If you’re looking for a great recipe for grilled pork chops you’ve found it! Flavorful with an easy garlic marinade, these easy grilled chops are perfect for outdoor cookouts.

Grilled Pork Chop Recipe with Garlic Marinade BBQ Pork Chops on a grill

Grilled Pork Chops Recipe

Previously our roasted pork chops recipe was such a hit, we decided one weekend to take it outside have grilled garlic pork chops instead of roasting them in the oven. Gosh, we’re so glad we did! Although the recipe and marinade is the exact same, the texture from cooking the pork chops on the grill is totally different! Cooking over direct heat on the grill gave these grilled garlic pork chops an outstanding flavor from all the char. Each bite was juicy, tender flavorful and amazing. Marinating the pork loin chops really helped make the chops juicy and tender when grilled.

What’s The Best Pork Chops for Grilling?

There’s so many different cuts of pork chops but if you have a favorite cut, stick with that. Here’s what our favorites are:

  • Normally we’ll use bone-in chops or pork shoulder chops because there’s more fat on those cuts they stay juicy when grilled. If you love sliced pork butt or pork shoulder cuts, here’s our easy recipe for grilled pork shoulder
  • For this recipe test and photo,  we stayed with the same boneless pork chops (loin chops) that we used for the oven roasted version. These boneless loin chops were still juicy when grilled!
  • In fact, our favorite is grilling sliced pork butt or pork shoulder steaks. But with these loin chops, the results were still great. It’s definitely because the marinade helped give these grilled garlic pork chops more fat and flavor.
  • Using Bone-In pork chops are another great option because the meat is very tender. And if you love gnawing on the bone, you’ll love this one. The flavors of the marinade are all over the bone-in chops.

Watch Video: Grilled Pork Chops Recipe

Grilled Pork Chop Recipe with Garlic Marinade BBQ Pork Chops on a grill

Our Secret to the Best Grilled Pork Chops

Regardless of how well you cook the pork chops, they can still be tough. Want to know our secret to the best grilled pork chops? the answer is simple: eat them while they’re still warm. After grilling, let them rest for about 3-4 minutes, then eat them right away. The meat will be warm, tender and juicy. If you wait too long, the pork chops dry out and start to get tough. So if you’re having a party and talking to all your guests, set a timer after the pork chops are off the grill. Then eat them immediately! Don’t wait too long.

Grilling Tips

  • Make sure to have the grill hot before adding the pork chops and scrape the grill clean first as well. These steps will help keep the pork chops from sticking. 
  • You don’t have to leave the pork chops for the whole 4-6 minute time/side while only turning them once. Feel free to turn the pork chops several times every couple minutes if you like, it will actually help cook them quicker and more evenly-it just needs more attention.
  • An instant read thermometer (or meat thermometer) will take the guesswork out of knowing is they are done. Cook to an internal temperature of 145°F/63°C.
  • You can always marinate the pork chops in a bowl, but when grilling, we like the ease of marinating in a bag. It keeps the juices contained and makes clean up even easier. Especially when you are grilling beyond your backyard.
Grilled Pork Chop Recipe with Garlic Marinade BBQ Pork Chops | @bestrecipebox

Grilled Garlic Pork Chops

Pork chops vary in size and thickness, so adjust cooking times as necessary. Our recipe was made with 3/4” thick center cut pork loin chops at about 8 ounces each. If you’re cooking with thinner and smaller chops, reduce cooking time and check the chops earlier for doneness.
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Ingredients

  • 4 (4) pork chops (we used 3/4” center cut loin chops, 8-ounces each)
  • 4 Tablespoons (60 ml) olive oil or vegetable oil , divided
  • 1 Tablespoon (15 ml) soy sauce
  • 1 Tablespoon (15 ml) Worcestershire sauce
  • 3 Tablespoons (45 ml) ketchup
  • 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml) onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon (5 ml) dijon mustard or yellow mustard
  • 2 Tablespoons (30 ml) packed brown sugar
  • 3-4 cloves (3 cloves) garlic , minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml) Kosher salt , or to taste
  • black pepper , to taste (preferably fresh cracked pepper)
  • Minced parsley for garnish , optional

