Tuesday, January 23, 2018

Sticky Garlic Pork Chops – What Do You Think, About Slightly Pink?

This sticky garlic pork chop recipe seems too good to be true. It only takes a few minutes of prep work, requires no tricky techniques, and doesn’t call for any hard-to-find ingredients.

And for the last time, Asian fish sauce is not hard to find. It used to be, but it’s now carried in every major grocery store, and I consider it a must-have in anyone’s kitchen.

Above and beyond the sauce, which is also our marinade, the other key to this recipe is finding some nice, thick, bone-in pork chops. While this will theoretically work with thin, boneless “chops,” we give ourselves much more room for error when it comes to achieving the perfect doneness.

Speaking of which, I shoot for about 140 to 145 F. internal temperature, which will produce a very juicy, tender piece of meat. Sure, you may see a subtle, pale pink hue, but it’s still perfectly safe to eat, and you’ll be amazed at how much nicer the texture is, especially after sitting in the brine-like marinade.

Of course, if you’re one of these people who always cooks pork well done, because your grandparents told you about the horrors of trichinosis when you were a kid, then fine. Go ahead and cook it all the way through, until it’s nice and dry, but you really are missing out. You’re still not convinced? Either way, I really do hope you give these sticky garlic pork chops a try soon. Enjoy!


For the marinade/sauce mixture (would probably be enough for 4 chops):
1/3 cup light brown sugar
6 to 8 cloves crushed or very finely minced garlic
1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon ketchup
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons hot sauce, or to taste

1 teaspoon vegetable oil
2 thick-cut pork chops, bone in (about 10 to 12-ounce each)

49 comments:

Nicole said...

Is there any substitute for the fish sauce? I'm allergic to all seafood and that will make me sick. Other than the fish sauce, everything looks amazing!

Unknown said...

Hey Chef John! This looks absolutely delicious and I'm dying to try it, but I'm not a big fan of pork! What other types/cuts of meat would you recommend with this sauce?

Unknown said...

Hi Chef John,
Your Sticky Garlic Pork Chop looks so delicious. I'm wondering what could I substitute for the fish sauce? Thank you so much for all your wonderful videos. I've learned so much from you! Thank you,

Unknown said...

Hi Chef John,
Your Sticky Garlic Pork Chop looks so delicious. I'm wondering what could I substitute for the fish sauce? Thank you so much for all your wonderful videos. I've learned so much from you! Thank you,

Unknown said...

Chef John, where do you get those pork chops? I live in San Francisco (Sunset) and would love to find a source of pork that nice.

Piijaay said...

I will definitely be trying this out tonight Chef John!

David said...

Chef John,thoroughly enjoyed watching your interview on Jan.17, it was sooo inspirational. My Wife and I love your recipes, easy to follow and delicious. Today is Marlene's birthday and this looks fantastic, thank you. Wishing you years more of success,cheers,
Dave

Unknown said...

Any substitute for fish sauce? My girlfriend is allergic to shellfish and I’m not sure if she can eat it.

Lisa said...

Hey Chef, can you show us how to make the bokchoy brown rice, or is it as easy as it sounds?

Unknown said...

Can't wait to make this weekend!

Cerulean Bill said...

My ancestors mastered fire. I'm not going to mock them by undercooking food. I'd just as soon stick a fork into a cow.

Unknown said...

Looks amazing and simple! I think I'll make this on the weekend! Will you be putting up a recipe for the rice?

Unknown said...

Hey!

So, I'm making this tonight, and I had a question about the rice vinegar. Did you use plain, or seasoned?

Sally said...

In my part of the world these are called Iowa Chops and they are delicious, especially cooked on the grill basted with butter, lemon juice, mustard and garlic. This looks really good though, chef. Thanks for the recipe!

Unknown said...

Just happened to pick up thick cut chops the day before you posted this video. Completely swayed to make it this way for lunch. Hooohmygod so good! And easy to make! Put it over rice. Thinking next time I'll thin slice some carrots to add to the glaze toward the end?
https://imgur.com/01rLxWh

Unknown said...

https://imgur.com/01rLxWh

Made for lunch today! Quick and easy and so incredibly good! I was thinking maybe some thin sliced carrots or veg added to the glaze near the end would be yummy over rice too?

TED said...

My wife will try this, she is Chinese...TRADITIONAL Chinese, you could be in for a few suggestions. I think it looks great.

On another note, I truly felt badly for you having to put up with the spiked haired interviewer on your love youtube appearance. Truly unprepared, sophomoric and only trying to sell a book.

woohoo! said...

Made this last night, and the smell was intoxicating...but upon eating found that it's disgustingly sweet. I'll definitely make it again, but this time using only 1Tbs of sugar instead of the 1/3 cup called for. Am a huge Chef John fan, as well of Asian cooking, but this was just too much.

Dave .... said...

Greetings, Chef. I made this tonight because chops were on sale for 99 cents a pound! Providence, to be sure. It was simple and delicious. My wife said it was the best pork chop she's ever had. Marinade took 5 minutes to assemble, cooking time was under 30 minutes. I barely had time to steam a veggie. These chops are an awesome main course. Thank you.

Unknown said...

Dang it, what if I only have white wine vinegar and not rice vinegar

NoUseForAName said...

Hey. Looks awesome. Can this work with beef or chicken?
Thanks!

Kristen said...

Hi Chef John! These look great! Do you think that these can marinate overnight? I'm planning to make these this week. Thanks! -Kristen

Wzorin said...

What kind of soy sauce , chef? Light or dark? Cheers

Unknown said...

Outstanding. My wife and I will be eating this again.

