This delicious smoked pork loin recipe requires around 6 hours of smoking time and comes out so tender and juicy. I made slits all over the roast and stuffed them with garlic and serrano compound butter, then seasoned it with my own pork rub. The end result was an amazingly flavorful smoked pork loin that everyone enjoyed!
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We've had a huge pork loin in our freezer for months now, taking up way too much space. So recently we decided to do something with it. We sliced off the fat end to make pork chops for Scott's favorite dinner, oven baked pork chops with potatoes.
We were left with a 6-pound roast that we decided to smoke. Let me just say, that this smoked pork roast recipe was way better than we expected! It came out so juicy and flavorful!
The combination of brown sugar, kosher salt, black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, smoked paprika, cayenne, rubbed sage, and ground cloves make for one good rub. However, I do believe the serrano and garlic compound butter mixture took it over the top!
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😍 Why You'll Love This Recipe
- This pork loin recipe is straightforward, easy, and doesn't take all day to smoke.
- If you're not sure how to cook a pork loin without drying it out, smoking it is the way to go!
- I'll show you an easier way to stuff the pork with the compound butter than the original way I prepared it. The idea came to me in my sleep, after I did it the hard way! 😬
🛒 What You Need For This Recipe
🔖 Ingredients & Substitutions
- Pork: Make sure you use the right cut of meat for this recipe. You'll want to purchase a pork loin, not a tenderloin. Pork tenderloin is a much smaller and thinner strip and is a portion of the larger loin muscle that runs along the pig's spine. Since this muscle isn't used for movement, it's very tender, similar to venison backstrap.
- Seasoning: I used my pork rub seasoning, but you can also use your favorite rub. Another great option would be my Santa Maria seasoning.
- Apple juice: For misting the pork roast as it smokes. You can substitute apple cider or apple cider vinegar.
- Compound Butter: To make the compound butter, you'll need fresh garlic, serrano peppers, and unsalted butter. If you're worried about the serranos being too spicy, you can substitute a more mild pepper or just use garlic.
🔪 Helpful Tools
- Smoker/Pellet grill
- Pellets (pecan, mesquite, hickory, cherry)
- Sharp Knife (paid link)
- Meat Thermometer
🐷 How to Smoke A Pork Loin Roast
Step 1: Blend garlic and serranos using a small food processor, then mix into softened butter. Add 1 tablespoon of pork rub and mix to combine.
Pro Tip: Here's the idea that came to me after I made this recipe the hard way... Roll compound butter in plastic wrap and freeze, then slice into small cubes and insert into the slits. It will be much easier to do than working with softened butter!
Step 2: Trim excess fat off of pork loin, if necessary, mine didn't need it. Make sure the pork is at room temperature, then make slits all over the roast and fill them with the compound butter mixture (see pro-tip). Smear any leftover butter all over the pork loin, or use olive oil. Season generously with pork rub.
Pro Tip: At this point, you can wrap the roast in plastic wrap and store it in the fridge or go straight to the smoker!
Step 3: Clean smoker, if needed, then add pellets. Ignite smoker and preheat to 200°F, select super smoke. When smoker is ready, place pork directly on grill grates and insert probe into the thickest part. Set the probe's final temp to 145°F.
Step 4: Spritz pork loin with apple juice, and again every hour. After 5 hours, turn the temperature up to 225°F, if it's done sooner, disregard. Continue to smoke the pork loin until the internal temperature reaches 145°F. Mine took a total of 6 hours.
Step 5: Remove pork loin and place on a baking pan. Tent with foil and rest for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
🥗 Serving Suggestions
We serve this smoked pork loin recipe with spicy huckleberry BBQ sauce on the side. Side dishes that pair well with this smoked pork loin include Traeger smoked potatoes and chipotle smoked mac and cheese. For a lighter side, try this zesty quinoa salad or this healthy broccoli salad.
🤷🏻♀️ Recipe FAQs
One method of ensuring pork loin remains tender is to inject it with butter before smoking it somewhere between 200-225°F! Another is to spritz it with apple juice as it smokes.
A pork loin should reach an internal temperature of 145°F to ensure that it's fully cooked.
