Not only is this recipe incredibly easy, but cleanup consists of throwing away a piece of foil if you line your pan with nonstick foil. I’ve found that folks have a tendency to overcook pork. Though there was a time everyone thought it had to be nearly overcooked, it’s now been found safe to eat if a little less done—by which, I mean cooked with just the faintest hint of pink (as in just barely pink, not actually fully pink) in the center. You still never want to eat raw pork. The first time you make this recipe, you may want to buy an extra chop to “play with.” I’ve found that broiler intensity varies significantly from oven to oven, so it’s tough to give you the precise time on this one. But timing really does matter here, as the chop needs to be cooked through on the inside before the sauce burns. Once you figure out the perfect timing with that one chop, you’ll always know exactly how long to broil your pork chops, whether you’re making this recipe or another broiled pork chop recipe. So it really is worth a one-time effort that will take less than 10 minutes.

　　

Ingredients

makes 2 servings

　　Olive oil spray (from a spray bottle, not a store-bought, prefilled one that contains propellant; I used a Misto)

　　2 tablespoons ketchup

　　1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar, not packed

　　2 (4-ounce) trimmed, boneless pork chops, about 3/4 inch thick (3 1/2 to 4 1/2-ounce chops are okay)

　　1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

　　Sea salt and pepper, to taste

　　

Step 1

Preheat the broiler. Line a small baking sheet with nonstick aluminum foil. Lightly mist the foil with spray.

　　

Step 2

In a small bowl, mix the ketchup and brown sugar until well combined.

　　

Step 3

Lightly mist both sides of the chops with spray, and then season them with garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Place the chops side by side on the prepared baking sheet, not touching. Broil the chops about 2 minutes. Flip them and broil 1 more minute. Brush half of the ketchup mixture evenly over the top of each and continue broiling until the glaze caramelizes (browns) and the pork just barely has a hint of pink inside, 1 to 2 minutes more. Serve immediately.

　　

nutrition information

Step 4

Each (1-chop) serving has:

　　

Step 5

Calories: 173

　　

Step 6

Protein: 23g

　　

Step 7

Carbohydrates: 11g

　　

Step 8

Fat: 4g

　　

Step 9

Saturated Fat: 1g

　　

Step 10

Cholesterol: 65mg

　　

Step 11

Trace Fiber

　　

Step 12

Sodium: 218mg

　　Reprinted with permission from I Can't Believe It's Not Fattening! by Devin Alexander. Copyright © 2010 Devin Alexander. Published by Clarkson Potter Publishers, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.Devin Alexander is the author of The Most Decadent Diet Ever, Fast Food Fix, and coauthor of The New York Times bestsellers The Biggest Loser Cookbook and The Biggest Loser Family Cookbook. She was a chef on NBC's The Biggest Loser and the host of Healthy Decadence on Discover Health and FitTV.