Bacon-Weave Armadillo Eggs (Stuffed Smoked Pork Tenderloin)

Ingredients

• 700 g pork tenderloin (one whole loin, silver skin removed)
• 150 g full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature
• 75 g mature cheddar, coarsely grated
• 3 jalapeños, deseeded and finely diced
• 2 spring onions, finely sliced
• 1 garlic clove, grated
• 2 tbsp Texas-style BBQ rub (heavy on black pepper, paprika, garlic, brown sugar)
• flaky sea salt
• 12 rashers smoked streaky bacon (you want long, even rashers)
• 1 tbsp Texas-style BBQ rub
• 2 tbsp BBQ sauce, for glazing
• ¼ white cabbage, finely shredded
• ¼ red cabbage, finely shredded
• 1 large carrot, coarsely grated
• 3 tbsp buttermilk
• 3 tbsp mayonnaise
• 1 tbsp cider vinegar
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp caster sugar
• flaky sea salt and black pepper
• 15 g flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 8 brioche buns, toasted
• 100 g dill pickles, sliced

Method

1. Set up your kettle BBQ for indirect smoking at around 110–120°C; coals banked to one side, a chunk or two of oak or hickory on top, and a foil tray of water on the cool side to keep the air humid. Get this stable before the meat goes anywhere near it; chasing temperature with the pork already on is a losing game.
2. Make the filling: mix the softened cream cheese, grated cheddar, diced jalapeños, spring onions and grated garlic in a bowl with a good pinch of flaky salt. Stir the raw garlic through gently. The cream cheese MUST be properly soft or you'll tear the pork trying to spread it; leave it out for a full hour if needed.
3. Butterfly the tenderloin: lay it flat and slice horizontally down the long side, stopping before you cut all the way through, so it opens like a book. Cover with cling film and gently bash with a rolling pin until it's an even 1.5cm thick rectangle. Even thickness now means even cooking later; thin ends overcook while the middle's still pink otherwise.
4. Season the inside of the butterflied pork with a pinch of salt, then spread the filling over it in a thick, even layer, leaving a 1cm border along the long edges so it doesn't squeeze out when you roll. From the long side closest to you, roll it up tight into a log, finishing seam-side down.
5. Build the bacon weave on a sheet of greaseproof: lay 6 rashers vertically, side by side and just touching. Fold every other rasher halfway back on itself, lay a horizontal rasher across the unfolded ones, then unfold the bent rashers back over it. Repeat, alternating which rashers you fold, until you've woven all 6 horizontal rashers in. Looks fiddly, takes 90 seconds once you start.
6. Tip the BBQ rub onto a plate and coat the outside of the pork log generously, then place it seam-side down at the edge of the bacon weave. Using the greaseproof to help, roll the weave up around the pork so the seam ends up underneath. Dust the outside of the weave with the extra tablespoon of rub.
7. Transfer to the cool side of the BBQ, seam-side down, lid on, vents set to maintain 110–120°C. Smoke for about 1 hour 15 minutes, until the bacon is bronze and the centre of the pork is approaching 68°C. If the bacon is still pale, nudge a few coals across to lift the heat.
8. Brush the bacon with BBQ sauce and cook for another 10 to 15 minutes, until the glaze is tacky and the centre of the pork reaches 75°C for 30 seconds.
9. Rest the log on a board, loosely tented with foil, for a full 15 minutes. Cutting early means the cheese filling pours out and the pork loses its juice; patience here is the whole game.
10. While it rests, make the slaw: whisk the buttermilk, mayo, cider vinegar, mustard, sugar and a good pinch of salt and pepper in a large bowl; the splash of vinegar is what stops the dressing from going cloying against the smoked pork. Add both cabbages, carrot and spring onions and toss hard with your hands until every shred is coated. Taste; it should land sharp, sweet and properly salted.
11. Slice the rested log into thick 2cm pinwheels with a sharp serrated knife, sawing gently so the bacon weave doesn't tear. Pile the pinwheels onto the toasted brioche buns with the buttermilk slaw and dill pickle slices, then scatter over the parsley. Serve while the bacon is still crisp.