By Steve McGrath
Camp Chef
If you really want to change the way you spend time in the outdoors pick up a new habit, smoking. No, not the one the surgeon general warns you about it’s the one that will have you looking at the animals you hunt in a whole different way.
Hopefully this past fall left you with a freezer full of wild game but don’t let freezer burn set in on your hard earned meat. Make the most of the hunting “offseason” to learn a new way of cooking. Smokers are simple to use and will change the way you enjoy the harvest.
Contrary to popular belief, the skill of smoking meat does not need to be passed down from generations of southern ancestors. Just like any other hobby, there is specialized gear required to make smoking food successful and fun. Start with the obvious, the smoker. They come in various shapes, sizes and of course price. Keep it simple to begin with, there is no reason to invest $20,000 in a smoker only to find out it’s not something you are interested in. There are great options for less than $400, ones that will do the job and last for years of loyal duty. Electric and propane smokers will shorten the learning curve and are also easier to regulate the temperature and smoke output. Two principal practices govern smoking, time and temperature. I usually keep my smoker around 200°-225° Fahrenheit, to keep the wood chips smoldering and to bring the meat slowly up to temperature. The prolonged cooking time allows smoke to penetrate the meat and the connective tissues, that can make it tough, to break down.
Controlling the temperature is the number one goal of smoking. Learning your smoker and its settings will help you turn out good food, time and time again. Though most smokers come equipped with thermometers, they are better used as temperatures guides for the smoker’s internal temps. I recommend getting an aftermarket remote thermometer or two. Why two? Use one to tell the temperature on the inside of the smoker and the other to show the internal temp of the meat you are smoking. The beauty of those thermometers is the remote feature, meaning you can monitor what is going on with the smoker from a distance, or in the case of this time of year from inside your warm home. I utilize a couple different ones and am always open to trying new ones but for the price the Camp Chef Remote Thermometer is tough to beat.
Typical smoking temps are around 220° -250° Fahrenheit. That number can and should vary for different types of meat being smoked. For fish, I like to keep the smoker closer to 160°; whole meat jerky is near 215°, brisket around 225°. Experiment a little to decide what will work best for you. Speaking of temperature, internal temp of the meat is crucial to making sure it’s done just right. Overdone and it ends up like jerky, underdone and the meat could be tough and tasteless. There are some great websites to reference for recommendations; a quick Google search will give you a starting point.
Perhaps no option has more bearing on the flavor of the food than the wood selection. Quite often the wood used depends on regional availability, folks in the northwest tend to use a lot of alder as opposed Texans that use mounds of the abundant mesquite. Generally hickory and mesquite create a heavier smoke flavor and seem to work best with beef. Maple, oak, pecan or alder produce a medium smoke, great for the myriad of superb pork products commonly smoked. Milder meats such as poultry and fish can be easily overpowered with the stronger wood smoke; fruitwoods are the perfect solution for them. There isn’t anything that says woods can’t be mixed and matched. Matter of fact I rarely use just one type of wood, mixing can produce a great combination. For instance with brisket I have used mesquite, apple and cherry. For fish I normally use apple and alder. When it comes to wood selection there is no wrong, you pick what will work best for you and stick with it.
When you’ve dialed in the smoker, temperature control and wood types it’s time to try your hand at the age old cooking tradition. I suggest starting with something relatively easy and inexpensive, for me that was a pork butt, or shoulder. The recipes for rubs, cooking times and temps are all over the Internet. That is where I started my search and for my first outing it suited me just fine. Check in on the Sportsman’s News Forums under the “General” section. There will be monthly tips and recipes as well as occasional giveaways. The purpose is to share ideas, photos and maybe a little bragging! Mastering smoking will leave you not only popular amongst your peers but it should entice you to hunt more this coming fall! Leave your favorite outdoor recipe in the comments below for a chance to win an 18′ smoker from Camp Chef.
Join the forum discussion on this post
Congratulations to Ray Julin for winning the Camp Chef 18″ SmokeVault smoker from Sportsman’s News. Ray, please email me your shipping address to info@sportsmansnews.com. The smoker will come directly from Camp Chef. Thanks to everyone who submitted their recipes. We will keep these and compile them into a cooking guide on our website, http://www.sportsmansnews.com. Be sure to go “Like” CampChef on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/campchef?fref=pb.
Easiest recipe on here..
We tailgate at the football games with this one
We rub A LOT of chicken legs with jalepeno salt and immediately throw them in the smoker at 275-325 for a couple hours over hickory wood. The high heat helps the skin get nice and snappy instead of chewy.
Fantastic taste and they are really cheap to share.
Happy tailgating!!!
Dutch Oven Chocolate Cake
One Chocolate cake mix (Double chocolate or Dark chocolate) Eggs as called for on cake mix 1 cube butter 2 T cocoa 1 cup brown sugar 2 cups water 1 cup mini marshmallows 1 can of pop In a Dutch oven melt butter, mix in cocoa and brown sugar. Then add 2 cups water and marshmallows. In a bowl stir up the cake mix with eggs and pop. Pour over mixture in Dutch oven, but don’t mix. Cook about 20 to 30 minutes in a 12″ Dutch oven. 14 coals on top and 10 on bottom. Serve with cool whip.
My favorite outdoor recipe is Hot Corn!! It’s a spicy corn with cream cheese and jalapenos! Very yummy and very easy too!!
Ingredients:
Servings:
7-8
Units: US | Metric
3 (11 ounce) cans shoe peg corn
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1/2 cup butter
diced jalapeno (to taste)
Directions:
1
Soften cream cheese and butter, by putting in microwave for 20-30 seconds.
2
Mix together with mixer until smooth.
3
Stir in corn (2) cans drained (1) can undrained.
4
Stir in diced jalapenos- to taste.
5
Bake at 350 for 30 minute.
Try these amazing Banana Boats at your next barbecue or camping trip for an ooey gooey and absurdly easy treat.
You will need:
*Bananas (Estimate 1 per person. Once they taste it, no one will want to share.)
*Toppings-Chocolate chips, butterscotch, peanut butter chips, mini marshmallows, sweetened coconut or any other toppings your family likes.
*Foil
*Take each banana and slit it lengthwise. Only cut through the top skin on the banana – not all the way through! (Just like you do with baked potatoes.)
*Stuff them with any combination of toppings you desire.
