Pork chops are one of the foods favored by almost everyone, particularly in the US, but also elsewhere. The key to the best pork chops is to cook them without drying them out, or rather, to make them moister.

Since we are talking specifically about baking here, we will dispense with the many other ways to cook pork chops without drying them out. This still leaves quite a number of ways to do it. These often lead to a totally terrific meal. Let's concentrate on just a couple of these, as each can be varied according to taste and what is available. Still, they should give plenty more ideas for yet other moist and delicious pork chop recipes.

The first is also one of the easiest: Mushroom baked pork chops.

Except for the pork chops and seasonings, the only other ingredients are a can of condensed mushroom soup and a can of milk. The procedure is as follows.

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. While the oven is heating, place the chops in a single layer, in a baking pan. Season the chops with salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and thyme. In a bowl, mix the mushroom soup and milk, stirring well. Pour this over the top of the chops and cook in the oven for an hour. For a special touch, sliced mushrooms can also be added, particularly wild mushrooms like morels.

The meat gains moisture and flavor from the soup. Seasonings can be altered, and other cream soups can be used instead of mushroom soup, as desired.

Great side dishes for this pork chop meal include a crispy green salad, mashed or baked potato, and applesauce. The latter is a natural for pork chops in general.

Sweet barbecue baked pork chops:

Ingredients

1-2 pork chops per person
1 cup honey barbecue sauce, your choice (homemade is fantastic with this)
1 eight ounce can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 cup bourbon if available (optional)
1/4 teaspoon each; oregano, basil, garlic powder, thyme

1. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except the pork chops, and blend well. Place the chops in this mixture and allow the meat to soak, turning occasionally, for 2 hours. Note: Overnight is even better.

2. Place the chops in a baking pan, in a single layer, and pour the sauce over the top of the chops. Cover the pan with foil, to retain extra moisture and to make oven cleanup easier.

3. Bake in a preheated 300 degree F oven for 1 hour, turning the chops once after a half hour.

Great side dishes include sliced tomatoes, applesauce, and mashed potatoes. Adding crushed garlic to the potatoes during preparation is a wonderful touch. Dill pickle slices or parsley are garnishes that go well with this dish. A light dessert or ice cream goes well for finishing the meal.

Canned apricots or peaches, drained, can be added to the chops 15 minutes before the chops are done, for an exquisite addition to flavor.

It should be noted that with the sweet barbecue chops, it is often a good idea to have a couple extra chops cooked, as these almost always are a great hit.

Notice that with both of these, there is a combination of a lower cooking temperature and something to add to or replace the moisture in the chops, in order to keep them moist. In other words, instead of taking pains to prevent drying, you are taking steps to ensure juicy chops.

There really isn't a secret to baking pork chops without drying them out. The secret is in making them moister than they originally were or would have been.

Learn more about this author, Rex Trulove.
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