Pork Tenderloin

[7x57mm]

Greetings all. I am stuck in a grilling/bbq rut with my 13 yr old daughter (though not a bad rut ) She likes steak, ribs, hot dogs and butts off of the kettle. She poo poo's chicken which I tend to always grill along side with something else (but loves sweet/sour take out chicken), doesn't care much for hamburgers and thus far she has given me the stink eye regarding pork tenderloins. Do you all have suggestions for a sweet n' sour marinade/rub for tenderloin? I just need that toe hold for future food options

[Huskee]

Welcome to The Pit 7x57mm! Nice to have you here. You can try Meathead's sweet & sour pork recipe.

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[7x57mm]

Thanks Huskee...I will try MH's recipe. She'll pick out the peppers but I'll mince the onions. She likes my dishes "without onions"

[boftx]

I don't know your setup, but dry-brine for a few hours then take it low and slow in a smoker, or on a two-zone setup, to about 145 - 150 internal temp with a rub of your choice and then let it rest for about 15 minutes and you should get at least a grudging acceptance. (Hint: cinnamon is your friend, as is an injection with apple and/or pineapple juice.)

[7x57mm]

Thanks boftx. I run a 22.5 Weber Performer with a SNS. I'll grill two tenderloins this weekend: one injected and one not. I won't let her know which is which

[DWCowles]

Welcome 7x57mm

[CeramicChef]

I don't understand why, but a lot of people are not fond of pork tenderloin! UNTIL, they get a taste of mine. I like to stuff my tenderloins; I feel it gives the cook more character than you'd get otherwise.

I have stuffed mine with a cooked stuffing of spicy pork sausage, diced carrots, celery, onion, and red, yellow, and green feels. I also throw in a finely diced Granny Smith apple. Cook all that together and you've got a really nice stuffing.

I also have stuffed with a chiffonade of kale and spinach, slivered sundried tomatoes, finely chopped olives of any sort, feta cheese, and some pine nuts.

[fzxdoc]

I've made a delicious stuffed pork tenderloin recipe as well. To my mind, the stuffing helps preserve some of the moisture in a cut that could easily dry out. I usually wet-brine the tenderloin. I'm not a fan of wet-brining, but Huskee raves so much about it for his chicken that I try it for pork tenderloin as well. Works great!

Then I book-fold slice the tenderloin, laying it out in a dimension 3 times its original width and pounding it thin before adding the stuffing. I use a Cuban stuffing recipe, featuring bread-and-butter pickles,dijon mustard and swiss cheese:

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/stuf...ork-tenderloin

My kids love this dish. My husband does, too, but by the time the kids pounce on it, there are only end-pieces left for husband and me. I may have to start grillling 4 pork tenderloins instead of two.

Kathryn

[martybartram]

Kathryn, I googled the book-fold cut but could not find anything pertaining to cutting meat. Can you describe the method?

[kabari]

That's a interesting technique! I'll have to give it a try.

[martybartram]

that is a great recipe!

[kabari]

Pork Tenderloin has become one of my favorite things to smoke this summer, mostly because it doesn't take a really long time I like to cook it at 275 and on average it takes me about 2 hours for it to get to temp. Before cooking, I dry brine it for 3-4 hours, then brush it with some sunflower/vegetable oil, then I fold the thin part over and hold it together with a toothpick to prevent that part from drying out. During the smoke, I spray it with cider vinegar and water mixture.

Normally we just eat it as is. I've used it in all sorts of dishes as well, but cubing it and making fried rice is probably my favorite.

[fzxdoc]

martybartram , you asked what the bookfold method of slicing a pork tenderloin is. Maybe I made that name up, I don't recall.

Basically it's butterflying the piece, but this time slicing it into thirds, taking care to not cut through the opposite end. When you're done, it opens up sort of like a 3-part centerfold. I saw the technique on America's Test Kitchen on PBS. I like it because I end up with a larger, thinner piece for stuffing. Plus I don't have to pound the meat so much, especially for a pork tenderloin.

You slice the bottom third almost to the end, then turn the knife, go down another 1/3 depth and slice back the other way, almost to the end. The meat opens up with the top third in the middle. I hope I explained that OK.

Here's a video that does sort of the same thing on a pork loin. They don't turn the knife, they just keep on cutting. They call it "roll cutting".

This method is trickier to do with a pork tenderloin, and for smaller pork tenderloins I just butterfly. But I look for the larger ones and when I find them I do the "bookfold" method before stuffing.

Kathryn

[martybartram]

Good explanation! If I followed it correctly you are cutting a sideways U. I cut from right to left, turn the knife up, cut up 1/3 and then cut left to right almost to the end. I roll cut my loins but this is better as you indicated for smaller cuts. Thanks!

[CeramicChef]

fzxdoc - this is a classic technique that once mastered, is so very easy to do. It opens up almost endless possibilities. Next time you do one, how about posting some pics. I always truss mine with a running slip knots, How about you?

[fzxdoc]

Yeah, me too CeramicChef . Running slip knots...easy for this knitter and a knitting machine(s) owner to do on a poor defenseless pork tenderloin.

K.

[7x57mm]

Excellent ideas! Thanks all...I have some testing to do.