. My rule of thumb is white wine for pork, chicken & fish. Red wine for beef. I really like Tyler Florence’s California Crush wines for this marinade, you can find it at Target. Here is the marinade recipe…
- 6 thick cut pork chops
- 1 cup olive oil
- 2 cups white wine
- 5-6 garlic cloves
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- In a small mixing bowl combine the olive oil, wine, garlic, oregano, basil, bay leaf, salt & pepper. Whisk together.
- Place pork chops in a large Ziplock bag and pour marinade over the chops.
- Seal the bag and place in the refrigerator for 4 hours, best over night if possible.
- Grill on a outdoor grill.
- Start with 2 minutes over high heat on the first side. Flip over and grill for an additional 2 minutes. Flip again, and give the meat a ¼ turn for optimum grill marks, 2 more min, then flip and turn again, 2 more min.
- Then turn the heat to med-low and cook until they reach your target internal temp (160˚F)
- Once your meat is at 160˚ remove from grill and let rest for 10 minutes.
Grilling Tips
Now, once you’ve marinaded the meat it’s time to grill… This is my sweet husband’s area of expertise. Here are his grilling tips…
- Make sure you are working with a clean well maintained grill. Whether it is charcoal or gas, taking care of your grill is well worth the investment of your time. Keep your grill clean and carefully spray with high heat cooking spray and you won’t have any issues with your food sticking to the grill.
- Give your grill proper time to pre-heat.
- Have a meat thermometer and a timer handy.
- For these pork chops, start with high heat and place your chops on the grill. Set your timer for 2 minutes. After 2 minutes, turn your meat and set the timer for an additional 2 minutes. After 2 minutes turn your chops, giving them a 1/4 turn to get those fabulous, professional looking grill marks. Cook for an additional 2 minutes. Turn one more time with the 1/4 turn for the other side and set the timer for 2 minutes. After 2 minutes, turn your heat down to medium or if using charcoal, move your meat to a cooler side of the grill. Let cook turing every few minutes until your chops reach 160˚ F.
- Remove the chops from the grill and let rest for 10 minutes.
That’s it! It’s really that easy and they taste sooooo good!! After your meat has rested, serve it with a nice garden salad and your family and friends will just adore you. The marinade with all of it’s flavorful goodness has made it’s way through the pork and created this amazing meal you won’t soon forget!
Give it a go and then tell me what you think… Take a photo of your pork chops and tag me on Instagram with the #WBwhatsfordinner hashtag and let me know what you thought!
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Heather, my hubs and I are the same way when it comes to grilling. Our neighbors thought the back of our house was on fire last Thanksgiving, because we’re out grilling the turkey… in a blizzard! Loving the way you made your marinade… so delish!
I made these for dinner tonight and they were incredibly tender. My husband & I agreed these are a must make again chops! Thanks!!
I need a substitute for recipes with alcohol. I know it is said the alcohol contents cook off however I do not want to start using it.
You can try a vinegar, maybe apple cider vinegar would work. You need something acidic to work on breaking down the meat a little to tenderize it.
Great great chops thanks!
Need a replacement for the white wine in a recipe? One of these non-alchoholic substitutes should work beautifully:
•chicken broth
•apple juice
•apple cider
•white grape juice
•ginger ale
•water
Replace measure for measure.
Made these tonight and they were delish. Thanks for the grilling tips.
Correct temp for pork 160 or 145?
Chele- Here is the official word from the Pork Board.
“The National Pork Board recommends cooking pork chops, roasts, and tenderloin to an internal temperature between 145° F. (medium rare) and 160° F. (medium), followed by a 3 minute rest. Since large cuts increase approximately 10° F. while resting, remove them from the heat at 150° F. followed by a 10 minute rest.”
These pork chops were the BEST I have ever made!! I usually end up grilling them nicely (i.e. marks) but they always seem dry and bland, not yours! I’m not sure if it was the wine, an ingredient I had never tried before, or the spices, but man these were moist , fragrant and delicious! So many thanks for what will now be my go to recipe for grilled pork chops! 5 STARS!
Stella, You’ve made my day! Thank you so much for your sweet review of my recipe. I’m so glad you like it.
Heather