At 225°F, it takes approximately 45 minutes per pound to smoke a pork loin. This means if you are smoking a 5-pound pork loin, it will take around 4 hours to smoke. This is just an estimate since there are many other factors that can affect this time, such as the pork's beginning temp, outside temperature, and how many times the lid is lifted.
👩🏼🍳 Pro Tips
- My pork loin didn't have much of a fat cap so it didn't need to be trimmed. However, if yours does, just trim off the excess.
- When seasoning the pork loin, sprinkle the rub without touching the meat to avoid cross-contamination. You'll want to save the remaining rub for another use.
- My boneless pork loin weighed 6.25 lbs. If yours is smaller or larger the smoking time may need to be adjusted.
- If the roast is cold, the butter will not stick to it, it will stick to your hands instead. If the butter clumps, no problem! Just smooth it out with a pastry brush after the first hour of smoking, before spraying it with apple juice.
- Don't skip resting the smoked pork loin. This allows the juices to redistribute throughout the roast, resulting in a juicier roast!
🍗 Other Traeger Recipes
- Smoked Chicken Drumsticks
- Smoked Traeger Carne Asada
- Perfectly Smoked Traeger Prime Rib
- Smoke A Traeger Brisket Like A Boss
- Habanero Pineapple Brisket Burnt Ends
- Traeger Smoked Chicken Thighs
🥩 Related Recipes
If you enjoy this smoked pork loin recipe, check out these other great recipes!
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📖 Recipe
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Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Blend garlic and serranos using a small food processor, then mix into softened butter. Add 1 tablespoon of pork rub and mix to combine.
- Trim excess fat off of pork loin, if necessary, mine didn't need it. Make sure the pork is at room temperature, then make slits all over the roast and fill them with the compound butter mixture (see pro-tip). Smear any leftover butter all over the pork loin, or use olive oil. Season generously with pork rub.
- Clean smoker, if needed, then add pellets. Ignite smoker and preheat to 200°F, select super smoke. When smoker is ready, place pork directly on grill grates and insert probe into the thickest part. Set the probe's final temp to 145°F.
- Spritz pork loin with apple juice, and again every hour. After 5 hours, turn the temperature up to 225°F, if it's done sooner, disregard. Continue to smoke the pork loin until the internal temperature reaches 145°F. Mine took a total of 6 hours.
- Remove pork loin and place on a baking pan. Tent with foil and rest for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
Nutrition
Notes
- Here's the idea that came to me after I did this recipe the hard way... Roll compound butter in plastic wrap and freeze, then slice into small cubes and insert into the slits. It will be much easier to do than working with softened butter!
- At this point, you can wrap the roast in plastic wrap and store it in the fridge or go straight to the smoker!
- My pork loin didn't have much of a fat cap so it didn't need to be trimmed. However, if yours does, just trim off the excess.
- When seasoning the pork loin, sprinkle the rub without touching the meat to avoid cross-contamination. You'll want to save the remaining rub for another use.
- My boneless pork loin weighed 6.25 lbs. If yours is smaller or larger the smoking time may need to be adjusted.
- If the roast is cold, the butter will not stick to it, it will stick to your hands instead. If the butter clumps, no problem! Just smooth it out with a pastry brush after the first hour of smoking, before spraying it with apple juice.
- Don't skip resting the pork loin. This allows the juices to redistribute throughout the roast, resulting in a juicier roast!
Hungy4Hucks says
Juicy!!! I smoked mine with Hickory because I love the bold smoke flavor and I was concerned the lean loin would come out dry. It was off the chart delicious!, tender! and juicy! You put up a great one here. Thank you so much.
Hilda Sterner says
Hi Hungry4Hucks! I had the same fear about the pork loin being too dry, but I was pleasantly surprised! Stay tuned for more delicious smoker recipes!
Kelly Methey says
Sounds fantastic! I can’t wait to try it!!!!
Hilda Sterner says
One of these days, you will!
Mary says
I had the pleasure of trying this pork loin, and let me tell you, it is amazing! I will definitely be making it sometime soon!
Hilda Sterner says
Thanks, Mary! So happy you enjoyed it and thanks for the review too!