How to Cook Pre-Stuffed Pork Chops

Raw meat and stuffing can be a potentially dangerous situation if not cooked properly. It's not only important to pay attention to your stuffed pork chops cooking time, but also the internal cooking temperature. That being said, stuffed pork chops make a delicious spin on the popular protein.

Every year around the holidays, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sends out friendly reminders about why you need to be cautious about stuffing your turkey with your favorite savory side dish too early. Cooking your stuffing inside the cavity of your turkey may make you and all your holiday guests sick if you don't take a few precautionary measures.

While cooking, the juices from your turkey drip down into the stuffing. Yes, this adds flavor, but the juice may also carry some of the bacteria from the raw meat and contaminate your stuffing. Your turkey meat may be cooked to the right temperature to kill the germs, 165 degrees Fahrenheit, but your stuffing may not be.

The CDC suggests you cook your stuffing separately. If you must stuff your bird right before cooking, check the temperature of your stuffing regularly while cooking, and let the stuffing sit in the bird for 20 minutes after you've taken it out of the oven so it can continue to cook.

When it comes to stuffed pork chops, the same principles apply. As with the turkey, the ideal cooking temperature for your stuffed pork chops — meat and stuffing — is 165 degrees Fahrenheit. To ensure even cooking, the USDA suggests stuffing each pork chop with 1/2 cup of stuffing or less and not to cook them in the microwave because it may not cook your meat and stuffing evenly.

Read more: How to Make Oven-Baked Boneless Pork Chops

When it comes to jazzing up your pork chops, stuffing is a simple and tasty way to go. For a lower-carb stuffing for your pork chops, The Cleveland Clinic suggests filling your pork chops with spinach, tomatoes and goat cheese, and flavoring with garlic, tarragon and dried mustard. Or, if you're thinking of a more traditional style bread stuffing for your pork chops, consider a healthier version made with whole-grain bread, pecans and mushrooms.

If you're looking for a simpler stuffing, consider baked stuffed pork chops with Stove Top Stuffing Mix. Just be sure to prepare the stuffing as directed on the label before stuffing your pork chops. Or consider our LIVESTRONG.com Paleo Stuffing, which is full of flavor.

Once your stuffing is ready, cut a horizontal slit in the center of the meat until you reach the bone, then add your stuffing. Place your stuffed pork chops in an oven-safe baking dish and bake in a preheated 350-degree Fahrenheit oven for 50 to 55 minutes.

Stuffed pork chop cooking time may vary depending on your oven and the thickness of your pork chops. Start checking for doneness at around the 45-minute mark. Be sure to check the temperature of your meat and stuffing separately.

Read more: Is Pork Better Than Beef?

Red meat has been getting a lot of attention lately due to a report published in the October 2019 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine with updated recommendations for red and processed meat consumption. The authors of this report suggest people continue to consume the same amount of red and processed meat as they have been, which contradicts recommendations made by other health organizations.

How much red meat should you be eating? The World Cancer Research Fund suggests limiting red meat consumption to three servings a week. Regular consumption of red meat may increase risk of certain types of cancer, heart disease, and Type 2 diabetes, according to Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Pork chops are a type of red meat. Though limiting consumption is recommended, pork chops can still make a healthy choice. According to the USDA nutrient database, a medium baked pork chop with the bone (3 ounces cooked meat), has 138 calories, 25 grams of protein, 3.8 grams of total fat and 1.2 grams of saturated fat. By comparison, the same portion of chicken breast has 128 calories, 24 grams of protein, 3 grams of total fat and 0.6 gram of saturated fat.