Fall-off-the-bone, really delicious ribs! It may take less time, depending on your slow cooker. The ribs only require three and a half hours in my very old slow cooker. You may have delicious ribs by simply watching and stirring every hour. Enjoy!
| Servings: | 4 |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- 4 large center-cut bone-in pork chops
- 2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- Vegetable oil for grilling
Instructions
- Mix kosher salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper together in a small bowl to make the dry brine. Generously apply mixture to both sides of pork chops. Transfer chops to a rack on a paper towel-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate uncovered 18 to 24 hours.
- Preheat grill to medium or medium-high heat. Brush pork chops on each side with a few drops of vegetable oil.
- Grill chops until internal temperature reaches 135 degrees F (60 degrees C), turning to evenly brown on each side. Transfer to platter and allow to rest 5 minutes.
- Let the chops “brine” uncovered in the fridge for 18 to 24 hours. Some say you can do this in less time, but I’ve always let it go at least overnight.
Reviews
USE KOSHER SALT. A lot of the people mentioning it was very salty: I’m sure a decent portion of them used table salt, which, when used in the same quantities of kosher salt will indeed leave your dish quite salty. Honestly, unless it specifically calls for it (and most recipes don’t), no one should be using table salt to season anything, and certainly not a dry brine or a rub. Kosher salt is a much more forgiving grain size and makes it hard to oversalt.
This turned out amazing! Not a fan of cayenne, personally, so I swapped it out for thyme, garlic, and onion powder. No grill available, so I spent a few minutes pan-searing for a nice color and popped them in the oven at 325 for 25 min. Will probably cut down on the salt a little for next time, for the sake of my housemates–I thought it was great, lol. Served sauceless with au gratin potatoes and green beans, the potato sauce definitely helped with the saltiness according to my partner.
Yes! Also works for pork shoulder, too. Thanks, Chef John.
I halved the recipe for two pork chops; used all the seasonings, brined for five hours then scraped both sides of chops with the tip of a rubber spoon and discarded excess seasonings, then oiled. Husband thought they were a bit salty. Due to the unseasonably cold day I baked the chops uncovered in a heavy dish at 325 for thirty minutes and checked the temperature to make sure they had an internal temp over 135. They were done. I had mixed and applied the seasonings separately for each chop and mine had more cayenne pepper and I thought it was too (spicy) hot; the other was fine. I’ll omit it next time. Next time I’d like to brine and grill as directed, but this time they were moister than if they hadn’t been brined.
These are the most tender pork chops I’ve ever had, and it was so quick and easy compared to traditional “bag” marinades! My only complaint was it was a bit over-the-top salty, and I LOVE salt. I will definitely make this again, but will either reduce the amount of seasoning or will just try knocking off any excess before oiling. (And yes, I was using kosher salt).
I didn’t have any pork chops at the time, but I really wanted to try this anyway, so I spatchcocked a farm fresh chicken I already had in my fridge. It was the best flavoring with the crispiest skin outside of any traditional brining I have tried. I did add my cajun spice recipe in addition to the ingredients listed here. The meat and the juices (and there was a LOT) looked and tasted like they had been marinating for hours. Now, I cannot wait to get some forested farm pork.
This was very good. I used coarse sea salt ground to good sized chunks. After brining but before I brushed on the oil, I ran the dry brush over both sides of the chops to knock off any excess seasoning. We will use this method again!
Watch the video. Clearly, he has not used the entire amount of dry brine, and he did not rinse and pat dry after the brining period. Unfortunately, this was not clear in the written instruction. Typically, I stay away from the videos, but after the negative comments…
I used this recipe on six country style boneless pork ribs. I’d never grilled these before and wanted to ensure tenderness and flavor. I followed the recipe exactly, using kosher salt. I applied the mixture, left them uncovered on a rack over a pan lined with paper towels. They were in the fridge for about 20 hours. The recipe did not state whether or not I was supposed to rinse the meat, and pat dry before applying the oil, so I didn’t. Wiping it off would’ve been difficult, as they became just a little sticky. Cooked to proper temperature, and left to rest, these ribs were very tender and juicy. That said, yes, they were too salty, and I really like salt. I did appreciate the easy recipe and the texture of the end result, so I will, happily, try this again. Next time, I will rinse and pat dry, and/or not leave them quite so long. Btw, slicing into these ribs, even two days later, the juice just squeezes out!
YOU MUST USE KOSHER SALT! I suspect people who made this and complained about the salt level used regular table salt. Use Kosher salt for meat and recipes that call specifically for it. Because the larger flakes hold onto moisture, Kosher salt essentially holds the moisture inside of the meat. It keeps pork chops tender, steaks juicy, and chicken breast moist. Also a tablespoon of Kosher salt is approximately HALF the weight of a tablespoon of table salt.
Firstly, I love Chef John and have made many of his splendid recipes. I highly recommend brining, especially poultry so thought I’d try this since I also love pork. I love the concept and tried this. The recommendation of dry brining for 18 to 24 hours is off, I think. And the recipe doesn’t state whether to brush off the excess salt, or to rinse them before grilling. Chef should clarify this. My chops came out far too salty using the recipe as is. Still, I like the technique so will try again, brining for at least half the time and removing any excess salt before grilling
I had 3 thick boneless chops… used 1/2 of the seasoning… and ‘brined’ them for only 4 hours in the fridge and they were extremely too salty after cooking. I can only assume, using ALL of the seasoning and 18 hours of brining would’ve yielded and unbearable saltiness.