Smoked Pork Chops
This recipe for Smoked Pork Chops creates the most juicy and tender pork chops ever! An overnight brine, flavorful rub and low and slow smoke will have everyone saying "these are the best pork chops I've ever had!"
Ingredients
- 16 ounces water
- 2 ounces kosher salt
- ½ ounce granulated sugar
- 2 pounds pork chops, preferably top loin chops - approximately 2 inches thick
- 2 tablespoons pork chop seasoning, click link for recipe
- 2 tablespoons pepper jelly, optional glaze
Instructions
Brine
- In a medium pot on the stove, bring 16 ounces of water to a boil.
- Once the water is boiling, add the kosher salt and sugar.
- Stir for 2-3 minutes, or until the sugar and salt are dissolved into the water.
- Set aside and add 3-4 cups of ice cubes to the pot of water. This will help cool down the brine quickly, so that you can pour it over the pork chops.
- Once the brine water is at room temperature, or below, pour it over the pork chops in a large bowl or zipper bag.
- Add additional cold water, if needed, to cover the pork chops.
- Place in the refrigerator for 8-10 hours, or overnight.
Smoke
- Preheat the smoker to 225 degrees F.
- Fill the smoker with applewood pellets.
- Place a water pan in the smoker filled with water. This will help keep the pork chops moist throughout the cooking process.
- Remove the pork chops from the brine and pat dry with paper towels.
- Rub approximately ½ tablespoon of the pork chop seasoning on each side of the pork chops.
- Place the pork chops, fat side up, in the smoker.
- Smoke until the internal temperature of the pork chops reach 140°F. You can expect between 60-90 minutes for pork chops that are less than 2 inches thick and 2 hours for pork chops that are 2 inches or thicker.
- If you'd like to glaze the pork chops with the optional pepper jelly, brush the jelly on top of the pork chops on the smoker when the internal temperature reaches 138°F. Leave the pork chops on the smoker until they reach 140°F.
- Place the pork chops on a cutting board and rest for 10 minutes before serving. During this time, the pork chops internal temperature will rise 5-10 degrees.
Notes
- You can use boneless or bone-in pork chops to make this recipe. I do not recommend using any pork chops that are less than 1 inch thick.
- If you don't have a kitchen scale to measure the ounces of the salt and sugar, use 4 tablespoons kosher salt and 1 tablespoon granulated sugar.
- Do not brine the pork chops for more than 16 hours. The pork chops will become overly salty and it can ruin the texture of the pork.
- To reverse sear the pork chops follow the steps below:
- When the internal temperature of the pork chops reach 130°F on the smoker, remove them from the smoker, place on a cutting board and tent them with a piece of foil.
- Turn the heat on the smoker up to 450°F.
- Once the smoker hits 450°F, place the pork chops back on the smoker. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side, or until the internal temperature reaches 140°F.
- If you’d like to glaze the pork chops with pepper jelly, or bbq sauce, do so when the internal temperature of the pork chops reach 138°F on an instant-read thermometer. You’ll want to brush approximately 1/2 tablespoon of pepper jelly, or bbq sauce, on each pork chop, then let it continue cooking for 1-2 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the pork chop reaches 140°F.
- Remove from the smoker and let the pork chops rest for 10 minutes before slicing or serving.
- The nutritional information provided does not include the optional pepper jelly glaze.
- Leftover pork chops will stay good in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.
Nutrition Facts
Calories 249kcal (12%)Carbohydrates 3g (1%)Protein 33g (66%)Fat 11g (17%)Saturated Fat 4g (20%)Polyunsaturated Fat 1gMonounsaturated Fat 5gTrans Fat 1gCholesterol 101mg (34%)Sodium 4128mg (172%)Potassium 595mg (17%)Fiber 1g (4%)Sugar 3g (3%)Vitamin A 418mg (8%)Vitamin C 1mg (1%)Calcium 22mg (2%)Iron 1mg (6%)
Did you make this recipe?Tag @WhitneyBond on Instagram and hashtag it #WBRecipes!