Cast Iron Skillet Garlic & Brown Sugar Pork Chops

ByKelly
75 Comments

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garlic & brown sugar pork chops

 

Sweet-glazed, flavor-packed and tender, juicy, succulent pork chops worthy of a white linen restaurant made easily right at home!!! Perfect for date night in!!

 

 

Why do meats always seem to taste so much better when they leave the bone in? The meat seems to be more tender, too!

So when they had gorgeous, super thick-cut, pork loin chops with the bone left in for only .89¢ a pound, I swear, my mouth started watering just thinking of the possibilities!

 

 

 

 

I wanted to make an elegant, but simple and inexpensive dinner with these beauties that would do them justice, and these chops turned out so pretty, that you'd think that we were dining out by candlelight!

 

 

 

garlic brown sugar chops

 

 

And they start with a basic simple rub of ingredients you most likely already have on hand!

 

 

 

garlic brown sugar chops 2

 

 

I LOVE, love, love my cast iron skillet for things like this, but if you don't have one, just use any frying pan that you can safely transfer to the oven.  (Nothing with plastic handles that could melt!)

 

 

 

garlic brown sugar chops 3

 

 

I served these "don't I look sexy!" chops with some Copycat Homemade Boxed Stuffing and some green beans! (<-- I have several recipes to choose from on my blog that you might like!)

 

 

 

garlic brown sugar pork chops

 

 

And we "fine dined" for about $4.00....TOTAL.

What???

Yep!!!

And restaurants charge....how much??!!! 😉

Just another reason why I'd rather just be "wined 'n dined" at home. 😉

I do hope that you make these soon!
They really were special and felt like a royal treat!!
Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

Cast Iron Skillet Garlic & Brown Sugar Pork Chops
Yield: 2 restaurant-sized servings

Cast Iron Skillet Garlic & Brown Sugar Pork Chops

4.5 Stars (110 Reviews)

Ingredients

  • 2 large thick-cut bone-in pork loin chops, 1 inch thick, (about 1 lb. each)
  • 4 Tbl. butter
  • Rub Mix:
  • ¼ cup dark brown sugar
  • ½ tsp. Slap Ya Mama cajun seasoning
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • ½ tsp. coarse ground black pepper
  • ½ tsp. garlic powder
  • ½ tsp. paprika

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350º F.
  • In small to medium-sized bowl, mix rub ingredients well.
  • Pat rub mix onto each side of both chops.
  • In cast iron skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat.
  • Place chops into skillet and fry each side for 4 minutes each. (8 minutes total).
  • When side two is done, turn chops and pop into preheated oven.
  • Bake for 4 minutes. Turn chops, baste and bake for 4 more minutes.
  • Turn chops, baste and bake for 4 minutes more or until done in the center. (*Total cooking time, frying and baking, is about 20 minutes for super thick-cut chops. Bake less for thinner chops).
  • Remove chops to plates and let rest a few minutes before serving.
    • © Kelly@wildflourskitchen.com

     

     

      

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    75 Comments

    1. Delish. First time I’ve used this method. My husband is more of a pork chop lover than me. These were the best I’ve ever made.

      Reply

    2. Finally….after many searches for moist, flavorful pork chops, your recipe hit the mark. I honestly blew off the “moist” word and went for the sauce. I didn’t believe pork chops could be moist and tender on the stove and/or oven. These chops are. Using the thermometer is key. They were perfect after quickly! being seared with rub and butter in my cast iron. I removed mine from oven between 141 and 144 degrees. Thank you!

      Reply

    3. I was l was looking for something using cast iron pan this recipe was on point and I didn’t use cayenne pepper regular pepper since I was on cooking one Chop for myself sweet and savory YUMMY
      THANKS FOR SHARING YOUR recipe

      Reply

    4. This recipe is on regular rotation in our house - favorite of my picky-eater husband and 4 kids 8 and under!!! Perfect every time!

      Reply

    6. Yum Yum! Trying out new cast iron pan and this was delicious! After chops were done frying I through in sliced onions and green apples with a little butter. Just cooked them enough to get some of the meat/season flavor and then transferred to another fry pan to finish off and quickly put the chops back in the iron pan to place in the oven. Not sure if this changed the flavor of original recipe, but it turned out perfect with the apples and onions served on top with a little homemade applesauce on the side. Cook time was perfect for the extra thick chops we have. Also added cayenne like someone else suggested! Thank you!!

      Reply

    8. This basics of this recipe made a first time effort in a cast iron grill so easy! My family doesn’t do heat well, so i substituted the salt and Cajun for 1 tsp of seasoned salt. I also decided to use about 1 tbsp of pressed garlic (fresh) instead of garlic powder. The last 4 minutes is debatable depending on size of chop but this turned out so awesome! Thank you for sharing!

      Reply

    9. I know this is probably a dumb question but if I’m doubling the recipe, do I have to double the amount of butter?

      Reply

      1. Hi Eileen! Possibly not. *You can always add more butter to the pan if needed. You just want enough so that it doesn't stick at all. I hope that helps!

        Reply

    11. Made this earlier tonight and it was a huge hit! I tripled the recipe for the rub to compensate for the extra meat I had to cook otherwise followed exactly as posted. I can't wait to try this rub on chicken!