*Wrap the bananas in foil and place on the grill. Grill with the cover on until toppings are melted and delicious. About 5 to 10 min
*Eat with a spoon. These are insanely good over ice cream.
buy ur favorite sausage….hang in smoker…smoke till ur ready 2 eat,,,,cut,,,,enjoy
Lots of good recipes here, but mine is a bit more simple for camping. CAMPFIRE STEW – Brown 1-2 lbs of ground beef, drain the grease then add 1-2 cans of vegetable or vegetable beef soup(undiluted if you want it thick). Stir over medium heat until it’s all hot again. Add a salad and rolls and this makes a complete meal with minimal cleanup and minimal ingredients to pack along.
Dutch Oven Blueberry Cheesecake Cake
1 Box White Cake mix 1 Pkg. Sugar Cookie Mix
2 Cans blueberry in Light syrup 1 stick Butter
16 oz. cream cheese
Drain Syrup from can’s of blueberry. Stir 1 1/2 cups blueberry syrup into Cake Mix & Pour into bottom of 12 in. Dutch Oven;
Place 8 oz. cream cheese in small pieces evenly over Cake mix & cover with 1 can blueberry (drained).
Repeat with another 8 oz. cream cheese & 1 can blueberry.
Stir 1 Stick melted butter into Sugar Cookie Mix & Spread evenly over top. Bake 1 hour with 10 COALS BOTTOM/16 COALS TOP
My favorite outdoor recipe is simply some good old bacon and eggs at the camp site. I cook mine in my Camp Chef 12 quart dutch oven lid. It inverts to form a griddle. It even has legs on it so you can sit it directly on the coals. First I fry the bacon then the lid will be nice and greased up for the eggs.
Camp griddle scrambled eggs-
2 eggs per person
splash of milk
salt, pepper, and a dash of garlic powder
Mix them in a bowl and pour onto the greased griddle. Use a metal spatula to keep mixing the eggs up until they are done.
Mountain Man Burritos
In a dutch oven, cook about 1/2 green pepper and 1/2 red pepper, 1/3 onion, and add a meat like ham or sausage if you like, and even shredded or cubed potatoes. When the veggies are hot but still a bit crunchy, add in about 6-8 eggs and maybe some salt/pepper to taste (we add Slap Ya Mama cajun seasoning) and let cook. Heat up some tortilla shells in foil on any warm surface (on top of the dutch oven lid works well). When the eggs are done, spoon the mixture into the warm tortilla shell, add some shredded cheese, wrap it up, and enjoy!!
Chicken Burritos
Get a couple chicken breasts, mix with one packet of taco seasoning mix, and one jar of salsa. That is it! Put in a dutch oven for 3 to 4 hours until the chicken is done. Shred the chicken in the mix and serve in burrito shells.
Rainy Day Chicken
2tbsp vegetable oil
4lbs boneless chicken, chopped into bitensize pieces
2(16oz.) Frozen California style veggies (broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower), thawed
2(16oz) jar Alfredo Sauce
Heat oil in dutch oven over 32 coals and brown chicken til cooked through
Dump veggies into oven, stir and cover
Stir occasionally until veggies are cooked throughout, about 15 min. Refresh coals as required.
Pour Alfredo sauce over chicken and veggies mixture. Stir then cover and cook til thoroughly heated about 10 min.
Serves: 14-16
Prep time: 1hour
Smoked and Canned Fish
Dry Marinade Ingredients:
2 Tbs. garlic salt
2 Tbs. onion powder
1 Tbs. ground black pepper
3 cups salt (non-iodized)
9 cups brown sugar (64 oz. or a 4 lb. package)
Marinade Preparation:
Mix marinade ingredients well. It can be made ahead and stored in air-tight containers.
Fish Preparation and Smoking:
Prepare your fish fillets* by removing dark or stringy portions. Sprinkle mixture on both sides of fish fillets, covering well. Layer fish in a large plastic bag placed inside a deep pan and seal to hold juices in. Marinate in refrigerator for at least 8 hours or overnight. Remove fillets and rinse well with cold water. Pat fillets dry.
Place equal parts of hickory and mesquite wood chips, soaked in water for at least 4 hours, in bottom of smoker over the flame/coals. Smoke fish according to your preferred dryness.
If you are using a propane water smoker (which I use), your fish may be done in as little as 2 hours.
*Tuna, yellowtail, bonito, barracuda and salmon are all good for smoking.
Canned Smoked Fish (Tuna is my favorite)
Ingredients:
Freshly smoked fish or tuna
Vegetable oil
Preparation:
Wash and sterilize canning jars and lids. (Run your jars and lids through the dishwasher as an easy way to sterilize them.) Fill pint or half pint jars with smoked tuna leaving 1/2 inch headroom. Add vegetable oil just to cover tuna. Wipe tops of jars making sure no oil or fish remains. Put lids on and tighten lids.
Processing:
Place jars in pressure cooker and seal lid. Place pressure regulator on top and when it is rocking gently and pressure reaches 10 pounds, begin timing. For half pint and pint jars, you will want to pressure cook the jars for 110 minutes at 10 lbs. pressure.
Remove from heat and let pressure diminish completely before opening. Remove jars from cooker and let cool on towels placed on countertop. Jars will seal as they cool. If you remove the jars as soon as the pressure is down to zero, be careful as the jars will still be hot.
Canning your smoked fish will allow you to keep it much longer than just freezing or refrigerating your fish. I’ve kept canned smoked fish for over five years and it was still as good as it was the day it was smoked.
When it comes to smoking stuff, I love smoking ribs! Below is my favorite recipe.
Memphis Ribs
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 4 hours
Total Time: 4 hours, 20 minutes
Yield: Serves 6
Ingredients:
•3 pounds pork spareribs
•For Rub:
•4 teaspoons paprika
•2 teaspoons salt
•2 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
•1 teaspoons cayenne
•For Sauce:
•2 cups ketchup
•2 cups chopped onion
•1 cup red wine vinegar
•2 cloves garlic, minced
•1/4 cup yellow mustard
•1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
•1/2 teaspoon Louisiana hot sauce
Preparation:
Prepare ribs by removing the membrane from the underside of the ribs. Trim off any loose fat or meat. Prepare smoker or grill. You will want to hold a temperature around 225 degrees F. for 4 to 6 hours so plan accordingly. Season ribs with Memphis rub and place on grill or in smoker. While ribs are cooking, prepare barbecue sauce. Blend together everything except the ketchup. Pour into a saucepan and add the ketchup. Simmer over low heat for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. Cook ribs until the internal temperature of the meat reaches about 145 degrees F. Brush with barbecue sauce. After about 10 minutes turn the ribs over and brush with sauce continually during cooking process.
Pulled Pork…yummy!
