Cook up perfectly juicy, well-seasoned pan fried pork chops without flour! With this guide and recipe for how to fry pork chops, you will know exactly how to cook the best bone-in or boneless chops that will get rave reviews at the dinner table!
Easy Skillet Pork Chops
These easy skillet chops are delicious every time you make them, using only a few ingredients, and one surprise! Serve with anything and everything.
You will impress your family and guests every time you make this simple dinner recipe.
My husband says sometimes less is more and in this case, he is right.
You're going to love this super easy addition to your weekly dinner rotation.
Serve it up with any side dish you want for a complete meal ready in no time at all. I love to serve it for dinner with baked mac and cheese or a cheesy potato casserole. For more side dish inspiration, check out What to Serve with Pork Chops.
This was inspired by my other pork chop recipe on Kitchen Divas!
What more could you want than perfect pan fried pork chops every time you make them? Let's get started looking at everything you need!
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- No matter how big or thick your bone-in or boneless pork chops, this technique will work perfectly!
- Budget-friendly meal!
- No flour or deep frying so it's a healthier dinner option! Plus it's gluten-free!
Ingredients You Need
Guess what?? There are no fancy ingredients here!! I'm betting you already have them all in your pantry. This pan fried pork chop recipe uses absolutely no flour and requires just a few seasonings for success.
- Pork chops: Choose loin or center cut for the most tender pork chop. Boneless will cook a bit faster but bone-in chops are a great way to save a little money and the bone adds a bit of flavor to the meat while it cooks.
- Seasonings: A touch of salt, black pepper, and sugar.
- Oil: Use a good vegetable oil suitable for cooking at high heat such as canola oil, avocado oil, or coconut oil.
See the recipe card for the full ingredient list and exact quantities.
How to Fry Pork Chops Without Flour
Just an easy, delicious recipe that is a perfect addition to your arsenal and easy addition to your weekly rotation. Learn exactly how to season pork chops for the best flavor, texture and color!
I love using my cast iron skillet to make this amazing recipe but you can also choose a lighter, less heavy option!
- To get started, first prepare the pork for cooking. Make cuts every 1 ½ to 2 inches along the edge of the sides of the meat. The cuts should be no more than a half-inch deep.
TOP TIP: The slices into the side of each pork chop with the fat and silver skin along the edge stops the chops from curling when cooked.
- Pat the meat dry with a paper towel.
- In a large skillet, with a lid, over medium to medium-high heat, heat oil until it shimmers or a drop of water flicked in it dances.
- Sprinkle the first side of each pork chop with salt, pepper, and then a one-quarter teaspoon of sugar. Press the seasoning into the pork chop.
- When the oil is hot, place each pork chop in the skillet with the sugar side down.
- Sprinkle salt and pepper on the tops of all the chops once they are in the skillet.
- Cook without flipping until the first side is nicely brown about 5 to 9 minutes.
- Then flip and reduce heat to low. Cover and cook until the center of each pork chop is cooked and a beautiful golden brown color.
- Use a thermometer to check that pork chops have reached an internal temperature of 140 degrees. Usually, the cooking time is between 3 and 7 minutes on the second side.
- Remove each cooked pork chop and allow to rest for a few minutes before serving.
NOTE: The sugar side of the pan seared pork chops will be a darker color and I suggest serving this side up! Add some applesauce if desired and enjoy!
Variations
Want to personalize your fried pork chops recipe? Here are some of my tried and true tips for changing it up!
- Spicy: We love spicy food in our house and love adding on a light sprinkle of chili pepper flakes along with the other seasonings!
- Sugar-free: The sugar is really there to help with the browning so you can definitely leave it out if you want just note the color may be slightly less browned than in the photos here.
- Herbs and spices: Keep it simple but if you want some additional seasoning on your skillet pork chips, consider adding some chopped garlic, garlic powder, cajun seasoning blend, lemon pepper, Italian seasoning, or other spice-herb combinations you enjoy!
If you love the simplicity of recipes like this, you may also enjoy this easy bone-in chicken recipe or our broiled pork chops.
Storage
- Leftovers: Store leftover chops in an airtight container for up to five days in the refrigerator or in the freezer for up to three months.
- Reheat: To reheat cast iron pork chops, place them in a skillet with a small amount of water added and reheat on medium-low until heated through. They can also be reheated in the oven at 325° F for about 10-15 minutes. The time may vary depending on the thickness of the chops. Add some water to the baking dish and cover it with a lid or foil.