      Reply

    14. Thanks so much for the recipe! I had boneless loin chops, not very thick, so decreased times from 4 minutes to 3 minutes each round. I could have decreased the oven time even more, but they were wonderful. After putting them in the pan I peeled, cored and thinly sliced an apple and added it to the pan, tossing the slices each time I turned the chops. Perfect pairing!

      Reply

      1. Oh, dear. That will completely depend on the thickness of them. But I would maybe start by baking them only 2 - 3 minutes after frying. *Pork chops are done when SLIGHTLY pink in color on the inside, but the juices run clear. Just bake a few minutes, and take a knife and make a slit and peek inside. If not quite done, bake another 2 minutes. (Best guess.)

        Reply

    18. One word...YUM!! I substituted the Cajun Spice with red cayenne pepper but the rest I had on hand. I also cooked 5 chops so I doubled the ingredients. Mmmmm soooo good!!

      Reply

      1. That would work fine, Sara. You might want to use thinner cut pork chops though, to make sure that they get done on the inside without getting overly done on the outside. You just want to make sure that they are cooked all the way through is all.

        Reply

      1. You can make your own easily. Just mix 1 cup of regular sugar with about 1 Tbl. molasses. That's all that "brown sugar" is. Sugar mixed with molasses. Add as much or little as you like, but at least 1 Tbl. to achieve "light" brown sugar.

        Reply

    25. Are these tender I have a step mom that is 83 and she cant chew anything tough and needs to be very tender Im always looking for tender meat recipes

      Reply

      1. Honestly, if she has trouble chewing, she might have trouble eating this. I think making one of my pork tenderloin recipes would be perfect for her, though. VERY tender. Please click here to find a flavor that she might enjoy: https://wildflourskitchen.com/?s=pork+tenderloin&submit
        I so hope this helps! My hubby also has trouble after having extensive dental work, so I completely understand! 🙂

        Reply

    26. I was looking for something new to do with pork chops. I have a cast iron skillet. they was delicious. even my picky 17 year old loved them.

      Reply

    28. I am curious if you have a good substitute for the Cajun seasoning or how it is without it? As I don't have any on hand and was trying to cook with what I have. Also have a picky 11yo who doesn't like spicy.

      Reply

        1. Cora, cajun seasoning is like a seasoned salt with a kick to it. So you could sub your favorite seasoned salt, or even a little regular salt, and then add just a tiny bit of cayenne pepper to it if you'd like. I do highly recommend you try some someday day, though! I prefer the Slap Ya Mama brand, and boy is it ever good! I use it in so many dishes!

      3. We don't do spicy either, so I didn't use the salt and I substituted Durkee Seasoned Salt for the cajun spice. It is delicious and my family loved it.

        Reply

    29. I'm going to try this for my boys tonight with macaroni and cabbage and corn bread 🙂 yummmm...excited to try!

      Reply

        2. You can use any pan that is safe to put in the oven. (No plastic or rubber-coated handle(s) that could melt).

    34. I recently purchased my first cast iron skillet, can't believe I didn't do it sooner. I'm looking forward to trying this recipe! I rarely comment BUT I LOVED the poem you included in your post! Personally I am shocked at how rude people can be when commenting. I appreciate the time someone takes in posting a recipe. So, thank you!

      Reply

      1. You are so very welcome, Tawnia!! I hope you enjoy cooking in your new pan!! Thank you for stopping by! 😀

        Reply

    35. Sounds simple and delicious. Grew up with both my grandmother and mom using a cast iron skillet for everything, especially fried chicken. I always have fresh garlic on hand and I have brown sugar as well.

      Reply

    36. Going to try this tonight. I have 4 thick pork chops that I've had in my freezer. I have a large cast iron skillet, both fresh garlic gloves and dark brown sugar. Will have my best friend who lives next door pick up some new potatoes to roast up in same cast iron skillet and some asparagus spears I can pick up this afternoon. Sounds simple and delicious.

      Reply

    37. I want to try these but I was just wondering... You say to bake for several minutes, then turn and baste them. What are you basting them with? Just the juices that are in the bottom of the pan or something elso?

      Reply

      1. Hello, Katrina! Yes, I should've been more clear in the recipe. There will be wonderful juices in the pan that you'll use to baste them with. Just tilt the pan, using a good potholder as the handle will be hot, and spoon the sauce/juices over them. I hope you enjoy! 🙂

        Reply

    38. I made these for my husband and I a couple nights ago and they were the BOMB!!! I was surprised that the meat was cooked through! The cast iron cooks much hotter than other cookware so there was no pink meat. We had very large, bone-in chops. I will DEFINITELY be making this one again!

      Reply

    39. Looks good! Though I've found pork is rarely cooked in under 35-45 minutes. Maybe cos I don't like it pink.

      Reply

    41. Another great recipe. So I'm a outdoor grill pork chop snob.... So last night I just didn't feel like firing up the grill and this recipe looked so good I thought I'd give it a try (and your last recipe was so good I was feeling confident). Well it wasn't good, it was GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Only thing I had to do different, my chops were pretty thick, so I flipped them for another 4 min. Perfection! The sweet brown sugar with the spice, just delicious! Making the french onion dip potato salad Sunday! Thanks!!!

      Reply

      1. Oh, Katie, thank you so very much!!! I LOVE to grill outside, too! And can hardly WAIT until it's 85º out! Until then, or close 😉 , these do in a pinch! 😉 😀 So happy that you're finding new recipes to make and they you're having fun! 😀 The spice of life! 😉 😀

        Reply

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