Southern Barbecued Pork Chop

STEP 1: BREW AND CHILL THE SWEET TEA BRINE

Do this the night before. Brew the tea strong in 1 litre of just-boiled water - six bags, steeped for 10 minutes and no longer, since the tannin turns bitter past that point. Lift the bags out without squeezing them. Stir in the light brown sugar and the fine sea salt while the tea is hot and keep stirring until both have completely dissolved. Add the cider vinegar, the bay leaves and the cracked black peppercorns. Pour in the remaining 1 litre of cold water and the ice, which drops the brine straight to fridge temperature. The brine must be genuinely cold before the pork goes anywhere near it: warm brine is a food-safety problem and it starts cooking the surface of the meat.

STEP 2: BRINE THE CHOPS

Submerge the pork chops fully in the cold brine and refrigerate for 8 to 12 hours. Do not go beyond 12 - at this salt concentration the texture turns spongy and the meat reads as cured rather than seasoned. Lift the chops out, rinse them briefly under cold water, pat them thoroughly dry, and leave them uncovered on a rack in the fridge for at least an hour. That drying stage is what lets the rub adhere and the surface take colour on the barbecue.

STEP 3: BUILD THE PORK AND CRAYFISH REDUCTION

Roast the pork bones at 220C (425F) for 40 minutes until deeply browned. In a separate dry pan, toast the reserved crayfish shells and heads over a high heat for 3 to 4 minutes, until they turn vivid orange-red and smell sweet; take them no further. Sweat the onion, carrot, celery and garlic in a heavy stockpot, stir in the tomato puree and cook it out for a minute, then deglaze with the cider. Add the roasted bones, the toasted shells, the thyme sprigs and the water. Bring to a bare simmer and hold it there for 4 hours, skimming regularly and never letting it boil. Strain through muslin, then reduce hard until you have about 250 ml of glossy, lightly syrupy sauce that coats the back of a spoon. Hold it warm; the butter and vinegar go in at the end. The shells belong in the stock, not alongside it - that is what turns a pork sauce into a dish sauce.

STEP 4: CHAR THE LEEKS AND MAKE THE PESTO

Light the barbecue. Put the halved leeks cut-side down directly onto the hot coals, or on the hottest part of the grate, and leave them until the outer layers are properly black. It should look like a mistake. Let them cool, then peel back and discard every carbonised layer and keep only the soft, smoke-saturated interior. Blitz that with the toasted almonds, the garlic clove, the parsley, the lemon zest and the olive oil to a coarse pesto. Season with sea salt. The burnt exterior is the seasoning agent even though you throw it away - it perfumes the inner layers while they cook inside their own skin.

STEP 5: MAKE THE HOT PEPPER PUREE

Blister the red peppers and the chillies over the fire until the skins blacken and lift, then seal them in a bowl under cling film for 15 minutes and slip the skins off. Sweat the sliced onion and the garlic in the olive oil until soft and sweet with no colour. Add the peeled peppers and chillies, the cider vinegar and the light brown sugar, and cook for 10 minutes. Blend until completely smooth and pass through a fine sieve, then season. Taste as you go: the heat should register clearly against the sweetness of the pork without closing down the palate for the next mouthful. Build it up by adding chillies rather than by taking them away. If it runs thin, return it to a wide pan and reduce gently until it holds a line on the plate.

STEP 6: ASSEMBLE AND COOK THE CABBAGE ROLL

Blanch the hispi cabbage leaves for 60 to 90 seconds in heavily salted boiling water, refresh in ice water and pat dry, then shave down any thick central ribs so the leaves will roll without cracking. Grill the crayfish tails briefly over the fire, a minute at most - they are already cooked and you want smoke, not further cooking. Chop them roughly, keeping the pieces chunky, and mix with the diced apple tossed in lemon juice, the melted butter, and salt and pepper. Lay the leaves out overlapping on cling film, spread the filling along one edge, roll into a tight cylinder, twist the ends and cook in a covered basket over simmering water for 8 minutes. Rest for 5 minutes, unwrap, and cut into portions on the diagonal with a very sharp knife.

STEP 7: BARBECUE THE CHOPS

Set the barbecue for indirect cooking at 120 to 140C (250 to 285F) with a couple of fruitwood chunks on the coals; the wood goes on at the start, when the meat is coldest and takes smoke best. Coat the dried chops generously on all surfaces with the paprika rub, pressing it in. Cook them on the indirect side with the lid down until the centre reads 58C (136F) - roughly 35 to 45 minutes, but go by the probe and not the clock. Then open the vents, build the fire up, and sear the chops hard over direct heat for 60 to 90 seconds a side, standing them on the fat cap for a further 30 seconds to render and crisp it. Pull them at 62C (144F). The slow indirect stage is what renders the fat through the meat and gives the sugary rub time to take on smoke rather than scorching.

STEP 8: REST, FINISH THE SAUCE AND PLATE

Rest the chops for 10 minutes, loosely tented; the internal temperature will carry to about 65C (149F). While they rest, bring the reduction to a simmer, then whisk in the cold diced butter a cube at a time off the heat until glossy, and sharpen with the cider vinegar. Check the seasoning. Plate a wide smear of hot pepper puree, set a chop on or beside it, add a section of the cabbage roll, spoon the burnt leek pesto over and around the roll, and pour the reduction at the table. Serve immediately.