Equipment

Instructions 

  • Make the marinade: in large ziplock bag, combine 3 tablespoons of olive oil, soy sauce, Worcestershire, ketchup, onion powder, mustard, brown sugar and garlic. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Rub the bag between your hands to combine all the ingredients. 
    Marinade in plastic bag
  • Place pork chops in the bag and massage the marinade into the pork chops. Seal the bag and marinade the pork chops for at least 30 minutes or overnight is best for great flavor.
    Pork chops in bag with marinade
  • Pre-heat grill on medium to medium-high heat (depending on your grill’s heat). Scrape the grill grates to make sure they are clean.
    Scraping the grill clean to prevent sticking
  • Place the pork chops on the grill, making sure to save the extra marinade for brushing while you grill.
    Uncooked pork chops on grill
  • Cook the pork chops for about 4-6 minutes per side or until nicely grilled and cooked through. Several times while grilling, brush the pork chops with the extra marinade. If you are unsure about how much to cook the pork chops, measure them with an instant read thermometer to an internal temperature of 145°F/63°C.
    Cooked pork chops on grill
  • Garnish with minced parsley, optional. Serve warm with baked potatoes, pasta or whatever you want.

Notes

Grilling Tips:
  • Make sure to have the grill hot before adding the pork chops and scrape the grill clean first as well. These steps will help keep the pork chops from sticking. 
  • You don’t have to leave the pork chops for the whole 4-6 minute time/side while only turning them once. Feel free to turn the pork chops several times every couple minutes if you like, it will actually help cook them quicker and more evenly-it just needs more attention.
  • An instant read thermometer will take the guesswork out of knowing is they are done. Cook to an internal temperature of 145°F/63°C.
 

Video

YouTube video

Nutrition Information per Serving

Calories: 377kcal, Carbohydrates: 10g, Protein: 29g, Fat: 23g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 89mg, Sodium: 766mg, Potassium: 587mg, Sugar: 8g, Vitamin A: 60IU, Vitamin C: 1.7mg, Calcium: 23mg, Iron: 1.1mg

Favorite BBQs & Tools for Making Smoking and Grilling:

Some tools, grills, and smokers make BBQ and grilling all the more enjoyable.

Oklahoma Joe’s Reverse Flow Offset Smoker –
Love this offset smoker. Solid construction. Isn’t perfect, but with a couple easy modifications it will smoke as well as the $1k + smokers. Can use the main chamber also as a regular charcoal grill. Love using it as a regular grill using lump charcoal or briquettes. Huge cooking surface.

Oasity BBQ Light
Grilling should never be confined to the daylight. Love this BBQ light. Good brightness, solid magnets plus clamp option. We’ve gone through 1/2 dozen different grilling lights before falling in love with this one. Be ready to grill all night long.

Traeger 'Que Classic BBQ Sauce

Traeger ‘Que Classic BBQ Sauce
A good sauce is the finish touch to great BBQ. Get a little sweet and heat or check out the rest of their sauce line-ups for other options.

Flame Boss Wifi Temperature Control – A gadget geeks smoking dream. Control your grill and smoker’s temp. from your phone. Adjusts air flow, determines meat temperature. Gadget awesomeness!

Weber Charcoal Chimney Starter
The perfect way to light lump charcoal or briquettes.

Premium Lump Charcoal
Burns hotter and longer. Give a great smoke flavor without needing to add wood chips. Our preferred fuel for smoking meats.

Grilled Garlic Pork Chops-step by step

How to Store Leftover Pork Chops?

Store the cooked chops in an airtight container or bag. You can freeze for up to 3 months. Don’t wait too long after that because the chops will get freezer burn and start to dry out. Before eating, let them thaw completely. Then you can re-heat in the microwave or on a skillet with a little melted butter. The leftovers are still delicious!

More Easy Pork Chop Recipes: