SMOKED 10-RIB PORK ROAST
Sponsored by Primo Ceramic Grills. My words are my own because I absolutely love my Primo Grill!
WHAT'S ON YOUR MENU THIS FALL?
My tribe is craving festive Fall side dishes, apple pie, and of course, show-stopping smoked turkeys, prime rib, and pork rib roasts! So let’s make it happen, one roast at a time!
Smoking a tender and flavorful pork rib roast is a crowd pleasing, especially at the holidays. Start with a warm spice citrus brine then add a Fall inspired rub which includes chili powder, cinnamon, and clove. Onward to tossing hickory and cherry wood into the Primo Grill for an extra tasty smoked infusion. Don’t forget your Fall favorite side dishes like smoked apple and sausage stuffing, butternut squash, and mashed potatoes. You're ready for a smoky Fall feast!
My Primo Grill XL 400 does an outstanding job of infusing smoke, low and slow into large pork or beef roasts. With two-zone heat I can develop a charred crust with a hot fire finish! Primo Grill allows for indirect and direct cooking making a delicious 10-rib pork roast quite easy to achieve.
WHAT IS THE ADVANTAGE OF TWO-ZONE COOKING METHOD
Primo Ceramic Grills are designed to create two distinct cooking zones. On half of the grill you grill directly over hot Primo Lump Charcoal. The other half of the grill provides cooler indirect heat with or without a deflector plate. This two-zone cooking method gives you far more control over the doneness of grilled and smoked proteins and produce. The indirect heat delivers smoky, super moist meat due to the low slow cooking time, thanks to the indirect zone. The direct heat allows you to cook directly over the hot embers to create that char on the outside of meats, vegetables, and fruit.
HOW TO SET UP TWO-ZONE HEAT
My favorite and most frequent way to cook on the Primo XL is definitely two-zone cooking. Simply, fill one side of the grill with Primo Lump Charcoal (the direct side). Leave the other side of the ceramic grill bowl empty (the indirect side). It is handy to use the Primo deflector racks and deflector plates to regulate two-zone heat. Please head over to the Primo University webpage to view a two-zone cooking tutorial video.
I highly suggest reading over Primo Grill recipes when begin your Primo adventure!
Plus, take advantage of the tutorial videos on Primo Grills webpage. I watched all of the Primo videos a few times when I first started smoking meats.The videos helped me to understand how to set up for indirect and direct heat, and the technique of low and slow cook versus hot and fast! After the videos, with a solid smoking foundation, I was confident to play around and have some flavorful fun with my Primo Ceramic Grill.
WHAT IS A PORK RIB ROAST
Pork Rib Roast comes from the rib end of the loin. What makes it so tender and juicy is that it has a bit more fat than some other cuts of pork. You can ask your butcher to cut and reserve a 5 to 10-rib pork roast. To calculate how many ribs you need simply figure 1 rib per serving. One pork rib chop is about 1-inch thick and provides a hardly portion. I love to smoke 10-ribs because it is impressive plus the leftovers are easy and versatile!
HOW TO SERVE PORK RIB ROAST
A pork rib roast has a few names: rack of pork, 8-rib pork roast,10-rib pork roast, pork crown roast, or crown of pork roast. No matter the name nor the style you serve a pork rib roast is definitely a showstopper! Don't you think, my line up of sliced pork chops with fluffy mashed potatoes and veggies is eye-catching? Or serve the rack of pork on roasted veggies and slice it at the table for oohs and aahs.
If you really want to impress family and friends go for the ultimate showstopper the Crown of Pork Roast. With a few attempts, you form the rack of pork chops into a circular crown; so fancy! Hint: Ask your butcher to prepare your crown pork roast so all you do is smoke it!
WHAT SIDE DISHES ARE TASTY WITH SMOKED PORK
Don’t you find side dishes are seasonal? In Fall, I love to make comforting dishes liked Smoked Apple and Sausage Stuffing, Maple Sriracha Butternut Squash and of coarse Merry’s Magical Mashed Potatoes. A fresh green salad is needed for contrasting freshness and texture!
WHAT TO DO WITH PORK RIB ROAST LEFTOVERS
Last time I made a 10-rib pork roast. I transformed leftovers into scrumptious Salsa Verde Pork Enchiladas. I have also used pork leftovers for black bean pork burritos. The pork burritos can be frozen! Of course, you can simply reheat the pork rib roast the following day, in the microwave, and serve warm on mashed potatoes or stuffing.
WHAT WOOD CHUNKS ARE BEST FOR PORK RIB ROAST
I love to smoke pork rib roast with hickory and cherry wood chunks. Common wood for smoking pork roasts are sweet and mild woods such as apple, maple, and pecan. Have some smoky fun and experiment by combining maple and apple wood chunks or pecan and cherry! Do remember that you can smoke with only Primo Lump Charcoal for a subtle smokiness that's simply delish!
HOW TO SMOKE A 10-RIB PORK ROAST
The beauty of smoking a pork rib roast is that it is hands off after you do a few simple steps:
Step 1
Trim your 8 or 10-rib pork roast, if needed. Go figure, my pork roast had 11 ribs, and only the bones needed a clean up.