INGREDIENTS:
3 cups apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup salt
1/4 cup brow n sugar
4 tablespoons ground black pepper
2 tablespoons cayenne pepper
1/4 pound butter
1 quart w ater
5 pounds Boston butt roast
DIRECTIONS:
1. In a non-reactive saucepan, combine the cider vinegar, salt, brow n sugar, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and butter. Bring to a rolling boil over medium-high heat. Mix in the w ater, and return to boil. Sauce the pork before smoking, and then every hour or so w hile it cooks.
2. Start the pork butt on a slow smoker using hardwood coals or charcoal briquettes and mesquite or apple wood chips. Smoke the pork for at least 6 hours and up to 10. The longer the smoke time, the deeper the ‘smoke ring’, a red ring of flavor, will penetrate.
3. After the meat has smoked for 6 to 10 hours, use aluminum foil to w rap the meat. Fold the edges of tw o sheets together to forma watertight seal. Place the meat in the center and bring the edges up to the top, cupping the meat. Pour 1 cup of the sauce over the meat and then seal the foil tightly around the roast.
4. Place the meat package back on the smoker, or in a 350 degree oven (175 degrees C). If it is on the smoker, increase the heat. Cook the package until the meat pulls easily from the bone. This can be checked easily by pushing on the top of the foil package w ith an oven-mitted hand to test for softness. It w ill take up to 2 hours.
5. Once the meat is done, remove it from the smoker or oven and let it cool. Pull the pork from the bone and discard the fat and gristle. Pull the meat apart in large chunks about 1 inch w ide by 4 inches long.
6. Place the meat chunks in a pan and pour about one cup of sauce for every 4 pounds of meat, or to taste. Heat until simmering. Serve immediately or let marinate for several days.
Here’s a recipe for bourbon chicken:
Ingredients
About 8 cups tap water
1/2 cup bourbon
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons salt
8 cups ice water
1 TB peppercorns
2-3 bay leaves
2-3 garlic cloves, peeled
1 onion, quartered
1 Fuji apple, quartered
1 lemon, quartered
1 Chicken (about 4 lbs)
2 cups applewood chips
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cooking spray
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1. Combine the tap water, bourbon (reserving 1 TB to baste chicken later), sugar, and salt in a Dutch oven and bring to a boil. Add the ice water and add the rest of the ingredients (other than chicken of course).. let it all cool to room temperature.
2. Add the chicken to the above mixture, cover, and let it sit in fridge for about 18 hours, turning the chicken over a couple times.
3. Soak the wood chips in water for about an hour and then drain.
4. Remove the chicken from the liquid and pat it dry. Throw away the brine, but save about 1/2 the apple, 1/2 the lemon, and 1/2 the onion.
5. Sprinkle the chicken with pepper and add the apple, lemon, and onion into the chicken cavity. Tie the legs.
6. Prepare the grill for indirect grilling, heating one side to high and leaving one side with no heat. Poke some holes in the bottom of a disposable aluminum foil pan several times with the tip of a knife. Put the pan on the heated side of grill. Add 1 cup wood chips to pan. Put another disposable aluminum foil pan (do not pierce pan) on unheated side of grill. Pour 2 cups water in that pan. Let the chips stand for 15 minutes or until they’re smoking, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Maintain temperature at 275°.
7. Coat the grill rack with cooking spray; place on grill. Place chicken, breast side up, on the grill rack over foil pan on unheated side. Combine the remaining 1 tablespoon bourbon and butter; baste chicken with the bourbon mixture. Close lid, and cook for 2 hours at 275° or until thermometer inserted into chicken reads 165°. Add remaining 1 cup wood chips halfway through cooking time.
8. Let the chicken sit for about 15 minutes (off the grill), and Enjoy!
Easy Cast Iron Skillet Apple Pie
3-4 lbs apples (I used 3 large Granny Smith and Braeborn)
1 stick melted butter
1 c brown sugar
3/4 c sugar
1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon
2 ready made 9″ pie crusts
1 egg white whipped
Pinch of nutmeg
12 caramels
Splash of lemon juice
Cut apples into slices. Splash a small amount of lemon juice over them. Mix sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon,pour over apples and coat apples in a bowl.
Lightly spray 10″ cast iron pan with PAM. I lined the pan with parchment paper for easy clean up. Spread brown sugar in the pan. Pour melted butter over all. Place 1 pie crust into the pan. Mound apples on the pie crust.
Place caramels randomly over apples. Cover with other pie crust. Brush with whipped egg white. Sprinkle sugar over top of crust. Cut a few slits in the pie crust.
Bake at 375 degrees for about an hour. Watch pie top, if it is starting to brown too quickly, cover with aluminum foil to prevent over browning. Let sit in pan for at least 1/2 hour before serving.
Sadly, I don’t have a favorite outdoor smoker recipe because I need a smoker
Hoping to win the contest so I can develop a recipe to share in the future. Thanks Sportsman’s News & Camp Chef!
there are countless delicious recipes for smoking foods, meats, poultry, game. here is an item that really raises eyebrows at the table.
SMOKED ONION BUTTER.
1 large sweet onion sliced
seson with salt and pepper.
place in smoker for 25 min on medium smoke
when golden brown and smoked, chop and add to a lb of room temperature butter. mix well and re roll the butter mixture into 2 tubes using cellophane wrap. cool in fridge then slice as needed. perfect accompaniment for grilled seafood and steaks… try it you’ll love it!
Dutch Oven Burrito Pie
2 pounds ground beef
1 onion, chopped
2 tsp minced garlic
1 (2 oz) can black olives, sliced
1 (4 oz) can diced green chilis
1 (10 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (16 oz) jar taco sauce
2 (16 oz) can refried beans
12 (8 inch) flour tortillas
9 oz shredded Colby or Mexican Blend cheese
Over medium heat, saute the ground beef for 5 minutes. Add the onion and garlic, and sauté for 5 more minutes. Drain any excess fat. Mix in the olives, green chilies, tomatoes, taco sauce and refried beans. Stir thoroughly, reduce heat to low, and let simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.
Spread a thin layer of the meat mixture in the bottom of a 4 quart (10 inch) Dutch oven. Cover with a layer of tortillas followed by more meat mixture, then a layer of cheese. Repeat tortilla, meat, cheese pattern until all the tortillas are used, topping off with a layer of meat mixture and cheese.
Bake 25 minutes using 8-10 coals on the bottom and 12-14 on top.
Serve with sour cream, shredded cheese and sliced olives
my favorite outdoor recipe – dutch oven monkey bread, great success on the scout outings we go on, the boys love it and its super easy.
