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Hi all from Maine. I was able to get half a pig a few months ago for the first time from a local butcher. I declined to have the ham roasts smoked when I ordered the meat thinking I could smoke it myself. Well I've tried a few different approaches to cooking some large roasts that are labeled "pork loin roast"; smoking till 165 and smiling till 195 to pull. Both times came out very very dry and not edible. Based on research I've done sounds like these roasts I have are also known as fresh or green hams. Rookie mistake on my part apparently not ordering them cured. I have 6-7 more labeled pork loin roast. Any ideas on how to cook them?? I'll know better for next year. Thanks.
Pork loin is a lean cut of meat. 145-150 is about as far as you want to take them. If you have shoulder roasts, take those to 195-205 for pulling. You can also use those loin roasts for Canadian bacon.
I'll second the 145° IT for the lean cuts.
Take to 140°-142° and let the IT finish rising as it rests... Juicy goodness shall ensue.
Brine is remarkably easy, 1C Kosher salt per 1/2 gallon of water is the most basic.
Then expand upon that by adding 1C Brown or Turbinado sugar, and by adding other desired spices.
Rub'em, glaze them, herb crusted and/or garlic studded, stuffed, stuffed pinwheel, bacon wrapped and more.
You can also try some other 'Brines and Marinades' too.
Sodas, yep... Cherry Coke or Cherry Dr. Pepper are two of my faves.
The classic and often used Italian dressing.
Paint it with whole grain Mustard and add your spices or rub atop that.
That is 11% salt by weight and while ok for thin cuts that will be brined an hour or two is really salty to soak a day or two needed to have an impact on loin. The majority of standard brine recipes l have seen use 1C Kosher per Gallon for up to 24 hours. My preference is below....JJ
Families Favorite Brine
1/2C Kosher Salt
2T Paprika
2T Gran. Garlic
2T Gran. Onion
2T Dry Thyme
2T Black Pepper
1C Vinegar (Any)
1-11/2Gal Cold Water to cover Chix
1/2C Brown Sugar, Optional
1T Red Pepper Flake Optional
Mix well and Soak the Bird over night or up to 24 Hours. Pork and Beef at least 48 hours.
1C kosher per 1/2 Gallon?:icon_eek: That is 11% salt by weight and while ok for thin cuts that will be brined an hour or two is really salty to soak a day or two needed to have an impact on loin.
A day or two Jimmy?
Heck, I seldom have that long to invest with my schedule, I wish.
I'm lucky to brine overnight (12hrs) at most, I can see it being too much for a 24-48hrs or more.
So far it has worked for my shorter time frame.
IIRC, my Apple Juice/Apple Cider Vinegar brine and Cherry Dr. Pepper brine both use your ratio of 1/2C of salt per gallon.
I always reckoned the lesser amount was because there was so much else going on in those brines.
I hear ya Bro. Planning ahead and getting stuff done don't always work out. Your mix works great for short brine times but with the OP talking Ham/Canadian Bacon, I thought l should add a little more info on brines. I should have included that if that true Pink Hammy flavored loin is the desired result, Cure #1 must be added to the brine at 1 Tablespoon per Gallon and soaked for about 14 days for full penetration...JJ
Ok. Thanks for the tips, I really appreciate. Have some poppers on the menu today but will defrost one of the those large roasts and put together a brine plan for next weekend. Sounds like I need to plan on 12-24 hours for brining a 6-8lb ham.
The previous recipes discussed are called 'FLAVOR' brines, enhancing the flavors of the meats, with the exception of post no. 8 by JJ; then he has changed the formulation to a 'CURING' brine with the addition of Sodium Nitrite. That ingredient changes the chemical makeup of the meat. Then you are now CURING the meat, not just flavoring it.
My Pop's Brine does just that - it is an adaptation of my dad's curing brine he used for over 45 years in his store. I substituted common ingredient equivalents in the commercially produced curing brine plus figured out his correct ratio of curing salt used to cure products. It is ¼ the maximum amount allowed by federal law; dad's premise that, by using less and soaking longer would produce a more tender and flavorful product, and it was verified hundreds of times by NYS Food Inspection through rigid testing of samples sent into Albany for analysis.
Brine can become frothy (ropy). It has both salt and sugar in it. It also is inputting curing ingredients into the meat and oozing out blood and plasma. Just dump the brine and make up fresh and continue curing should that happen. Make sure you keep it at 38° - 40°.
Weigh down meat into curing brine with half-filled ziploc bags of water on top.
No further mixing or stirring required, let it cure until done. Meats will come out of the brine wish a distinct grayish look. This is normal.
Computing equivalency, for 100 gallons of curing brine, you add 24 lbs. of curing salt to 100 gallons of water and mix.
That is .24 lbs, or 3.84 oz. of curing salt to 1 gallon of water maximum.
My recipe calls for 1 tablespoon of curing salt to 1 gallon of water. A level tablespoon is .88 of an ounce. Heaping is approx. 1 ounce. Either is fine. Neither comes close to the maximum amount allowed, but just enough to do the job. Curing at Maximum, plus with injection, requires 48 hours of cure time maximum. This process uses less than one third the curing salt and a longer curing time to tenderize and flavor the meat.
You must cover the product until it floats off the bottom of the container, then weight it down to stay submersed in the brine, leaving no area to be exposed to air. You must keep at 38° to 40° until curing time is over. Remove from brine, put or hang in smokehouse or smoker. I personally go from refrigeration to heat with no wait time myself. There is different thoughts, whether to allow a pellicle to form or not.
A pellicle is mainly, to my knowledge, allowed to form on fish prior to smoking. We were only 30 miles from Salmon River in Pulaski, NY, a very well known salmon run. We had many bring us their salmon to process and usually allowed a pellicle to form But, pork and beef are not tender like fish.
The term "Green Ham" refers to a fresh, uncured hog leg, one that is not already cured.
