Baked Breaded Pork Chops

🐖Ingredients

• Pork Chops—Use ¾ to 1-inch boneless center-cut chop. For breaded pork chops, try not to use bone-in chops. The meat will contract with cooking, and the bone will break off some of the breading.
• Seasoning—Seasoning breaded pork chops is simple. Only a little black pepper is needed between Italian breadcrumbs and seasoning salt. You can season any way you wish with fresh herbs or spices like oregano or thyme. Some suggest adding some Parmesan cheese to the topping.
• Panko breadcrumbs-Italian seasoned preferred.
• Pantry ingredients—all-purpose flour, seasoning salt, black pepper

👨‍🍳How to bake breaded pork chops

1. Trim off the fat rim from the boneless pork chops and brine if desired.
2. Pat dry and apply breading. Let set for a few minutes before browning to help the breading attach.
3. Brown in a hot oven-safe skillet (cast iron preferred) on the stovetop for a few minutes per side.
4. Transfer to a preheated oven and bake to 145° minimum and nicely brown—about 10 minutes or longer if you want a different level of doneness.

This is a summary of the steps and ingredients. See the recipe card or the step-by-step photo instructions below for complete instructions.

⏲️How long to bake breaded pork chops

After about 5 minutes of searing, it only takes about 10 minutes in a 425° oven to reach the minimum suggested temperature of 145° for a ¾ inch thick breaded boneless pork chop. As you move to the oven, do a fast internal temperature check to get an idea of how close you are to being done.

You can skip the searing, but use a 375° oven and add 10 to 15 minutes to the cooking time.

But there are many variables: thickness and initial temperature of the meat, the oil temperature in the stovetop pan, the pan itself, and the oven.

So always cook to the final internal temperature and account for a final rise of a few degrees after removal from the oven.

👨‍🍳How to Bread Pork Chops

1. After any brining and trimming, pat dry the pork chop with a paper towel—things do not stick well to wet things.
2. Coat with an egg wash and shake off excess. Alternatively, some will use mayonnaise with mustard, but it will not stick as well.
3. Dip into a coating of flour, seasoning, and Panko bread crumbs.
4. After coating with the flour mixture, set it on a flat surface like a cutting board or plate for about 5 minutes to allow the various layers to combine and adhere better.

How to keep the breading attached

1. Use boneless pork chops. When cooking bone-in pork chops, the meat will contract when cooked and crack the crust.
2. Be sure to rest after applying the final coat. Eggs and flour will make excellent adhesion given a few minutes on dry meat.
3. Cook in a well-oiled, non-stick pan. Cast iron is perfect due to its non-stick nature and even heat distribution.
4. Flip and move the least possible. Things like tongs will rip the breading, so use a fork and stab the edges.

🍴How to serve breaded pork chops

These pork chops are comfort food, so served with hot vegetables like green beans, corn, or peas. A potato dish like Twice Baked Potatoes or Oven Roasted Baby Potatoes. And some soft dinner rolls or crusty bread are great additions.

🥣How to make gravy

Everybody loves gravy. It will add a few minutes but is worth the little work if it fits your plans. I didn't build it into this recipe, but you can easily add it.

Check out my stovetop fried pork chop recipe below with instructions specifically for pork gravy. Or see How To Make Gravy at Home and use the slurry method.

How to store and reheat leftovers

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4 days. You can freeze for 3 months, but the breading may not save well.

To reheat, use a 350° oven or an air fryer. You can microwave, but the crust will suffer.

❓FAQs

Preheat oven to 400° convection or 425° conventional.

Trim the fat rim off 1-inch thick boneless pork chops and pat dry with a paper towel.

Prepare two trays. First, with one egg whipped with a teaspoon of water. Second, with ¼ cup of Italian Panko bread crumbs, ¼ cup of all-purpose flour, 1 ½ teaspoons of seasoning salt (Lawry's or similar), and ¼ teaspoon of black pepper.

Dredge a pork chop in the egg mixture, covering all surfaces. Remove with a fork and allow to drain for a moment.

Dip the egg-coated pork chop into the flour mixture. Coat all sides, remove with a fork, and shake to remove the extra flour mixture.

Set the chop on a plate or chopping board. Repeat for the next chop. We want to coat to set up for a few minutes before cooking.

Over medium-high heat, add 1 tablespoon of oil to an oven-safe, non-stick skillet—cast iron preferred. When the oil is shimmering, gently lay the chops into the pan with a fork.

Brown each side of the chop for 2-3 minutes until you have almost the final color you want. Use a fork to flip by poking the meat edge and not anything to grab the meat and pull off the coating.

Allow to rest on a plate for 5 minutes before cutting.