Ingredients:
2 rolls of Pillsbury biscuits
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 Tbsp cinnamon
1 stick butter
Notes:
dessert or breakfast
Instructions:
Tear biscuits into quarters.
Mix sugar and cinnamon in plastic bag.
Drop each quarter into bag and shake to coat well.
Place in dutch oven.
Melt butter and pour over biscuits.
Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
Serves 6 to 8.
Simplest recipe on here….
For tailgating at football games we always rub chicken legs (a lot of them)
With nothing but simple jalepeno salt.
Then we just smoke them for a couple hours at 275-300
Over hickory. The higher heat helps make the chicken skin not chewy and gives it a nice crispy!
Enjoy and happy tailgating!
3 racks of baby back ribs with membrane removed, cut each in half
rub generously with this dry rub. 4Tbsp brown sugar, 1 1/1 Tbsp kosher salt, 1 1/2 tsp chili powder, and 1/4 tsp of each of these pepper, cayenne,old bay,rubbed thyme, and onion powder.
place in smoker 2 halfs to a rack and smoke at 250 degrees with 2 chunks of apple wood for 3 hours.
Romove and double wrap each half in foil with 1/3 cup of apple juice in each packet. and place back on smoker for 2 hours.
Romove from smoker and foil and place directly on racks again- be careful they will be falling apart:) Add some more apple chunks and cook for 1 more hour- if you can hold out this is where the smokiness really sets in:) During this last hour you can baste with your favorite BBQ sauce or leave them plain. We do half sauced and still can’t figure out which is better, just that they are great and well worth the effort!!!!
Onion Bake
2 large onions, cut into 1/2″ slices and separated
2 tbsp butter
8 oz shredded swiss cheese
10 1/2 oz can cream of chicken soup
1/2 c milk
1 tsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp pepper
6-8 slices french bread, buttered both sides or 1 bag of croutons
In a large skillet melt butter and cook onions until tender. Place in a greased 8×8 casserole dish & sprinkle cheese on top. Blend together soup, milk, soy sauce and pepper. Pour mixture over cheese and onions, mix lightly. Top with bread (or croutons). Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until bubbly on the sides.
One of our favorites is stuffed venison tenderloin.
Take one full loin, butterfly and stuff w, wild chanterelle mushroom and onion. Tie with bakers twine and season to flavor. Salt an pepper is all I ever use. Allow to sit over night in very cold fridge.
Light my side box smoker and allow to come up to 500 degrees. Add loin as close to fire box as possible. Searing outsides. Once seared, open smoker to allow to cool down to 250. Smoke for for 2.5 hours in a smudge. Remove and allow to rest under a foil tent for 15 mins. Untie and slice to desired thickness.
My favorite outdoor recipe is actually one I got from the internet. I was in the cub scouts as a kid, but didn’t spend a lot of time cooking out as a young man. My favorite part of camping when I was little was breakfast. My grandpa would cook country fried potatoes, eggs and pancakes. He passed away a long time ago, so I had to find a recipe for myself.
Again, this recipe is mostly from an internet site, but it’s still yummy!
Campfire Fried Potatoes
Roll out two sheets of aluminum foil large enough to hold a mound of potatoes. Lay 3 slices of bacon long ways on the foil, layer potatoes and onions, then for the last layer lay 3 slices of bacon on top. Salt and Toby Keith Seasoned Pepper each layer as you desire. Roll out two more sheets of foil unless you are using heavy duty foil, and lay over the potatoes and on all four sides roll the foil up tight. You can turn that foil over when you think the one side is done. Lay foil pack on grill or over campfire coals and cook for 20 minutes, turning occasionally. When potatoes are tender, unfold foil, scoop out onto a serving plate and serve with pan fried eggs and pancakes. Be sure to have plenty of Louisiana Hot Sauce for the potatoes and the eggs…unless you can’t handle it!
Smoked Roast Venison
Ingredients:
Roast:
5-7 pound Venison Roast, Loin, or Shoulder
½ pound of Bacon, finely chopped
2 cloves of Garlic, slivered
Fresh ground Pepper, to taste
1 c. Red Wine, dry
½ c. Olive oil
Gravy:
Reserved pan juice
1 c. Beef Broth
2 slices of Bacon
3 T. Flour
Salt and Pepper, to taste
Directions:
First trim the skin and fat from the meat. Using a small sharp knife, cut slits across the surface of the roast. Stuff the slits with garlic slivers and some of the chopped bacon. Using a meat brush, coat the roast with olive oil and sprinkle with the fresh ground pepper to taste.
Prepare your smoker for the roast by filling the water pan with water and ½ c. of the red wine. Place the prepared smoker over a hot fire.
After setting the roast on the smoker rack, cover and let it smoke for 5 hours. Make sure to feed the fire with charcoal briquettes at even intervals to maintain the cooking temperature. Baste the meat once an hour with the remaining olive oil. Be sure not to leave the smoker lid open for very long or your cooking temperature will drop.
When the internal temperature of the roast reaches 130-135 degrees, move it to a Dutch oven or cast iron frying pan and add the remaining ½ c. of red wine. Simmer for 45 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the roast reaches 165-170 degrees.
Reserve the pan juice from the roast for the gravy.
Directions for Gravy:
First dice the bacon and sauté, which will render the fat. Using a stiff whisk, stir in the flour a little at a time. Gradually add the reserved pan juices and beef broth. Stir until the gravy is smooth and thick, adding salt and pepper t taste.
Serve the roast hot and smothered in gravy, or refrigerate and serve cold.
This recipe is for one of my absolute favorite camping foods! Dessert! Everyone loves it too! In fact, I once received a marriage proposal because of this cake! But he just wanted me for my good cooking!
Dutch Oven Chocolate Caramel Cake
1 box chocolate cake mix
3 eggs
½ cup oil
1½ cups water
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 can prepared caramel sauce
1 tub whipped topping
5 crushed Heath Bars
Mix the cake mix, eggs, oil and water. Pour into 10 inch Dutch oven. Bake with 10 coals on bottom and 10 on top until cake is done. 30-45 minutes. When cake is baked, poke holes in the top with the end of a wooden spoon. Pour sweetened condensed milk and caramel over the top. Let it soak into the cake. Serve with whipped topping and crushed Heath Bars.
One of my favorites is a Grilled Loin Steak.
Start out by mixing together:
1 cup of Soy Sauce
1 minced garlic clove
1 tablespoon of honey
1 tablespoon of any type of steak sauce you prefer
If wanted use a little Tabasco Sauce as well
Use about 1 inch thick steaks and place in a sealable bag.
After all ingredients are mixed together, go ahead and place in the bag with the steaks.
Keep refrigerated for 5 hours then place on a grill to cook to your desired doneness.
Make sure heat isn’t to high or you will burn your marinade on the steaks
Marinade also tastes great with Pheasant!!!
Haven’t had very many opportunities to use a smoker,but winning would definitely change things.
My Favorite Smoker Recipe is Pulled Chicken
6 Large Chicken Breasts
4 Chicken thighs
McCormicks Chicken Rub
Kirkland Sweet Mesquite
Mix equal portions of the two Spices
coat chicken generously making sure to get rub under skin as well
Cover with Foil and let sit in Fridge Over night.
Heat Smoker to 275-300.
place chicken in Smoker for 5 Hours until CHicken reaches an internal temp of 165.
Remove skin from Chicken and remove meat from the bones.
shred chicken into a large bowl mixing the light and dark meat together.
Serve as desired I prefer on a bun with Sweet Baby Rays Original BBQ Sauce.
Simple salmon
I take the cleaned salmon and wrap it in tin foil and put rosemerry and thyme sprigs from my garden and orange and lemon slices in the foil and stuff it in the edge of the dug fire pit and let it slow cook. Check on it once in a while to see if it is ready. It can be mixed up a bit to taste aswell.
brown sugar honey dry rub seasonings 1/3 cup brown sugar, to taste
11 ounces chili powder
2 tablespoons seasoning salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
2 tablespoons onion powder
2 tablespoons cayenne, to taste
1 tablespoon cracked black pepper
2 tablespoons paprika
Directions:
1Prepare barbeque smoker with hickory or pecan wood.
2If you use briquets and woodchips, soak the chips in water.
3Rub ribs with dry rub and let set for one hour before starting to smoke.
4Smoke ribs slowly over indirect heat, 250 to 275 degrees for 2 1/2 hours.
5Wrap ribs in foil, cover meat generously with brown sugar and honey.
6Cook meat till rib bone twists and pulls freely out, about 2 1/2 to 3 more hours. ENJOY
25lbs of fresh ground venison, approriate amount of bologna seasoning from local butcher shop, 4lbs of honey and a splash of liquid smoke. Pack in 6″ x 24″ cloth bags and smoke at 200 degrees for 6-7 hours. Makes 3 lunch meat size rolls of sweet deer bologna.
Smoked Venison Meatloaf
MIX TOGETHER
1 pound of ground venison
1 pound of ground pork sausage
1 large diced onion
IN A SEPARATE BOWL – COMBINE AND MIX TOGETHER DRY INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic
1 tablespoon Mrs. Dash’s original blend
1 cup crushed (use a rolling pin, place in gal. plastic bag to crush) herb stuffing mix
3/4 cup of instant dry oatmeal (variation: use potato buds. These ingredients add substance, soft texture, and will help keep your venison meatloaf moist.)
IN A LARGE MIXING BOWEL COMBINE AND MIX THESE WET INGREDIENTS
1 beaten egg
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
1/4 cup Heinz 57 steak sauce or your favorite BBQ sauce
preheat your smoke vault to 350 degrees.
Pour the dry mixing ingredients into the wet ingredients bowel, mix well. Combine the venison, sausage, and onion mix. Mix, blend and work together well. Place this venison meatloaf mixture in a lightly oiled/sprayed bread baking pan. Place your venison meatloaf in the smoker and bake for 1 hour or until center of the venison meatloaf is no longer pink.
I also cook my Dutch Oven potatoes along with the meatloaf:
1- Can Cream o’ Mushroom soup
1 lb bacon diced
1 med yellow onion diced
6-8 med russet potatoes
shredded cheddar cheese
In a 12″ dutch oven or deep cast iron pot, brown bacon. Then add onions and sautee’ till tender.
add diced potatoes
mix in Cream o’ Mushroom soup
bake @350 degrees for about an hour or until tender
remove from oven and add shredded cheese and enjoy!!!
Dan
I love to make Dutch oven blueberry cobbler!!
I like to use tin foil to line my dutch oven so the clean up is easier but that is your choice.
I put 2 cans of blueberry pie filling on the bottom and spread it evenly.
I then mix one white cake mix according to the box directions.
Spread the cake mix as even as you can over the blueberries!
Be careful not to tip the Dutch oven as you place it on the briquettes. The cobbler cooks so much better if level.
It takes about 45min to 1 hour to cook. It is delicious.
I make it every year for my family reunion in the mountains and there is never any leftovers!
Enjoy!!!
This is THE BEST smoking brine for fish, turkey and prime rib. I’ve used it on all three and have received nothing but rave reviews…..and its simple!
4 cups water
2 cups of brown sugar
1 cup of kosher salt
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 soy sauce
1 teaspoon each of garlic powder, onion powder and black pepper.
Mix in a non-metal container. Then submerge your fish or prime rib in the mixture for about 24 hrs or overnight. Obviously you can’t submerge a whole turkey, so what I do is put it in the mixture breast-first for about 12 hrs and then flip it over. On the fish only, I make sure to rinse off the brine with fresh water just before smoking. On the rib and turkey the brine just adds to the flavor, but on the fish I think they come out too salty if you don’t rinse them first.
MARINATED SMOKEY RIB EYE STEAKS
1 can chipotle peppers – dice
2/3 cup cocktail sauce
4 Tablespoons steak sauce
oh yeah Enough Rib eye’s for everyone….
Mix and place all in large zipper bag
Place Steaks in the zipper bag and gently massage the rib eyes making sure the meat is well coated… Refrigerate 1 to 3 hours 3 being the best… Leave on counter for 30 minutes before grilling… Salt and Pepper and brush on some olive oil before grilling… When steaks are turned over repeat salt and pepper and oil…
Great with Cole Slaw!
St. Louis style Ribs
2 days prior to smoking – mix brown sugar, tyme, pepper, salt and garlic (extra garlic). Add a little oinon powder. Rub down ribs on both sides. Wrap in plastic foil and put in fridge. Turn at least once.
Smoke with your choice of wood – Texas Masquitte is the best.
Smoke at 225 for 4 hours. Keep the water up.
Enjoy with a little St. Louis BBQ sauce from Papies BBQ on Grand Ave.
Yum yum yum.
Schnelly2
My Favorite Recipe for the Smoker is also the first one I learned to make. Ribs. I know a lot of you already smoke on here but I am going to write this as I did for a friend who had never used a smoker before. (He loved the Recipe and found it easy to make)
For this Recipe I like to use loin back Ribs because of the amount of meat they have one the bone. The Recipe is simple to follow it is called the 2-2-1 Method for Baby Back Ribs (2 Hours in smoke 2 Hours in Foil 1 hour back in smoke). if you use a Spare Ribs change it to 3-2-1 method.
Purchase one container of McCormick s Pork Rub and a container of Kirkland Sweet Mesquite (A Costco Item). one bottle of Apple Juice (You will only need a small amount of the Juice.
1. Pour equal amounts of both items into a bowl and mix together well. (Use enough for the amount of Racks of Ribs you are making.
2. Remove the membrane from the back of the Ribs.
3. Coat the ribs with the combined spices generously then wrap with foil and place in the Fridge over night.
4. Prep the wood Chips and fill a spray bottle with Apple Juice. (The 99 Cent ones from Home Depot work well and can be tossed when finished)
5. Prep the Smoker. Fill the water tray (If your smoker has one) fill the chip tray if using a remote Thermometer place it where it will give best reading
6. heat the smoker to temp (225 to 250) Spray ribs with Apple Juice then place ribs on racks with enough room that smoke can get to as much surface area as possible.
7. Leave in Smoker for 2 Hours monitoring Temp. spray with apple juice at one hour mark.
8. Remove ribs from racks spray with apple juice and wrap with foil and place back in Smoker for an additional 2 Hours (this will break down connective tissue in meat and will make them more tender)
9. Remove from Racks remove foil spray with apple juice and put them back on the racks for a final hour. (this will firm them back up a bit and finish the cooking nicely)
When finished the meat should be pulling up from the end of the bones and be easily pulled from the bone.
I hope this is informative and That if you try it you enjoy it.
2 pounds pork ribs Marinade 1/4 cup soy sauce 1/4 cup ginger (minced) 4 scallions (chopped) 2 pieces star anise Combine marinade ingredients. Marinate ribs overnight.
Sauce: 1/2 cup chicken broth 1/2 cup sugar 4 Tbs. orange peel (chopped) 1 Tbs. ginger (minced) 1 clove garlic (minced) 2 Tbs. olive oil juice from 3 fresh oranges Combine sauce ingredients in a saucepan. Reduce by 1/3.
Grill ribs all the while brushing with sauce. Let it cook untill sauce is crisp to your liking and dig in!!
I don’t have a smoker recipe, but we love doing ziploc omelets every time we go camping!
Eggs
ham
bacon pieces
sausage
peppers
onions
olives
cheese
salt
pepper
and any other toppings you like
Crack 2-3 eggs into a quart sized ziploc bag, put in preferred toppings, zip bag shut, squish to mix. Place bag into a pot of boiling water. Check eggs for doneness after 10-15 minutes, continue cooking until cooked through. Enjoy right out of the bag with salt, pepper, hot sauce, salsa, etc.!
2 pounds pork ribs Marinade 1/4 cup soy sauce 1/4 cup ginger (minced) 4 scallions (chopped) 2 pieces star anise Combine marinade ingredients. Marinate ribs overnight.
Sauce: 1/2 cup chicken broth 1/2 cup sugar 4 Tbs. orange peel (chopped) 1 Tbs. ginger (minced) 1 clove garlic (minced) 2 Tbs. olive oil juice from 3 fresh oranges Combine sauce ingredients in a saucepan. Reduce by 1/3.
Grill ribs all the while brushing with sauce. Cook untill ribs are to your likeing and dig in!
We love to do chili at deer camp. Usually we will do it plain and simple. We put a cast iron dutch in the coals from the mornings fire that is full of chili. We cover the top of the chili with biscuit mix and put the lid on. When we get back from the mornings hunt, chili and biscuits are done!
Not much of a recipe but when camping we love to make smoked sausage cut up in chunks with hash brown potatoes and scrambled eggs s then smothered with cheddar cheese. A great breakfast over the open fire.
Buttermilk Biscuits
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup vegetable shortening — I also substitute a little cold butter for some of the shortening to give it more flavor (I’d say 1/3 of the 1/3 cup).
1 tablespoon sugar
2/3 cup buttermilk
1. Preheat oven to 425°F. Or cast iron (dutch oven) cooking, use the following link to know how many briquettes for this temp: http://oces.okstate.edu/pittsburg/family-and-consumer-sciences/recipe-books/LodgeBakingTempChart.pdf
2. Sift together the dry ingredients into a large bowl.
3. Cut in the shortening (and butter if replacing some shortening)– Using a pastry cutter or wide-tined fork, press the shortening in with the dry ingredients, leaving it somewhat granular).
4. Make a well in the flour mixture and add the buttermilk. Gently knead the mixture with your fingers until thoroughly combined and a soft dough forms. Dough should not stick to fingers but shouldn’t be too dry to not hold to fingers when balls are formed.
5. Divide dough into six to nine pieces–depending on how thick you want biscuits. Then roll each ball in hands until no lines are visible. Pat in hands to make biscuit shape (squaring edges makes biscuits raise straight up as opposed to rounding).
6. Place the biscuits on a cookie sheet (or dutch oven–preheated) and bake for about 12 minutes, or until golden brown (do not over cook).
7. Can also add a little butter on top when they are almost finished to give a more crunchy/browned top.
Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Sausage Fatty
Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Sausage FattyTo begin this journey you have to have some supplies and the supply list really depends on how many fatties you are planning to make.
I highly recommend that you do at least two at a time but again, that is entirely up to you. Here is my list of supplies for two fatties:
3 lbs quality, thick sliced bacon
2 lbs regular Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage
8 oz Pepper Jack cheese slices
2 jalapeno peppers
1 batch of Jeff’s naked rib rub
1 batch of Jeff’s barbecue sauce
2 gallon sizes ziploc bags
2 pieces of wax paper (I use parchment paper)
Preparation
I like to do all of my preparation before even starting to put the fatties together. Remove the seeds from the peppers and then dice them up or slice them however you like, make the rub and the sauce, etc.
If you are using onions or other veggies, you can go ahead and slice and dice those as you see fit and set them aside.
The bacon weave will require thirteen pieces of bacon per weave and if you are making two weaves, you will need twenty-six pieces total. Count out and set aside the bacon you will need for the weaves and fry the rest up real nice and crispy. Place it on a paper towel to absorb some of the grease and set aside.
Weaving the Bacon
This may look difficult but once you do it one time, you will see how easy it really is.
Lay out 7 pieces of bacon horizontally on the wax paper butting them up to each other with no overlapping.
7 Pieces Laid Out Horizontally
Now remove the 2nd, 4th, and 6th piece and lay them aside.
2,4 and 6 Removed
Lay a piece of bacon vertically all the way to the left and on top of the horizontal pieces.
First Vertical Piece of Bacon
Replace pieces 2,4 and 6 that you removed earlier to the exact location that you removed them from.
2,4 and 6 Replaced
Fold horizontal pieces 1, 3, 5, and 7 back to the left over the top of the first vertical piece.
1,3,5 and 7 Folded Back
Lay down the 2nd vertical piece just to the right of the 1st vertical piece and lay horizontal pieces 1, 3, 5, and 7 back down into their original location.
You get the idea.. continue this alternating pattern until you have 6-7 vertical pieces of bacon woven into the 7 horizontal pieces.
This completes the weave that will be wrapped around the roll of stuffed sausage.
Sprinkly a healthy portion of my rib rub onto the bacon weave(s) and set aside.
Place the one pound sausage roll into a gallon sized ziploc bag and seal it up.
Then use your hand or a rolling pin to flatten it out to an even square. To avoid air pockets you can snip off a corner or two of the bag to allow some air to escape.
You can also just flatten the sausage out into a square that is approximately the same size as your bacon weave or slightly smaller without using a bag.
Roll out Sausage with Rolling Pin
If you used the bag to make the square of sausage, use a very sharp knife to cut the top of the plastic away from the sausage.. down one side, across the bottom and up the other side to where the zipper is located.
You should then be able to lift the sausage square up and flip it over carefully onto the wax paper allowing you to then remove the remaining bottom of the plastic bag from the sausage.
What you put on the sausage is a matter of preference.. I made one the traditional way with a layer of my sauce, 5-6 slices of pepper jack cheese, 10 pieces of bacon fried crispy and torn into small one inch pieces.
The second one was simply 5-6 pieces of pepper jack cheese, spinach greens, chopped red onion, and one seeded, chopped jalapeno.
Note: place all of the stuffing in the bottom two thirds of the sausage square for best results.
Lift up the wax paper and roll the sausage as tightly as possible making sure that the ingredients are rolled up into the sausage. An assistant is very helpful with this process.
Be sure to remove the wax paper as you go so it does not get rolled into the sausage as well.
When it is completely rolled up, very carefully lift up the roll of sausage and place it on top of the bacon weave at the bottom end.
As with the sausage, lift the bottom of the wax paper up to help start the bacon weave around the sausage.
Continue to roll the bacon weave until it is completely around the sausage roll. Be sure to keep the wax paper pulled back so it does not get rolled up with the bacon weave.
Brush on another coating of the barbecue sauce and you are ready to place on the smoker.
Preparing the Smoker
Prepare your wood, charcoal, electric or gas smoker for about 230-240 degrees. I used mesquite for this experiment since I wanted a really nice robust smoke flavor.
Feel free to use your favorite type of wood. I would imagine that pecan, oak, apple, cherry, etc. would all be wonderful woods to use.
Smoking the Fatties (some of you just got excited when you read that)
Place the fatties on the grate. The bacon wrapped stuffed sausage rolls will take about 2-3 hours to reach 165° in the center. I recommend that you keep the smoke flowing for at least 2 hours. Use a thermometer and remove them from the smoker when they reach 165°.
I have read that it takes about one hour per inch of thickness. I am not sure how well that holds true but one of mine got done about 30 minutes before the other one. The one that got done early was thicker than the one that took the longest so.. go figure.
Let the temperature tell you when it is done no matter how long it takes.
Bacon Wrapped Sausage Fatty Stuffed with Cheese and Bacon Bacon Wrapped Sausage Fatty Stuffed with Cheese, Spinach, Onions and Jalapeno
Crisping up the Bacon on the Outside
When you first remove the fatty from the smoker, the bacon on the outside will not be crispy. If you prefer crispy bacon then simply pop it into a 500° broiler for a couple of minutes but keep a very close eye on it will burn.
I have also wondered if you could place the whole fatty on a griddle once it is done smoking and do a fry on the outside of the bacon weave after it is finished. I have not tried this but I have a feeling it would work.
You would probably want to put toothpicks thought the fatty to make sure the bacon does not come unwrapped. You would also have to turn it a few times to get all sides crisp.
If you happen to try this, let me know how it goes.
Serving the Fatties
There are no rules as to how to eat these. Let them rest for about 10 minutes then slice them into 1/2 inch pieces to be eaten as is, on a large biscuit or make a sandwich out of it. Either way, they are simply delicious and you will do these time and time again, I promise!!
Ok, I would have to say my favorite recipe is simply Smoked Venison Steak.
I currently use a gas grill, but I make a smoke packet out of heavy duty aluminum foil with two or three big chunks of mesquite wood.
Next, I take butterflied backstrap steak (the key is to leave the back fat and connective tissues in place). I wrap the outer edge of the steak with bacon, holding it in place with a tootpick. Then I liberally season both sides of the meat with Montreal seasoning (store bought is ok, but homemade is better). if using store bought, add a dash of salt and garlic to the steaks. When the grill is smoking hot and the packet begins to smoke really well, lightly oil the grate and place the steaks on the grill. Depending on your tastes vary the time to cook them to your liking. I prefer 3-5 minutes per side. I like my steaks rare to medium rare. After turning, apply either a dash of liquid smoke or worcetershire to keep them moist. And…you’re done! I serve with bacon wrapped asparagus and a baked potato! Enjoy!
NC BBQ
Sear the outside of a boston butt on all sides using direct heat. Remove to cool side of grill and smoke over low heat for 30 min to an hour. Move the meat to a dutch oven and cover with a mixture of 1.5 cups of cider vinegar, half a cup of brown sugar, red pepper flakes and salt to taste. Cook at about 225 for 6 hours.
2 cups of Salt,2 cups of brown sugar, Steelhead Chunks,enough water to cover,Mix all together! Marinate over night! Throw in the smoker! DELICIUOS and SIMPLE!
We don’t have a smoker yet but here’s one of our recipes for a simple side dish. We take a large sheet of aluminum foil and either rub it with a margarine spread or spray it with a non-stick spray then add diced onions, peppers, zucchini, and yellow squash. Add salt, black pepper, and a little cajun seasoning. Fold up and lay either on a grill or next to a campfire. Let it cook for a bit till the veggies are tender and flavors have had a chance to combine. Really a great recipe when the garden is in full swing and you can go out and grab the ingredients off the vine!
My outdoor camping CHILI…
2 lbs ground chuck
1 16oz can diced tomatoes
2 24oz can tomato puree
1 160z can pinto beans
1 16oz can black beans
1 12oz bottle IPA Beer
3 Jalapeno peppers seeded
1 red bell pepper
1 whole red onion
1/2 cup chili powder
2 TBSP cumin
1 TBSP oregano
1 TSP sea salt
2 TBSP black pepper
2 TSP paprika
In large metal pot add Beef, beer, onion, red bell pepper, and jalapenos. cook until beef is brown.
