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    Home » Recipes by Type » Grilling

    Grilled Thin Pork Chops, Quick Brinerated

    Published: Sep 29, 2009 · Modified: Jun 17, 2022 by Mike Vrobel · This post may contain affiliate links · 47 Comments

    Thin pork chops are an idea I learned from from John Willoughby and Chris Schlesinger in Gourmet magazine. They suggest you think thin, crispy and flavorful, instead of the usual thick and juicy. For a quick weeknight meal on the grill, thin is good - it cooks quickly, and gets dinner on the table that much faster.

    Even though we're going for thin and crispy, be careful to not overcook lean pork loin, or it will dry out. The brinerade gives us a little cushion, but the real trick is to only cook the chops on one side. The pork chops are thin enough to cook through, and they'll be nicely browned on the one side that's always facing the grill.

    Grilled Thin Pork Chops, Quick Brinerated | DadCooksDinner.com
    Grilled Thin Pork Chops, Quick Brinerated
    Jump to:
    • Equipment
    • 🔪🔪Recipe🔪🔪
    • Variations
    • What do you think?
    • 💬 Comments

    Equipment

    • A grill. (I use a Weber Summit, which is overkill for this recipe.)

    Inspired by: "Doc" Willoughby and Chris Schlesinger: Grill It!

    Print

    🔪🔪Recipe🔪🔪

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    Grilled Thin Pork Chops, Quick Brinerated


    ★★★★★

    5 from 6 reviews

    • Author: Mike Vrobel
    • Total Time: 24 minutes
    • Yield: 4-6 servings 1x
    Print Recipe
    Pin Recipe

    Description

    Grilled Thin Pork Chops, Quick Brinerated. My recipe for thin-cut pork chops, grilled quickly on only one side.


    Ingredients

    Scale
    • 3 pounds thin cut pork chops (¼-inch to ½-inch thick, preferably rib chops)

    Brinerade

    • ¼ cup soy sauce
    • 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
    • 2 tablespoons honey
    • 2 tablespoons olive oil

    Instructions

    1. Brinerate the pork chops: Whisk the brinerade ingredients in a small bowl until well combined. Put the pork chops in a large bowl or a baking dish, reserve 2 tablespoons of the brinerade for later, and pour the rest of the brinerade over the chops. Flip the pork chops a few times to evenly cover with the marinade, then let them rest while the grill preheats. (Or, put the chops in the refrigerator and brinerate for up to 4 hours, turning occasionally to coat with the brinerade.)
    2. Set the grill for direct medium heat (350°F to 400°F): Preheat the grill, then set it for grilling on direct medium heat. For my Weber Summit, I preheat with all burners on high for 10 minutes, brush the grill grates clean, then turn the burners down to medium.
    3. Cook the chops: Flip the chops one more time in the baking dish to coat with the brinerade, then put them on the grill over direct medium heat. (Keep the lid closed as much as possible while cooking.) Grill the chops until they have good grill marks on the bottom, about 2 minutes, then rotate them 90 degrees (don't flip the chops - just rotate them) and grill until they have a good crosshatch of grill marks on the bottom, about 2 more minutes. At this point, the chops should be cooked through - they'll have gone from pink to white on the side that's been facing up the whole time. Remove them from the grill. (If you have thicker chops, and the top is not cooked through, flip them over and cook them for another minute.)
    4. Glaze and serve: Remove the chops to a platter and pour the reserved brinerade over the chops. Let rest for five minutes, then serve.

    Equipment

    Weber Summit

    Buy Now →
    • Prep Time: 20 minutes
    • Cook Time: 4 minutes
    • Category: Weeknight Dinner
    • Method: Grilling
    • Cuisine: American

    Nutrition

    • Serving Size: 1-2 pork chops

    Keywords: Grilled Thin Pork Chops, Quick Brinerated

    Did you make this recipe?

    Tag @DadCooksDinner on Instagram and hashtag it #DadCooksDinner

    Grilled Thin Pork Chops, Quick Brinerated | DadCooksDinner.com
    Brinerating the chops
    Grilled Thin Pork Chops, Quick Brinerated | DadCooksDinner.com
    After 4 minutes, the chops are cooked through - even though they've never been flipped.
    Grilled Thin Pork Chops, Quick Brinerated | DadCooksDinner.com
    Ready to serve

    Variations

    • Asian style: the soy sauce is already giving them a little bit of an asian flavor; you can play this up by replacing the balsamic vinegar with seasoned asian rice vinegar, and the olive oil with peanut or sesame oil.
    • Barbecued pork chops: When done, brush the chops with barbecue sauce instead of the reserved brinerade.
    • Don't forget to gnaw on the bones...it's my favorite part!

    What do you think?

    Questions? Comments? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.

