Praise the Loin! Dub Shack BBQ Smokes a Pork Loin

I’ve been wanting a good pork sandwich, er, sammich, around these parts and I’ve come to the realization that no one makes one better than I can. Will I ever get up off my butt and start selling on the side of the road like the OGs before me or get permission from one of the developers in town to lay claim to a part of their new parking lots for the sole purpose of sharing with everyone the gospel of great barbecue being 1) accessible to the people, and 2) affordable for families to keep coming back? It might just be a Springhill Park thing as the weather warms up – there is no way I would pay for the old grocery space a few blocks from the house because it would have me surrendering vacations and potentially retirement money if I eff it up. Even then, my neighbors have gotten so used to the smell of hickory, mesquite, post oak, cherry, or apple woods from my backyard that if I took that away from them, a third of the entire subdivision might show up in full riot gear at my front door – and we cannot allow that.

Guess which part of the pig just got smoked?

You may wonder the difference between the pork loin and the pork tenderloin and if the two terms are interchangeable: Well, I have the answer for you.

Our friends at All Recipes give us this explanation below:

A pork tenderloin is a long, narrow boneless cut of meat that comes from the muscle that runs along the backbone. A pork loin is wider and flatter and can be a boneless or bone-in cut of meat. Pork loin comes from the back of the pig.

I will do a pork tenderloin recipe one day but for today’s cook, I chose to focus on the pork loin. It is one of the easiest things I have found to cook when I need to feed a crew a lot of food for not much money, and it is a very versatile meat for frying, smoking, braising, roasting, grilling, and so forth. It was one of the most popular menu items last summer, so here is how your friendly pitmaster did it.

INGREDIENTS

Pork loin (can range anywhere from 7-12+ lbs.) – your favorite meat purveyor will show you the way

Mustard or olive oil as a binder

Rub of your choice

STEP ONE. After removing the loin from its cryo-vac packaging, be certain to rinse the phosphates and other things that make it look pretty in the meat bunker, and then trim the silver skin from it. That is the part that will not render and simply gets in the way of exceptional pork.

STEP TWO. Depending on your cooking vessel – I used my PK – light your fire. Regardless, get the smoker up to 250 degrees and set yourself up for indirect cooking. A water pan is optional to ensure the loin stays moist because Lord knows no one deserves dry pork, not even the people who like well-done steaks. Because the PK grills are the perfect size for grilling and present a small challenge for smoking, I sliced my loin in half. As for seasoning, I tend to love lemon pepper loin slices as they are neutral like Switzerland and go with almost anything for dinner like rice, quinoa, mixed vegetables, mashed potatoes, and so forth. Once the weapon reaches 250, bring out the pork!

STEP THREE. Lay the pork loin on the cooker and hang around for a bit. I would tell you to get a beer and perhaps even do some yard work. Recently Little Miss Sunshine asked me to stop drinking, so the time to acquiesce to full sobriety is upon me to lay off the sauce. As much as I like Miller Lite, I have come to the conclusion that I don’t drink beer as often as I used to – and I figured that once I finish the 12-pack in the refrigerator, that might be it. In addition, my own battle with diabetes also has a hand in giving up something I have enjoyed for half my life for the sake of my family. Therefore, I will no longer do the beer-to-time ratio made famous with earlier cooks. The loin is finished at 145 degrees instead of the 160 we were always told because meat temperatures do carry over some after they come off the grill and rest for a bit.

STEP FOUR. According to the USDA, pork can be served at 145 degrees – and that’s your prerogative regarding cooking style and audience. Most meats will tell you when they are done [ex. the bone slides out of Boston butts, or the disintegration of fat on ribs], but if 160 is your standard, hey, I understand. Bring the loin inside to rest for fifteen minutes before slicing as thick or as thin as desired:  In this case, I made sandwiches.

Assembling Cuban sandwiches like the guys in Miami, Tampa, and all parts of South Florida do it with a central Arkansas twist goes a little something like this:

With a sub roll, this guy began in this order:  a nice slathering of Dub Shack BBQ’s The Ancestors mustard sauce, enough slices of the lemon pepper-rubbed pork loin, salami, Swiss cheese, honey ham, a pickle spear, and more of The Ancestors. Due to the fact that I was heading to work, I did not toast it; do it until the cheese melts if time permits. Serve with a bag of Lay’s chips and a cold beverage of choice.

Fall asleep? Here is a second sandwich, localized to support the brothers from The Truth sauce. Their bottles can be found in most independent grocery stores and Edwards Food Giant throughout Arkansas.

With a fresh sub roll, the base layer is The Truth barbecue sauce. This time, I used a traditional barbecue rubbed loin, salami, Swiss cheese, honey ham, and another slathering of The Truth. Again, serve with a pickle spear and a bag of Lay’s chips.

Just so you know, #TheTruth sauce is real! Fool with it the next time you buy groceries! I won't steer you wrong! #supportblackbusinesses #shoplocal pic.twitter.com/NLq2KmUMMz

— A. Cedric Armstrong (@cedteaches) May 25, 2021

Make this your own – and if the pork slices were too thin, feel free to slice them thicker for pork chops. Have I fried them before? Not yet, but I think they would be awesome in the ‘smoke-a-fried’ style. Give this recipe a shot and whether it is mine or someone else’s chow, evangelize to the masses that every day is a GREAT day for barbecue! Stay blessed and safe out there!