Baked BBQ Pork Chops

As much as I fear the backlash, I have to say it; I'm not fond of slow-cookers. I know others swear by them, not knowing how they would have ever lived without them. Not me though, I much prefer to use the oven. Why? I really have no idea.

I realize some meals are best cooked slowly. Yet sometimes we need a quicker meal when 5pm has snuck up on us, and we haven't even started to think about what to make for diner yet. It was one of those nights when these tasty chops were born.

I was given less than 2 hours and 3 pork chops. This is what I came up with...

1. Brown the Chops
In a medium pan, I tossed 3 chops with white wine vinegar, olive oil, and a bit of seasoning. I've always been a fan of fennel seeds, so those went in our mix, too. There are a dozen different ways you could pan-fry the chops until brown on both sides, so these ingredients are only suggestions.

2. Bake in BBQ Sauce
I used a combination of barbeque sauces we had on hand (about a full bottle total), and coated the bottom of a 9x13 glass pan with half the sauce, then poured the rest over the chops. Since these were thicker cuts (Iowa chops, to be exact), I set it to 400* for 45 minutes covered, then flipped them and baked an additional 10 minutes uncovered.

3. Serve and Eat
To make sure there was enough BBQ sauce, I poured sauce over the chops when serving. You might think they weren't "properly marinated", but no one had any complaints. There was enough sauce on the plate you couldn't really tell the difference between how long they were cooked.

Overall, these probably would have been better in the crockpot. Although with as big as these cuts were and with what little time they were in the oven, I think they turned out fabulous. It was easy and quick, too, so it's absolutely going on our regular family meal list!