Grilled Ginger-Soy Pork Chops
When I organized catered houseboat trips, a Lake Powell guest called these Grilled Ginger-Soy Pork Chops “The World’s Best Pork Chops!” I’ve been calling them that ever since, and if you like grilled pork chops you have to try this ginger-soy pork chop marinade!
PIN the Ginger Soy Pork Chops to try them later!
This week my long-time friend Marlys is visiting Utah, so there’s not much cooking going on at my house while we’re sampling some of my favorite Salt Lake City restaurants. So that means there’s no new recipe today; instead I’m reminding you to make these favorite Grilled Ginger-Soy Pork Chops.
These pork chops are something I’ve been making for more than 20 years, and when I used to cater houseboat trips at Lake Powell, everyone loved this recipe and one client called them “The World’s Best Pork Chops.” Since then I’ve made them over and over for guests, and they’ve always been a hit.
And it’s the ginger-soy pork chop marinade recipe I use here that makes these grilled pork chops so amazing! In the Lake Powell days I used to make these pork chops with vermouth as the tenderizing ingredient in the marinade, but every time I gave someone the recipe they didn’t have vermouth, so I’ve been using rice vinegar in this recipe for the last few years. And that was a perfect substitute and worked beautifully!
What ingredients do you need for this recipe?
(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)
- bone-in pork chops
- Peanut Oil (affiliate link) (or other high-heat oil)
- soy sauce, Gluten-Free Soy Sauce (affiliate link), or coconut aminos
- Unseasoned Rice Vinegar (affiliate link)
- dried Aleppo Pepper (affiliate link) flakes, or other red pepper
- ginger puree (from a jar), or use Minced Ginger (affiliate link
- garlic puree (from a jar) or use Minced Garlic (affiliate link)
- dried mustard
Can you make Ginger-Soy Pork Chops without an outdoor grill?
These pork chops are so good I’d cook them all winter long on a stove-top grill pan with ridges (affiliate link) or on a George Foreman Grill (affiliate link) if it wasn’t grilling season, so try that if you don’t have an outdoor grill.
Want more ideas for pork cooked on the grill?
Who doesn’t like perfectly grilled pork chops for a summer dinner? If you’re a fan of pork cooked on the grill, you might also like Grilled Boneless Pork Chops, Chile-Mustard Pork Kabobs, Greek Pork Chops, or Kalyn’s Souvlaki.
How to Make Grilled Ginger-Soy Pork Chops:
(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)
- I used to make this recipe with boneless pork chops, but now I prefer bone-in pork chops that have a little bit of marbling.
- Trimming is optional, but I like to trim some of the fat and the top two photos show how my pork chops looked before and after I trimmed them.
- Whisk together the oil, soy sauce, Unseasoned Rice Vinegar (affiliate link), dried chile flakes, ginger puree, garlic puree, and dried mustard to make the pork chop marinade.
- Put the chops into a heavy Ziploc bag or a flat plastic container with a tight lid. Pour the marinade over the pork chops and let them marinate in the fridge for 6-8 hours (or a little longer won’t hurt.)
- Spray grill with non-stick spray and preheat the grill to medium-high while you drain pork chops and let them come to room temperature.
- When the grill is hot, lay pork chops at an angle across the grill grates. Cook 4-5 minutes (or until you see the grill marks when you lift up the edge.)
- Then rotate the pork chops so they’re at the opposite angle on the grill grates. Cook 4-5 minutes more on the first side (or until you see nice criss-cross marks when you lift up the edge.)
- Then turn the pork chops over and cook 4-5 minutes more on the second side.
- Actual cooking time will depend on how thick your pork chops are; pork chops should feel firm but not hard to the touch when they’re done.
- For best results, use an Instant Read Meat Thermometer (affiliate link) and cook pork until it reaches an internal temperature of 145F.
- Serve Grilled Ginger Soy Pork Chops hot and enjoy!
Make it a Low-Carb Meal:
The ginger-soy pork chop in the photo is just served with a simple salad of lettuce and olives with purchased low-carb vinaigrette, but this would be great served with Asparagus and Radish salad with Feta, Spicy Mexican Slaw, Asian Chopped Salad, or Broccoli Salad with Feta and Almonds for a low-carb meal.
More Low-Carb Meat on the Grill:
This recipe was featured in my collection of Low-Carb and Keto Beef, Pork, and Lamb on the Grill; enjoy!
Grilled Ginger-Soy Pork Chops
This recipe for Grilled Ginger-Soy Pork Chops was declared “The World’s Best Pork Chops” when I made them for clients at Lake Powell.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 6 bone-in pork chops
Marinade Ingredients
- 1/4 cup peanut oil (or other high-heat oil)
- 1/4 cup soy sauce or coconut aminos
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar (see notes)
- 1 tsp. dried chili pepper flakes (see notes)
- 2 tsp. ginger puree (sometimes called ground ginger in Asian markets)
- 2 tsp. garlic puree (sometimes called ground garlic in Asian markets)
- 1 tsp. dried mustard
Instructions
- Trim some fat from pork chops as desired and place them in a Ziploc bag or flat plastic container with a tight fitting lid.
- Mix together the oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar, dried chile flakes, ginger puree, garlic puree, and dried mustard to make the marinade.
- Pour marinade over the pork chops and marinate 6-8 hours or longer.
- When you’re ready to cook, take the pork chops out of the fridge, drain in a colander placed in the sink, and let them come to room temperature.
