Bacon Wrapped, Pork Loin Chops
Tired of the same old pork chops, I thought I would do them on the grill, bacon wrapped, and seasoned with a dry rub. I used a mixture of charcoal briquettes and charcoal. The briquettes last longer and the charcoal adds that campfire flavor to any of your grilling recipes, while the bacon addes the taste of smoked hickory. Marinating them for 2 days in the Orange Juice Brine before adding the dry rub, provided the hint of orange flavor, and helped to create a real moist grilled pork chop recipe.
Be sure to use a lot of Butt Kickin' Blacken, my seasoning blend, on the meat. It will lose almost all of the heat during the long cooking process. For me, I began taking the cooked pork chops off the grill after 45 minutes, and the last was taken off at about 65 minutes. Cooking time really depends upon both the temperature of your grill, and the thickness of the chop.
This recipe is really simple with little chance of messing it up. About the only way is to grill at too high a temperature, and to cook the meat to a temperature over 145 degrees. Both are ways to dry out the meat. I'm sure you'll find that this way of cooking seasoned pork chops is one of the best ways of cooking a pork tenderloin.
- 4 Pounds Whole Pork Loin
Marinade:
- 4 Large Oranges, zest and juice
- 1/4 Cup Cider Vinegar
- 1 Large Lemon, zest and juice
- 4 Cloves Garlic, grated
- 1/4 cup Butt Kickin' Blacken, Original Recipe
- Butcher's Twine
- 8 Slices Thick-sliced Bacon
- Vegetable Oil, as needed
- Butt Kickin' Blacken, Original Recipe, as needed
- Coarse Kosher Salt, as needed
The day before:
1. Trim the fat and silver skin from the pork loin, then cut it into 8 equal pieces. Each chop should be 1 1/4" - 1 1/2" thick. If your pork loin isn't large enough, you may get only 6 pieces out of it. The thick chops, will end up more tender and moist after they've been cooked on the grill.
2. Mix up the ingredients for the marinade. Then, place the pork chops, and the marinade into a plastic bag. Set this in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours, but you could leave it as long as 48 hours without harming the chops.
1. Trim the fat and silver skin from the pork loin, then cut it into 8 equal pieces. Each chop should be 1 1/4" - 1 1/2" thick. If your pork loin isn't large enough, you may get only 6 pieces out of it. The thick chops, will end up more tender and moist after they've been cooked on the grill.
2. Mix up the ingredients for the marinade. Then, place the pork chops, and the marinade into a plastic bag. Set this in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours, but you could leave it as long as 48 hours without harming the chops.
3. Cut the butcher's twine into lengths that will go around each chop, with a bunch additional length. Make sure you cut a couple of extra strings, because you might drop one or two on the floor like I usually do.
4. Wrap the bacon around each chop, then tie with the twine.
5. Set them on a platter, drizzle with the oil, put a heavy dusting of blacken and a little Kosher Salt on each chop, and rub it in well. Turn them over, and do the other side.
Ron' Note:
If you notice that the seasoning isn't pasty after you've applied it to the chops, just add a little more oil.
If you notice that the seasoning isn't pasty after you've applied it to the chops, just add a little more oil.
6. Cook over a fairly low fire, on the grill. Mine was on for about 50 minutes this time. Cook to an internal temperature of 140 - 145 degrees, with an instant read meat thermometer. When each is done, place on a platter and cover with aluminum foil to rest. I found that I took 4 off the first go-round, then gave it another five minutes. As they cook, you'll feel them begin to firm up. If they're still squishy, they probably aren't done yet.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this recipe, or any other of my recipes you've either looked at or tried.
- Whether or not you like this recipe and why.
- How you'd like to see it different.
- Suggestions for new recipes I could post.
- Recipes you've made using Butt Kickin' Blacken.
Bacon Wrapped, Pork Loin Chops
2. To Re-heat:
Place in a Teflon fry pan, along with 2 tablespoons of water. Cook over medium low heat for about 12 minutes. Thsi dish will taste just as good 3 days later, as it did the first time you cooked it.