Big fan said...

Delicious. Turned out exactly as expected. Good advice on how to decided when pork is cooked. Served with Syracuse salt potatoes.

Big fan said...

Fantastic recipe. Turned out exactly as I hoped. Good advice on how to determine if the pork chops are done. Served with Syracuse salt potatoes.

gazoni said...

I made the sticky pork chops. Awesome recipe!! Also, i dont mind a little pink in my pork.

Unknown said...

Is there any reason why this can't be marinated longer? I had in mind all day.

lemonbomber said...

I have loved every single recipe I have tried from your videos Chef John. I must have done something wrong with this one as every single one previously has turned out marvelously.
It seemed as though my garlic did not cook enough and was a tad raw or strong flavored even though I cooked the sauce to less than half its original volume. My wife immediately noticed the fish sauce flavor and the rice vinegar seemed quite tart!
How many things could go wrong for me?
I admit the only fish sauce they had at our local store that I bought seemed different than what I have used in the past. The garlic may have had some green sprouts started but I cut them out.
I was disappointed in the looks of mine compared to yours. Where did I go wrong?

Unknown said...

Thanks for another great recipe! My kiddos even loved it. My toddler used her finger to lick up the sauce.

springrain62 said...

I made this dish tonight, and it was so incredible. Totally worth the clean-up, lol. Thank you so very much!!

Unknown said...

Can i freeze the pork chops in the marinade?

Unknown said...

Can i freeze the pork chops in the marinade

RobGuthm said...

I'm not sure I have ever been more aroused in my life than I am looking at this stickiness.

Whiteleather said...

Help! For some reason AllRecipes channel no longer loads on Roku. I see that I am missing a lot of new stuff.

ChefJ, is AR still in business and still hosting your channel?

Unknown said...

I am a big fan of pink pork and this recipe. Only used half the fish sauce and was glad I did...that stuff is potent....

B.C. said...

very good john

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Unknown said...

>>Nicole said...
>>Is there any substitute for the fish sauce? I'm allergic to all seafood and >>that will make me sick. Other than the fish sauce, everything looks amazing!

Use 2tsp of Accent "meat tenderizer" which is basically crystalized MSG. MSG = Umami which is what fish sauce is usually in recipes for. You'll miss a little bit of the fun, but not much.

Hope this helps!

Nicole said...

Thanks so much, A. Lenning!

Unknown said...

Chef John is my hero. Made this last night and loved the results. We don't have access to chops as thick as those used in the video, so cooked for 4 min each side (still overcooked by a hair). I sauteed/steamed some baby bok choy and made some mash potatoes. Served with a yummy Pinot Noir for a nice little meal that will make it into my "eat this again" folder.

As an aside, this recipe reminded my husband and me of the amazing pork chops served at Mustards Grill in Napa Valley...one of our favorite meals and restaurant. Thanks!

Unknown said...

I see the list of ingredients, however no cooking instructions. Looked on AllRecipes and did not find instructions. Where can I find them.

Unknown said...

Chef John can you make cooking look any more delicious and easy? I love your channel and these recipes. I specifically can't wait to try this one because my husband is a dinosaur who's goal in life is just to eat meat nonstop. I rarely cook any type of meat outside of chicken, occasionally beef cubes, because I really don't know too much about how to cook meat. So if I can get him to like a meat dish that I make, I'll feel accomplished haha. He does love pork chops so I will definitely give this a try. Thanks a bunch!

Unknown said...

When Buddhism spread across Asia, people needed a vegetarian sauce to replace fish sauce. So, the invented soy sauce.

Woolshedwargamer said...

Trying this tonight. Chops marinating now.

Cali Buff Dogg said...

Question: when you are making a marinade like the one in the video, should you approve the taste before using? Or maybe you shouldn't judge it yet because of factors like... oh I don't know, it will change with time as it rests with the meat, cooking it will change it, you have to imagine it with the meat and the final production? I ask because I followed the recipe to the 't' and I taste the marinade right after whisking it and it did NOT taste good. Very bitter and kind of weird (maybe that's just the fish sauce). I appreciate any help. Thank you.

Unknown said...

Helloooooo Chef John
Sticky Garlicky Porky choppy I am sure it works on porky, but I did it on Beefy Ribeye and oh my, it was so good I nearly got hurt. You see I had bought a rib roast and cut it up giving us about 6 ribeye and some beef ribs. I was in such a hurry to do this recipe and I didn’t have time to bother going after some pork. Well anyway I put a ribeye in the marinade to bath all night. Got it out the next day cooked on med for five minutes on both sides. Reduced the sauce to sticky. Since I only marinated one ribeye, I cut it in half, after my wife took the first bite, I realized this was a big mistake. She was eyeing my half through the meal as if devising some plan to get my half. Note to self when doing Chef Johns Recipes never go half way. You are after all the guy with the home fried ribeye. The moral of the story, is don’t be that guy who did a home fry of his ribeye, that was a little in short supply, because from you significant other you may get a kiss good bye. The old adage “Less is more” does not apply to this recipe. Take it from that guy if you want your significant other to by awed by, touched by, impressed by you doing a home fry of your ribeye, don’t be in short supply. Signed by that guy

Gripper99 said...

Wow. I used your recipe with a technique I use for a maple-glazed thick pork chops—air-chill salted chops in fridge over night, rinse, dry, pepper, then pan sear in oil over high heat 5 minutes each side—then deglazed the pan with your marinade, added chops back and baked at 450 turning chops over in the glaze for 15 minutes. Spectacular flavored glaze. Thank you Chef John!

Ray said...

This is outstanding for chicken wings.