Vietnamese Pork Chop Recipe with Lemongrass 3 Ways

You Don't Need to Travel Far to Enjoy this Southeast Asian Dish

Vietnamese pork chop recipe is a super simple, flavorful and delicious dinner. It is very versatile to pair with any greens, rice and/or noodles. Best of all, you can pick a cooking method that is the most convenient for you and keep your wallet happy.

Total Time: 35-45 Minutes
Prep Time: 5 Minutes  
Inactive Cook Time: 30-40 Minutes  
Serving: 3-4

In the summer of 2021, my stove range broke that we got to get a new one. With the new model, the oven came with an air fryer function that I don't need to buy a countertop one to occupy extra space of my kitchen counter. Well, you would think that the new appliance would come with a manual to give you some directions how the air fryer works. It didn't. I can only download the manual online. As a result, I started to search on the internet for more than just downloading a manual.

Somehow, I stumbled upon a YouTube video using the same stove range to make air fry wings. I realized that my in-oven air fryer doesn't work the same as any countertop one. You had to turn up the temperature about the same as what you normally would do with an oven. I thought I would give it a try and see if that was true. And that was exactly what I learned through that video.

After several trial and error, I nailed this Vietnamese pork chop recipe down. I even tried to use my regular oven setting to roast it. So, I am going to share with you how to make this same recipe either way. This will give you more options to choose.

Since Oct 2025, I added a stove top version of this recipe as well. Continue to read on and check it out.

Pictures taken during my latest visit of Hong Kong in Aug 2025. One was from a mom-and-pop cafe and the other one made from home. Both dishes were made from the stove top. Keep reading to check out the stove top recipe later.

Tips and Tricks

Way to Keep Bone-In Pork Chops from Curling Up During the Cooking Process

There is one very important tip that I desperately want to share with you.  I learned this from a reel.  Do you happen to see that your bone-in pork chops curl up when they are cooked? It doesn't look good presentation-wise.

When you want to brown the meat evenly, the edge of the meat doesn't brown because of the same reason. Not until seeing a video online about cutting a few slits on the edge, it fixes the problem. Funny that I have been using this same method before cooking thinly sliced pork roll and never thought of applying it in other recipe.

I guarantee you that this tip will make your bone-in pork chops coming out perfectly brown.

Difference between In-Oven Air Fryer vs The Countertop One

The advantage of in-oven air fryer is that you can cook a bigger batch of food than most countertop ones. However, using the in-oven air fryer, you may need to have wire rack in order to get the crispy outside of the food thoroughly.

Before utilizing the air fryer function of my oven, I always love to use my professional size (17 x 12") baking sheet. At first, I just thought that getting a wire rack for the same size makes sense. I truly believe that they would be marriage in the heaven for this new oven function. Well, not until I had to wash that wire rack, I realized that it is too big for my kitchen sink and dishwasher. Cleaning it is quite a challenge.

In short, with 2 regular size (15 x 10") wire racks and baking sheets, it will accommodate cooking 6 pieces of bone-in pork chops together in the oven. And you can clean them up easily either in the sink or dishwasher.

More Tips About the Meat, Marinade and Browning

The recipe calls for bone-in pork chops. I personally like the kind in some supermarkets call them as "assorted pork chops". There is more fat in the meat which comes out juicier.

The marinade looks very little in quantity. But the flavor is superb. So, don't worry. Just evenly distribute the marinade among the pork chops and rub it on good. It will do its work for you.

Some picky eaters like my husband, pork chops need to be brown on the stove top first because it gives a more beautiful color on the outside. If that's the case, brown meat on the stove top at high heat 3 minutes per side. Then, finish the cooking process in the oven 12-15 minutes per side with regular oven setting or 10-12 minutes per side with air fryer setting.

Note: There are some differences if you use the stove top version. Keep reading on. I will point them out to you.

What's Lemongrass?

Can't find it in the store? Click on the picture and order it online.

This Vietnamese pork chop recipe uses dry ground lemongrass. If you have never heard of this herb before, let me give you some brief introduction.

It is commonly used in Southeast Asian cooking, such as Thai and Vietnamese. The fresh stalk looks similar to a stalk of green onion (aka scallion), but much sturdier. It is very fragrant and refreshing. It smells a lot like lemon. So, you can guess why it got that name, right? Have you ever tried Tom Yum Kung soup before? If so, you knew the fragrance of lemongrass.

I chose to use the dry one instead of the fresh one is mainly because of its longer shelf life. It is available in many supermarkets' international aisle.

In-Oven Air Fryer Setting

The rule of thumb of typical air fryer temperature conversion is 25F. Say like if you cook something in a regular oven at 425F; and you want to use the air fryer to do it instead, the air fryer temperature will be 400F.

I must say that when I used my in-oven air fryer, I did exactly that. The result came out good, but didn't give me the crispy outside. This is totally up to you how crispy you want it to be. My hubby is very particular when it comes to this. So, setting up the oven air fryer at 425F could be too much if you want to get juicy meat.

