Smoked Pork Crown Roast

Brine:

• 3 ½ cups water
• 1 large apple sliced
• ¼ cup kosher salt
• ¼ cup maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon onion powder

Pork Dry Rub or use your favorite:

• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoons paprika
• 1 ½ teaspoons fresh cracked black pepper
• 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 ½ teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 ½ teaspoons onion powder
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper omit or reduce if you don’t like spice

Directions

1. Brine the pork crown roast for 8 to 12 hours
2. Use a meat injector to inject the meat with brine just prior to smoking it.
3. Combine the brine solution in a large bowl or bucket. Whisk the solution until the salt dissolves completely. Then pour over meat inside an airtight container.
4. Use a zip-top bag to seal the brine up against the meat, sealing out all the air. If you brine a lot, we recommend getting a Briner Bucket.
5. Remove the pork from the brine solution and pat them completely dry with paper towels.
6. Trim off any excess meat or bits of connective tissue from the bones. (optional)
7. The silverskin will not render and should be removed. It can be found under the rack of ribs just like any other rack of pork ribs. Removing the silverskin will not only help the rub penetrate the meat better, but it will also help the crown roast flex and shape up a little better.
8. Make a vertical slit every two bones across the rack about 3-inches long and 1-inch deep. This will make the rack more flexible and easier to form into the crown.
9. Use a bundt pan to help form the “crown”! Place the racks with the bones out into the bundt pan. Use a piece of string to tie up the two end bones on each side.
10. Once both ends are secured, lift the two racks out of the bundt pan and place them onto a clean work surface. Use your hands to help shape it into the “crown” shape.
11. Then use a long piece of string to wrap around the racks at the thickest part, just under the rib bones. Tie it pretty tightly into a circle. You will notice the bones start to bow outward like a crown.
12. Secure another string around the top portion of the rib bones and one across the bottom to help keep it in shape.
13. Now generously rub the meat with the dry rub. Make sure to apply the rub all the way around the roast including the inside the top and the bottom.
14. The crowning jewel of this jaw-dropping presentation is aluminum foil. Tear off small squares of aluminum foil and place them on the ends of the rib bones. They will gently smoke to a golden rose color making it look like gold!
15. Preheat the grill or smoker to 225 to 250 degrees F.
16. When the grill is hot, place the crown roast in the center of the grill and probe it with a probe thermometer, if using. Place the lid on the grill and bring the temperature back up to 225 to 250 degrees F, using the vents to regulate the temperature.
17. Check the temperature of the grill every hour, staying as close to between 225 and 25o degrees F as possible. Resist the temptation to open the lid. Only open if you need to add more charcoal or wood.
18. After two hours open the lid. Check the temperature of the pork to see where things are. This will give you an idea of how much more time it will take to smoke the meat.
19. During the last 30–60 minutes of smoking, baste the pork with your favorite barbecue sauce using a brush or mop.
20. How often and how much sauce is up to you. David normally bastes with a generous amount of barbecue sauce every 20-25 minutes or sauce.
21. When the meat is done, carefully remove it from the smoker or grill. Place it onto a platter or cutting board. Tent with foil and allow it to rest as you would with grilled or roasted meats.
22. Rested meat holds on to more of its natural juices. This also keeps your platter or cutting board from flooding with meat juices when you slice into the pork. A good 20-minute rest should do.
23. First, cut and remove the butcher’s twine from around the smoked pork roast.
24. Next, slice the pork roast in between the rib bones into slices The pork ribs are naturally about ½ to 1 inch thick. If you want them thicker you could cut them into double-rib portions.
25. Serve drizzled in extra barbecue sauce or with sauce on the side