- Superbowl Party Recipe: Smoked "Reverse Popper" Wings
The big game is almost here! For those of you hosting a party, here is an easy and delicious twist on wings. It's simple; stuff wings with a mix of sausage and diced jalepenos, dust with rub and grill. What you get is a nice smoked wing with a little spicy surprise inside.RecipeJumbo wings, 1 and 2 joint. As many as you want to make.Diced jalepenos, canned. 1 small can goes a long way.Sausage - your choice. I chose a sweet Italian. Factor 1 spoonful per wing.Rub1 part brown sugar1 part mix of paprika, cumin, kosher salt, black pepper, and chili powder(or use your favorite with added brown sugar. I liked the sweet contrasted with the heat).Cut wings open slightly to make a little pocket for the mixture. Thoroughly mix the jalepenos with the sausage. Stuff a heaping spooful in each wing and "reclose". Dust with rub.Make a hot grill with half indirect space. Grill first directly to sear and mark for 5 minutes on each side, then move to indirect heat with your lid down until done, approximately 20-30 minutes. It's important you use the big jumbo wings so they don't get overdone before the sausage is cooked.Serve with hot sauce, barbecue sauce, or sweet-hot Thai chili sauce. May your team win!
- Superbowl Sunday: Can You Top a Meat Stadium?
I'm just about ready to post my little recipe of stuffed wings for Superbowl Sunday. I think they are great, but then this came across my virtual desk. Some guy named Mikey over at Char-broil is making a MEAT STADIUM. That's right, a panorama, a model, a not-so-small-miniature of a football stadium, made entirely out of meat.I can't imagine, frankly, where one finds space in one's brain to think and execute a meat stadium, but we all have different abilities, don't we?To see it, complete with football-esc diagrams, click here.
- National BBQ Association Conference coming up
Hey fellow West coasters, the NBBQA conference and trade show is in San Diego, CA this year. It's coming right up - February 22-25. I'm tempted to go, but don't know if I can get away. Restaurants and young 'uns tend to tie one down a bit. Still, looks like they will have some excellent sessions, like getting your sauces and rubs to the market, and how to keep profitable during this recession. Good no matter where one is in the process, plus plenty of fun.Anyone going? Anyone been in the past? I think my desire to go is in part for some sunshine, but also for some face to face barbecue community time. You all know, if you've paid attention, that I am wishy washy about the social media business. I take breaks, to my "brands" detriment perhaps, but life's too short to worry too much about that. I'll choose real time contact over on-line contact just about any time. So...any chance any of y'all I gab with on facebook and twitter going?
- Hello Snow!
The wood pile is ready for making fires after sledding. That is a perk to owning a barbecue restaurant - an everlasting supply of wood. Sure, using up our nicely seasoned cherry wood for firewood isn't economical, but this might be our only true snow day all winter. And frankly, the mobile smoker isn't getting much action right now so we might as well use some of those sticks sitting in the shed.For those of you laughing at our paltry Seattle 2-3 inches, and the fact that schools got out yesterday because of a "threat of snow", check out the snowman we made the previous day at the park. We call him Wood Chip Man. If you look closely you might be able to discern the face made out of wood chips, as opposed to the wood chips that were picked up in the rolling.By the way, Smokin' Pete's BBQ is open today. Come in to warm up with some barbecue.
- See ya, 2011
Awesome axe kick snagged from this websiteI don't think I've ever heard someone say, "Oh, if only this year could last forever," have you? No matter how wonderful your year may have been, it's always time, isn't it, for a new year to begin. 2011 has not been a favorite year for many of us. I heard a commentator say the other night that the theme of 2011 is "When will it ever end?" Instead of champagne this year, I'm planning on sending off 2011 with an axe kick. Then I may imbibe in some bubbly.I'll make sure to eat my collard greens and black eyed peas too for a good dose of health and prosperity for 2012.Happy New Year everyone!
- "Fish Friday" Cedar Wrapped Ling Cod
Here's my post on the Char-Broil Live site about cooking Ling Cod in The Big Easy. What I loved about making this dish? It was super fast and delicious. It's also simple. During the slog of holiday dinners, parties, and platters of cheese, it's nice to have a simpler dinner here and there. This dish is heavy on the flavor but light everywhere else.Read the whole post here (please) and if so inspired, throw me a comment here or on the Char-broil site. I do so love to hear from y'all.