Vietnamese Pork Chop Recipe and Instructions

Ingredient
6 Bone-In Pork Chops (cut up 2-3 slits on the edge so that the meat won't curl up.)

Seasonings
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Fish Sauce
1 pinch of Sugar
1 tsp Dark Soy Sauce
1 1/2 tsp Dry Ground Lemongrass

Air Frying Pork Chops in the Oven

Instructions

1. At the bottom of a big mixing bowl, mix all seasonings together.
2. Mix in pork chops; massage and rub the marinade into the meat.
3. Put it aside for about 20 minutes.
4. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil for easy cleanup later. Add a wire rack on top and transfer into the oven.
5. Preheat oven with air fryer setting at 425F.
6. Carefully remove pan and rack from the hot oven; single layer pork chops on top of the rack.
7. Cook for 20 minutes, turn over and cook another 10 minutes.
8. Rest for 3-5 minutes and enjoy immediately along with white rice, rice noodles, sliced cucumbers and other side dishes.

Roasting in the Oven with Regular Setting

Instructions

1. At the bottom of a big mixing bowl, mix all seasonings together.
2. Mix in pork chops; massage and rub the marinade into the meat.
3. Put it aside for about 20 minutes.
4. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil for easy cleanup later. Transfer it into the oven.
5. Preheat oven at 425F. (It will be regular oven setting for this time.)
6. Carefully take out the preheated baking sheet from the oven and single layer the pork chops on top.
7. Roast for 20 minutes and turn meat over and roast for another 20 minutes; rest for 5 minutes and serve immediately along with white rice, rice noodles, sliced cucumbers and other side dishes.

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(Air-Fried / Oven Roasted) Vietnamese Pork Chop Recipe Steps with Photos

Cut 2-3 slits around the edge of pork chops to prevent the meat from curling up

The volume of the marinade looks very little. But a little goes a long way.

Put the marinated pork chops aside for 20 minutes before cooking

Single layer pork chops on a wire rack with baking sheet at the bottom

Pork chops are half way done. Need to turn them over to complete the cooking process

Rest pork chops for 3-5 minutes before serving

Air-fried pork chops are ready for dinner

No air fryer? Just use oven to make this delicious dish.

Vietnamese pork chops garnished with scallions. ENJOY!

Vietnamese Pork Chop Recipe on the Stove Top

After living in the US for 20+ years, I am very used to people living in the suburbs and have quite a good size of house where they have a range top with regular size oven.

Not until my trip going back home in Hong Kong in August 2025, I suddenly remembered that people living in the big cities do not have that kind of space in their apartment, not even a space for an air fryer..

While my family and I went to check out different restaurants and enjoy all delicious foods, this dish in our last night dinner inspired me to write a slightly different version of this recipe.

TIPS

It does take more time to prepare the ingredients. But it gets on the table faster.

You can use the Sichuan pepper seasoning from this chicken recipe to marinade the pork. My son loves the fragrance and flavor of Sichuan pepper so much that he asked me to use it on this pork recipe. It came out really great. Highly recommended for those spicy food lovers.

My son asked me to use Sichuan pepper to marinate the pork chops. Man, oh man...the meat came out as great as the lemongrass marinade. MUST try!

Ingredient
4 Bone-in Pork Steaks or Pork T-bone

Seasonings
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Fish Sauce
1 pinch of Sugar
1 tsp Light Soy Sauce
1 1/2 tsp Dry Ground Lemongrass
2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tbsp Cooking Wine (optional)

Instructions

1. You will need a pairing knife and a serrated knife.
2. Use a pairing knife to go around the bones to cut out the meat and discard bones.
3. Use serrated knife to cut pork into bite sizes.
4. Marinade meat with all the seasonings, except dark soy sauce and replace it with light soy sauce. The high heat from the skillet will give a beautiful brown color to the meat.
5. Preheat a big skillet at high heat, single layer the meat to brown for 3-4 minutes. (We added oil into the meat already. Certain cookware may need a little bit of oil according to its instructions. A teaspoon of oil into the hot skillet is totally fine before adding the meat.)
6. Turn meat over to the other side and lower heat to medium level. Let it cook for another 3 minutes. May need to stir around and let meat cook for another 1-2 minutes before turning again.
7. Meat should be cooked through between 10-15 minutes. Add a tablespoon of cooking wine to deglaze the pan (optional). Enjoy immediately with white rice, rice noodles, sliced cucumbers and other side dishes.

Prep time: 15-20 minutes Active cook time: 10-15 minutes. Serving: 4-6

(Stove Top) Vietnamese Pork Chop Recipe Steps with Photos

Skip dark soy sauce in the marinade because the meat will be brown with the high heat in the skillet.

Use pairing knife to cut the meat around the bones.

With a little bit of fat and in bite size, the meat is going to be very tender.

Marinated meat with a little bit of oil coat around each piece.

Single layer the meat on a preheated skillet to brown.

Turn meat over to cook the other side.

It may still need to stir it around for a few more times. Add cooking wine to deglaze the pan (optional)

Stove top Vietnamese pork chops are ready. ENJOY!

Video

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Last Updated: October 16, 2025