Step 2
Make a crosshatch diagonal cut on the fat of the pork rib roast to allow a deeper penetration of the marination.
Step 3
Brine the pork 3-5 days ahead. During the holidays, I love this recipe because the brining process can be made days ahead.
Step 4
Rinse the pork roast, and combine a few spices to make a rub. Now give that pork a little flavor boost massage. The rub can be made days ahead too!
Step 5
Light up your Primo Ceramic Grill for two-zone cooking. For a video on Primo Two-Zone Cooking head click this PRIMO GRILL LINK.
Step 6
For a flavor boost toss in hickory and cherry wood chunks. Pssst if you don’t have wood chunks the scrumptious flavor of Primo Lump Charcoal will be just fine!
Step 7
Smoke the pork roast over indirect heat and finish over hot direct heat.
Let’s Get Smoking
SMOKED 10-RIB PORK ROAST
INGREDIENTS:
For the Brine:
1 (8 to 10-rib) pork roast
6 quarts cold water, divided
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cups pure maple syrup
3/4 cup sea salt or kosher
1 tablespoon Juniper berries
1 tablespoon whole cloves
1/2 tablespoon ground mustard
1/2 tablespoon black peppercorns
3 cinnamon sticks
2 oranges, zest one orange, slice one orange
1 pound ice
For the Fall Inspired Rub:
1 tablespoon canola oil or preferred cooking oil
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons sea salt or kosher
2 tablespoons smoked paprika
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon ground mustard
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon granulated garlic
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
Optional Side Dishes:
Smoked Apple Stuffing. Smoky Butternut Squash. Mashed Potatoes!
Smoking Wood Chunks: 2 Hickory wood chunks and 2 Cherry wood chunks
Quick Info
Serves: 8 -10
Brine Time: 1 to 5 days
Pork Internal Temperature: 145°F
Season: Especially nice for Fall and Winter Holidays
Category: Pork
PREPARATION INSTUCTION
1. Prepare the Pork: Trim off any excess fat with a knife. Use a blunt knife under the membrane found on the inside surface of the rib bones, and lift up. Grab the membrane with your fingers and rib membrane off by pulling it down the ribcage. Hint: Use the same method for removing membrane as you do for a rack of ribs. Crosshatch the fat on the pork by cutting diagonally in two directions.
2. Prepare the Brine: Make brine by combining 1 quart water, brown sugar, maple syrup, sea salt, Juniper berries, cloves, black peppercorns, cinnamon sticks in a pasta pot. Bring to a boil, and stir until sugar and salt dissolve. Add 5 quarts of cold water, and stir to blend. Let brine cool 1 hour before transferring to a large marination bag or container.
3. Brine the Pork: Place prepared pork roast into brine and marinade 3-5 days for optimum flavor infusion. After marination time, remove pork from brine; discard brine. Rinse pork for 2 1/2 minutes then rinse again! Yes, rinsing the pork for 5 minutes is extremely important to avoid over saltiness.
4. Rub the Pork: Pat pork dry with paper towels. Rub pork with 1 tablespoon canola oil. Mix brown sugar and salt with all remaining spices, and massage onto all sides of pork rib roast.
5. Wrap the Bones: Wrap foil around each bone, if desired, to prevent over browning, Set spiced pork rib roast, on a rack, with wax paper underneath, and air dry for 2 hours.
6. Prepare Grill: Fill one half of the fire box with Primo Lump Charcoal. Wedge 1 or 2 Primo Quick Light starter cubes in the charcoal, and light on fire. Wait 5-10 minutes for the charcoal to build a small bed of embers. Close the dome, and fully open the draft door on the bottom. Adjust the top vent as the thermometer begins to reach 220°F. Once the temperature has reached 225°F, close the top vent to one-third open. Add 3-4 smoking chips. Insert heat deflector rack and plate. Wait 2 minutes for the temperature to stabilize. Increase or decrease the airflow on the top vent as needed to retain 250°F or as low as 225°F.
COOKING INSTRUCTION
Place pork rib roast on indirect side of grill.
Close lid and cook, fat side up, on a rack on top of a quarter sheet pan. Pour water into the sheet pan. Smoke pork rib rack for 4 hours, or until internal temperature has reached 120°F to 125°F. The pork has not finished cooking at this point.
Remove pork from grill, and set aside. Increase grill temperature to 450°F by opening the draft vents and the daisy vent.
Once the grill is extremely hot, brown the pork roast on all sides, over direct heat, about 3 minutes per side. If the pork rib roast is sufficiently browned but has not reached 145°F place it back over indirect heat to finish cooking.
Remove pork roast from grill when the internal target temperature range reaches 142°F to 145°F.
Rest pork rib roast for 20-30 minutes before slicing between the bones to create individual chops for your guests. Make sure to plate your smoky 10-Rib Pork Rib Roast with lots of pretty garnishes and side dishes. Enjoy!
