May 06 2013
I made my first one from a half boneless loin last Thanksgiving. I thought it was really good. This time I did a whole loin cut in thirds.
I first read about Kassler ham at wedlinydomowe.pl/en/ a forum about homemade sausage making. The recipe was by member Bubba. I ask him and he said it was fine to post his recipe. Thanks Bubba!
I had never heard of Kassler or Kasseler ham so I did some research. It is one German cured meat that never gained popularity here in the US but is still widely available in Germany. I could not find many recipes; most just looked like a copy of Bubba’s recipe. If you do a bone in loin it is called Kasseler Rippchen.
I liked the taste of it, I thought a little milder and less salty than a regular ham. Using a boneless loin makes it easy to slice up and save.
I was thinking I had brined the first one for 3 ½ days so went with 5 days on this one. I discovered I had only done the first one for 2 ½ days and maybe should have just done 4 days. I have to remember that I don’t remember as well as I used to!
I had one pot that just held the loins so the one gallon of brine was enough. After five days brining I rinsed and dried well then in the fridge overnight to air dry.
I got the loins on my smoker with the Amazin tube filled with 100% apple wood for an hour and half cold smoke. I removed the loins and lit my smoker on smoke mode. I went to 225 deg. and put the loins back on. I was using Traeger oak pellets, I wanted alder but my dealer did not have any. I was getting too large of temp swings at 225 so went back to smoke mode P-0 and held 225 deg. pretty close for the rest of the cook. This gave me 240 to 250 deg. at grill level.
It took 2 ½ hours for the two roasts on the right side, the hottest side on my Treager and about 25 min. longer for the other one. I double wrapped in saran wrap and foil then in my oven to rest for an hour. I then removed to cool some and in the fridge for two days.
Tomorrow I will slice and get some vacuum packed to freeze. Tomorrow’s supper will be Kassler mit Kraut, mashed potatoes, and fried spaetzel. I hope I didn’t brine it too long.
The Loin
Brine ingredients
The brine
Loins in brine
Ready for the smoker
After cold smoke
About done
Thick slice
Thin slice
Recipe:
Kasseler German pork loin
Ingredients
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"Brine"
4 liters (1 gallon) water
1 ½ cups kosher salt (1 cup)
1 ¼ cups sugar (¾ cup)
2 ¾ TBS pink salt
Fresh or dried sage leaves
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 T. juniper berries
1 tsp. coriander
garlic cloves
"Meat"
1 pork loin without back ribs, 4 - 5 pounds
"Equipment"
Alder or beech wood chips
Smoker or grill
Meat thermometer
How to make it
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Stir together the ingredients for the brine and heat to a simmer to dissolve all the salt and sugar. Refrigerate until completely cold.
Prepare the loin by removing all but a thin layer of fat. I recommend a loin, not a rib roast. Inject the loin with the brine. Place the loin in the brine and weight it down with a plate or other object to keep it submerged.
Refrigerate for 48 to 72 hours.
Remove the loin from the brine. Discard brine; wash off the pork with cold water and pat dry. You may dry it in the refrigerator for up to a day (do not cover with any wrap).
Prepare your smoker: Smoker temp at 250F; cook to 150 deg. IT. Double wrap in plastic wrap and double foil. Place in a cooler to rest for an hour. I preheat my oven to 200 deg. then turn off and let rest there. Remove and when cool enough place in the fridge for two days before using.
I cut back on the salt and sugar. Noted in parenthesis and added 3 bay leaves. Otherwise I followed the recipe.
Above is the original recipe.
