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
Barbara says
Wow! Best ever pork chop. I am fairly new at air frying and decided to try this recipe because I have never been good at frying a pork chop in a pan. This came out juicy and tender. The rub is what made it. I will never cook a pork chop any other way!
Joyce says
I have bone in pork chops. What temp and time do you suggest?
RecipeTeacher says
Just as the recipe is written.
Barb says
Wow! Apt title. Hubby loved it tasted the sweet and spicy. Only had 4 thin chops and air fryer doesn’t have preheat or timer so had to wing it. Probably 5 minutes for the thin but think I’ll make rub and keep in jar. Keeper recipe thanks!!
Cindy says
Just purchased my first Air Fryer. I was looking up recipes on Pinterest and found this one for pork chops. Just as the name of this recipe states they were the best! No need to look for another recipe. Thanks for sharing.
RecipeTeacher says
Thanks, Cindy!!
Tammy Weaver says
Over the top fablous!! Never have I ever had a better tasting pork chop. Steakhouse high dollar chops have NOTHING on these. I fixed this today for my Daddy for Father’s Day and he loved them so much he asked for the recipe for the rub. Thank you for sharing! P.S. I should’ve taken a picture, because they were beautiful, but we gobbled them up before I though of it. 🙂
RecipeTeacher says
Lol I love it!! Thanks so much for the kind words, Tammy! Hmmm, maybe I should think about opening a high dollar steakhouse now. 😉
connie says
Wow!!!! Can’t say enough about these. Everyone loved them. My husband (who is the main chef in our family and very picky) couldn’t say anything but, “These chops awesomely ROCK!!”. The brown sugar I used was regular sugar mixed with molasses. The rub is certainly a keeper. The char is fantastic, moist, tender. I used 1.5 inch center cut, bone in chops. Thank you so much for this recipe.
RecipeTeacher says
Yes!! Thanks so much, Connie!! I appreciate the feedback.
Anita says
OMGosh! These ARE the Best Damn Air Fryer Pork Chops! They were juicy and had a wonderful flavor. Could very easily be pork chop crack! ???? My Air Fryer has 3 shelves. I cooked 7 chops together and it took about 17 minutes for those on the top shelf and 22 for those on the other two shelves. They were thinner than 1″. This recipe is getting added to the rotation. Everyone loved them. I’m looking forward to trying more of your recipes. Thanks for sharing!
Jennifer says
Exactly as the recipe said! Amazing! Had me saying cuss words they were so good!
Tonya Pratt says
I purchased an air fryer about a month ago, and decided to try pork chops as my first meal, I tried this pork chop recipe and I must tell you, it was the absolute best tasting pork chop I’ve ever tasted. The flavor was amazing! I’ve already asked my husband to take out pork chops for dinner tonight, and I will definitely be using this same recipe:)
thanks!
RecipeTeacher says
That’s very cool. I’m so glad you maiden voyage with the air fryer was one of my favorite recipes! Thank you for the feedback!
Kara says
Hi do you use the air fry setting to cook these or the bake setting ?? I plan on trying them tonight
RecipeTeacher says
Air fry