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"Hammy" Pork Tenderloin

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jzcc
jzcc Posts: 123
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
For years I have baked infused cryo-pac tenderloins in the oven with great success. Yet when I used the same spices on the same type of meat and recently grilled it on the Egg, it turned hammy. Could someone please explain why? I've read on the forum that this could/would happen, but no one has offered an explanation. Is it due to smoke from the lump or spices I used (garlic, salt, pepper, fresh rosemary)? I'd sure love to know what I did wrong so as to avoid ruining another piece of meat!

Jeri
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  • thirdeye
    thirdeye Posts: 7,428
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    Usually the impression of hamminess (Oh boy, it that even a word?) is a result of using enhanced meat, meaning the producer has injected a bunch of liquid which contains some natural ingredients and may contain chemicals to help preserve, tenderize, moisturize, flavorize and have a longer shelf life. By law, this injection has to be on the label, but it's usually in the small print.

    But all you are doing is taking the same product and just cooking it differently.... Grilling is hotter than baking, but as long as the internal meat temperature is the same when you pull each one they should be about the same.
    Happy Trails
    ~thirdeye~

    Barbecue is not rocket surgery
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  • Little Chef
    Little Chef Posts: 4,725
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    Jeri: There is something missing from this equation. Something else was different than what you are explaining from the oven. Did you duplicate what you do in the oven, or did you add smoke and cook lower? We always do our tenderloins direct, and pull at an internal of about 132*, then rest (internal temp continues to climb to 140 or so). The "hammy" reference usually happens if rubs/salts are applied too early. Would like to know the method/temp/wood(?) used.... We have cooked bunches of tenderloins, and never had a singal one...well..."Hammy". More info please?
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  • gdenby
    gdenby Posts: 6,239
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    Here's a guess. And just a guess.

    When meat is baked in an oven, much of the moisture is drawn out. I would expect the "infusions" would be drawn to the surface, with some evaporating, and some dripping off. Because the Egg retains moisture better than an oven, more of the infusion remains in the meat. I would guess the infusion has a fair amount of salt, and maybe some other preservatives, which would give a stronger flavor while they acted on the warming meat.

    Try an un-infused tenderloin. Or infuse it yourself with an injection that is just flavored by herbs and spices.
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  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
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    hammy taste or hammy color?

    the pink ring is flavorless, but pretty, and is caused by thenitrites in smoke. nitrite is what cures ham, so the texture and color of the outer quarter inch would be ham-like. slightly more piquant, but no added true 'flavor' (other than some smoke flavor from the lump).
    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
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  • fishlessman
    fishlessman Posts: 32,758
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    when you say infused are you talking marinated or solution added, i cant stand solution added pork, especially with ribs. try and find one without it and cook again and beware that supermarkets repackage meat and are not required to mention the solution added on their own label
    fukahwee maine

    you can lead a fish to water but you can not make him drink it
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  • jzcc
    jzcc Posts: 123
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    Thirdeye, We've never grilled a pork tenderloin before. I thought the end result would be the same as in the oven, but it most definitely wasn't. Perhaps we just got a bad piece of meat. We'll try it again. Everything else has been wonderful.

    BTW, we LOVE our new wiggle rod. Thanks so much!
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  • jzcc
    jzcc Posts: 123
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    LC, I wish I could tell you exactly what we did, but I can't find my notes. I did duplicate what I do in the oven, but Cary had trouble getting the Egg up to temp, so it did sit prepped for 30 minutes or so until he got it stabilized. We cooked direct w/o wood, turning every couple of minutes until internal temp of 135* and nicely browned. After resting, I cut into it and it was a mushy red -- definitely still raw. Returned it to the Egg and cooked to 170 just to be on the safe side.

    Maybe I had a bad piece of meat, maybe it sat too long salted, I don't know. It just didn't taste right and we ended up tossing it. Your thoughts?
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  • jzcc
    jzcc Posts: 123
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    All good thoughts and make sense. If the infused saline remained in the tenderloin in addition to what I added on the surface, that could have produced what we thought was a hammy taste.
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  • jzcc
    jzcc Posts: 123
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    Definitely hammy taste. I wondered if the injection could have had a chemical reaction from the smoke. At any rate, I will never buy one that has been infused again -- all natural for us in the future!
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  • jzcc
    jzcc Posts: 123
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    Not marinated, infused. And it was purchased at a supermarket, clearly notated that it was infused albeit in small print that I didn't notice until after the fact. A mistake that I'll never make again!

    Many thanks to you and the others to responding to my question.
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