I guess I should not have believed the label

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davo2530

Newbie
Original poster
Jul 8, 2016
7
10
Attempted my first smoke today, package label said boneless pork loin roast, Weight was 3.2 lbs. I placed it in an aluminum shallow pan coated in yellow mustard and then covered with Grill Mates Applewood Rub. I am using a Charbroil Commercial 4 burner gas grill with an Amaz'n 12" smoke tube. To start off I lit the left hand burner on low to get the grill warmed up. It has a thermometer in the lid which I did not pay to much attention to Instead I placed a stick type thermometer in the opposite corner where the meat will reside. I filled the tube with applewood pellets and lit it with a propane torch. After several adjustments to the burner to reach a steady 225 temp I placed the Pan in and closed the lid. Came back up to temp and was constant at 225. Using the 2 hours per pound guide I was thinking 5-6 hours before I had to get to excited. Imagine my thoughts when just for grins and giggles I thought to check on progress 3 hours into the cook Internal temp was 179. The meat was very flavorful but pretty dry and tight. Not only am  I pretty disappointed with the result, I am also confused as to what I did wrong. I can only think it ias because the roast wasn't an actual roast but more like boneless country ribs. Here is what it looked like going into the smoke


setup and lay-out


Position of thermometer


Any suggestions for the next time will be greatly appreciated, it was very good, just dry, and got done way to soon.
 
You had good information for a pork butt. Cook at 225* (I prefer 250-275*). 1-1/2 to 2 hours per # to an IT of 200-205* to pull. However, you had a loin roast. I would cook that piece of meat at 250-275* to an IT of 145-150* and slice for serving. Thin slicing for sammies to 1/2" slices with au jus for plating with potatoes and veggies.

Check closer to your cut of meat, as the cooking method and IT will vary.
 
Two hour per pound for Pork Butt or Picnic Shoulder...Pork Loin is more like 30 minutes per pound at 225 and pull it out at an IT of 140-145 for Pink interior and 150-155 MAX! The interior will be gray but still juicy. You over cooked yours...JJ

Joe types faster!...
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Should have just put it in the crockpot like I normally did. Wanted to give smoking a try, well live and learn. At least I didn't have to feed it to the cats. I will try something else, maybe. thanks for the reply.
 
Take the advice given. Ask questions. The members will get you on track
 
I am just beating myself up for ruining a perfectly good piece of meat. At least I do know my setup does work and I will read more and learn more and try again with the right cut. Thanks for the replies. I have always been able to make things work, but this time I got my butt kicked by a piece of pig.
 
Davo, If everybody here stopped smoking meat after messing up their first Smoke...There would only be about 20 members Total! Lots of folks get bad results until they learn the tricks of what we do. Hell, I've been cooking over 40 years and I still overcook stuff once in awhile. Hang out, read a bunch about meats you want to try and ask lots of questions. Sign up for the FREE 5 Day Ecourse...JJ
 
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I am no quitter, but I will learn what I am doing before I try it again. Call it a redemption smoke. But I am dead set on getting it right. I hope you all don't mind answering lots of questions in the future. Eventually I hope to be able to help some one else get started one day. Thanks for the encouragement, trust me I am not quitting this, I don't quit, that's the easy way
 
Good to hear! We are here 24/7, even the UK guys take the overnight shift.
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 Ask questions all you wish and If there is somebody specific you want to talk to, send them a PM. Everbody was a Newbie at one time...JJ
 
Messing up a smoke is no big deal---except for being REALLY annoying.  
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      Everybody does it now and then.  The good news is that its almost impossible to ruin a piece of meat beyond usage.  Chop it up and add it to scrambled eggs, make a stew, etc.

As said, its just a matter of learning about different cuts of meat and how long and to what temp to cook them at.

So......try again.

Gary
 
We all learn from our mistakes - and we all still make them sometimes. Your main problem was the joint of meat that you chose. A loin does not have enough fat in it to fare well when cooked low and slow like that. The best cuts for that are pork shoulder or pork belly. You could have smoked it uncovered for the first hour or so to get the smoke flavour and then wrapped it in foil for the remaining time. That would have prevented it from becoming so dry.

With pork loin though the best thing was what JJ recommended - treat it as a slicing roast and cook it quickly. Alternatively pork loin makes great bacon 
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Yes I agree it is very tasty. Unfortunately Davo was trying to cook it dry more like you would a pork shoulder. You maintained the moisture using the broth - which would be similar to retaining natural moisture through foiling. It looks lovely and made my mouth water when I saw the end result  
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Position of thermometer

Another suggestion from looking at the position of your thermometer in the photo. Is it possible that the tip may have been touching either the cooking grate or the foil container. If the tip was touching anything metal it is likely to have given you a falsely low reading resulting in the cooking temperature being higher than you thought
 
 
I am just beating myself up for ruining a perfectly good piece of meat. At least I do know my setup does work and I will read more and learn more and try again with the right cut. 
You had the right cut (if you like pork loin, I sure do), the right setup, and did just about everything right, but had the time wrong. Try it again, follow the advice here, keep an the internal temp so you can pull at at 150 or so, and you'll be very pleased with the result. No need to give up, you were just using a butt method for a loin. A loin will be GREAT this way if you don't overcook it, and now you know what the mistake was. You can certainly use a more appropriate cut (shoulder) and do it all the same way again, and that will be great, but if it's a loin you want just try it again and cook it less.
 
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When I first read Davo's post I thought he was wanting to pull the pork loin. On re-reading I see that isn't the case. I agree that loin is a great cut to hot smoke and slice - but not to pull. 
 
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When I first read Davo's post I thought he was wanting to pull the pork loin. On re-reading I see that isn't the case. I agree that loin is a great cut to hot smoke and slice - but not to pull. 
There was a guy that Catered Sales events at a Harley Dealer my wife worked for. His claim to fame...Low Fat, " Healthier " Pulled Pork! He advertised that he only used trimmed, lean Pork Loin smoked low and slow...A GALLON of Finishing Sauce or BBQ Sauce could not add enough moisture to make that Crap Moist! Worst Q I have even eaten! He is no longer in business...JJ
 
I have a Kenmore 5 burner grill that I use for hot smoking on occasion. The absolute lowest temp I can maintain (with hood down) is 250*.

I have several user adjustable NSF grade thermometers that I check and calibrate every coupla' months or so. I drilled a hole in the top of the left side of the hood and stuck one of my thermometers in it. The stem hangs inside without touching anything and shows cabinet temp within a degree, two at the most.

On top of that, I bury the probe of a Thermo Pro TP-06 in the meat. Not only can I keep track of cabinet temp, I can keep track of the meat IT without having to raise the hood and loose the heat.


 
 
I am just beating myself up for ruining a perfectly good piece of meat. At least I do know my setup does work and I will read more and learn more and try again with the right cut. Thanks for the replies. I have always been able to make things work, but this time I got my butt kicked by a piece of pig.
These guys are spot on and got you covered but I'll add a bit of my own experience and remember it is a learning experience not a failure, however if you ever find yourself in a situation like this again, try to change your initial gameplan, for instance if the loin was overcooked try recycling into another meal.

Here's a few of my overcooked loins, that turned out as awesome dishes.







Or slice thin and add to gravy for Sammies.

 
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