I picked up a set of whole pork loins at Pak 'n Save the other day for like twelve bucks, and being on dinner duty tonight I thought it was time to fire up the smoker. But just last night we'd had a Chicken Tikka Masala which cleaned out our garlic stocks ... what to do?

After a bit of dithering, I made a simple low-garlic rub and it turned out good enough that I'm documenting it here!

Outta Garlic Pork Rub

• 1 tbsp salt
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tbsp Cajun seasoning mix (this had garlic in it)
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• 1 tbsp ground coriander
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tbsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tbsp chilli flakes
• 1/2 tbsp turmeric

I covered a plate in the rub, then on a different board I sprinkled rub all over the tops of the pork, placed them rub-side-down on the plate-o-rub, and covered the remaining surfaces. I still have probably 2 tbsp of rub left, so I must have used 7 tbsp in total.

Into the fridge for about two hours, and then onto the smoker! I did it over pecan wood until it reached about 60°C, and then boated it in a 50/50 mix of apple juice and ginger beer until it hit an internal temp of 71°C. Then I let it sit for about 30 minutes before we sat down to dinner!

Reflections:

• I was in a rush this time - no low & slow here. I really want to try it again over much lower heat.
• I think it was a bit overcooked... 71°C is a bit hot for pork. Next time I'll pull it off at 65°C and let it sit for a bit longer.

Overall, it still got a great score from the rest of the fam (in fact, they're the reason I've recorded this recipe here)!