This recipe for the Best Damn Air Fryer Pork Chops is so juicy, tender and delicious, it’s sure to quickly become a favorite air fryer recipe. With a few simple ingredients, and only 12 minutes cook time, these air fryer pork chops are perfect for a tasty dinner any day of the week.
Which Pork Chop Do You Have?
Not all pork chops cook the same way. Start with the cut you’re using, then choose the method that works best for you:
- Using Boneless Chops? If you’d rather use your oven, my Best Damn Oven-Baked Boneless Pork Chops are a reader favorite for staying juicy and tender.
- Have Bone-In Chops? For that traditional “Sunday Dinner” flavor, follow my simple Guide for Bone-In Chops in the Oven.
- Want a Savory Twist? Try these Parmesan Garlic Air Fryer Pork Chops for a buttery, cheesy crust that uses basic pantry staples.
- No Air Fryer Available? If you want to use your stovetop, my Best Damn Pan Seared Pork Chops are perfect for a quick, 10-minute weeknight meal.
Let me start my saying how much i’m loving my air fryer. I’ve owned a lot of kitchen gadgets over the years and my two favorites are my air fryer and my Instant Pot. And honestly, not far behind is my George Foreman Grill – but that’s a discussion for another day. The thing about an air fryer, is that, well, you’re not really frying in the traditional sense. It’s honestly more like a rapid cook oven/broiler. And there’s plenty of times I don’t want to heat up the house by turning on the regular oven. Besides, for this pork chop recipe I get the best results in the air fryer anyways!
What are the best pork chops for the air fryer?
I’ve found that the very best pork chops for the air fryer are thick, center cut, bone-in chops. I try to get them as thick as possible – somewhere between 1 ½ inches to 2 inches thick. The reason I like the thick chops the best is that with the cooking time required, it’s gives the pork chops a beautiful char on all sides. Thin pork chops will cook too quickly and never get that nice char on them. Thick pork chops require a cooking time of about 12 minutes. And with our rub from this recipe, we get that beautiful char on them that’s delicious!
Make a rub for air fryer pork chops
For this recipe for air fryer pork chops, we will not be breading the pork chops. Rather, we will be making a rub seasoning mix which we are going to very liberally apply to the meat. The rub is very simple too. We’ll use brown sugar, paprika, ground mustard, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. We mix it together and rub it all in to pork chops that have been rinsed, dried, and coated with a little olive oil. Rinsing the pork chops and patting them dry with a paper towel is important so don’t skip that step.
Cooking
Preheating your air fryer is an important step! You’ll want to preheat at 400°F for 5 minutes. Then, when it’s ready, cook the pork chops in the air fryer for 12 minutes, flipping them over after 6 minutes. Check for doneness with an instant-read food thermometer. We’re aiming for an internal temp of 140°F. If your pork chops are very thick, they may require an additional few minutes.
When the pork chops are done, remove them from the air fryer and place them on a plate and let them rest for a couple of minutes. Then you’re ready to serve and enjoy! There will be a nice juice that will form from the seasonings and the natural juices of the pork. Slice the pork chops in thin slices, and get some of the seasoned juice on each bite. You’re gonna love it!
Best Damn Air Fryer Pork Chops
- Total Time: 17 minutes
- Yield: 2
Description
Juicy, tender and delicious air fryer pork chops.
Ingredients
- 2 center-cut, bone-in pork chops, 1 ½ – 2 inches thick
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1–2 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 400°F for 5 minutes.
- Rinse pork chops with cool water and pat dry completely with a paper towel.
- In a small bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients.
- Coat the pork chops with olive oil and rub in the mix. Rub it in well and liberally. Use almost all of the rub mix for the 2 pork chops.
- Cook pork chops in air fryer on the air fry setting at 400°F for 12-14 minutes or until internal temperature of 140°F. Flip pork chops over after 6 minutes.
Notes
Air fryer temperatures can vary. Remove pork chops when internal temperature reaches 140°F. The carryover cooking will bring the temp up to 145°F.
- Prep Time: 5 min
- Cook Time: 12 min
- Category: Pork chops
- Method: air fryer
- Cuisine: American
Ginny says
This recipe was delicious! Easy to prepare. I would rate this recipe 5 stars all the way! Thanks so much for sharing.
RecipeTeacher says
Thanks so much Ginny!
Jennifer Foley says
Is the mustard dry or wet ground.
RecipeTeacher says
Dry
Mary says
Sounds great. How do you position the chops? Doesn’t look like there’s enough room fo tdd bfour
Can we stand them up. Stupid. Huh.
RecipeTeacher says
Hi Mary, yeah you need to lay them in the basket flat. Depending on the size of your air fryer and the size of the pork chops you might need to do a couple of batches.
Mare says
Hi Teach
I’m new to airfryer and I have a toaster oven air fryer.
12 minutes didnt really give me that charred look but they were cooked through.
I cant seem to capture crispies
in my airfryer.
Advice?
Mare
RecipeTeacher says
Hi Mare, are you able to adjust the height of the cooking surface? If you’re able to raise chops closer to the heating element, that would likely work. If not, you could always finish under the broiler in the oven. I know it’s an extra step, but it would certainly give it that tasty char.
Felicia Weber says
Can I use boneless ??
RecipeTeacher says
Absolutely you can.
Laura says
These look amazing!! What brand of air fryer are you using? I don’t own one, however, I would like someone’s take on it, as I would like to purchase one in the future.
Thanks.
RecipeTeacher says
Hi Laura. The pork chops in the photos were done in a Cosori 5.8qt air fryer. I also use an Instant Vortex Plus. Both I like a lot.
Mary says
I am going to try these tonight! Just wondering why it
shows the NInja Foodi in the video if you used a Cosori?
RecipeTeacher says
Awesome Mary! Let me know how it goes! You have a keen eye. My video person does indeed use a Ninja. The recipe worked equally as well. I always like to have a recipe tested on a few different machines if possible. Personally though, i’ve settled on the Cosori as my main air fryer.
Rosealean says
Your right. Best damn pork chops I ever ate. I make peach and mango salsa. Put that on top of the pork chop. OMG!!!!!!
RecipeTeacher says
I love that idea, Rosealean! Thanks so much for the feedback!
Dawn says
Awesome recipe! The chops were juicy and had such awesome flavor! I will use this recipe over and over.
Ruth says
These turned out so well. Now will make them this way all the time. Juicy. I did add a couple of minutes to the time.
RecipeTeacher says
I’m glad you liked them, Ruth! Thanks for the feedback.
David Graves says
I plan on making these tomorrow. I’ve got them rubbed down in the fridge.
RecipeTeacher says
Sounds good… let us know how they come out.
Paige says
These were delicious! Made recipe exactly as written except used brown sugar substitute. Perfect!
RecipeTeacher says
Thanks for the feedback, Paige. Glad you liked it! It’s one of my personal favorites too.
Trisha Brickner says
I made these pork chops they were delicious.
RecipeTeacher says
Thanks, Trisha!