Top Loin

[Habanero Smoker]

Has anyone tried smoking Top Loin. This is the cut of beef that New York Strip stakes are cut from. I just got a 9.5 pound piece, from the rib end, and plan on smoking half of it. Has anyone smoked a Top Loin. I'm planning on not tying it, and leaving it flat.

I'm figuring on smoking it at 250°F, until an internal temperature of 130°F-135°F.

[West Coast Kansan]

Never tried that piece but seems like the temp is pretty high. Do you have a reason for thinking 250? My prime rib experience has been 220. BTW at least with PR it seems to always be better smoke flavor the next day. Your cut would be denser so I dont know. Real interested in results!

[Wildcat]

Not with the Bradley, but I have smoked strips on my charcoal/wood smoker.  200 to 215 should be fine.  My preferred wood on these is oak, although hickory, mesquete, and pecan work fairly well.  They should come out with a beautiful rose/pink color.  One of my favorites.

[Habanero Smoker]

The recipe I am following is being modified from oven roasting, to roasting in a smoker. It calls for  trimming all fat and the removal of the thin layer of connective tissue on the surface of the meat. It will be covered with a rosemary/garlic paste.  I see no reason for low and slow, and I don't plan to apply that much smoke. So I thought I would roast it at the temperature the recipe has for oven roasting. I am planning on using oak.

[West Coast Kansan]

Will be lean. Getting it done quickly makes sense. In the oven would the roasting pan be covered in the recipe? It will be interesting to hear the result. I will try one in a couple of weeks when my schedule settles down. I will try a little different approach. Perhaps lower temp with smoke a little longer at the lower temp and then turn it up for a run to the finish.  Good luck, we can compare notes.

[asa]

Hab -
Top loin is my favorite cut of beef (best combination of flavor and tenderness). I have dry-aged it for 4-5 days prior to roasting in the oven (low and slow after searing the outside for flavor in a very hot skillet) to an internal temp of ~125 - 130 for the slightly rare side of med-rare; see discussion elsewhere about dry-aging. But I have never smoked it. I think if I were to try it, I might smoke it ahead of time at a relatively low temp, then on the day of serving, finish either whole on the grill or in the oven, or cut into 1.5-2" steaks to sear on the grill or in a cast iron skillet on the stove. Of course you could accomplish the entire cooking/roasting in the BS too. Please let us know what you do and how it turns out. Sounds like a great thing to try.

[Habanero Smoker]

The oven recipe calls for starting off with a 450°F oven for 15 minutes (which is to obtain the same results as Asa gets by shearing), then turning it down to 250°F. If I brown first, I may not get enough smoke flavor.

It is roasted uncovered. I've posted an link to show you how much this recipe requires you to trim off. The reason the magazine give for removing the thin layer of connective tissue under the fat; other then it is tough as the video states, it's because the connective tissue traps heat. This will cause the top half of the roast to cook much faster than the bottom half.

I'll post the results. I'm hoping to get to this tomorrow. Today is going to be too windy. The cut is too big for the tray, so I'm going to cut it in half. I'm going to watch this very closely. One mistake can be very costly.

This link should work. I don't believe you need to be a subscriber to Cuisine. The web only list more detailed techniques used in the printed recipes, not the actual recipe that is contained in the magazine. You may need Media Player for this video.

http://www.cuisineathome.com/main/videos/60-trimmingTopLoin.php

[West Coast Kansan]

Hab S thanks for the link. This should be fun to try - will be going against a few of my old rules but nothing ventured nothing gained! I think ... i think, i think ... I will toss the fat on a high rack just for some piece of mind when I ramp the temp up at the end.  I will keep it low temp with smoke for two hours and then a little more when the temp goes up. You and wildcat have me there on using Oak. I may be allowing enough time for the piece to dry out?  We will see. Will let you know.

[Habanero Smoker]

It's looking like I won't get to this until Tuesday. I'm still thinking about how to finish this off. I would like a crust, and I don't think I will get one if I keep the temperature at 250°F. The wet rub contains egg white to help the rub adhere and to form a crust, but I may dust the meat with cornstarch prior to applying the rub. If a crust does not form I thought about ramping up the temperature at the end, but also thought of taking it out of the smoker when the internal temperatures hits 120°F, putting it in a preheated oven at 450°F for 15 minutes. If the meat doesn't reach 135°F after 15 minutes, then I would turn down the heat to 250°F.

[asa]

thought of taking it out of the smoker when the internal temperatures hits 120°F, putting it in a preheated oven at 450°F for 15 minutes. If the meat doesn't reach 135°F after 15 minutes, then I would turn down the heat to 250°F.

That sounds like the best idea. I don't think you'll achieve the outside you want in the BS. You could also throw it on the grill to sear at the end - I think that would produce a good finish for you.

[West Coast Kansan]

Not sure what happened. I just did a long babbling reply that did not take.

Hab S, I think you have a plan! Not sure you will get much IT movement on a 9# piece in 15 minutes but all you need is the outside for the crust anyway.

Since I did not get to go to the game today I went to the store and bought a 6# top loin. Started at 12:30 at 170 for two hours (kind of since no preheat and meat was right out of butcher's cooler). I moved to 210 a few minutes ago and will stay there for two more hours. The oak smoke will be done then - total of 4 hours. At this point I will up the temp (250) to finish - thinking 160 to 170 IT - will likely change that if it starts to look like jerky. I used dry spice not a wet rub. I am thinking 1/2 inch slices cause that is all the Waring Pro will do.

I also have a half brisket flat on the second from top rack and the loin fat on the top rack.  I have started to have good luck with the small pieces of brisket in the BS. Yet to get great results on a full flat (though the points turn out well) The small flat is a little over 2 1/2 pounds and inches thick. I will pull it, foil, and finish in the oven if necessary.

I used to do these on a verticle grill/smoker (Fire box immediately below the racks)using a spit mount. This obviously ran pretty hot most of the time. I would get my crust by frequent slatherings and turning rotations. They were good!

See babbled twice...

[Habanero Smoker]

I'm interested in how you top loin turned out. For me a meat temperature between 160°F-170°F sound high for steak.

[asa]

I agree with Habanero Smoker, unless your preference is for something very well done and gray in color. I've been surprised at some of the temp ranges quoted in books. As mentioned elsewhere, I've seemed to have good luck getting to medium-rare with a low-and-slow method that gets there around 125-130 degrees. Some references would call that very rare but it seemed warmed through and starting to set up well and cook, nice and pink but definitely not slick-rare-raw.

[West Coast Kansan]

Came out like this... yea, we (wife likes it more done than most) I like it too now that I am used to it.  Tender and not being dry is more important to me and is why I started smoking. Tried to twist and turn cuts to show surface area as much as I could. - looks odd. Top of loin is about 2 oclock. I will usually target 160 - or up a little really based on time available - because it seems like most of the cooking happens at 140 to 150 internal temp. The 160 gives the rendering an hour and a little more to run around inside the piece. I probably don't have the reasons right but we dont throw a lot away either.  I was worried about the high temp on this one cooking too fast after my lower temp smoke for 4 hours. The little oyster bottle in the back is captured from the FTC.

[projump]

WOW, that's a nice looking plate of meat!!!  :)