Pork Loin plus smoke equals Canadian Bacon

annie1992

6 years ago

I put a pork loin in brine for 72 hours, then it spent a day in the refrigerator drying, so Elery could put it into the smoker for Canadian Bacon. We had a pork hock that needed smoking too, it'll be added to greens for some future supper. Into the smoker and it came out at 168F, just a couple of degrees above that required 165F...

Since I can only post a single photo, the "real star" will be in the replies, all sliced, vacuum packed and ready for the freezer...

Annie

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annie1992
Original Author

6 years ago

The pork loin cooked to 165F too, and had a lovely "bark" on the outside. We had to cut off that ragged end for testing, of course...

Then onto the slicer where it got sliced thinly and packaged in 4 ounce packages for freezing. Very conveniently, 12 slices was approximately 4 ounces, and the Food Saver sealed it right up. 11 packages later, it was done, and into the freezer for future meals.

Well, except for just those ragged end pieces, which were promptly consumed. The slices are prettier than those ends, but not as crunchy/smoky/delicious. It's much leaner and healthier, of course. :-)

Up next? Venison sausage, we just finished the last one when Lars was here, and we need to make some for Christmas appetizer trays. After we get past Thanksgiving dinner, of course, plenty of cooking going on here!

Annie

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Comments (9)

bcskye
6 years ago
Annie, that is absolutely beautiful! Hopefully I'll be able to make Canadian Bacon and Peameal Bacon soon using your brine. The nearest place that I know of to get pork bellies is in Cincinnati and now that I'm not working, I'll be able to get over there and be able to use your bacon recipe. I still haven't found the smoker that my late husband got me for Christmas a year before he died, however, I haven't checked the attic. He stored/hid it very well. Both it and the one I bought last year use charcoal. I had been wanting a propane one and lucked out about a week ago. Where I worked had a nice portable propane smoker for $59. They were having an 11% off sale and the manufacturer had a $20 rebate so it was calling my name. It is big enough to do a turkey or ham in. They hype it as being great for RVs or tailgating. So, if I can still afford the meat. I should be able to smoke quite a bit at one time. And you were the inspiration.
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if you can adjust the 'offset' of your oven to run at a lower temp, it can help with the curing and cooking. In the owners manual for my Fridgiaire electric range it has an adjustment that I can set to have it control the temp at 170 degrees when it 'thinks' its controlling the temp at 200. I set the offset to 30 degrees higher, so it will make the oven run at a lower temp than the minimum 200. My last Pastrami (rib eye roast) cooked for nearly 7 hours and I was raising the temp about 10 degrees after 3 hours, then every hour after that, until my probe thermometer went off at the set temp I wanted. My probe type thermometer is a Poulter and has an adjustable set point for the desired temp. It has a 3 foot stainless steel braided cable that goes through the oven door and you push the steel probe into the meat. One thing about the pork loin is to leave any fat attached to it until its cooled off to cold. Then you can trim it if necessary. That little bit of soft fat will help keep it moist too. Tomorrow, morning the converted corned beef/pastrami will be going in the oven for its 7 hour baking, starting at 170 degrees for 3 hours, then up the degrees as mentioned. I remove it from the oven when it reaches 155 degrees. Yes, the meat can rise more in temp after you shut off the oven. Its overshoot is a little less noticable if you remove it to cool at room temp. Westerns, made with eggs, chopped onion, chopped peppers, and cut up ham/bacon are great. I like it with just ketchup on it, as a meal. I also add a few bits of a cheese before I fold it and flip it over in the pan.
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Ingredients from Bacos: Defatted soy flour, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, water, salt, sugar, natural and artificial flavor (some type of glutamate no doubt, but not MSG because I'm allergic to that and it would give me a stomache ache), artificial color, and red 40, maltodextrin, dextrose, tocopherol, (preservative). I am allergic to nitrates, they give me headaches, so I buy natural bacon and keep it in the freezer. I slice off some bits to fry for flavor, but not for the broccoli slaw style salad. I don't mind a dash of the soy product stuff to add some bacon flavor to something like soups and salads or braised greens, if it's just a dash for flavor. It absolutely is full of sugar and salt so that's why I said use judiciously. In a BLT where bacon is a key ingredient rather than a flavoring, I want real bacon, I tried the soy stuff for BLTs and it didn't cut it for me. Also, some of my friends are vegans and others are observant Jews and Muslims, so the Baco bits work for when I am cooking for a mixed crowd, which is what my gang tends to be. I'm liking the idea of smoked almonds for salads though. I have been avoiding them due to the salt content, but a few might be interesting in salads.
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Finally getting back to the Canadian Bacon. annie I did follow thru...ordered the book "Charcuterie" by Chefs Polsyn and Ruhlman. Found it very interesting. Interesting enough we first cured and smoke one pork loins cut in half. Turned out so tasty and by the time 3 kids and families visited we had not enough left to freeze. This past week we did two whole loins cut in half giving us 4 pieces. Again they are so good and enough for each kid and families to have a meal and plenty to freeze. Next a try at Peameal bacon and the Spicy Dry Rub loin. Oh yes did want to mention the book I received was the revised and updated verison. Our smoker setup on first try our first loins done Our second smoking session done And the best part of all.... time to enjoy
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Shirl, we put the smoker out in the pole barn, it's not attached but close enough that a trip out to check on things isn't too bad. Elery definitely put on a coat and gloves, though, it was 15F this morning when he started that smoker. There's nothing quite like the homemade stuff, though, is there? I'm sorry you missed out on a season's worth of "curin' n smokin'" though. I wish you were closer, I'd be happy to share! I think of all the cookbooks I have, "Charcuterie" is the one I use most. I think fondly of Larry Engelhardt when I use it, his wife Janet posted at the old Forum before she died, and he came to a couple of forum get togethers. It was a gift from Larry, who lived close to the restaurant owned by Brian Polycyn. Unfortunately, that restaurant closed, but the book is wonderful. Today's "ham" came out nicely too, a little salty so the next one will be brined 3 days instead of 5, and see if that's better. Still yummy and amazing, and glazed with local maple syrup. Lizbeth, the pea meal bacon doesn't taste like bacon or ham, it's more like a slice of pork loin, but there's that cured flavor, it doesn't really taste like anything else I've had. Annie
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bcskye
6 years ago
By the way, Annie, you inspired me to get a meat slicer and the sausage stuffing attachment for my Kitchenaid, too. I had already gotten a meat grinder due to something I read about grinding your own beef and adding a certain number of bacon slices per pound of beef. I think it has a sausage stuffer, too. See, you've caused another one to venture into new experiences. Oh, and the Apple Pie Jam in 12 oz. jars is cooling on the kitchen counter.

