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Cider Brined Smoked Pork Chops
Cider Brined Smoked Pork Chops
This recipe is a much improved version of the cider brined pork chops that we used to sell on my meat team. As always, I recommend using a bone-in pork chop that is at least 1” thick. 1.5”-2” is even better. Brine the chops in a simple mix of cider, salt, and brown sugar for 4 hours. Pat them dry and season them with a thick coating of the dry rub. Let the chops rest for an hour at room temperature before smoking.Preheat your smoker to 250 degrees. I used applewood and pecan wood chips for the smoking process. Both work great with pork. Maintain the smoking temperature between 225-250 degrees. At the 90 minute mark of smoking, use a probe thermometer to monitor the internal temperature. You want the thermometer to read 150 degrees. Depending on the size of your pork chops, they could be done now or need another 30 minutes of smoking. Once finished, let rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Equipment
- Electric Smoker
- Probe Thermometer
Ingredients
- 6 bone in pork chops 1” thick
Cider Brine
- 1/2 gallon apple cider
- 1/2 cup sea salt
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
Dry Rub
- 2 tbsp paprika
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
Wood Chips
- applewood chips
- pecan wood chips
Instructions
- Mix the brining ingredients together.
- Brine the pork chops in a gallon sized storage bag for 4 hours.
- Pat the chops dry with paper towel. Season with the dry rub on both sides of the pork chop. Let rest at room temperature for an hour before smoking.
- Preheat your smoker to 250 degrees. Throw in your pork chops. Monitor the internal temperature with a probe thermometer 90 minutes into smoking. The pork needs to read 150 degrees. The chops could be done at this point. They also might need another 30 minutes of smoking.
- Let the pork rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Shan Noodles
Shan Noodles
While this looks just like a spaghetti sauce over rice noodles, the flavors are very different. Shan noodles is like a Burmese version of a bolognese. The addition of chili powder(I used Kashmiri), ginger, soy sauce, and the garnishes(peanuts, green onions, and pork rinds) compliments the hearty tomato sauce. Shan noodles are typically served with pickled mustard greens and chickpea tofu.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 lb ground pork or chicken
- 1 large onion chopped
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- 2 tbsp ginger minced
- 2 tbsp chili powder
- 3 large tomatoes chopped
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 lb dry rice noodles prepared according to package
Garnish
- peanuts crushed
- green onions chopped
- pork rinds
Instructions
- Heat up vegetable oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat. Sauté the onions, garlic, and ginger for 8 minutes.
- Add in the chili powder and fry for another minute.
- Add in the ground meat. Cook for 8 minutes until cooked through.
- Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste, soy sauce, and sugar.
- Turn the heat to medium. Simmer for 15 minutes.
Smoked Chicken Tacos
Smoked Chicken Tacos
Tacos are always a great idea when thinking of what to eat. I happened to have some chicken thighs and felt that it was taco time. I wanted to do a little more then just chop the thighs up and sauté them. So I smoked them. They don’t need to be brined, but I recommend marinating the thighs overnight for optimal flavor. Smoke the thighs at 250 degrees for 2 hours until the thighs reach 180 degrees internal temperature.
Equipment
- Electric Smoker
- Probe Thermometer
Ingredients
- 3 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
Dry Rub
- 1 tbsp guajillo chili powder
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp Mexican oregano
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp black pepper
Smoked Chicken Tacos
- corn tortillas
- white onion/green onion/cilantro mix
- smoked salsa
Wood Chips
- mesquite wood chips
Instructions
- Mix the dry rub ingredients together.
- Coat the chicken thighs in vegetable oil. Season with all of the dry rub. Marinate overnight for best result.
- Let the chicken thighs rest at room temp for an hour before smoking.
- Preheat your smoker to 250 degrees. Smoke the chicken thighs for 2 hours until they reach an internal temperature of 180 degrees.
- Let the thighs rest for 15 minutes before chopping.
- Dice the chicken thighs.
Smoked Salsa
Why not smoke the ingredients that go into a salsa? If I’m making smoked carnitas tacos, I have plenty of time to smoke jalapeños, tomatoes, onions, and garlic. I think I’ll keep smoking and continue to come up with these great ideas. Smokedy, smokedy, smokedy…Also, this salsa will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Equipment
- Electric Smoker
- food processor
Ingredients
- 5 Roma tomatoes
- 1 head garlic left whole
- 1 medium white onion peeled; sliced in half horizontally
- 4 jalapeños
- 1/4 cup cilantro
- 4 tbsp vinegar
- 1/2 tsp salt
Wood Chips
- hickory wood chips
- pecan wood chips
Instructions
- Arrange the vegetables on the smokers rack.
- Preheat the smoker to 225 degrees according to the manufacturer’s directions. Place the rack in the smoker.
- The garlic and onions will take 2 hours to smoke. The tomatoes and jalapeños will take 4 hours. Let cool before pureeing.
- Place all of the ingredients in a food processor. Make sure to peel the garlic.
- Blend until it reaches the consistency of your liking.
