People often remark that they love pork chops in restaurants but can't seem to get the same juicy, tender results at home. Too often, even a favorite old recipe turns out tough and dry.

This is because pork today is much leaner than it once was — particularly the chops and rounds of pork loin that are so beloved of restaurant chefs and so easy to prepare at home for a weeknight dinner.

Two techniques can help.

BRINE IT

The first, highly recommended by the folks at America's Test Kitchen and outlined in their latest book — "The Best Light Recipes" (America's Test Kitchen, hardback, $35) — is to brine the pork. This means immersing it in a salt-sugar mixture for a short period of time. This has the effect of unscrambling the protein strands in the meat so they don't tighten up and get tough when you cook the chops.

Before brining chops, make sure you have purchased natural meat, not cuts that have been injected with a saline solution (or "enhanced," as the pork industry puts it). By law, meat that has been so treated must list the injected ingredients; if you find these on the label, the chop doesn't need brining. The America's Test Kitchen cooks say the enhancing ingredients tend to change the flavor of the pork, and the solution also can leach during cooking, making sauces watery. These experts prefer home brining, which doesn't produce these side effects.

Their formula for brining is 3 tablespoons table salt and 3 tablespoons sugar to 2 quarts water; submerge meat and refrigerate one hour. Drain, pat dry and cook as desired. (The brining liquid will contain raw meat juices and should be discarded and not re-used.)

SEAR IT QUICKLY

The second technique that helps keep a pork chop moist is quick cooking.

Grandma used to brown pork chops, then make a gravy with the drippings and cook the chops long and slow in the sauce. But that was when pork was well-marbled, and the melting fat would keep it from getting stringy.

Grandma also worried about trichinosis, a type of food-borne illness that was common in the meat of both wild and domesticated pigs at one time. Today, trichinosis is rare (average 12 cases a year in the U.S.). The old rule was to cook pork until there was no pink left. The U.S. Department of Agriculture still does recommend cooking all meat to 160 degrees, though heating above 145 degrees kills bacteria. Most experts recommend a safe middle ground: Cook to within 10 to 15 degrees of the desired temperature, then remove meat from the heat source and allow it to continue cooking by means of residual heat.

America's Test Kitchen suggests using a good quality instant-read thermometer and cooking pork chops until they reach 135 degrees in the very center. Then remove the chop from the pan and leave it, covered, for 5-10 minutes, during which time it continues to cook to the 140- to 145-degree range.

The technique: Season a 3/4-inch chop with salt and pepper, sear on one side over medium-high heat, about 3 minutes; turn the chop, reduce the heat to medium and cook 5-10 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer reads 135 degrees. Remove the chop to a plate and cover with foil. Make sauce. Return chop to sauce and cook briefly.

Look for the lean, high-quality chops that are more widely available these days. Choose medium (3/4-inch to 1-inch) chops for recipes that call for pan-searing. Thin (less than 3/4-inch) chops will overcook before they brown; thick chops often get overbrown before they're cooked through.

Cooking time varies according to the cut of chop, whether it is boneless or bone-in, and the amount of fat along the outside edge. Fat takes longer to cook, so trim off excess fat. Bone-in pork chops will take a little longer then boneless chops.

Refrigerated meat should stand at room temperature for half an hour before cooking.

To sear pork chops, heat equal amounts of butter and olive oil over medium-high heat in a heavy skillet. The high heat is needed to get a good sear in a short time. The combination of butter and olive oil will help prevent the butter from burning.

Don't worry if the chops are red in the center at this stage; they'll continue to cook a while.

Next, deglaze the pan with wine, broth or water, scraping up any nicely browned bits of meat. Add any additional sauce ingredients. Finishing the chops in the sauce means just that — a brief heating to marry the flavors of the sauce and the pork. Don't get distracted and walk away; the chops should only cook for a brief period.

To test for doneness, make a tiny cut. If the juices run clear or very light pink, the pork chop is done. The surface should feel firm but not hard.

The Honolulu Advertiser's Wanda Adams and the Los Angeles Times' Donna Deane contributed to this report.