In my house, pork chops are a twice weekly affair – we just can’t get enough of them! I’m always looking for new ways to prepare them, and a few months ago I had a hankering for Chinese food and some pork chops in the freezer. And so, this recipe was born… my second favorite pork chop preparation ever (behind my mom’s pork chops and mushroom gravy, of course, but that’s for another day)!

photo credit goes to illustrious pork chop photographer/personal assistant Mike Prez!

Grilled Asian Pork Chops!
serves 4

Ingredients:

4 pork chops, 1″ thick, bone-in (reduce cooking time for boneless or thinner pork chops)
1 Tbsp. garlic powder
3 tsp. red pepper flakes
3 tsp. ground ginger
1 Tbsp. salt
1 c. soy sauce
3 Tbsp. honey
*optional* 2 tsp ginger paste

Preparation:

Let your pork chops come to room temperature.  Dry-rub the pork chops with all spices except the soy sauce and honey.

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At the local farmers market here in South Florida I had picked up some garlic killer bee honey – honey infused with whole garlic cloves and datil pepper. It is AMAZING to cook with. Their website is http://www.smakattack.com/ but it seems to be down at the moment.  Anyway, if you run across something similar in your area definitely try it out! Regular honey works fine with this recipe, and you can always add more garlic powder and a pinch of cayenne to get the same effect.  Slather the chops with the honey, pour the soy over, and turn to make sure they are thoroughly coated.  Let marinate at least one hour.

When the chops are nice and juicy with the marinade, heat your grill on high for 10-15 minutes until completely preheated.  Reserve your marinade.  Sear the chops on one side of the grill over high for 2-3 minutes, brush with marinade, flip, then turn off the burners on that side.  Keep the closed grill at around 350ºF (or leave the other burners on “medium” for a guesstimate)  for about 10 minutes. Using a meat thermometer, cook the pork chops to 135º internally, brushing occasionally with the rest of the reserved marinade. Remove, loosely cover with foil, and let rest for 10 minutes. Serve with white rice and asian veggies and you’ve got a delicious asian inspired pork chop.  Bon appétit, or as they say in China…

chī chī chī!
– Echo