I want to smoke a pork loin.

hornian

hornian

1,000+ Posts
I've got brisket down cold. Smoking pork spareribs is a science, and I hold several advanced degrees. But I've never smoked a pork loin, and I want to do that sometime soon.

However, I did a search, and much to my chagrin, there's no pork loin posts on here.

Hornfans, enlighten me. I might even invite you over for dinner once I get around to smoking it.
 
D'oh, my search parameters weren't up to snuff. Seems I missed this thread in my initial query.

Is there anything else that I need to know before I dive in?
 
There was another thread on here quite awhile back. Someone recommended laying bacon over it during the smoke to keep it from drying out. I've never smoked one before, but it seems the biggest challenge is keeping it moist, due to pork loin being so lean.
 
Smoking pork loin is tricky because it's a very lean cut and it gets dried out. This is one cut that I've had much better luck grilling with this recipe from Cooks Illustrated. It's absolutely delicious. Served it for a large Christmas gathering recently and it got rave reviews. Separate instructions follow for charcoal and gas grills and the rub I prefer:How to Grill Pork Tenderloin

Pork tenderloin is often dry and bland. For a tender, juicy roast, brine the tenderloin for one hour and then grill over a two-level fire.
The Problem: The chief problem when grilling pork tenderloin is how to achieve a good crust without destroying the delicate texture of the meat by overcooking it. What level of heat is best, and exactly how long should a tenderloin cook? There’s also the important question of flavor. Will grilling alone flavor the meat adequately? Or should you pull another flavor-building trick out of your culinary magic hat?

The Goal: Grilling is a terrific way to cook pork tenderloin, a sublimely tender cut that benefits especially from the flavor boost provided by fire. We wanted a rich, golden, caramelized crust and juicy, tender meat.

The Solution: To add flavor to the meat, first brine and then apply a wet or dry spice rub. Cook the pork over a two-level fire, searing the meat over a medium-hot fire to develop a nicely browned crust, then moving the tenderloin to the cooler part of the grill to finish cooking without charring.

Charcoal-Grilled Pork Tenderloin

Pork tenderloins are often sold two to a package, each piece usually weighing 12 to 16 ounces. The cooking times below are for two average 12-ounce tenderloins; if necessary, adjust the times to suit the size of the cuts you are cooking. For maximum time efficiency, while the pork is brining, make the rub and then light the fire. If you opt not to brine, bypass step 1 in the recipe below and sprinkle the tenderloins generously with salt before grilling. Use a rub (see related recipes) whether or not the pork has been brined—it adds flavor and forms a nice crust on the meat.

Serves 6 to 8
3 tablespoons kosher salt (or 1 1/2 tablespoons table salt)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 cups water (hot)
2 cups water (cold)
2 pork tenderloins , 1 1/2 to 2 pounds total, trimmed of silver skin. (Slip the knife under the silver skin, angle it slightly upward, and use a gentle back and forth motion.)

1. In medium bowl, dissolve salt and sugar in hot water; stir in cold water to cool mixture to room temperature. Add tenderloins, cover bowl with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until fully seasoned, about 1 hour. Remove from brine, rinse well, and dry thoroughly with paper towels; set aside.

2. Meanwhile, ignite 1 large chimney using about 6 quarts of charcoal and burn until coals are completely covered with a thin coating of light gray ash, 20 to 30 minutes. Spread coals evenly over one half of grill bottom, position grill rack, and heat until medium-hot (you can hold your hand 5 inches above grill surface for three to four seconds). Scrub rack with wire grill brush.

3. If using wet rub, rub tenderloins with rub mixture. If using dry spice rub, coat tenderloins with oil and rub with spice mixture. Place tenderloins directly over coals and cook until well browned on all four sides, about 2 1/2 minutes per side. Move tenderloins to cool part of grill and cover with overturned disposable aluminum roasting pan; continue to cook until instant-read thermometer inserted in thickest part of tenderloin registers 145 degrees or until it is still slightly pink at center when cut with a paring knife, 2 to 3 minutes longer. Transfer tenderloins to cutting board, cover with disposable aluminum pan, and let rest 5 minutes. Slice crosswise into 1-inch-thick pieces and serve.

Gas-Grilled Pork Tenderloin

Pork tenderloins are often sold two to a package, each piece usually weighing 12 to 16 ounces. The cooking times below are for two average 12-ounce tenderloins; if necessary, adjust the times to suit the size of the cuts you are cooking. For maximum time efficiency, while the pork is brining, make the rub and then light the fire. If you opt not to brine, bypass step 1 in the recipe below and sprinkle the tenderloins generously with salt before grilling. Use a rub (see related recipes) whether or not the pork has been brined—it adds flavor and forms a nice crust on the meat.
Serves 6 to 8
3 tablespoons kosher salt (or 1 1/2 tablespoons table salt)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 cups water (hot)
2 cups water (cold)
2 pork tenderloins , 1 1/2 to 2 pounds total, trimmed of silver skin. (Slip the knife under the silver skin, angle it slightly upward, and use a gentle back and forth motion.)

1. In medium bowl, dissolve salt and sugar in hot water; stir in cold water to cool mixture to room temperature. Add tenderloins, cover bowl with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until fully seasoned, about 1 hour. Remove from brine, rinse well, and dry thoroughly with paper towels; set aside.

2. When pork is almost done brining, turn all burners on gas grill to high, close lid, and heat grill until hot, 10 to 15 minutes.

