Smoked Chops....the pink ones??

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HarleyDiva

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I want to make what the grocery store or meat market calls "smoked pork chops"....like the picture below. Do I use the same cure as buckboard bacon....or canadian bacon? Assume I could use a pork loin.....not sure what the cut is with the bones in....have only seen boneless loin, but would prefer bone in like the picture. Does it have to cure longer because of the big chunk of meat. What makes them different than canadian bacon???

smokedchops_zps3ab5f28e.jpg
 
Yes they are cured and smoked, basically what one would call a ham chop.

I inject my whole loin to allow even curing especially along the bones, then use my curing rub or curing brine. After curing smoke the whole loin and then slice.
 
I use regular Morton's Tenderquick and cure them for one to two hours depending on how thick they are. Then rinse and either smoke or grill them.
They come out really moist. The cure does add salt so I just season them with pepper.

Good luck with what ever you come up with!
 
I am a soak in tenderquik solution person, but, for a whole loin, I will soak for three to four days, then soak in clear water for a day. Then smoke whole. You can do the chops, which then is just a two hour soak and smoke. I inject if I am doing a sirloin or rack, as Madman suggests, it gets the solution to the bone.
 
So I can put tender quick on a pork chop and make one of these?
 
I have "Himalayan natual unprocessed cooking salt" it's pink. Will that work for curing.
 
No, it will offer some curing, but, not like tenderquik, or a real cure such as Prague powder. At the end of the day, if you intend to do a lot of curing of meats, the cost to mail order some Tenderquik or Prague powder is far cheaper than trying to make it yourself and getting sick. Or ruining meat with bad ingredients.
 
So....are the ones in the store just cured and not actually smoked?

Are they the same as canadian bacon???
 
The ones I used to buy were smoked, and pretty good. They had a bone, and were thick. Not quite like Canadian bacon
 
smoke ninja said:
So I can put tender quick on a pork chop and make one of these?
Click to expand...

You can add other spices as well to add more flavors. I've done these as both a dry cure with a cure injection and as a wet cure also with an injection.

I prefer to use Morton® Sugar Cure® with my own additives for these, but you can add a little sugar to the cure if you only have Tender Quick®.

HarleyDiva said:
So....are the ones in the store just cured and not actually smoked?

All the ones I have seen have been smoked. The sign in the butcher case also says "Smoked Pork Chops" in your picture.

Are they the same as canadian bacon???
Click to expand...

Far better.........
 
Ok...I have a quick science experiment going on. I picked up a package of 6 boneless pork chops this afternoon. Came home and rubbed them with tender quick and raw sugar, and put in the fridge for 2 hours. Took them out and rinsed them well, ground some fresh pepper on them, and threw them on the Big Chief for a couple hours. Will finish up a couple for dinner in the house this time.....

Pictures coming when they are done....
 
Cowgirl....

I am planning on picking up a pork loin this week, and want to make Canadian Bacon like you did on your blog. I grabbed this recipe for the cure from your blog:

"I made a brine cure for the back loins
I use a mixture of Tender Quick and water
then add sliced onions
1/3 cup of turbinado sugar
10 cloves of garlic
1 TBS black pepper corns
and cayenne peppers (just a few)"

I know the TQ is supposed to be 1TBSP per pound of meat....but have no idea how much water to add to this?????
 
Last edited:
HarleyDiva said:
Ok...I have a quick science experiment going on. I picked up a package of 6 boneless pork chops this afternoon. Came home and rubbed them with tender quick and raw sugar, and put in the fridge for 2 hours. Took them out and rinsed them well, ground some fresh pepper on them, and threw them on the Big Chief for a couple hours. Will finish up a couple for dinner in the house this time.....

Pictures coming when they are done....
Click to expand...

Pulled two chops off after 90 minutes of smoking and finished them up in the house. They were light pink, and definitely tasted like the smoked pork chops I have had before, but a bit milder.
IMG_0161_zpsda5c03ac.jpg


The other four chops stayed on the Big Chief for another hour.....I'll chill them overnight and then freeze for a quick finish on the grill another time.
IMG_0162_zps2f5a0f6d.jpg


Overall....it was pretty close to what I was looking for.....and definitely much cheaper than buying them at the meat market. Next project will be curing the whole loin......
 
Finished curing and smoking a 5# pork loin today. Cured for 9 days, soaked for 2 1/ 2 hours, then smoked at 200-225 till it reached 140 degrees. Sliced thick smoked pork chops, and thinner sliced for "canadian bacon". They are really good, although a bit saltier than I like.....will soak longer next time. The chops are "pinker" than they look in the picture.

IMG_0198_zps79354af3.jpg

IMG_0199_zpsd63e4f2e.jpg
 
That looks good, seems like you did the right thing. I soak for around 12 hours, with at least two changes of water to remove some of the salt.
 
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