Tips
This recipe is easy peasy but here are a few tips to make sure your pan fried pork chops no flour come out perfectly!
- Don't skip the sugar. I know it seems a bit odd, but it gives it a richer golden color than cooking without it!
- Don't overcook. Gone are the days when pork needed to be cooked until it's all dried out. For the most accurate measure, use a digital thermometer and don't rely on the color of the meat (a little pink is ok if the internal temp is good) or only the cooking time.
- Let the chops rest after cooking! This allows all the juice in the pork to reabsorb into the meat, making each bite more moist and delicious!
- Bone-in pork chops cook up with more flavor!
FAQ
Do you have questions about making cast iron pork chops? Here are some of the most commonly asked questions about this recipe!
A grill pan is also a great idea to use to make this easy pork chop skillet dinner. That way you can end up with lines on your chops so they look cooked outside on a grill.
This grill pan comes in a new enameled cast iron too and is amazing.
The taste will impress you to the point I believe you will make this recipe over and over again!
This will depend a great deal on the thickness of the meat you are cooking. I find that when working with about 1-inch thick pork chops, they take about 7-8 minutes on each side. Using a digital thermometer helps to know when they're ready (145° F).
Choose thick-cut, high-quality pork chops for the best results. Be sure to leave some fat on the chops this helps give the them some moisture as they cook. Be sure you don't overcook them and cook just until done at 145° F and then let them rest for five minutes. The chops will continue to cook while they rest, plus it gives the juice a chance to absorb back into the meat.
Video
More Skillet Pork Chop Recipes
Cooking pork chops is a budget-friendly meal for the whole family. Do you want more ways to cook them? Here are some recipes you may also like to try.
Easy Pan Fried Pork Chops
Equipment
- Tongs or spatula
Ingredients
- 4 pork chops loin or center cut, bone or boneless, 1 inch thick
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- salt
- black pepper
- ¼ cup vegetable oil more or less to taste
Instructions
- Wash and cut slices into the side of each pork chop with the fat and silver skin along the edge. This stops the pork chops from curling.
- Make cuts every 1 ½ to 2 inches along that edge. The cuts should be no more than ½ an inch deep.
- Dry pork chops with paper towels and sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.
- In a large skillet, with a lid, heat oil until it shimmers or a drop of water flicked in it dances.
- Sprinkle the first side of each pork chop with salt, pepper and a then ¼ teaspoon of sugar.
- Press into pork chop.
- Next, gently place pork chop in skillet, sugar side down.
- Repeat with remaining pork chops.
- Sprinkle salt and pepper on the tops of all the pork chops once in the skillet.
- Cook until sugar side is nicely brown, 5 to 9 minutes.
- Flip and reduce heat to low.
- Cover and cook until the center of each pork chop is cooked. Use a thermometer to check (140 degrees usually) and between 3 and 7 minutes.
- The sugar side will be a darker color.
- Serve immediately with applesauce if desired. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Don't skip the sugar. I know it seems a bit odd, but it gives it a richer golden color than cooking without it!
- Don't overcook. Gone are the days when pork needed to be cooked until it's all dried out. For the most accurate measure, use a digital thermometer and don't rely on the color of the meat (a little pink is ok if the internal temp is good) or only the cooking time.
- Let the pork chops rest after cooking! This allows all the juice in the pork to reabsorb into the meat, making each bite more moist and delicious!
- Bone-in pork chops cook up with more flavor!
Nutrition
This post was originally published in September 2016. It has been updated for photos and content in July 2022.
Tami says
Wash the chops? What does this mean?
Karin and Ken says
Carefully rinse pork chops under wand pat dry with paper towel. That is all. Any more questions don’t hesitate to ask. These pork chops are delicious! All the best. Karin
Max says
First time my pork chops didn't curl and recipe easy and good Thx
Karin and Ken says
Glad to hear all went well. I was so glad once I started using that trick to stop them from curling too. Used to drive me crazy. Thank you for taking the time to let me know you liked this recipe! You made my day. All the best. Karin
Marsha says
This recipe is so easy and produced an excellent chop Thx
Karin and Ken says
So glad this recipe worked out so well for you. This recipe is so easy and the pork chops always turn out flat and flavorful! Hopefully you find some other recipes on this site that you enjoy just as much. All the best. Karin