As you can see from my other recipes, pork loins are a family favorite. They can be a bit touchy to get done evenly without becoming tough. So this made it a candidate for a sous vide cooking experiment. After some research I decided on an overnight brine and
Prepare the brine
1/2 c brown sugar
2/3 c cider vinegar
1/6 c salt
4 cloves garlic crushed
1TB black peppercorns crushed
2 tsp Colman’s mustard powder
1 TB shaved fresh ginger
1 1/3 c water
Mix brine and immerse the roast in it overnight (5 PM to 8 Am). At this point, the outer 1/2″ of the roast was a much lighter color presumably due to the acid of the vinegar.
The next day vacuum bag with :
1/4 c prepared mustard
1TB chopped candied ginger
6 sprigs fresh thyme
2 tsp ground allspice or 10 berries crushed could have gone in the brine instead
3 TB honey
Place in water bath at 140F for 4 hours
Brown on grill briefly (very hot fire) . 5 min per side with your favorite barbeque sauce. WIth this attempt the outside is flaking off in the tongs – schnibbles for the chef and helper.
Juices from the bag made an excellent gravy but wold be too hot from the peppercorns for Teal (the black pepper flavor was MUCH srtonger in the juice than in the meat.
Defintely a basis for more experimentation to try to perfect the recipe. The leftovers are going to be great for sandwiches during the week.
Mark Bronkalla