I decided to make Tasso with the chunk that was left. I sliced it into three pieces, coated with Dijon mustard and as much Bone Suckin rub seasoning as they would hold. I covered with saran wrap & in the fridge over night. Tasso is highly smoked, highly seasoned pork to use in soups & gumbos. To me it wasn’t that hot, I would put it between mild & medium. I could stand more heat.
I smoked it for 2 ½ hours then went to 180 deg. to finish. Smoke mode held good at 165 to 175 deg. & had good smoke. It took 3 ½ hours total to get it to 150 deg. IT. I turned the Tasso when I went to 180 deg. & spritzed it a few times with a mix of a cup water, 1 Tbs. of red wine vinegar, 1 Tbs. Worcestershire & 1 Tbs. olive oil during the cook.
For soups & gumbos I think it is better to use pork shoulder for Tasso to get some fat in it but if you want it to snack on loin is good. It’s about like eating moist pork jerky.
When we ate my stuffed loin I didn’t think I had a smoke ring at all even though it had a mild hickory taste. When I sliced into a piece of the Tasso to taste there it was almost through the 1 ½ inch slice. You can see it in the sliced photo, pink & not the darker color I am used to. You could taste the hickory smoke in the Tasso, a little mild but just right for the wife & I. We are not heavy smoked meat lovers. If I had looked at the loin closer it was probably there.
The pellets burned good & I thought was giving off more smoke than I usually get even thought it turned out to be on the mild side. Like most Traeger owners that want more smoke taste you would need to use added smoke from a Smoke Daddy or an Amazen smoker. For me they were good as is.
The Tasso was so good I ate the whole piece! I still have two pieces left to save for soup or Gumbo.
The seasoned loin redy for the fridge
Done smoking
Sliced
Smokin Don
What was the initial temp setting before the 180 setting?
ReplyDeleteThat was so long ago but it must have been 170 deg.
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