Better Than Shake 'N Bake Breaded Pork Chops

Ah, pork. The other white meat. That versatile and flavorful protein. What's better than a classic oven-baked breaded pork chop just like mom used to make, with that bag full of breading from the prepared foods aisle?

I can tell you what's better: making your OWN breading.

Once again, making it yourself vs. buying a pre-made mix saves you a bunch of money AND delivers WAY. MORE. FLAVOR. Why pay four times as much for someone else to stir together your flour and spices? Trust me, the flavor here is more than worth the, oh, two extra minutes that it'll take you to prepare it.

The recipe is for the breading, which can be used on any type of pork chops (thin cut, thick cut, bone-in, boneless, sliced pork loin...) and can be easily scaled up or down to make more or fewer chops.

Better Than Shake 'N Bake Breaded Pork Chops
From: My mother-in-law, Carol
Makes enough breading for 4-5 thin or boneless pork chops OR 3-4 thick cut or bone-in chops

You'll need:
1/4 c yellow cornmeal
1/4 c flour
2 t dried sage
1 t salt
1 t sugar
1 t paprika
about 1/4 c milk
(and, of course, pork chops)

So simple, right?

First, preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Second, trim any excess fat off your pork chops. Next, measure the cornmeal, flour, sage, salt, sugar, and paprika into a gallon-size plastic bag.

Hold the top closed and shake to mix.

Pour your milk into a shallow bowl and set up your breading station: chops, milk, bag of breading mix, and an appropriately sized baking dish that's lightly coated with nonstick cooking spray.

Taking one pork chop at a time, dip it in the milk, wetting every side...

... and drop into the bag, and (holding the top of the bag closed) shake, shake, shake!

Pull the chop out, place it on the baking dish, and repeat with the remaining chops.

Look how perfectly the coating adheres.

Bake at 425 degrees for about 20-25 minutes. Note: If you use thick-cut, thin-cut, or other abnormally sized chops, please adjust your cooking time.

(Those black spots? I use bone-in chops so sometimes the bone gets discolored in the oven. Don't worry. I wasn't planning to eat the bone anyway.)

And there you have it. Better flavor that only costs you about 1-2 more minutes than the store-bought stuff, and saves money in the process.

I love to serve them with green beans, applesauce, and baking powder biscuits.