Smoked Tomahawk Pork Chops

We found a great Butcher’s Bargain on pork chops (it pays to shop super early!) It was time to make the most amazing Smoked Tomahawk Pork Chops. The mild Cherry wood smoke worked just perfectly with the mild seasoning.

🐖 Ingredients

Pork Chops – These aren’t just any old pork chops! I was thrilled to find a Tomahawk Cut.  Even better, the butcher had just marked them down, so it was a no-brainer to grab them! The Tomahawk cut means that the butcher did not cut off the rib.  You’ll see the long “handle” of the pork in the photo below.  

Typically, you’ll see high end restaurants “french” this cut.  That means that they will trim the meat and the fat off of the bone.  While that looks pretty, I think that is the best flavor, so I seldom cut it off.  

BBQ Rub – I used Burnt Sacrifice’s Memphis Rub.  It was fantastic!  Use your favorite pulled pork rub if you don’t have this one on hand.

Cherry Wood – Cherry is a mild fruit wood that leaves a great smoky taste, but doesn’t overpower the meat.  We really want the taste of the pork to shine through. 

🍽️ Instructions

Step One: Preheat the grill to 250 degrees.  We’ll be using indirect heat for this recipe as we want a low-and-slow smoke. Set up your grill for indirect heat.

📌 Note: For a Big Green Egg or other Kamado grill, use a plate setter to create the indirect heat.  For a gas grill, turn off the center burners.

Step Two: Right before you are ready to add the pork chops, add a few blocks of cherry wood to the coals.

📌 Note: If you have a gas grill, use a smoking box to create the smoke.

Step Three: Bring your pork chops to room temperature and then rub them with your favorite BBQ rub.  I used a Memphis Rub by Burnt Sacrifice and it worked just perfectly!

Step Four: Add the pork chops to the grill and let them smoke at a low temperature until the internal temperature reaches 160° F degrees.  It took about one hour for mine to come to temperature.

I am not a fan of cooking pork to medium rare. I know that the USDA recently reduced the minimum recommended temperature to 145° F degrees, but I just can’t seem to get used to that! I’ll stick with the old school temperature guidelines.

PRO TIP: If you see a pink ring on the exterior of your meat and you internal temp is 145°F, that is safe to eat. There are times where pink pork meat IS NOT safe and if you have any questions, give this post a read.

💡 Recipe Tips

When you take the pork chops off the grill, let them rest for at least 10 minutes.  This helps to lock in the juice.  More importantly, it gives the smoke a chance to continue to permeate the meat.  

Wrap any leftovers in saran and refrigerate.  I think the flavors got even better the next day after having 24 hours in the fridge. These reheated extremely well in the microwave and were still extremely tender.

I recommend steering away from the more intense wood varieties like mesquite and hickory.  Those impart a powerful flavor and I wanted to make sure that the pork and rub flavors were the star of the show.  

Also, smoke with the idea that a little goes a long way.  You don’t need the huge billowing white smoke to impart the flavors.  That looks good in photos, but it will usually add so much smoky flavor to your dish that it will be overbearing.  Instead, keep a light, slow trickle of smoke.  If you find that yours is smoking too much, use a tool to move the wood chips to the side.

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