Quick, fun & seriously tasty
Need a tasty midweek meal? Then Korean-style pork chops is the one for you.
- Prep Time: 5 mins + 20mins to overnight marinating
- Cook Time: 6 mins (
- Serves: 3 – 4
- Difficulty: easy
- Ideal for: midweek meal, barbecue
Korean‑style pork chops — quick, fun & seriously tasty
I’m not a professional chef (definitely not MasterChef material!), but I absolutely love cooking for family, friends and neighbours — loud kitchen music, chatter flying, laughter and great food made with good ingredients. These Korean‑style pork chops are just the sort of midweek dinner that gets everyone smiling and full.
🥢 Why go Korean style?
A marinade based on gochujang paste, soy, garlic and honey packs a punch.
Gochujang is a fermented Korean chilli‑bean paste: it’s spicy, sweet, salty and deeply umami.
It brings heat, a hint of caramel and satisfying depth — brilliant with pork.
When you combine that with a little soy sauce, smashed garlic and honey the flavours balance beautifully: heat, saltiness, sweetness and savour in every bite.
What you need (serves 2–4)
- 2 (pasture bred) pork chops (around 2 cm thick, bone‑in if you like flavour but boneless will work too)
- 2 tbsp gochujang paste
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tbsp honey (or more if you love sweetness)
- Optional: grated ginger
- A drizzle of oil for the pan
Method
- Marinate the pork chops at least 20 mins ahead (overnight if you can). Mix gochujang, soy, garlic and honey — you want that glossy sticky coating.
- Bring the pork chops to room temperature, then heat a frying pan on medium‑high.
- With tongs, hold the pork chops up so the rind is rendering to get a nice caramalisation.
- Lay the chops down, cook each side for around 3 – 4 mins (depending on the thickness), turning once, pour the remaining marinade over and cook until beautifully crusted and cooked through (internal temperature about 145°F / 63 °C).
- Rest for – 10 minutes, then spoon any sticky pan juices back over the chops.
Serve with rice, steamed greens or new potatoes — simple, colourful, fun, and absolutely family‑friendly.
Why high‑welfare pork matters
It’s always better to buy meat from producers who care — pigs that have had space and feed in pastures.
High‑welfare pork tastes sweeter, has better fat and texture, and you can feel good about where it came from.
I admit, it can be more expensive sometimes but we’re in an age where reducing our meat intake (essentially, eating meat the way we used to – not everyday) along with buying from farmers we can say how they farm, is the way we need to go.
Regenerative farming – farms that build soil health, capture carbon, and support biodiversity instead of depleting it, isn’t a new thing but it is a farming practice that was lost for a while due to industrialised farming becoming the norm.
In the UK, the regenerative farming means pigs graze in systems that mimic natural cycles, improving land resilience, reducing chemical inputs, and offering animals a life closer to their instincts.
It’s better for the planet, for the animals—and ultimately for the food on your plate.
Why is regenerative farming better?
- It builds soil, not erodes it. Healthy soil means healthier crops to feed pigs, better flavour.
- It reduces greenhouse gas emissions and often stores carbon in the soil, helping climate goals.
- It supports diverse wildlife—insects, birds, flora—rather than monocultures.
- Animals live better: more space, natural diet, lower stress. All of that leads to better‑tasting pork.
Korean‑style pork chops
Use high‑welfare, preferably regeneratively‑raised pork.
Enjoy the caramelised edges, the spicy‑sweet depth, the tender juicy meat.
Gather around the table, chat about your day and share good food.
If you’d like some more ideas for a midweek meal, visit here.
