Your Pork Chops Are Begging For An Easy Sweet Glaze

We've talked about the tangy beauty of honey mustard pork chops before. Now, we're exploring the sweet, golden brown allure of the honey-glazed meat, minus the mustard.

Honey creates a natural caramelization, meaning this one-step glaze adds both a touch of sweetness and a luxurious, rich texture. This honey glaze works with both bone-in or boneless pork chops. It can even take your next rack of pork ribs to the next level (so long, predictable barbecue!). We recommend raw, unfiltered honey for greater thickness and adhesion, like Nature Nate's brand. Don't blame us if you want to start coating all of your favorite proteins in a simple honey glaze. It works great on chicken breast, roasted ham, and even veggies.

To do it, hit your pork chops with a preliminary sear in an oiled skillet. Then, transfer the lightly browned chops to an aluminum-foil-lined baking dish (easy cleanup later) and brush them with honey. You can squeeze the honey directly from the bottle onto the chops and swipe it with a basting brush for a uniform coat. For maximum flavor, coat your seared pork chops in half of the honey, bake for roughly 15 minutes, then remove them from the oven, flip, smear with the remaining honey, and finish cooking till completion. Just ½ cup of honey should be enough to glaze four pork chops.

Alternatively, you could glaze your pork chops in a cast iron skillet on the stove. Just before the chops are finished cooking, smother them in a thick layer of honey, flipping to coat and finish cooking on both sides. If you prefer to cook them on the grill, wait to add the honey glaze until the final few minutes of cooking. The sugars in the honey caramelize ultra-fast over the grill's high heat, and adding the glaze too early can risk unpleasantly bitter scalding. Whichever cooking method you prefer, your pork chops will be done when a meat thermometer inserted into the center reads 145 degrees Fahrenheit.

For greater flavor customization, feel free to add extra ingredients to your honey glaze. Balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, spicy red pepper flakes, soy sauce, minced garlic, onion powder, or apricot jam would all be delicious stirred together with the honey in a small dish, then brushed onto the chops to glaze.

To complete the meal, pair your pork chops with a glass of classic pinot noir or a nectarine-forward gewürztraminer orange wine. Serve your honey-glazed pork chops with a complimentary side dish like grilled asparagus, fried apples, citrus-roasted broccoli, or garlicky rice pilaf. For an impressive finish, garnish with a sprig of fresh thyme or rosemary, a sprinkle of smoked flaky sea salt, and a generous dash of freshly-cracked black pepper.