Crunchy Baked Pork Chops

These crunchy baked pork chops are juicy and full of flavor. I don’t know about you, but I used to avoid baking pork chops for a long time. No matter what I did, they always seemed to be dry and bland. But after some experimenting, I finally landed on a recipe that’s a keeper. The secret ingredients? A quick brine and a tasty homemade breading make this recipe one you’ll reach for over and over. And most of the ingredients are probably already in your cupboard or fridge, including sandwich bread you’ll use for the crunchy topping.

This recipe is also low-mess, thanks to the use of pie plates to keep it all contained and tongs for dipping the chops. And if you’re concerned about gluten, you can substitute your favorite gluten-free flour in place of the all-purpose flour listed. Ready to get started?

Crunchy Baked Pork Chop Ingredients

• Salt and pepper
• 4 (6-8 ounce) boneless pork chops, up to 1 inch thick
• 4 slices hearty sandwich bread, white or wheat, torn into 1 inch pieces
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small shallot, minced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 cup plus 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3 large egg whites
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Directions

Adjust your oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Dissolve 3 tablespoons of salt in 1 1/2 quarts of cold water in a large container. I used a large Tupperware container with a lid. Submerge the chops in the brine, cover, and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Remove the chops from the brine and pat dry with paper towels.

While the chops are soaking in the brine, pulse the bread in a food processor until coarsely ground.

You should have about 3 1/2 cups of crumbs. Transfer the crumbs to a rimmed baking sheet and add the oil, shallot, garlic, and 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Toss until the crumbs are evenly coated with the oil. Bake about 15 minutes until golden brown and dry, stirring twice while baking.

Cool the crumbs to room temp but keep the oven on. Add crumbs to Parmesan, parsley, and thyme.

Place 1/4 cup flour on a pie plate. In a second pie plate, whisk egg whites and mustard until combined; add the remaining 6 tablespoons of flour and whisk until almost smooth.

Increase oven temperature to 425 degrees. Spray a wire rack with cooking spray or rub with olive oil and set in a rimmed baking sheet. Season the chops with pepper. Dredge 1 pork chop in flour, shaking off extra. Using tongs, coat with egg mixture, letting excess drip off. Coat all sides of the pork chops with the bread crumb mixture, pressing gently so thick crumbs stick to the chops. Transfer the chops to the wire rack. Repeat with the rest of the chops.

Bake until the chops register 145 degrees, 20 to 25 minutes. Let rest on the rack for 5 minutes before serving.

I like to serve these crunchy baked pork chops with fresh green beans and roasted potatoes. Yum!

If you try this recipe, let me know what you think in the comments.

Other recipes I think you’ll love:

Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Whoopie Cookies

Butternut Squash Soup

Sourdough Banana Bread