A Smoking Sunday

I had planned on writing a different post for this week, however I had such a great day this past Sunday on my Pit I just had to post on it.

I had two Corned Beef Briskets in the freezer and really wanted some smoked Turkey so that was my plan for the Pit.

The Corned Beef took no prep as I purchased them already brined and corned. I added a sprinkling of my Squirrel Rub to just the tops of each for a little added flavor and moved on to my Turkey Prep.

I had only the bone in Turkey breast which I have found in the past was the best when you wanted sliced smoked Turkey for sandwiches.

I melted down a stick of butter, added both apple juice and some of my Cluck-Cluck Rub and injected the breasts well. I had some of my injection left over so I simple poured it into the cavity and them applied rub to the outside of the bird.

I let that sit for about an hour while I prepared my Pit.

I everything on at the same time and let smoke using Cherry and Pecan Wood for about three hours at 250.

I then wrapped all for an additional three hours. The Turkey was nearing my ideal temp of 165 - 170 so I took it off the put to rest, leaving it wrapped.

After another hour the corned beef was nearing my preferred temp of 190 so I simple put into the oven letting it rest and tenderize. I was very happy with this cook and as you see below all turned out well. The only thing I would do next time is leave the Corned Beef in the smoke a couple of hours longer as I believe the brining process keep the smoke from penetrating as much as I would have liked.

Keep Smoking My Friends

Randy

Smoked Salmon

 

 

Yes I realize I have not posted in a while, however with this being the dog days of winter plus the fact I have been on my winter diet it should make sense.

 

We were having some friends over a week or so back so I wanted to have something for snacks and just happened be making a run to my favorite warehouse market. I heard the Salmon calling my name and remembered I was out in the freezer so the decision was made.

 

Smoking Salmon is quite easy and I have found that starting with "smoked salmon" from the store is a great way to go. This Salmon, while advertised as smoked really has no smoked flavor at all. Add the fact it is curt to the correct sizes you really can not go wrong.

 

All I do is put the Salmon in aluminum pans, sprinkle some of my basic or chicken rub over it and put 4 or 5 small pats of butter in the pan for some good moisture and flavor.

 

Smoke for 2 hours on 225 and  you will have some excellent hors devours for your next gathering.

 

I tried something different with a couple of the fillets this time by using a habanero seasoning and then topping with maple syrup looking for a sweet and spicy combo, however I was not happy with the result so I will try this again the next time adjusting my formula.

 

Keep Smoking My Friends
Randy 

New Year Cocktail Options

Well here we sit on the precipice of yet another new year. I am sure if you are like me you are probably thinking over options for your New Year's Toast. While I am a big fan of Champagne, I also enjoy many, many other cocktails. (Yes I know sparkling wine is a tradition). So here are a few ideas for you to consider as you ring out 2014 and ring in 2015.

Classic Cocktails are always a great option and I am not going to give you blow by blow recipes as you can Google them or if you are one of my many faithful you will have seen many posts on these here.

Whiskey Cocktails
The Manhattan
The Old Fashion
The Rusty Nail
The Hemingway Highball

Vodka/Gin Cocktails
The Martini
Vodka Press
Gin Rickey
Gin Fizz
The Cosmo

That should get you started and if you are like me and planning on staying in this year and simply having a few friends over, imagine how much fun you can have crafting these classics while your friends sit around being amazed!

One last thought and I should not even need to remind you, Don't Drink and Drive!

Cheers
The Professor

The Christmas Gift

As adults it seems Christmas Gifts are really not all that important as most of us had stories to tell about some gift we received that we never understood. The Chia Pet, or sunglasses for bike riders or that shirt that all you could do was say "What the hell were they thinking?"

Swapping stories with my group of cronies by the Pit and I recalled this story from my youth. 
The Christmas Gift

I remember as a young boy of eight there was a Christmas party at my church where each child was supposed to take a gift for the grab bag. The idea of a grab bag is that everyone throws a gift in and then everyone takes a different gift out and has a surprise gift. I guess the surprise being the receiver does not know who the giver is, or something like that. There were two boxes, one for the boys and one for the girls and all of us kids placed our gifts into the appropriate boxes as we entered the room.

The limit for spending on the gift was a quarter of a dollar. Yes, I know twenty-five cents does not sound like much, however keep in mind that this was 1966! In 1966 you could buy an ice-cream cone for a nickel, so imagine what twenty-five cents would buy. And imagine is exactly what I did. What treasure would I obtain as I dove into the huge box at the front of the room! Images of marbles and toy soldiers rolled and marched through my head.

My mother always took special care to pick out the perfect gift for such occasions. She could always find a gift for a quarter that normally would cost fifty or even seventy-five cents. Most of the time I wanted to keep what I was putting in the grab bag for myself but that was not allowed.

The lady in charge told us to form two lines, boys on the left and girls on the right. We immediately and swiftly moved into two single file lines; poised in attack formation.

As the lady said, now one at a time go get a gift; everything seemed to move in slow motion. Kids, both boys and girls, hurled themselves to the front of the room and lunged at the grab bag boxes! One girl was knocked down, and two chairs fell over! Wrapping paper, which mothers so carefully applied to the gifts earlier that day was flying everywhere, as I stood frozen in a state of shock and disbelief. Part of me said run, run to the boxes, while the other part of me heard my Mom say, “Take your turn”. Turn, what turn! All that was in front of me was mass confusion. I then thought, well if everyone put a gift in box there still should be one left when I get to the box. I relaxed and waited.

