You’ll love this simple, quick and easy pork chop marinade! It takes just a few minutes and imparts a delicious and savory flavor to the pork chops. But what makes this the best pork chop marinade? Let’s see, it takes only a few minutes, it imparts a delicious and savory flavor, and the ingredients are 100% natural (no sugar required!). It’s great to mix up ahead, marinate, and then cook right before serving. I recommend using this with my oven baked pork chops recipe! I’m such a big fan of marinating meat – it’s the best way to tenderize and flavor meat at the same time. My balsamic steak marinade, carne asada marinade, marinated lamb chops, and tandoori chicken are all delicious and flavorful recipes you should try!
Simple Pork Chop Marinade Ingredients
This homemade marinade for pork chops comes together with just 5 simple ingredients, plus salt and pepper:
Olive oil – The oil itself imparts flavor, but also helps the garlic aroma penetrate better. Coconut aminos – This adds a salty, savory flavor. If you’re not familiar with it, it’s very similar to soy sauce, but better for you. See why I don’t recommend soy here. That being said, you can substitute soy sauce for the aminos if you prefer; it’s less sweet than coconut aminos, so you might want to add a tablespoon of sweetener of your choice if you sub soy sauce. Lemon juice – The citrus helps to break down the meat, making it more tender. Dijon mustard – Mustard helps to tenderize meat, and also gives it great flavor. Garlic – The garlic gives great savory flavor to the meat. Sea salt & black pepper
The amounts of each ingredient in pork chop marinade are on the recipe card below.
How To Make Pork Chop Marinade
Simply whisk together the olive oil, coconut aminos, lemon juice, dijon mustard, garlic, sea salt, and black pepper. Super easy!
How To Use Pork Chop Marinade
Pour the pork chop marinade into a freezer bag and add the pork chops. Seal the bag and massage the marinade into the meat.
FYI: You can also marinate the pork chops in a bowl instead. I prefer a bag because it helps the marinade coat each piece of meat more evenly.
Marinate pork chops for at least an hour for maximum flavor, but no longer than 12 hours. Cook the pork chops using your favorite method — I recommend baking pork chops in the oven! You can also use the same marinade for pan seared pork chops.
Storage Instructions
You can mix up the marinade a day or two in advance. Store it in the freezer bag in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use it.
How long can you marinate pork chops?
You can marinate the pork chops up to 12 hours, but no longer. The meat will start to get mushy after that.
Can you freeze pork chops in marinade?
Freezing the pork chops in the marinade is not recommended, as the acid found in the lemon juice will continue to break down the meat, even while frozen. It should only be left in the marinade for 12 hours.
What To Serve With Pork Chops
This quick pork chop marinade creates juicy, flavorful pork chops that just need a side, and I think the best ones are roasted vegetables! Try these:
Roasted Broccoli – Pictured in the photos above! One of my fave roasted veggie sides. Roasted Asparagus – This classic side is ready in just 20 minutes. Roasted Brussels Sprouts – Just 10 minutes to prep + my secret for CRISPY brussels sprouts. Roasted Zucchini – You only need a handful of common ingredients to make this.
Share your recipe picture by tagging @wholesomeyum and hashtag it #wholesomeyum on Instagram, or in our Facebook support group, too - I’d love to see it! Only 1/4 of the marinade is included in the nutrition calculation, as a lot is discarded after marinating the pork chops.
