Small pork roast test

[larrym]

Gonna run a test this weekend after reading all I can and doing what I can to improve the performance of my older analog MES 30, without spending too much money :)

I have a small pork 1.8 lbs pork sirloin tip roast.  I am going to brine it for 12 hours with the following recipie.  Adjusting of course for the small size of it.  We have a 15lbs pork butt to do but I am trying to get the basics down on a little one first :)

1 1/2 Gal Water
1/2 C Salt
1/2 C Dark Brown Sugar
2 tsp Garlic Powder
2 tsp Onion Powder
2 tsp Cajun Spice
2 tsp Celery Salt

Then after 12 hours,, will pat it dry and use just a basic brown sugar rub and let it sit in fridge for 12 hours, wrapped in plastic wrap to hold everything together.  Then preheat older analog MES for 225f, leave cover off of chip dish, adjust door to have some breathing room and go for 1.5 hours per lbs.  After 2 hours will check internal temp,, see how close I am to 180f and according to wife,, baste it with some Jack Daniels / Sweet Baby Ray bbq sauce.  I will also be using mesquite chips that I have coaxed with a small sledge hammer into a finer blend of chips :)  1 hour or so after bathing in sauce, I hope to have it at perfect pulling temp, then use everyones preferred method of resting by wrapping in a small towel, putting in a little cooler for at least an hour.  Then we see what happens.  I am sure it will be cooked okay, my biggest concern is that outside temp is going to be close to 90f and that the MES just wont smoke enough for the duration.  Being a computer guy,, I am not that patient, causes problems with trying to smoke something :)  All I can do is try...

 

[sqwib]

Keep us Posted

 

[uhmgood]

you might want to take it up a little in temp , 180 is a little shy of what most people do for pulled pork, i think most people go anywhere between 195 and 205 and be careful of mesquite, a little goes a long way . i'm sure you will get a ton of replies on this one, however you do it ,good luck and let us know

 

[larrym]

Should I shoot for 240f or so, I know it is a very short cooking time and compared to what you all cook such a little tidbit of pork :)

 

[meateater]

Sounds like a plan. 

 

[realtorterry]

Never did one that small myself so let us know what you do & how it turns out. With qview of course!

 

[SmokinAl]

Good luck!

 

[larrym]

Step 2. 

Pulled from brine,, pork had just a slight grayish tint to it but much firmer then when it went in.  I hope this means that it absorbed some of the brine.  I tell ya, it smelled pretty damn good when I pulled it out :)  Mixed up some rub with following mixture and manfully rubbed it all in, then sealed with food saver and put back in fridge.

Rub:

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup paprika

1 tbs black pepper

1 tbs salt (part of recipie but I didnt put in, think it might be salty enough from brine)

1 tbs chili powder

1 tbs garlic powder

1 tbs onion powder

1 tps cayenne

1/2 tps of smoked coriander

Hopefully sometime tomorrow it goes into smoker.  I have pounded about a cup of mesquite wood chips into submission and they should be willing to smoke :)

 

[little smokey]

Please keep us posted I can't wait for the pics and results.

 

[larrym]

okay. here is a Qview before of pork in a little foil dish I made to hold juices, also you can see how small I pounded the chips.  Boss has changed my timing,, so am going to fire it up now, put it in and start at 200f, will check temp when I get home in 3 hours.  I am assuming, that everyone using a brown sugar rub will have the same look prior to cooking  otherwise I am still doing something wrong. 

Also a note :  not sure how much space I am allowed for Qviews,, my pics seem to be a little over 1mb, just got a couple but I can delete as needed.

 

[larrym]

hmmm, just got home,, now 2:15,, checked it,, very dry or nice dark crust on outside, not sure which.  Internal temp is just 165,, somewhere along the way in the last 3 hours,, the smoker dropped down to 180f or so instead of 200 which I had it set at.  Going to brush it with some sauce,, bump the heat up to 225 and try to get it finished in 2 hours for wife.  Guess I should also get some sweet corn and baked tators ready, for me :)  wife can live on pulled pork ,, if I do it right ;( .

 

[larrym]

hope I didnt ruin it,, after an hour more at 240,, I stabbed it twice with meat thermometer,, juices spouted out of it but temp still around 180f,, I basted again with bbq sauce,, will leave it alone for another hour.

 

[larrym]

ahhhh,, I am not patient enough :)  just up to 185...

 

[larrym]

5pm now and it has  been on for almost 6 hours.  Outside is crusty but internal temp still just shows 186.  I am pulling it off before I am afraid it dries out too much inside.  This may have been just too small of a pork piece to try for a test.  It is now resting,,it seems like it is still too firm for pulled pork texture but just resting so I dont know for sure.  Nothing I tried helped the smoke issue on my old analog MES 30, it may just be too dang hot outside for it to continually keep the wood chips going.  Test will be if wife hits me over the head with it :)  Smoker temp when I pulled it out had jumped to 275,, though the door gauge just showed 250.  I am feeling now that I can not trust either of them.  Maybe I need to move to something better or just smoke during colder months.

 

[larrym]

It tastes good enough but not pull pork as I was afraid to keep cooking it.  It does have a nice smoke ring on it though.

 

[uhmgood]

larryM, from what i'm reading you really bounced around on smoker temp, its hard to get an accurate feel for what was going on . 6 hrs to smoke a small piece of meat like that doesn't make a lot of sense either , and then you only got it up to 186 , it must have been in the "stall" period . did you have it wrapped in foil at any point DURING the smoke , when i'm doing a butt i wrap it for the latter part of the smoke 1) to help it get past the "stall" 2) to somewhat braise it in the liquid and help make it more tender . and remember , most people take it to between 195 and 205 for pulled pork. and FINALLY , these questions and suggestions are MY OPINION ONLY take them for what their worth . good luck

 

[larrym]

:) your opinions and advice are why I post.  I am still new to this.  I think the smoker temp kept jumping around so much because it was a small piece of meat.  As far as foil, I havent had to use that in the past when I cooked larger pieces.  I am disappointed that my temps just wouldnt stay steady.  I have never seemed to have a stall period before and it threw me off even though I have read about it. This is a learning experience but we both enjoy playing with the smoker so will try something a little bigger , think I will also look around for a little higher quality thermometer for inside the grill.  I am afraid wires will get pinched by the door if I go with a nice one.  My other option is too drill a hole which I am leary to do at this time.  But again,, please dont hold back your thoughts and opinions.  I will keep trying if you all keep trying to help :)  And Thank you.

 

[uhmgood]

i'm a real advocate of foiling, others say never, but for ME it makes a big difference in how stuff comes out. i have a MES 30 , not the analog and i run my maverick wires thru the top vent. i have just about stopped using the maverick, i have found that the temp readings are 10 or 15 degrees off at the beginning but about half way thru they start to equalize and end up maybe 1 or 2 degrees diff. gotta go now and get my ribs on for today . good luck

 

[uhmgood]

ok , i'm back, got my st louis cut ribs on . as far as the stall goes , i've had times where it took hrs for it to work thru the stall , you think its never going up , be patient

 

[SmokinAl]

I may be wrong on this, but isn't a sirloin tip roast a leaner cut of pork?

Wouldn't it be a better choice to take it out at 140-145 & slice it?

I think it would be much juicier at the lower temp.

This may be a good one for Pops to answer.

I'm certainly no expert on meat cuts.