Fresh Leg of Pork help!

JDJay

Hi everyone, 

I was wondering if I can ask for some advise from fellow Eggers...

I've got my hands on a Berkshire butt-end rear leg of pork.  It should be about 10lbs.  I am planning on cooking it low and slow.

I've read some suggestions on brining it for about 4-6 days (kosher salt, brown sugar, pink curing salt), then smoking it @ 250 until it reaches 155 degrees.  

I will glaze it with a simple brown sugar, dijon, and garlic after it has been smoking for about 3 hours.

The problem is, I will be picking up the pork on Thursday, and need to serve it on Saturday.  So, I can only brine it for about 1.5 days.

So this is going to end up like a hybrid partially-brined ham and a roasted leg of pork.

Does this sound okay? Or does anyone have any alternate suggestions on how I should approach this?  Should I inject the ham with the brine to speed up the brining process? or should I forget the brine process altogether?

Any ideas how long it will take to get the leg up to temperture? I want to slice it, not pull it.

Should I apply a dry rub instead of the glaze or do both rub and glaze?

Thanks all for your suggestions!

pa

1.5 Days sounds more than enough. Brining has an effect on the tissues so overbrining might not be a good idea. I would brine 1.5 Days then Rub for 24 hours. then put the dijon and the garlic no sugar . if you cook with sugar to early it will burn. Try to glaze at the end - say 20 to 30 minutes. Internal temp should be around 145 according to USDA - let it rest covered for 10/15 min.

 

 

 

stike

don't brine with pink salts.  no need to try to turn it into a ham.

given the time you have, you'd have an inch or so of ham surrounding a pork roast. if that is what you want, however, it won't hurt the meat.

1.5 days brining will not brine the entire roast, or overbrine it.  the brine won't have enough time to make it through the entire piece, let alone overdo it.

i guess i would ask: do you want ham, or do you want a roasted leg of pork?  because you don't have enough time to properly cure it and make it a ham. but if you want flavor in the roast by brining (as opposed to brine-curing, which is a different thing), then go ahead and do it, certainly.  you'll have plenty of time to add flavor. it won't brine the whole thing though, and adding pink salts will only partially cure the exterior.  that will change the color and texture and piquancy.  it looks odd, but won't wreck anything.

i've done it myself. wasn't a short cure time, i just had insufficient pink salts.  only got about an inch and a half deep into the roast.

you'd be safe to eat at 140 or so (but it will be a softer pork roast texture, not a firm hammy texture).  taking it off at 150 will mean the thing cruises to 155-160 while resting.  that's flirting with overcooking. it would still be moist when you served it though. the leg roast will have portions of lighter white (like a loin) and dark meat, which looks odd if a person is used to pork chops and loin/tenderloin.

you don't need to brine if it is protection against overcooking ("adding moisture"), because you can simply decide not to over cook it.

brine for flavor? sure.  brine for ham (curing)? not enough time.  brine for added moisture? sure, but not necessary.

i'd also (myself) be wary of taking a supposedly good-tasting hunk of pork (berkshire) and covering it up with added brine flavors.  but that's personal pref.

rodent

Personally, I would just roast it as a leg of pork. Berkshire has nice fat content and will be really tasty done to 165 (or a little less with pork today). Hard to get Berkshire where I am, lucky you.

stike

i agree with rodent.  rare treat, why muck with it? treat it like the roast it is. 

gdenby

If Berkshire pork is as fatty as I've read, brining will take longer than with standard pork, it at all. The brine solution doesn't pass through the fat.

A couple of years ago, I did a fresh organic ham with just a maple glaze. 350, drip pan, cook till 150. My MIL said it was the best pork she had tasted since childhood.

Squeezy

If you guys took the time to check the date posted, you would see it's already history.

stike

i don't bother with that.  if someone kicks a post to "latest posts" by replying, i'm not gonna track down the original date and time.

Little Steven

I doubt that the validity of the information has changed in the last couple of weeks

Squeezy

Excuse me ...

Shwiezzee

@Tweev- how the hell did you remember that? BOZO, is he a clown "YES he's a clown" 

LMAO I had forgot this.

stike

thanks for the meme-eries.