Pacific Rim Honey Grilled Pork

Nontraditional Octoberfest Food

Recipe from Letters from the Hive

BBQ season isn’t over, so my friends on both US coasts tell me. And they’re right. Golden October days are perfect for grilling, provided that we start early enough to avoid grilling after dark. Also, rake away those dry leaves from the BBQ area to keep it safe. Autumn grilling is especially good for roasting meats that pair well with seasonal homemade applesauce.  This sweet-savory pork recipe comes from an unlikely source. The book Letters from the Hive is an informative and rather sexy look at bees, honey, and beekeeping—see my Goodreads review for details. Essentially, the pork is saturated in an Asian-inspired honey-lime marinade, then grilled or broiled. This marinade also works on fish.

Works with Bone-in Chops Too

The instructions say to marinate the pork for at least an hour. 2 – 3 hours is even better. I put the meat inside a ziplock, then set it on a plate. Next I pour in the marinade, remove as much air as possible, and zip it shut. Smooshing it around in the bag so that the onions, garlic, and jalapeno contact the pork increases the flavor. I stick it in the fridge, then flip the ziplock over about every 30 minutes to flavor up both sides equally.

Serve the honey-grilled pork with homemade applesauce and grilled veggies or earthy cooked greens, like chard or kale.

Pacific Rim Marinade Ingredients

Pacific Rim Honey-Grilled Pork

serves 4

¼ cup honey

2 tbsp. lime juice

2 tbsp. soy sauce

2 tbsp. hoisin sauce

¼ onion, chopped (1/3 cup)

2 large cloves garlic, minced (1 tbsp.)

1 jalapeno, seeded, and minced

1 tsp. minced ginger

1 - 1½ lb. boneless pork loin chops

Stir together honey, lime juice, soy sauce, and hoisin sauce until well blended. Stir in chopped onion, and minced garlic, jalapeno, and ginger. Mix well.

Put the pork chops in a large ziplock. Add the marinade, including all the vegetable bits. Remove as much air as possible and zip the bag closed. Place bag on a plate and store in refrigerator.

Marinate 2 – 3 hours, turning the ziplock over every 30 minutes or so.

Start briquettes (3 parts) and mesquite chips (1 part) in charcoal chimney. Note: if you don’t add the mesquite, the fire will be cooler, so grilling time will be longer. Whatever your fuel preference—and you can use your oven’s broiler instead—the meat is done at 135 degrees internal temperature.

When flames can be seen from the top, dump briquettes and chips onto one side of the grill. When briquettes (coals) are covered with ash, check temperature. To raise the temp, you can cover the grill for a bit. An infrared thermometer is an inexpensive way to check the temp if your grill doesn’t have its own thermometer.

When temperature reaches, 500 degrees, grill chops directly above coals to sear, for 2 minutes per side. If fire is cooler, or no mesquite is used, it might take up to 30 seconds more or so per side.

Move chops to cool part of grill, around 350 degrees. Grill for 3 minutes on each side if chops are thick, but check meat temperature at 2 minutes. Chops are done at 135 degrees. Let meat rest 5 – 10 minutes till internal temp comes up to 145 degrees.

Serve with homemade applesauce.

Ready to Marinate

Refrigerate While Marinating

Grilling: Sear First

Served: Perfect Pacific Rim Honey Grilled Pork!