Madonna
annie1992
Original Author
6 years ago
Wow, Madonna, that's a great buy on that little propane smoker, I wouldn't have been able to pass that up either.

My stepsons are big fans of grinding bacon into our grassfed burger, it's a little too lean for their taste. They got the idea from a restaurant in California where the burgers are half beef and half ground bacon. Nothing you can buy, of course, is as good as home grown or home made.

Pork bellies never go on sale here, so we make Canadian Bacon more than we do the traditional stuff. Pork loins are often on sale here for less than $2 a pound so you'll be much more likely to find that. We use more of it than I thought we would. Toss a slice in the pan and in a minute it's ready to put on a breakfast sandwich. The grandkids love it on pizza and in homemade "hot pockets" with pizza sauce and mozzarella. I chop it up and add it to corn waffles along with cheese, we use it in a lot of things.

Congratulations on that jam, it's going to make great gifts for some very lucky recipients. I'm more than happy to get other people "hooked" on my own personal addictions, LOL, so can away, then smoke something, then make some sausage. At our age we deserve the "good stuff", so much better than I can buy here!!

Annie
fawnridge (Ricky)
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
I've never cooked a pork loin to that temperature, but I guess to make Canadian bacon it's a requirement. Your finished product resembles one of my favorite pig products - Taylor pork roll and now I'm hungry again.
annie1992
Original Author
6 years ago
Ricky, that's what Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn "tell" me to do, and I'm not going to argue with them. I figure I'll probably never write a book called "Charcuterie" and so I'll defer to the experts, LOL.

I'm not quite sure at which point it stops being pork loin and becomes Canadian Bacon, but it does...

Annie
2ManyDiversions
6 years ago
Count me as another of your converts... hmm, perhaps you should start Annie's Cult of Brined and Smoked Meats! LOL! I was amazed when I first saw your 'from scratch' corned beef... and I've still yet to do that one. But the Canadian Bacon - tackled it while in the midst of our remodeling, remember?
I was pleasantly surprised at the flavor, so much better than anything one can buy. And YES! So good when added to beans and greens! Or at breakfast...

I've only made this one time, and it was half a pork loin, but hope to smoke a whole loin soon to food saver and enjoy. I can't thank you enough for opening new culinary doors to me, Annie!

I'd love to grind my own meats, and intend to someday as well. BTW, you also inspired me to buy a meat slicer - which I also use for bread : )

Those pork hock pic's... to die for! I can just imagine how it tastes! Thanks for more inspiration!
Lars
6 years ago
I love pork loin and Canadian bacon, but Kevin won't eat it, and so it is not worthwhile for me to make it. Too bad you didn't have this when I was there! Maybe next time...

We use our smoker mainly for turkey breast and sausages, but we have not used it lately, as Kevin prefers to use the Big Green Egg, but that generally gets or stays too hot and is difficult to control for a low temperature. The smoker is electric, and so it is much more user friendly.
annie1992
Original Author
6 years ago
Ricky, Taylor pork roll? I've never heard of that, I'm going to have to go google after this. We buy a local pig every year and so I'm always looking for ways to use up all the "parts".

Darn, Lars, if I had known that, I had some in the freezer, but I was making sure that I didn't make it while you and Kevin were here. I should have made that AND the chicken sausage and we'd all have been happy!

You could brine/smoke just a small piece of pork loin, it freezes really well and a slice or two will cook in a skillet in a minute or so.

2many, I remember you made that, and yours looks delicious. It's amazingly simple, isn't it? So is the corned beef, as long as you have the room in the refrigerator to keep it for the days it needs to cure.

Yes, indeed, I'm always happy to share my addictions.....um.....hobbies, LOL.

Annie

Pork Loin plus smoke equals Canadian Bacon

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Pork Loin plus smoke equals Canadian Bacon

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bcskye

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