Then all at once it was over and the lady said to me, “Son did you get a gift”? I shook my head and said, “No”, in a timid voice. She motioned me to the box and as I peered over the edge I saw one tiny cylindrical shaped object not much bigger that a tube of Chapstick.

I picked up “my gift” and thought it was awful heavy for such a small gift. I started to take off the paper, and watched in shock as twenty-five pennies bounced off the floor. The lady and I picked up the pennies and she said something like “Oh, now you can buy whatever you want”.

I heard some kid in the back laugh and I decided to leave the party early. When I walked in the door my Mom knew something was wrong and when I asked about the party I started to cry. Mom looked at my hands and said, “Keep your coat on we are going to the store”.

I never even had to say a word. Somehow my Mom had figured the whole thing out. She even gave me another quarter to go with the twenty-five pennies. I do not remember what I bought with the money, but this has to go down as the worst Christmas gift I ever received that turned into one of my fondest Christmas memories.

Smoked Chex Mix

If you have followed this blog you already know I am not afraid to smoke anything. Cinnamon Rolls, Ritz Crackers and Cheese to name a few.

So when two of the KC Usual Suspects (J.W. and C.H.)came to me with the idea of smoking Check Mix the challenge was accepted.

I am not 100% sure of the recipe that C. used, however it looked to be about the same as I have used in the past.  Also don't be afraid to try different combinations and if you look at the Check webpage they have dozens of recipes.

The process is simple, heat your Pit to around 250 and use a mild wood. (I choose apple) Smoke for about an hour and fifteen minutes stirring every 15 minutes or so.

This will make a great addition to your holiday parties and even a great addition to your holiday gift baskets.

You can make huge batches of this and freeze for use at a later date.

Keep Smoking My Friends
Randy

The Sauce is the Boss

Yes I realize that this is the saying of Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce, however I have found this to be an absolute truth when BBQing.

While I make my own sauce I really enjoy two commercial brands. The previously mentioned Sweet Baby Ray's.

and another sauce I have just recently discovered through a friend, D.R. Full Moon, a Kansas City BBQ Sauce.

I don't know a lot about the Full Moon sauce except it is really good when using as your BBQ Glaze. I enjoy Sweet Baby Ray's as a general purpose sauce, meaning on eggs, hamburgers etc.

Now most of you who follow this blog know I have a great sauce for glazing as well. (see below)

Now the key I have found when applying sauce is to apply when you are hot and then let the meat cool while the glaze settles in. I sometimes do this by firing up a BBQ Grill as I finish up on the pit and then when the grill is its hottest more the meat over and glaze with sauce while turning the grill off and keeping it closed.

Keep Smoking My Friends
Randy

Randy's BBQ Sauce

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups ketchup, preferably organic

1 cup dark brown sugar

1/4 cup molasses

1/4 cup pineapple juice (or you can sub apple cider vinegar)

1/4 cup water

1 tablespoon worchestire sauce

2 1/2 teaspoons ground mustard

2 teaspoons smoked paprika

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (use less if you don't like the heat)

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1/8 cold water mixed with 1 tablespoon corn starch (optional)

Combine all the ingredients except the water and corn starch mixture in a medium size sauce pot. Bring to a boil and reduce and simmer for five minutes or until all the sugar has dissolved. If you like a thicker BBQ Sauce add the water and corn starch mixture. Simmer until desired thickness is reached, but watch closely. It thickens really fast! Serve immediately or store in fridge.

Bacon Wrapped...

I was having a group of Usual Suspects over for the labor day weekend and wanted to make some great smoked appetizers. I choose Smoked Bologna, which I had smoked previously, and two new items.

Stuffed Jalapeno Peppers Wrapped in Bacon and Tater Tots, both plain and some stuffed with cheese and wrapped in Bacon.

Stuffed Jalapeno Peppers

I started with some larger peppers hoping they would not be as hot and cored them removing the white and seeds. I then stuffed them with my smoked meatloaf (previously prepared and smoked) and wrapped with with a whole piece of bacon. I then placed each in an aluminum pan for smoking.

I had them on the pit for about two hours at 225 - 250 adding smoke the entire time. I also sprinkled some of my basic BBQ Rub on top. I then sliced them into pit sized pieces after allowing to cool for 20 minutes.The real key to being done is when the bacon is nice and crisp.

They  turned out really good, however they were HOT! I really could not eat them, however those Usual Suspects who were fire eaters really ate them up.

Bacon Wrapped Tater Tots.

For the Tater Tots I tried making small incisions in each tot and putting a small piece of cheese inside, however this was very time consuming and I really could not get enough cheese into each tot to make a difference. The next time I will put a larger chuck of cheese on the tot and then warp in Bacon. I  used about a third of a piece of bacon on each tot and sprinkled basic rub on top. (again using an aluminum pan) I smoked at 225 - 250 for two hours adding smoke the entire time. Again the key to the readiness of the tots is crisp bacon.

Even with the cheese a non factor these turned out awesome! Word to the wise if doing these make about three times as many as you need as I ate six before anyone arrived ;)

The plain tots were also great and I sprayed the aluminum tins with cooking spray prior to smoking. I used the same formula, sprinkling my basic rub on top and smoking at 225 - 250 for about two hours. I added smoke the entire time and when the tots were crisp you know they are done.

Keep Smoking My Friends
Randy