Salpicão de Vinhais (Home-Style Trás-os-Montes Smoked Pork Tenderloin)

Salpicão de Vinhais is one of the great cured meats of Trás-os-Montes, a whole pork loin marinated in wine and garlic, stuffed into casing, then smoked slowly over oak for weeks in a village smokehouse until it’s firm enough to shave paper-thin.

I don’t have a smokehouse in my backyard, so this is my honest, weeknight-friendly adaptation: the same red wine and garlic marinade, a light smoke if you have the setup for it, and a slow roast that gets you most of the way to that same smoky, garlicky flavor without weeks of waiting. Think of it as salpicão in spirit, served the way I’d put it out on a board next to the alheira de Mirandela (recipe on the site).

My husband likes to pretend he can tell the difference between this and the real thing shipped over from my aunt. He cannot. Sofia just likes that it’s pink in the middle and asks if that means it’s undercooked, which gives me a chance to talk through food safety with her every single time.

Salpicão de Vinhais Recipe

Prep time: 15 minutes (plus 2 days marinating) · Cook time: 45 minutes · Total: 2 days, 1 hour · Servings: 6 as an appetizer · Calories: ~210 per serving

Ingredients

• For the marinade:
• 1 cup dry red wine
• 6 garlic cloves, smashed
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon black peppercorns, cracked
• 1 tablespoon coarse salt
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• For the pork:
• 1 whole pork tenderloin (about 1 1/4 pounds), trimmed
• For finishing:
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, for dusting

Instructions

1. Whisk together the marinade ingredients in a bowl.
2. Place the tenderloin in a resealable bag or shallow dish, pour the marinade over, and turn to coat. Refrigerate covered 48 hours (up to 3 days), turning once a day.
3. Remove the pork from the marinade, pat dry, and discard the marinade.
4. Heat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Rub the tenderloin lightly with olive oil.
5. If you own a stovetop smoker or a grill set up for indirect smoking, smoke the pork over oak or hickory chips at low heat for about 45 minutes to build a smoky bark, then transfer to the oven to finish.
6. Roast until an instant-read thermometer reads 145°F (63°C) at the thickest point, 35 to 40 minutes if not pre-smoked.
7. Rest 10 minutes, dust with extra smoked paprika, and slice thin.
8. Serve as part of a Portuguese charcuterie board alongside cheese, olives, and crusty bread.

Recipe Notes

• True salpicão de Vinhais is a cured, air-dried, and smoked sausage that takes weeks and a proper smokehouse, so consider this recipe the weeknight-friendly spirit of it rather than the genuine article.
• For the real thing, look for it in Portuguese specialty markets or online importers that ship cured Portuguese charcuterie frozen, usually labeled salpicão.
• Because this version is fully cooked rather than dry-cured, always use a thermometer and pull the pork at 145°F for safe, juicy results; carryover heat brings it up a few more degrees as it rests.
• Leftover slices are wonderful in a sandwich with mustard, or diced into scrambled eggs the next morning.