Step 1

Set sous vide machine to 140 degrees F.

Step 2

Season pork chops with garlic, salt and pepper. Place pork chops in a sous vide bag and top with fresh cilantro. Make sure pork chops aren’t touching each other. Vacuum seal bag.

Step 3

Sous vide pork chops for 1-4 hours -- this is the beauty of sous vide cooking… just pick a time in between that range that works best for you, and your chops will come out just fine! It sounds crazy, but they’ll be fully cooked with desired texture when cooked anywhere in this range. The pork chops in my photo were cooked for 2.5 hours. Add an extra hour if sous vide cooking pork chops from frozen.

Step 4

While the meat cooks, make the Carolina Yellow Mustard BBQ Sauce. In a saucepan on medium heat, melt butter. Add yellow mustard and stir to combine. Reduce heat to medium-low and add the remaining ingredients. Simmer, stirring regularly, for 15 minutes.

Step 5

Remove pork chops from the bag when they’re done cooking in the sous vide bath. Discard herbs and pat dry.

Step 6

To finish sous vide pork chops in a cast iron pan, add olive oil to a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil is very shiney and hot, add pork chops to the cast iron skillet, leaving space between them. Within ~30-60 seconds, a brown crust will appear on the pork chops. Continue turning pork chops to sear each side for 30-60 seconds. To sear the edges, use tongs to hold the pork chops. If one side has not formed a brown crust, it’s generally okay to repeat searing that side without it drying out the meat, since the pork chops are so juicy from the sous vide cooking process. Once a gorgeous crust has formed on the chops, cut the heat. Let sous vide pork chops sit on a cutting board for 5-10 minutes before cutting and serving with sauce. Since the sauce is warm, the chops will warm up again when served. If desired, cover the pork chops with foil while they rest to preserve warmth. You can also spoon a little pork juice from the cast iron pan over the pork chops before cutting them, to re-crisp the crust before cutting them.

Step 7

To finish sous vide pork chops on the grill, preheat the grill to about 400-450 degrees Lightly brush sous vide pork chops with olive oil and place them directly over heat. Flip them every 30-60 seconds, making sure each side gets beautiful grill marks before taking them off the grill. It’s okay to grill each side 2X, which will result in the criss-cross grill marks everyone loves. Follow the steps above to let the chops rest and to serve them.

Step 8

Garnish with chives or leftover cilantro to make these pork chops photo-worthy.