1 tsp smoked paprika
1/3 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp ground black and red pepper
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp brown sugar
Flat pork loin, cut into 6 boneless “ribs” about 4.5″ long, 1″ thick, 2″ high
1/2 cup beer
Soy Sauce, approx 3/4 tsp
I’ve long wanted to try a dry rub barbecue and tonight I decided to take the plunge.
First, the meat: Adams Fairacre Farms is probably my favorite NY market outside of Manhattan (in particular I like the Kingston market and found the produce and butcher to be a bit better than the Newburgh store). They cut their pork loin into flat boneless “ribs” which they call “family style”, and this is what I used tonight.
Next the dry rub: The spice measurements above are rough since I eyeballed proportions using a smallish kitchen spoon. I mixed the spices all together: paprika, pepper, cayenne, salt, brown sugar, cumin, ground coriander. If I had been less pressed for time (and trying to minimize cleanup), I probably would have blended it all together with a bay leaf as well. The measurements above were enough for the 6 smallish pieces of pork I was working with. I placed the rub in a baking dish and rubbed the pork pieces around until covered by the mix. I covered with plastic wrap and let marinate for about an hour on the counter (if longer, I would have placed back in fridge).
I then mixed about half a cup of beer (I was drinking an excellent summery brew from the Ommegang brewery in Cooperstown, NY – their Witte Ale) with about half or a full teaspoon of soy sauce and brought out to the grill in a small bowl with a teaspoon.
On the hot portion of the grill, I seared one side of the pork then quickly moved to a more moderate heat. When I flipped to a new side, I repeated this process of searing briefly then returning to moderate heat. I took my beer/soy liquid and, using the spoon, gently poured some liquid over the pork periodically as it grilled. I probably grilled the pork for about 15 to 20 minutes, removing from heat when firm.
It came out absolutely delicious, with the cayenne providing a little kick but not excessively so. We rounded out the meal with some corn, grilled mushrooms, and Lisl whipped up a wonderful arugula, basil, tomato and red onion salad, dressed with olive oil, white wine vinegar and grey poupon mustard. Our teenage niece is visiting from Sydney, Australia (Lisl is an ozzie ozzie ozzie) and the meal was a hit. Score one! The whole thing was pretty efficient to execute and clean up after, and given that both of us had to go back to work, score two!
