Newby Pork Chops

[smokininthewind]

Hi all. Thought I'd try boneless pork chops. Why not? I don't have much experience as an excuse not to try them.

I used a rib rub on mustard as my prep. They smoked in my MES at around 200* for a couple of hours.

The results were nice appearance, only slightly drier meat than I wanted, and a slight, smoky flavor.

Whatd'ya think? Should I not try this avenue again?

P.S.: My wife's comment on the pic was that, if I want to make food photography as a post-retirement career, I'd better think about including a garnish for presentation!

 

[pineywoods]

Such a thin cut its kinda hard to keep them from drying out. I have thought about trying to brine some but don't know if that would help since I haven't tried it

 

[lcruzen]

I think that particular cut would benefit from an over night marinade as it is pretty lean. Maybe add a little of your rub into some olive oil and red wine vinegar. Sure does look good though.

 

[bb53chevpro]

They look great. What was the internal temp when they were finished? Maybe in the smoker too long. Maybe brine them the next time like Jerry said.

 

[smokininthewind]

Internal temp was 160*. My understanding is that much below that, you risk tricky noses.

 

[fatback joe]

Unless you are talking wild game or something that is pretty much a thing of the past. You are safe stopping lower with store bought meat.

 

[smokininthewind]

Just how low can or should you go with store-bought pork?

 

[Dutch]

Piney, I've brined pork chops before and had some nice moist chops. I usually brine them for 4 hours. I have a Foodsaver Marinade container that I use so it kind of speeds thing up. If I didn't have the Marinade container, I'd brine them for about 8 hours. If I was doing a whole loin, I'd brine it over night.

In the latest Food Saftey class I attended, the instructor stated that the USDA/FDA folks lowered the temps on inspected pork to 145*. On uninspected pork I would take up to 160*.

 

[fatback joe]

I usually stop around 145 or so.

 

[jbchoice1]

you can always do an injection also.