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
Tammy P. says
If you are on the fence about buying or keeping your air fryer, well, make this recipe and you’ll keep your air fryer for life. I’m new to the whole world of air frying, just got the Ninja 4-quart and two thick-cut bone-in chops fit perfectly. This recipe was like eating at a 4-star restaurant. Yum Yum.
LINDA McCain says
Absolutely the best pork chops I’ve ever eaten! So moist and outstanding flavor! Thank you!
Bud says
The recipe is a keeper !
Wonderful ,flavorful , using a thick cut of meat is required in this recipe.
Thinner cut chops would burn up like bacon. Hey wait a minute….maybe we should try that ! Turned out great. I will remember this site.
Mary Ann says
I have made this twice now. My pork chops were not that thick so I cut back on the cooking time. Came out moist and tender tasting really good. Second time I made them with the same size pork chops I cut back on the brown sugar, they came out great. Thanks for a really good recipe. Lately I have been having a hard time with pork chops being tough and dry but this recipe is a game changer.
Rissa Watkins says
Excellent! The whole family loved them. Came out perfect.
lynda says
Yummy. My husband loved them. Had a little char on them. Excellent recipe. Already in w/ other treasured recipes!! Thanks!
Cindy says
This receipe is definitely a keeper for me! I always have a problem with my pork chops being tough. I found this recipe and my husband said these were the were the best pork chops he ever ate. Easy, juicy, tender and delicious! Love it!
RecipeTeacher says
Thanks Cindy!
Mary Ann V says
Just made this tonight, it was so good. I had 1/2″ thick chops, cooked for close to the same amount of time, I had to substitute garlic powder for granules and minced onion instead of onion powder but it was basically the same. Chops were very juicy, which is something I have been having trouble with lately. Thanks you for this recipe, I will be making this again and again.
Jilleen Peck says
Sooo delicious and easy!! Definitely will make again!! I used Swerve brown sugar and it worked out great.
Margie says
This about the third time I have made this recipe and they come out juicy, favorable and easy to make.
Jennifer E. says
I didn’t have ground mustard, so I improvised with rubbing the chops with mustard before rubbing dry ingredients on them. I also added 1 tsp of Cumin to the mix. And after rubbing the dry mix on them I sprayed both sides with a little Grape seed spray. And they came out delish!!!
Theresa says
Just made the air fryer best damn pork chops. Was delicious. I followed recipe to the letter except cooking time as mine were not 1 1/2” thick. Next time I’ll decrease the amount of brown sugar though, person choice, as I’m not big on sweet on my savory meat. My husband loved it! Thank for the step by step as this was only my 2nd time with using an air fryer