- A Practical Wish for the Holidays
My son attended a preschool one year called Nature Kids, housed in the middle of Seattle's largest park, the 534-acre Discovery Park. The main premise of the preschool was that the kids would go on a hike for most of the day, rain or shine, learning about nature.The school had all sorts of specially named places they'd hike to: Stick Belong, a place they often gathered large sticks to make a lean-to fort, Owl Logs, a place with fallen trees that could be an instant game of pirate ship, and the Wishing Tree.The Wishing Tree was my son's favorite. Almost every day, the kids would gallop to one particular tree of many that surrounded an open field and whisper their wish. My son naturally wished for superhero strength, the ability to change into a cheetah, or an invisibility hat he could don to sneak candy whenever he wanted.One kid, however, wished every time, without fail, for a sandwich. My son reported this to me each time with an incredulous voice, for the boy apparently wished out loud to the Wishing Tree as well."But he gets a sandwich!" my son would say, shaking his 4 year old head. "There's a sandwich every day in his lunch!"The fact that this boy would waste his wish on something so mundane, and on something he'd get within the hour baffled both of us. Even I, a cynical adult, would prefer an invisibility hat to sneak chocolate over a sandwich.But after a while I got it. The kid was a practical fellow. He wanted his wish to come true.For those of you that want your wishes to come true this holiday season, I suggest socks. Wish for socks. Sometimes it's better to keep your expectations low and be surprised. After all, they might be really great socks.For the rest of you...Happy Holidays! May your feasts be plentiful and delicious. May your family be bearable. May it not hurt when you bite your tongue. Do bite it, for the few days you need to. It will make for a far smoother year. May your gifts all fit so that you don't have to enter the post-Christmas fray at the mall, unless you like that sort of thing. May you get amazing socks. May you go easy on the eggnog and be mildly controlled with the chocolate...And when the din settles down, may you find time to stop, breath and contemplate the new year about to unfold.
- White Winter/Fall Colors
We don't get much snow in Seattle. Most of our "white winter" is an unending white sky. It gets grey plenty too, but today it was that endless white. Here are some images of winter I took today, walking to the post office, contrasted by some fall pictures I took last month. We had a glorious fall, due to incredible blue sky, crisp sunshine days.I played with the highlights with this one.What a contrast to the fall...My son is saying, "Come on, mom!"My favorite of the fall pics. I have a cheap little point and shoot camera. It's woefully inadequate for a food blog, but it fits in my pocket and helps me capture my kids and fall leaves and stark trees.
- The Holiday Store is Open!
We've come up with a host of barbecue stocking stuffers this year. Back by popular demand is the BBQ Soap. An olive oil soap, it's scented with sandalwood and hickory, "For when you want to smell fresh out of the smoker!" TM. Also this year we have the Pitmaster's Blend coffee for sale. Truth be told, it is the Tango Blend by Cafe Mam, but we've renamed it Pitmaster's Blend because it's what our pitmaster, Eric, drinks by the gallon. We think it is the best coffee on earth. As always, we sell our spice rub, smoked peppers, sauce gift packs, and signed copies of She-Smoke! We have a new T-shirt design! Big, bold, Ballard. Get 'em while they're hot. Here is one of our cooks, "Falcon", modeling the new T. Check back to the blog soon as I'll be unveiling a really cool giveaway for the holidays!
