The Old-School Pantry Staple Your Pork Chops Are Missing For Richer, Sweeter Flavor

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Pork chops are no longer the shake-and-baked, super-tough protein of decades past. With changes to recommended internal cooking temperatures (145 degrees Fahrenheit rather than 160 before the three-minute rest, as previously recommended) and increasing interest from restaurant menu-makers, the chop is finally getting the love it deserves. And there's one vintage ingredient that just might make your home-cooked chops really pop: molasses. 

For the uninitiated, molasses is a syrup made as a byproduct of sugar processing. It is half of brown sugar and gives the stuff its rich, caramel-like taste. Molasses itself is deep and sweet with a burnt sugar taste that complements pork's savory flavor and subtle sweetness.

How you incorporate it into your pork dish depends on what kind of chop you're hoping to make and what your schedule looks like. You can add it before, during, or after cooking. Molasses-based marinades add flavor while allowing you to get a head start on your meal prep, assuming you think that far ahead. Want a sticky, caramelized coating? Go for a glaze, a sauce you apply directly to the meat while cooking to add both depth of flavor and textural interest. Just make sure you add it toward the end so the sugar doesn't burn. And if you're feeling a bit noncommittal with your molasses flavor or cooking for varied tastes, a sauce might be the move for you, as you can cook it separately and add it after cooking, allowing your chop and molasses to shine as separate components. Just be careful to choose the right molasses for your recipe.

There are three grades of molasses to choose from: light, dark, and blackstrap. Light molasses is the most common variety. You'll likely find it in the baking aisle. The common brand found in grocery stores like Walmart is Grandma's Original (yellow label). Though dark in color, this grade of molasses is actually the lightest of the three. It's the first byproduct of the initial sugar-boiling process and is sweeter than the other two varieties, though it still has a subtly complex taste. This is the one you'll want to reach for if you're still molasses-curious. 

Dark molasses, also known as full flavor molasses, is more intense in flavor, and less sweet than light molasses. It comes by way of a longer boiling process. If you find yourself enjoying the classic molasses but wanting some deeper bitter flavors, this one's for you. Just be aware that you should pair a more robust molasses with flavors that can stand up to it, like chiles and vinegars. It can be tough to find this type of molasses in stores, but you can buy Grandma's Robust style on Amazon.

Blackstrap molasses is a different beast. It is the least sweet and has a strong bitter note, as it is the result of a lot more boiling than the other two. Until you're familiar with it, use blackstrap molasses only when a recipe calls for it, and even once you know it, use caution when using it as a substitute. As with dark molasses, it can sometimes be difficult to find in stores, at least in some areas. If worst comes to worst, Walmart will ship you the Plantation-brand Blackstrap. 

Now that you've selected your molasses comes the question: How can I make it work for my chops? That really just depends on your application method. If you're making a marinade, you can take a page out of Food Network personality Alton Brown's book and combine that dark, rich molasses with coffee, vinegar, and other flavorings, such as mustard, to help highlight the complexity of your molasses and bring added richness to your pork chops. Molasses would also work incredibly well in a bourbon marinade to bring more smokiness and an additional caramel touch.

For a pork chop glaze, you'll be working with a much more concentrated flavor profile (the water will cook out as it gets sticky on your pork chops) and therefore a more intense, flavor-focused profile. So build on your molasses glaze with ingredients that will help bring dimension to its flavor. Mustard provides a bright contrast and can be used as a part of a simple, two-ingredient glaze. If you want to round out the molasses sweetness, add some bourbon.

As for sauces, you can either cook down your marinade to make a pan sauce, as Brown does in his coffee-infused pork chops, or construct a separate sauce using molasses and a few other key ingredients. Bourbon can make another appearance or you can opt for something like soy sauce to help bring dimension to your dish.