    Related Posts
    This recipe is part of Quick Grilling Week
    Grilled Boneless Pork Loin Chops, Brined and Honey Glazed recipe
    Grilled Corn recipe
    My other Grilling Recipes

    Inspired by:
    "Doc" Willoughby and Chris Schlesinger: Grill It!

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    « Weeknight Grilling on DadCooksDinner
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Dante says

      March 06, 2022 at 10:09 pm

      Pork chops (thick or thin) have always been my grilling Achilles' heel--always dry as a bone. Tonight I was determined to get it right, so I searched and stumbled upon your recipe/technique. It produced the best chops ever, down to the grill marks. I wanted to take all the credit, but broke down and admitted to my friends I found the recipe in a Google search. I believe you're going to have a few more fans. Thanks.

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        March 07, 2022 at 5:39 pm

        Thanks, glad I could help you in your Pork Chop Quest!

        Reply
    2. Michelle Chrisman says

      September 29, 2021 at 5:53 pm

      Excellent recipe and instructions. Thank you

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        September 30, 2021 at 8:33 am

        You're welcome!

        Reply
    3. Lisa M says

      July 27, 2020 at 5:01 am

      These were ABSOLUTELY the best chops I've ever had. I've never cared much for pork, as my memories of it consist of dry shake n bake chops from the oven. My fiancee raved over these, and said he had the best lunch in the whoke plant the next day for leftovers! (he works in a mill with about 70 co-workers on the day shift). I found myself eating them cold from the fridge at 7am the next morning. We'll never make chops any other way... thank you for the phenomenal recipe and grilling tips!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
    4. Shelly Simons says

      March 19, 2019 at 6:17 pm

      Love, love, love this recipe!

      Reply
    5. Janis says

      August 09, 2018 at 6:16 pm

      These were delicious!!! Thank you for the instructions, they came out perfect! 🙂

      Reply
    6. JohnnyFRX says

      July 29, 2018 at 5:00 am

      WINNER WINNER Pork Chop Dinner! I cooked up a batch of these bad boys last night and was truly BLOWN AWAY by how good they turned out. We followed your original recipe to the letter, let them brinerade in the fridge for about 5 hours, flipping them every hour and a half or so. This little masterpiece will be saved to my arsenal of cooking goodness! Thank you sir for sharing it!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        July 29, 2018 at 1:42 pm

        You're welcome!

        Reply
    7. Len says

      July 04, 2018 at 9:06 pm

      Perfect recipe for perfect, perfect, perfect thin grilled chops!!! I use this recipe over and over. Thank you Mike!

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        July 05, 2018 at 5:03 pm

        You’re welcome!

        Reply
    8. George K says

      August 04, 2017 at 10:55 am

      This is a great use of thin chops. As my son said "These are the best pork chops I've ever had." I will use this every time I have grilled thin chops. Thanks for the recipe.

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        August 04, 2017 at 11:06 am

        You're welcome!

        Reply
    9. Paula Bender says

      June 25, 2017 at 12:52 am

      I did this last night on the grill and my husband and daughter complimented me on how tender the meat was. That's a very good trick to remember --- not turning the thin pork chops. Mahalo!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
    10. Jordan says

      October 04, 2016 at 8:21 am

      Absolutely loved this recipe! It was so simple and very tasty! I agree with someone else that said the brine smelled good enough to drink. I also added salt, pepper, and about 1.5 tablespoons of minced garlic to the brine. The family loved it and so did I, thank you!

      Reply
    11. gonna try+these+.+the+brinerate+smells+good+enough+to+drink.. says

      October 02, 2016 at 4:55 pm

      Shocked! These were incredible. Moist and tasty even when cooked one minute longer than suggested.

      Reply
    12. Carla says

      June 12, 2016 at 10:20 am

      This recipe saved the day. I already had the chops and company was coming. The short "brinerating" time was perfect for me and everyone loved them.

      Reply
      • Mike V says

        June 12, 2016 at 10:25 am

        Thanks! Glad it worked for you.

        Reply
    13. Chris A. says

      February 20, 2016 at 8:13 pm

      Just made these, found it in a google search. Amazing! Thank you for this! Thanks to two tired and fussy toddlers it sat in the brine for almost 2 hours so I was a bit worried how they would turn out, still tastes great!

      Reply
      • Mike V says

        February 20, 2016 at 11:21 pm

        Great! I'm glad it worked so well for you.

        Reply
    14. Carey says

      January 28, 2016 at 9:06 pm

      Would this work with boneless chops also?

      Reply
      • Mike V says

        January 28, 2016 at 9:22 pm

        Yes, it will work - but they'll cook even quicker.

