Asian Style Pork Chops

Asian style pork chops are what I make when I want dinner to work around a busy evening instead of taking it over. The marinade does most of the work while I get on with the rest of the night, built from soy sauce, honey, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger that most kitchens already keep on hand.

What keeps them tender is less the marinade than what happens in the pan. I pull the chops at 145°F (63°C) and let them rest instead of cooking them by the clock until they dry out, and that habit is the difference between a chop that gets finished and one that gets pushed around the plate.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• The marinade comes together from soy sauce, honey, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger, so there’s no specialty trip to make it.
• Once the chops are marinated, the cooking is fast: a few minutes a side in a hot pan and they’re done.
• Most of the time is hands-off, since the fridge does the marinating while you do something else.
• It works with bone-in or boneless chops, so you can cook whichever is the better buy that week.
• It scratches the Asian-takeout itch at home, with pork chops instead of an order out.
• Leftovers slice well cold or warm back up for a rice bowl the next day.

Ingredients You’ll Need

A few of these are worth a note before you start. The printable card below has the full list with quantities.

• Pork chops: bone-in or boneless both work. Either way, go by the thermometer reading rather than the clock.
• Soy sauce: the salty, savory backbone of the marinade. Tamari swaps in straight across if you need the dish to be gluten-free.
• Honey: it balances the salt of the soy and helps the surface of the chops take on color as they sear.
• Sesame oil: this adds a nutty aroma to the marinade, so the tablespoon on the card is plenty.
• Garlic and ground ginger: the aromatics that make it taste Asian-inspired rather than plain. The card uses minced garlic and ground ginger, so there’s nothing to grate.
• Olive oil: a tablespoon goes into the marinade along with the sesame oil.

How to make Asian Style Pork Chops

A complete printable recipe and the measurements in both US customary and metric are available in the recipe card below.

Mix the marinade

In a mixing bowl big enough to hold the chops, whisk together the soy sauce, sesame oil, honey, olive oil, garlic, ginger, and black pepper until it’s evenly combined.

Marinate the chops

Lower the chops in one at a time so each one is fully submerged, cover the bowl, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Overnight is fine too, and the recipe is at its best given that long, so this is the step to start the night before if you can.

Sear the chops

Heat a pan over medium-high heat. Shake the excess marinade off each chop before it goes in, or the wet surface steams instead of searing.

Cook 3 to 4 minutes per side until the internal temperature reaches 145°F (63°C), and give them room rather than crowding the pan, letting a crust form before you move them.

Rest the chops

Let the chops rest for 10 minutes before you cut into them so the juices have time to settle. Cutting in early lets the juices run straight out onto the board, which is most of what leaves a chop dry.

Garnish and serve

Scatter chopped green onions and white sesame seeds over the top if you’re using them, and serve.

Recipe Notes and Expert Tips

• A thermometer beats the clock here. Pork chops have a narrow window, and the reading tells you what a timer can’t: the moment to take them off.
• Start checking the temperature at the early end of the 3 to 4 minutes per side, since a thermometer reading is the only reliable sign they’re done.
• Let the pan come fully up to heat before the chops go in. A pan that’s only part-way hot gives you gray meat instead of a seared crust.
• Don’t skip the green onions and sesame seeds if you have them. The green onions cut the sweet-salty edge of the marinade, so they do more than sit on top.

Recipe Variations

• For a gluten-free version, swap in tamari for the soy sauce at the same one-to-one amount; nothing else about the recipe shifts, which makes it a tested, no-surprises change.
• Stir a pinch of red pepper flakes into the marinade and the chops pick up a low background warmth rather than real heat. It’s a tested add-in that leaves the timing alone.
• These take well to the grill, where the marinade chars the way a pan can’t quite manage. That’s a supported route, so cook to the same 145°F (63°C) and rest them as you would off the stove.
• Boneless chops work in place of bone-in with no change to the marinade. Cook them to the same 145°F (63°C) and rest them the same way.

How to Store Leftovers

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. Don’t leave cooked chops out at room temperature for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour if the kitchen is above 90°F (32°C).

To reheat, warm them through to 165°F (74°C). For longer storage, freeze the cooked chops for up to 2 to 3 months for the best quality, and thaw them in the fridge before reheating.

What to Serve With Asian Style Pork Chops

Steamed white rice is the natural base here, since it catches the marinade that cooks down on the chops.

For a vegetable, a quick soy-and-garlic stir-fry like Panda Express Super Greens keeps the plate in the same flavor family without any extra richness.

If you’d rather make it a noodle night than a rice one, Panda Express Chow Mein stands in for the rice and rounds the meal out on its own.

FAQs

More Asian-Inspired Dinners to Try

If this one earns a spot in the rotation, here’s where I’d go next.

• Panda Express Teriyaki Chicken is the one I make when I want the same soy-and-ginger, over-rice dinner but with chicken instead of pork.
• Panda Express String Bean Chicken Breast is a lighter stir-fry night, with the vegetables cooked right into the main instead of served alongside.
• Pineapple Fried Rice is the one for a night you want the rice to carry the meal, with the same ginger and soy running through it.