- Spray grill with non-stick grilling spray and preheat grill to medium hot.
- Lay pork chops at an angle to the grill grates and cook 4-5 minutes (or until you see nice grill marks when you lift up the edge.)
- Rotate the pork chops so they’re going at the opposite angle on the grill grates and cook 4-5 minutes more (or until you see nice criss-cross marks when you lift up the edge.)
- Turn pork chops over and cook 4-5 minutes more on the second side, or until the pork chops feel firm, but not hard to the touch. (Actual cooking time will depend on the thickness of the pork chops.
- Use an Instant Read Meat Thermometer (affiliate link) and cook to a temperature of 145F for best results.
Notes
If you can't find the pureed garlic and pureed ginger in a jar like I used, you can use minced garlic and minced ginger.
I used Aleppo Pepper for this recipe. You could use cayenne pepper, but reduce the amount by quite a bit. Don't use seasoned rice vinegar which contains sugar.
Recipe created by Kalyn and cooked many times at Lake Powell for houseboat clients.
Nutrition Information
Yield
6Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 420Total Fat 27gSaturated Fat 7gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 16gCholesterol 132mgSodium 685mgCarbohydrates 1gFiber 0gSugar 0gProtein 41g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.
Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
Grilled Ginger-Soy Pork Chops are a great main dish for low-carb and Keto eating plans, as well as for any phase of the original South Beach Diet. South Beach recommends meat with less than 10% fat, so you’ll need to trim the fat if you’re following that plan.
Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Grilling Recipes to find more recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.
Historical Notes for This Recipe:
This Ginger-Soy Pork Chops recipe was first posted in 2007, and I had been making it for years and years by then! The recipe was last updated with more information in 2023.
28 Comments on “Grilled Ginger-Soy Pork Chops”
Kalyn, I’m a bit confused by your terminology of the ginger puree and garlic puree…you say it’s also known as ground ginger and ground garlic. Those latter two are powders, and that wouldn’t be the same as a puree. Can you clarify? Thanks so much!
Sorry for the confusion. This is NOT a powder. In Asian markets they are sometimes labeled ground ginger and ground garlic, but it’s a pureed product. You could also use minced ginger and minced garlic in a jar (or freshly minced) but I prefer the puree if you can find it.
A perfect summer recipe! Thank you.
Thanks so much for this wonderful recipe !!
We don’t have a grill. Can you pan fry them instead ?
I haven’t tried pan frying, but you can definitely cook on a stove-top grill pan. Pan frying will probably work, I just haven’t done it.
Can you use grated ginger root and minced garlic as substitutes for the ginger and garlic purees? Or would ground ginger and garlic powder be better?
Yes fresh grated ginger and minced garlic will be wonderful in this. I was just using the jarred stuff as a time saver! I would not use powdered ginger but garlic powder would probably be okay, but not better than minced garlic.
These look awesome! I'm always looking for new ways to do pork, seems like I always get stuck doing the same old recipes. Yum!
Thanks Shawn; hope you enjoy!
This got rave reviews at my house, even from the teenager who said "I don't even like pork chops, but these are really good." I served with fried brown rice, and zucchini with a bit of soy sauce and sesame seeds. I'm so glad you reposted this this week!
Lori, so glad it was a hit! Your menu sounds great to me!
I think I'll try this using your original recipe with the vermouth. Can you please tell me what brand you like and how much to use?
The amount for vermouth is the same as rice vinegar. I used Lejon Dry Vermouth, but I don't really know if that's the best brand, it's just what I found at the liquor store.
I don't eat pork chops, but I'm going to use this marinade on chicken breasts and cook them on the grill.
Going to try these tonight, thanks!
PFC, thanks for letting me know you liked it. Love your idea of adding a little peanut butter!
I made these delicious pork chops over the weekend — but instead of peanut oil, I used canola oil and added about Tbsp of natural peanut butter for Thai flavor and a little added texture. Delicious!
Amy glad you like it. It only takes a little oil in the marinade to keep the drier meats moist on the grill.
These pork chops look delicious. Using oil in marinades is something new I learned from your site (the grilled chicken breasts and pork chops). It’s really ingenious and makes so much sense! Thanks for these great tips!
Kirsten, your recipe sounded great to me.
Sarah, it’s a paste, both the garlic and ginger come in jars here sold by the produce. In Asian stores, it’s called ground garlic or ground ginger.
That sounds delicious. I have a ton of pork chops in my freezer that need to be used, so I might just have to try this one on them. Is the ground ginger and ground garlic a paste or powder (I think the ground ginger I have is a powder).
Hi Kalyn,
Thanks for the link my chops!
I cannot WAIT to try this recipe. If your clients swore it was the best ever, I have a feeling it is. 🙂
Yum!
Lizzie, thanks, and glad you stopped by.
Katie, these were those ultra thick pork chops, cut in half to make two thinner ones.
Christine, yes, the marinade keeps the meat juicy and tenderizes both.
Nau-dee, thanks. They were great!
These chops look and sound wonderful!!!
Sounds good, Kalyn. Does the marinade have the same effect as brining in keeping the chops juicy through the grilling prpcess?
They do sound wonderful! I love pork chops on the grill, too. What I would really love is those nice, thick, boneless ones you all get in the U.S.!
Kalyn, I have just dropped into your blog to say hello from England. Love the sound (&look) of your food. Will be back.