Pork Loin for Newbie

Bobby Que

We just moved to a townhouse in the mouth of Tampa Bay on a tiny island. After years of grilling with Webber kettles, and gas grills. we left the Weber gas grill at our old house[p]After much debate, and knowing that we had a natural gas outlet right behind my BBQue spot on my small porch, my wife and I decided to go BGE! We got a medium EGG with all the trimmings and a nice table for a it. It is nicely installed right outside of my kitchen area. [p]We have had it for about 5 days, and have cooked a chicken (at 350 degrees with pecan smoke for about 3 hours using Poldar to tell us when done, ribs at 200 degrees with Pecan smoke and a rub that was excellent, and 2 large thick NY strip sirloins at 750 degrees for 3 minutes per side with a 2+ minute dwell and no wood smoke. All these were excellent and better than any of our previous "gaseous" efforts.[p]We have a 3# boneless tied pork loin marinating overnight in what we in Tampa call a Mojo marinade. This is a commercial sour orange marinade that is used by the Cuban population here for roast pork. Now to my question. Would you recommend slow or fast cookin, direct or indirect, with wood chips or not (and if yes- what kind?) for how long for either method (slow or fast).[p]We have been lurking on this forum from the day before we bought the BGE, and must compliment all contributors on the excellence of the posts.

RhumAndJerk

Bobby Que,
Mojo sounds awesome.
My first question would be how do Cuban’s cook Mojo. If the outside of the meat is crusted the cook the roast directly at 350 for about one to one and half hours until the internal temperature reaches 155.[p]If there is no crust on the meat, then cook indirect at 375 until the internal temp gets to 155.[p]As far a woodchips go, I would try a fruitwood probably, apple or guava or a mixture. I am totally unfamiliar with Cuban Mojo so I do not know if the flavor is smokey or not.[p]Give it a try and let us know how it turns out.[p]RhumAndJerk[p]

sprinter

Bobby Que,[p]Congrats on the purchase of the egg, you'll enjoy the food you cook on it.[p]I cook my pork loins direct for about an hour to an hour and 15 at 350, or until the internal is about 155. I like the crusted outside that the direct cooking gives the pork loin. If you want to try something good, next time brine the loin for a day or so and then cook it direct. The inside is wonderfully tender and the outside has the nice bark on it that I like.[p]Yours sounds pretty good. Let us know how you cook it and how it comes out. Good luck, welcome, and let us know what you're cooking. We can all learn from everyone, newbies and oldies alike.[p]Troy

Dr. Chicken

Bobby Que,
I cooked one Sunday evening. I marinated it over night in a "Blue Mountain" Thai marinade that I added Kikkoman's Teriyaki Baste and Claude's Brisket marinade too. In a ratio of 1/2 + 1/4 +1/4 . The results were fantastic! It was about 4 lbs and I cooked it over a water pan filled 50:50 with water and marinade @ 300 degrees for about 2hrs. I let the polder tell me when it was done. I pulled it off the Egg at 160 degrees internal, wrapped it in foil and let it set for 15 to 20 minutes. I used pecan wood for the smoke (just got some on Sunday) and like I said, it was fantastic!!! In fact, it was so good, we are thinking of fixing it for my In-law's 54th anniversary at the end of this month! Hope yours turns out as well![p]Cheers! Dr. Chicken

Gfw

Dr. Chicken, FYI: just found Kikkoman's Soy Sauce at Sam's Club in big (2 qt containers) containers. Bought a few!

Dr. Chicken

Gfw,
Thanks Gordon! I'm headed to Sam's this weekend to stock up on some stuff. I'll check it out![p]Dr. C

Bobby Que

Thanks all for rapid and helpful replies.[p]The Mojo I am using is a sour orange based marinade. I will try to find a recipe (?) for it (mine is a commercial product widely sold here in Florida).[p]At this moment, I think I will cook the roast direct over a drip pan on a vee-rack at 350 degrees. I may not use smoke as I do not want to overpower the Mojo? Maybe a touch of pecan?[p]This forum is super. Will post followup after tonight's repast.[p]

Bobby Que

I did a quick search for "Mojo" on the web and turned up lots of recipes for this marinade/sauce. Sour oranges are hard to find so I am including two recipes that use lime/lemon/vinegar to get the sour effect. [p] 1. Mojo marinade
Ingredients: 1/3 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup orange juice
1/3 cup white vinegar
1 oz. salt
1 oz. peppercorns
2 oz. annato seeds (soaked in warm water for 2 hours)
15 cloves garlic
10 allspice berries
2 serrano peppers (seeds removed)
1 bunch cilantro [p]Directions: Place all ingredients in blender and puree.
NOTE: Annato seeds are from the Achiote plant and are available at
Mexican groceries or specialty groceries.[p]2.Mojo Marinade and Sauce
Juice of 3 large oranges (approximately 1-1/2 cups)
Juice of 2 large limes
6 tablespoons olive oil
1/3 cup minced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons minced fresh oregano
1 teaspoon salt [p]The roast pork here in Tampa is usually done in the oven with a nice crust. [p]Hope this is of interest to some of you.

Bobby Que

The Mojo Pork Roast was delicious.