Maple-Brined Pork Chops

The Search Is Over!



Seriously. These are the best pork chops I have ever eaten. This is the only way I will ever need to cook pork chops for the rest of my life. When I am a great-grandmother, and my great grandkids are coming over for dinner and they ask their mom if they get to have great grandma’s extra special pork chops. These are the chops they will be talking about.

For the Brine:
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup coarse salt
1tbsp mustard seed
1tbsp black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
10 sprigs fresh thyme, coarsely chopped
for the chops:
4 bone-in center cut pork chops, cut 1&1/4 inch thick
3tbsp pure maple syrup
olive oil

to make the brine
Combine all the brine ingredients with 4 cups of water in a large saucepan. Heat over high heat and stir until the sugar and salt dissolve. Remove from heat and add one cup of ice water. Pour the brine into a ceramic or glass dish just big enough to fit the chops, and refrigerate it until chilled (it has to be cold before you put in the chops, so it doesn’t raise their temp).
Place the chops in the brine, making sure they are completely covered. Cover the dish and refrigerate for 24-48 hours.
Remove the chops, and discard the brine. Rinse the chops under cold water and dry them with paper towels. Brush both sides with maple syrup, and leave to stand at room temp for 1 hour.
Position a rack in the lower third of the oven, and preheat to 425f.
Brush the chops with olive oil, heat one tbsp olive oil in a pan, and cook till browned, about 3 minutes per side.
Transfer to the oven and bake till they are firm to the touch and an instant read thermometer reads 145f (don’t let the thermometer touch the bone), 8-15 minutes. Let chops rest for 5 minutes before serving.

These came from a book called Food To Live By. This was my first time using it, and if this recipe is anything to go on, I am going to have to make everything in this book.

These take some forward planning. I let them soak for the whole 48 hours and It was totally worth it. They taste like what bacon wishes it could be when it grows up. The salty/sweet ratios are perfect, and I suppose it’s because of the brine, but there was absolutely no problem with drying out.

Anyone who has ever dipped their bacon into their syrup during a pancake breakfast, needs to eat these!