These Grilled Apricot Glazed Pork Chops are moist and tender with a tangy apricot balsamic glaze you will love—a perfect easy change of pace weeknight dinner.
🐖Ingredients
Pork chops—boneless or bone-in, one inch thick
Optional Brine—water and salt
Apricot Glaze—apricot jam, balsamic vinegar. olive oil
Salt and pepper
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Featured Comment from Erin: "Five stares. Great and very easy glaze recipe."
I love a nice grilled pork chop. But pork can lack a little taste, so these apricot pork chops with a fruity balsamic glaze are a great change of pace.
A simple optional brine made the chops super moist and tender. Use either boneless or bone-in chops and either a gas or charcoal grill.
👨🍳How to Make Apricot Glazed Pork Chops—Step-by-Step
1. Only a few ingredients. My wife likes garlic in the brine. It is not in the recipe, but add ½ teaspoon to the brine if you want to try it.
2. Start with a brine of two cups of cold water and one tablespoon of salt. Add pork chops and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
3. Preheat the grill to a surface temperature of 450°. Clean and oil well. Mix the glaze of two tablespoons of apricot jam, one teaspoon of good-quality balsamic vinegar, and one teaspoon of olive oil.
4. Remove pork from the brine, rinse under running water, and pat dry. Give them a light sprinkle of pepper, then brush lightly with the glaze if you skipped the brine and a bit of salt.
5. Place over direct heat for five minutes, then flip. Flip again in 5 minutes and brush with glaze. Flip every 5 minutes and brush with glaze until an internal temperature of 140°-145°—about 15-20 minutes.
6. Remove from grill, tent lightly with foil, and allow to rest 5 minutes before serving.
For more details, keep reading. See the Recipe Card below for complete instructions and to print.
⏰How long does it take to grill pork chops
Grilling time is mostly thickness-related. A ¾ inch thick chop may only be about 10 minutes on a grill surface of about 450°. A 1-inch thick chop takes about 12-14 minutes, and a 1 ½ inch may take up to 20 minutes.
I like to cook pork chops to 145°-150°. My wife dislikes pink pork, so I tend to go a little higher to 155°. The FDA recommends a minimum of 145 ° with a 3-minute rest.
A bone-in chop may take a bit longer than a boneless one. Also, the starting temp of the chop and the exact grill temperature will have large effects. As always,
COOK TO THE FINAL INTERNAL TEMPERATURE AND NEVER BY TIME ALONE.
Pork Chop Recipes
While this is a great-tasting recipe, if it is not what you need on the grill, check out How to Grill Pork Chops. Or fire up the slow cooker for Crock Pot Pork Chops or Crock Pot Apple Pork Chops.
If you prefer the great taste of stovetop or baked chops, check out Pan Seared Oven Roasted Pork Chops, Fried Pork Chops with Gravy, or Baked Breaded Pork Chops. And for those 2-inch or thicker chops, use How to Cook Thick Pork Chops.
Should I brine pork chops?
Brine is used to add moisture to many types of meat. While brining is optional, it is highly recommended for grilled pork chops.
A standard pork brine is 2 cups of water with 1 tablespoon of table salt. 1 teaspoon table salt = 1 ½ teaspoon Morton kosher salt = 2 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt.
Most will add sugar to the brine at about the same amount as the salt. Other flavors, like garlic, can be added.
Be sure to rinse the meat under running water after the brine. Never add seasoning with more salt if the meat has been brined.
You can skip the brine for speed, but it does add some moisture and avoids that "dry pork" thing that is easy to get. But you can still get moist results if you grill carefully and don't overcook or use too high of a temperature.
Apricot Glaze
The simple apricot glaze combines apricot jam, balsamic vinegar, and some olive oil. All the ingredients must be of good quality, especially the balsamic, since poor quality in the glaze will ruin the meal.
This recipe uses apricot jam, but you can use a different flavor. Jam usually has a lot more sugar than preserves. If you use preserves, add some brown sugar to the glaze.
Serving
Serve with grilled side dishes, like Corn on the Cob, Grilled Potato Slices, Grilled Biscuits, and Grilled Mixed Vegetables.
Storage of leftovers
Store leftovers in an airtight container. Refrigerate for 4 days or freeze for 3 months.
FAQs
There is usually a layer of fat on the edge of a chop. You can trim it if you want, but many think it adds some flavor and helps prevent drying.
If it is over ¼ inch, I suggest trimming it to ¼ inch thick. Also, it should be scored every inch to prevent cupping.
The grill should be 450°-500° surface temperature. That is usually a bit above medium on most gas grills. If you have questions about grill setup, see my guide to controlling your grill temperature.
This should work fine on a charcoal grill and a gas grill. Just get the heat down a little from the maximum.
🐖About Pork Chops
Pork chop choices can be a bit confusing. I have listed five types of chops, but only the middle three should be considered "real" chops and will all cook the same. The other two "chops," the shoulder and the sirloin chop, do not cook the same and, to me, should be avoided.
Bone-in or boneless chops are both good. So people think bone-in will be moister and taste better. I don't feel there is a significant difference. But bone-in does take a bit longer to cook.
This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.
Have you tried this recipe, or have a question? Join the community discussion in the comments.
📖The Recipe Card
Grilled Apricot Glazed Pork Chops
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Ingredients
- 2 pork chops - one inch thick
Optional Brine
- 2 cups water
- 1 tablespoons salt
Apricot Glaze
- 2 tablespoons apricot jam
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
Instructions
Start with a brine of 2 cups cold water and one tablespoon salt. You can add other things to the brine if you want. Add pork chops and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.- Preheat the grill to a surface temperature of 450°. Just above medium, usually. Clean and oil well.
- Mix the glaze of two tablespoons of apricot jam, one teaspoon of good-quality balsamic vinegar, and one teaspoon of olive oil.
- Remove pork from the brine, rinse under running water, and pat dry. Give them a light sprinkle of pepper, then brush lightly with the glaze if you skipped the brine and a bit of salt.
- Place over direct heat for five minutes, then flip. Flip again in 5 minutes and brush with glaze. Continue to flip every 5 minutes and brush with glaze until an internal temperature of 140°-145°—about 15-20 minutes.
- Remove from grill, tent lightly with foil, and allow to rest 5 minutes before serving.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- A brine will add moisture but is optional. You can have good results without it if you don’t overcook and don’t have your grill too hot.
- I prefer a pork chop that is about 1-inch thick. Either bone-in or boneless is fine. Bone-in may take a few minutes more to cook.
- If there is a rim of fat around the chop, trim it down to about ½ inch thick and score it all the way through about every inch.
- Cook to 145°-150° internal temperature.
- If you use preserves instead of jam, you will want to add a bit of brown sugar to the glaze.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
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Editor's Note: Originally Published July 18, 2015. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Erin J says
Great and very easy glaze recipe. Thank you!
Chris says
I like how simple yet flavorful this glaze is. Way to kick up your chops!