3. If using wet rub, rub tenderloins with rub mixture. If using dry spice rub, coat tenderloins with oil and rub with spice mixture. Cook with grill lid closed until well browned on three sides, about 3 1/2 minutes per side, then cook on fourth and final side until well browned and instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of tenderloin registers 145 degrees or until meat is slightly pink at the center when cut with paring knife, about 2 1/2 minutes. Transfer tenderloins to cutting board, tent loosely with foil, and let rest 5 minutes. Slice crosswise into 1-inch-thick pieces and serve.

Orange-Garlic Wet Rub

If you have no orange marmalade, substitute an equal amount of honey. This is an excellent rub for grilled pork tenderloin.

Makes 1/2 cup, enough for 2 tenderloins
1 tablespoon grated orange zest from 1 large orange
2 large cloves garlic , minced (about 1 tablespoon)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage leaves
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon orange marmalade
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon table salt

Mix all ingredients together in small bowl.
 
Pork lions/tenderloins aren't that hard to smoke. The trick is to wrap it in foil with a little bit of beer or any other liquid) for the last 30 minutes.
 
Maybe "tricky" isn't the right word. Yes, it's straightforward to smoke it, but it's just not the best preparation method for this cut in my experience. For me, the grilled recipe above is much much better than the best smoked pork loin I've had and I've had some that was pretty good. Makes my mouth water just writing this.
 
rb-

medium is not undercooked for pork at all. also, you add 10 degrees, or about one full notch on the doneness scale when resting after taking off the heat.

thus, when I say to pull it off at 135, he's serving it at 145, which is perfect. when you say "cook it to xxx", it's really more than that as the final temp.

of course, i eat veal carpaccio and whatnot, so maybe I'm just weird. what I do know is that ALL of my professional chef friends cook their pork to 135 and then rest it properly.
 
porktenderloin.jpg


I'm the bacon guy.

I don't truly smoke it, just 2-2.5 hours with indirect heat.
 
smoking implies cooking it long enough to where it takes the flavor of the smoke.

generally, you don't want to cook a pork tenderloin that long, because 1) it is tender and 2) it only needs to reach internal temp of 135-145 and 3) you don't want it to be dry.


I grill mine with a gas grill and I make a wet rub of chile powder, garlic, mex oregano, cumin and brown sugar with enough vegetable oil to make a paste
 
I've never had any problems at all smoking pork tenderloin (speaking specifically of the smaller cut here), and it's delicious and moist every time. I use the same rub that I put on my brisket, I don't brine, and I cook it down around 200 for 1-1.5 hours depending. I've never even needed to wrap it in foil.

Just cook it to 135-140 or so, and then let it rest for 20 minutes. It's very simple.
 
Alright, i picked up two 3ish lb pork loins from the HEB yesterday. I'm going to probably smoke them Sunday.

I'll try to post pictures.
 
Last year I cooked one-- I browned it on a fajita plate in the grill to sear it

Then let it cook about an hour with some wood chips at about 200-- came out pretty good-- I'm still in search of the ultimate green sauce that goes with pork-- I keep experimenting though-- the trick is tangy vs sour and still spicy--
 
Oh, those "pork loins" I picked up weren't actually pork loins. They were "pork loin grilling strips."
mad.gif


I made due and it turned out alright. I actually started another thread about them, since I don't want anyone else to be confused by seeing that on here and make the same mistake I did.

Still haven't smoked my first pork loin yet...
 
Heh!

That happened to me once as well, hornian. Taught me to read MUCH more closely from then on!
 
It's on.

Well, the meat is not on yet, but the fire is getting started.

A month and half after starting this thread, I'm actually smoking my first pork loin.
 
Alright, rubbed that bad boy with a mixture of Bohlner's Pork Rub and Montreal Steak Seasoning, and put it on the smoker that was at about 225 or so at 3:05 pm (it's still getting hotter, I have the vent open enough to where it should stay at around 250 or so for the majority of the time). Last time I looked at the temp probe, it was at 69 degrees in the middle of my loin. Giggity.
 
As of 4:40, it was at 140 in the center, I got a a little distracted by the UNC game, but I'm not too worried. It is now foiled up and resting. It will actaully probably rest for about 90 minutes, as it cooked a bit faster than I expected. Oh well, I'm not too worried about it, it will be fine I'm sure, I've had briskets that rested 5 or 6 hours and were fine.
 
Nah, I just smoked the whole thing untied, kinda like Orangeblood does at the HF tailgates. It looks and smells great, I'm interested to see how much of a smoke ring I got, and how juicy/tender it is. I can't wait. Actually, I can wait, and I will.
 
bring that **** to temple. i have liquor. i also have all of the test questions for the bar exam you'll be taking.
 
It was allsome. The smoke ring was not too pronounced since it was on the smoke for less than 2 hours, but there was defintely some mesquite flavor in the bark that was there (mixed in with that dry rub, seriously Bohlner's Pork Rub and Montreal Steak Seasoning is a killer combo). I'm not sure what the temps were as far as cooking, it was at about 250 for awhile (judging by the vents), and then I shut the dampers down almost completely to try to make it cook a little slower since I didn't realize how fast it would go, and that was probably around 200 (again, just judging by the vents, I know my pit pretty well) for the last half hour or 45 minutes on the pit.

And it was so juicy you wouldn't believe; even after resting for nearly two hours by the time my straggling friends showed up, it was still juicy and tender.

I still have about a third of it left, after feeding 6 people and giving away part of it to the dinner guests. I'll be eating pork sammiches for the next few days - and I'm ok with that.

I will be doing this again in the future, it was very easy to do, not tricky at all. I don't know what all those posters above were worried about. If you can keep your pit at a fairly even temp, and can read a digital temperature probe, you should have no problems.
 
hornian - I'm gonna try this soon. But just a few questions. Did you wrap it in bacon, and is 140 the internal temp that I need to shoot for?
 
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