I’ve wanted to make a Smoked Pork Crown Roast for a while now, and I figured this was the right time of year to do it! Prepped to look like a crown, we will season with a BBQ rub and smoke on the Oklahoma Joe’s Bronco Drum Smoker till perfect. Finish it with an Old Fashioned-inspired glaze, and you have a feast! It’s a great rack of pork for a holiday party or special occasion.
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A crown roast is one of my go-to over-the-fire holiday meals because it stands out as the main dish on any decorative table and tastes freakin incredible!
What is a Pork Crown Roast?
A Pork Crown Roast is a bunch of pork ribs tied up with butchers twine to form the shape of a crown, and is made from regular bone-in loins. The only difference is the ribs are manipulated to point skyward, giving your cut of meat that crown shape.
Why You’ll Love Smoked Pork Crown Roast
The beautiful presentation of the Smoked Pork Crown Roast makes it the perfect holiday dinner and gives you that wow factor. Plus, you can’t beat the smoky, tender, melt-in-your-mouth taste.
Plop that bad boy on an elegant serving platter, and get that Christmas dinner taken care of! You’ll love how straightforward the recipe is, so don’t let the hefty cook time intimidate you. Anyone can follow this recipe and come out with a delicious crown roast.
For more show stopping recipes, check out my Smoked Arctic Char Wreath, Garlic Herb Lamb Crown and Bourbon Beef Wellington.
How to Make Smoked Pork Crown Roast
Pork Rib Roast Ingredients
Pork:
- Whole Bone-In Pork Roasts
- Favorite BBQ Seasoning
- Yellow Mustard
Old Fashioned Glaze:
- Maple Syrup
- Brown Sugar
- Maraschino Cherry Juice
- Orange
- Bourbon
Cooking Smoked Pork Crown Roast
It’s time to dive into the fun part—cooking!
To start, preheat your Oklahoma Joe’s Bronco for indirect cooking at a low temperature of around 225F. Add some wood chips or chunks into the grill for additional smoke flavor. Now, we’ll prepare the Pork Crown Roast while the smoker is warming up.
Form the Crown
Begin by laying one of your pork roasts with the back of the bones facing you. Next, find the groove at the knuckle of the bone where you would traditionally slice the rack of ribs into single chops. Then, cut in between each bone at that groove, only ½-¾ inch deep. When the pork is done being sliced, it should be able to bend easily because of the slices.
Repeat this for both pork roasts and then set aside.
Next, let’s make the racks into a crown. Set up one of the pork roasts so that the “sliced” side is facing outwards. Bring both ends to meet, so you make a circle, then tie them together using a trussing string.
This can be done by tying between the grooves in the knuckles and then on the meat at the bottom. Once secure, repeat this for your second Pork Crown Roast. Once it is ready, lather the outside with yellow mustard and season generously with your favorite BBQ seasoning.
To make seasoning easier, check out my spiceline with Spiceology. I’d recommend Maple Bourbon or Adobo Honey for this recipe! However, making your own BBQ seasoning is easy. If you’d like a recipe on how to make some dry BBQ seasoning, check out my recipes within these other dishes: Spicy BBQ Ribs or Honey Korean BBQ Chicken Lollipops.
Time to Roast
Add your Pork Crown Roast onto the smoker and cook indirectly for 2.5-3 hours until it reaches around 145F internal for medium. When the pork is at 120F, add a cast iron skillet with all the ingredients for the Old Fashioned Glaze.
Let simmer in the smoker, then glaze the outside of the pork roast for the last 10-15 minutes. Once the pork is done, pull it off and let it rest for 15 minutes.
When done resting, slice up your Smoked Pork Crown Roast, serve, and enjoy!
Serve
Make this roast the centerpiece of your holiday dinner. It’s best with mashed potatoes, stuffing, and a bunch of other hearty holiday foods! You really can’t go wrong.
Storage
If you wind up with some leftovers, place them in an airtight container and store them in the fridge for up to 3-5 days. Alternatively, you can keep your leftovers in a vacuum-sealed bag for up to 3 months.
Reheating/leftovers
To reheat your leftovers, place the pork on a sheet pan and stick it in the oven at 375 degrees F for 15-30 minutes or until warm.
Crown Pork Roasts are sure to be a crowd-pleaser this holiday season! I can’t get enough of the smoky flavor paired with my homemade glaze. It’s so freakin delicious! If you try this recipe, let us know how it turned out in the comments section.
FAQs
Is a crown roast the same as a rib roast?
Kinda. A crown roast is just a rib roast formed into the shape of a crown and held together with butcher’s twine. When you order a rib roast, you can ask your butcher shop to do it for you or do it yourself at home, as I did.
For more delicious recipes, check out my second cookbook Flavor X Fire or my first cookbook Food X Fire!
Needing more spice in your life? My spice line can help with that. Check them out here.
Smoked Pork Crown Roast
Ingredients
Pork:
- 1-2 Whole Bone In Pork Roasts
- 1 cup Favorite BBQ Seasoning
- Yellow Mustard for binder
Old Fashioned Glaze:
- ¼ cup Maple Syrup
- 2 tbsp Brown Sugar
- 1 tbsp Maraschino Cherry Juice
- 1 medium Orange juiced
- 2 oz Bourbon
Instructions
- Begin by laying one of your pork roasts with the back of the bones facing your. Find the groove at the knuckle of the bone where you would traditionally slice the rack into single chops. Make a cut in between each bone at that groove going only ½-¾ inch deep. When the pork is done being sliced, it should be able to bend easily because of the slices. Repeat this for both pork roasts and then set aside.
- Next, let’s make the racks into a crown. Set up one of the pork roasts so that the “sliced” side is facing outwards. Bring both ends to meet so you make a circle, then tie them together using a trussing string. This can be done by tying between the grooves in the knuckles and on the meat at the bottom. Once secure, repeat this for your second pork roast. Once it is ready, lather the outside with yellow mustard and season generously with your favorite BBQ seasoning.
- Preheat your Oklahoma Joe’s Bronco for indirect cooking at a low temperature around 225F. Add some wood chips or chunks into the grill for additional smoke flavor.
- Add your Pork Crown onto the smoker and cook indirectly for 2.5-3 hours until it reaches around 145F internal for medium. When the pork is at 120F, add a cast iron skillet with all the ingredients for the Old Fashioned Glaze. Let simmer in the smoker, then glaze the outside of the pork roast for the last 10-15 minutes. Once the pork is done, pull it off and let it rest for 15 minutes.
- When done resting, slice up your Smoked Pork Crown Roast, serve and enjoy!
Amazing so delicious thank you