- Deep Fried Turkey, Hold the Deep Fry
The "Oil-less Turkey Fryer" from Char-Broil arrived just in time for me to test before Thanksgiving. I am one of their bloggers this year on Char-broil live in exchange for a few goodies like this. The products are for me to use or give away. If I want to review them, I can, but without any strings attached. But first, some back story....I've been intrigued by this little unit for a few years now, having competed on one in a Barbecue Smackdown at Memphis in May in 2010. I'd always wanted to go to MIM, so when Char-Broil invited me to be a guest chef for some fun demos and competitions with some other barbecue personalities, I jumped at the chance. I'd never touched one before I was thrown into a celebrity grilling competition, and had to learn quickly how to operate it while at the same time realizing that everyone else was cheating wildly, pulling bacon and other ingredients out of their pockets. Luckily, The Big Easy, as it's called, is really easy to operate. Turn on gas, turn igniter switch and you are good to go. I didn't win the competition, but it was a blast. Next time I'll stuff my pockets with bacon. It was nice to get to know this cooker at home, without the pressure of TV cameras on me.I decided to make a simple "deep fried turkey", according to the recipe provided in the packaging booklet. I rubbed a 14 lb turkey with peanut oil, and then sprinkled on a rub I made by mixing two commercial rubs together plus some thyme. I didn't need to get finicky about the rub as this was my maiden voyage. It was more about testing the tenderness, the skin, and the cook time than any specific flavors.First I seasoned the little guy (the grill, not the bird) with vegetable oil, per the instruction booklet. By the way, my preferred oil rag for grills is a clean old sock of Eric's that has finally shredded. I can get an old sock oily, dirty, and then throw it in the compost with a clear conscience that I've both reused an old thing and diverted it from a landfill. We always seem to have a steady supply of tube socks in the process of biting the dust. Eric will try to wear the torn, holey socks out of the rag drawer, so I have to actually rip them to the point that they no longer hold a foot. But I digress....Here are my comments on The Big Easy:I cooked my turkey for 4 hours, about 30 minutes too long because the kids were in the bath and I couldn't go out and get it. It came out beautiful, but on the edge of too done. The booklet math recommendation came out to 3.5 hours so it was correct.The skin: The skin is definitely the highlight of this turkey and cooking method. It was all I could do not to pick the bird bald. Crispy, fried but not oily, and a deep amber color...perfect.The flavor: I didn't brine the turkey and wish I had. It was a little bland beyond the skin layer. The texture: This time of year we are up to our necks in turkey at Pete's, so I'm used to the smooth, almost delicate texture of a smoked turkey. The texture was a little tougher, but I attribute this to my overcooking.Sturdiness and other comments about the cooker itself: I like the basket and little handle lifty thing that comes with. You simply load the basket and drop it down. It was solid enough and sat level, yet once assembled I could carry it out the door and down the steps to the front yard. It was easy to set up and easy to clean. What I did NOT like: It cooks totally open - you only use the mesh lid at the end, meaning you have this really hot burning thing right at kid level. And by kid level, I mean right exactly at the height and spot a 2-5 year old would stick their hands on or in. It made me very nervous. I got so nervous bringing my almost 3 yr old widely around it that she nearly tripped, out of transferred nervousness, into the burning hot center. I've come up with a solution. Char-broil should include cones and caution tape with the packaging to section off the grill. And maybe a few English traffic cops to stand around it to make sure no one gets too close to the flame.Final comments: I like it. I'm keeping it vs giving it away. I wish it came with a lid or cover because the very first night I left it out and of course it rained. I recall the ones we used in the competition had lids, and grill inserts so maybe these are extras one can order. I'll use it again, though it will most likely be on a less frequent rotation than other grills, due to the open flame/small child issue. I want to try it with a brined turkey. The booklet has some recipes with injections, but no brines. As for my opinion on injections, I think I've already answered that poetically.
- Barbecue Soap Curing
The barbecue soap is unmolded and cut. It will be ready for sale and to ship by December 5th, just in time for the holidays. I've been making this soap for stocking stuffers since we opened Smokin' Pete's. It's scented with hickory and sandalwood, and is a classic Castille soap recipe (mostly an olive oil base, with some coconut and palm oil). No, I did not render the brisket fat to make it! I used to make soap and bath products with a friend. For a brief while we sold it at crafts fairs and farmer's markets. The last two years, I've either not made it or made very little, but I've had so many requests this year I made sure to make two big batches.The only change this year is to the packaging: instead of the tag line "For the manly man that wants to smell fresh out of the smoker!", it will say "For when you want to smell fresh out of the smoker!"I've always struggled with that line. It always got a lot of laughs, and I liked the rhythm of it, but I didn't like that it was only geared toward men. In honor of the spirit of She-Smoke, I decided to make the packaging equitable for all. Here is what the packaging looks like, but with the "old" line.
- It's Here! My New Oil-less Turkey Fryer
It's called The Big Easy and Char-Broil claims is has all the taste of a fried turkey, without the oil, mess and imminent backyard explosions we hear about every year on Thanksgiving. I'm intrigued. I've always been too chicken to fry a turkey (heh heh), and therefore the perfect candidate to try out a gas powered oil-less unit.First I'll need to assemble and season the little guy. I've bought a 14+ pound Northwest Natural turkey and am planning to try the first recipe in the Charbroil booklet they send. It's very simple - 1 turkey, peanut oil, and herb seasoning of your choice. How many of you have deep fried a turkey? How many have tried The Big Easy? If you've tried both, please share your comparison in the comments.