        Reply
    15. Tommy jones says

      December 14, 2015 at 11:57 am

      Looks good licking my lips going to try it tonight thank you

      Reply
    16. Morgan says

      August 15, 2015 at 2:30 pm

      Could I use this recipe on a pork loin? We made the chops last night and my family LOVED it so much. Pork loins were on sale this week so I wanted to try it? Thoughts?

      Reply
    17. Kathleen says

      July 29, 2015 at 4:25 pm

      This is an excellent plan for grilling this thin cut of meat. And you are 100% right! Modern pork does mean it has almost no fat. I always prefer thin cut pork chops when I cook; the thick ones tend to come out tasting dry. I love the idea of not grilling on both sides. Never would've thought of that, so thank you Mike!

      Reply
    18. Sean says

      July 02, 2015 at 7:38 pm

      Great quick recipe. I did it on my kettle grill (a Coleman, not a Weber, sorry) and it turned out fantastic.

      Thanks for all your tips, tricks and recipes. This is the only website I recommend to friends.

      Reply
      • Mike V says

        July 03, 2015 at 10:35 am

        You're welcome!

        Reply
    19. Shannon says

      June 07, 2015 at 9:54 pm

      Awesome recipe

      Reply
    20. Denise Clemons says

      May 04, 2015 at 2:53 pm

      Planning to try this tonight, but couldn't fit the chops in my 2-cup pyrex measuring cup, perhaps you meant 2-quart?

      Reply
      • Mike V says

        May 04, 2015 at 2:54 pm

        You're right - I did mean two quart. Try a medium bowl instead?

        Reply
    21. Zina says

      February 12, 2015 at 7:42 pm

      I come back to your post every time I grill thin chops. Thanks for the tips!

      Reply
      • Mike V says

        February 12, 2015 at 10:12 pm

        You're welcome!

        Reply
    22. Billca says

      June 22, 2014 at 10:29 pm

      I'll try your one-sided grilling technique tonight. The major difference is that I'll be using a charcoal-fired Weber grill and marinading the boneless chops in an Italian salad dressing for about 90 minutes. This has worked well for thicker chops, not it's time to try it on the thinner, boneless chops.

      Reply
    23. Mike V @ DadCooksDinner says

      February 17, 2013 at 8:16 pm

      Great! I love it when I get a new grill convert.

      Reply
    24. Cassie says

      February 16, 2013 at 3:01 pm

      First off I am such an amateur griller its not even funny... I wanted to surprise the hubby with dinner and came across this recipe.... All I can say is my husband is more then happy to share the grill now! Thank you!!

      Reply
    25. Mike V @ DadCooksDinner says

      September 18, 2012 at 10:25 am

      You're welcome. I'm glad you liked it!

      Reply
    26. Will says

      September 18, 2012 at 2:31 am

      Came across this recipe searching on google. Last time I grilled thin chops they were over cooked. Tried this recipe tonight and the wife and I loved them! A little charred on the one side and plenty of juice inside. Great taste and so simple. Thank you. New subscriber.

      Reply
    27. Mike V @ DadCooksDinner says

      March 29, 2012 at 10:32 am

      I'm glad it worked for you...enjoy!

      Reply
    28. Woodsytattooman says

      March 29, 2012 at 3:12 am

       Just wanted to say i made my own marinade from ketchup,honey,steak seasoning,oregano,garlic,A1,and apple cider vinegar and used your grilling method.I used pork loin that i sliced this and soaked in the marinade overnight.They turned out to be the best chops Ive ever grilled:))

      Reply
    29. quick pork recipes fan says

      June 28, 2011 at 6:16 pm

      I think this can be done on a stove top grill as well for those that do not have access to an outdoor grill all year round.

      Reply
    30. MikeV @ DadCooksDinner says

      September 30, 2009 at 9:13 pm

      @Bruce - Thank you! I'm glad you'll be back. I can always use regular readers.

      Reply
    31. Bruce says

      September 30, 2009 at 3:16 pm

      nice site. just found it while looking for a rotisserie pineapple site.

      great job, i think i'll be vising your blog quite often for recipes

      Reply
    32. MikeV @ DadCooksDinner says

      September 29, 2009 at 7:32 pm

      @A Year on the Grill: Thank you!

      Reply
    33. A Year on the Grill says

      September 29, 2009 at 6:42 pm

      great tips on the cooking technique and a really great recipe

      Reply
      • JJ says

        May 10, 2016 at 7:32 pm

        Best tender, thin-chops-on-the-grill recipe ever!! Much obliged...

        Reply
        • Mike V says

          May 10, 2016 at 8:47 pm

          You're welcome!

          Reply
      • gonna try these today. will post my thoughts. the brinerate smells good enough to drink.. says

        October 02, 2016 at 1:44 pm

        Comment

        Reply

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