Add both kinds of beans, diced tomatoes and puree, and stir in spices.
slow cook over fire for two hours and enjoy with more IPA beer.
I did forget to mention to chop the peppers and onion and enjoy with any kind of beer!
Here’s my all-time favorite outdoor recipe… Concocted during a camping trip several years ago. It turns a cheap cut of meat into a gourmet meal!!!
Fogcrawler’s Pin-Wheel Steaks
Ingredients:
1 tenderized beef flank steak
8-10 bacon strips
5 oz. crumbled gorgonzola cheese*
2 oz. shredded parmesan cheese
salt
pepper
olive oil
cherry smoking chips*
(* Key ingredients)
Directions:
Soak cherry chips for 20-30 minutes prior to grilling steaks.
Partially cook bacon, pat dry and set aside. (Raw bacon will be easier to roll in the pin-wheel but will finish as soft bacon)
Rub tenderized flank steak with olive oil.
Season to taste with salt & pepper. (I like Montreal Steak Seasoning and Peppercorn Medley)
Slice flank steak, cutting against the grain of the meat, into strips equal to the width of a piece of bacon and keep strips grouped to the shape of the flank steak.
Spread Parmesan cheese evenly over the strips and pat to adhere.
Spread Gorgonzola cheese evenly over the strips and pat to adhere.
Place a slice of bacon over each strip.
Begin rolling pin-wheel steak from an end cut.
Each pin-wheel will consist of 4-5 strips, depending on the size of the flank steak. (Yeild will be 2 Pin-wheel steaks)
Tie each pin-wheel with butcher/kitchen string.
SLOWLY grill over briquettes and soaked Cherry chips for about an hour.
Enjoy!!!
Here’s my easy recipe for venison backstraps….
place backstraps on a piece of aluminum foil
top with 1/4 stick of butter
2 sliced onions
sliced mushrooms
chopped garlic
2 sliced green peppers
salt and pepper
place on grill at med. heat for 10 minutes then flip for additional 10 minutes
ENJOY!!!!!
Chinese-Style Barbecued Spareribs
2 racks pork spareribs (2 1/2 to 3 pounds each), preferably St. Louis-cut (see note)
8 black tea bags (see below)
1 1/2 cups ketchup
1 cup soy sauce
1 cup hoisin sauce
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup dry sherry
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 cup red currant jelly
Instructions
1. PREP RIBS AND TEA Following the photos below, remove membrane on underside of ribs. Cut rib racks in half. Cover tea bags with water in small bowl and soak for 5 minutes. Squeeze water from tea bags and tightly seal in foil packet. Cut vent holes in top of packet.
2. STEAM RIBS Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Whisk 1 cup ketchup, soy sauce, hoisin, sugar, sherry, garlic, ginger, sesame oil, and cayenne in large bowl; reserve ½ cup for glaze. Arrange ribs, meaty side down, in large disposable roasting pan and pour remaining ketchup mixture over ribs. Cover pan tightly with foil and cook until fat has rendered and meat begins to pull away from bones, 2 to 2½ hours. Transfer ribs to large plate. Pour pan juices into fat separator. Let liquid settle and reserve 1 cup defatted pan juices.
3. MAKE GLAZE Simmer reserved pan juices over medium-high heat until reduced to ½ cup, about 5 minutes. Stir in jelly, reserved ketchup mixture, and remaining ketchup and simmer until reduced to 2 cups, 10 to 12 minutes. Reserve one-third of glaze for serving.
4. SMOKE RIBS Open bottom vent on grill. Light about 100 coals; when -covered with fine gray ash, carefully pile on 1 side of grill. Arrange foil packet directly on coals. Set cooking grate in place and heat, covered, with lid vent open halfway, until tea begins to smoke heavily, about 5 minutes. (For gas grill, place foil packet directly on primary burner. Heat all burners on high, covered, until tea begins to smoke heavily, about 5 minutes. Leave primary burner on high and shut other burner[s] off.) Scrape and oil cooking grate. Arrange ribs, meaty side down, on cool side of grill and cook, covered, until ribs are smoky and edges begin to char, about 30 minutes.
5. GLAZE RIBS Brush ribs with glaze, flip, rotate, and brush again. Cover and barbecue, brushing with glaze every 30 minutes, until ribs are fully tender and glaze is browned and sticky, 1 to 1½ hours. Transfer to cutting board, tent with foil, and let rest 10 minutes. Serve with reserved glaze.
MAKE AHEAD Ribs and glaze can be prepared through step 3 up to 2 days in advance. Once the ribs are cool, wrap tightly in foil and refrigerate. Transfer glaze to microwave-safe bowl, cover with plastic, and refrigerate. Before proceeding with step 4, allow ribs to stand at room temperature for 1 hour. Before proceeding with step 5, heat glaze in microwave on high power until warm, about 1 minute.
I love to do ribs and rib eye steaks in the smoker. Rub them down with dry rub smoke them for 2 hours at 200 spray them twice with apple juce to keep them moist I finish the ribs off in the oven but thesteaks you take rightout cover with blue cheese crumbles add sides and you are good to go. The ribs after they have been in the ovenI put BBQ sauce and but themon the bbq just to get the sauce on them.
I have many favorites, but my easiest one is:
BBQ Chicken
The night before I put my chicken breast in a large ziploc bag with kosher salt, garlic, and my favorite BBQ sauce.
The next day, I top my chicken with cheddar cheese, bacon, and top with more BBQ sauce.
Doesnt get any easier for those of you like me that are pressed for time. I love to add a bit of applewood with my charcoal.
Baked Beans
1 lb. lean ground beef 1/2 cup catsup
1/2 lb. bacon 16 oz. Homestyle® Chili Sauce
1 large yellow onion; diced 2 Tbs. prepared mustard
1 small green pepper; diced 1/2 lb. pre-cooked ham; cubed
1/2 cup brown sugar (2) 31 oz. cans pork and beans
Heat a 12″ Dutch oven using 18-20 briquettes bottom until oven is hot. Add ground beef and cook until brown. Remove browned beef and drain grease.
Cut bacon into 1 inch slices and place in oven and fry until brown. Add onions and green pepper and saute until onions are translucent. Drain off excess fat. Reduce briquettes on bottom to 12-14. Add browned beef, brown sugar, catsup, chili sauce, and mustard. Simmer for 15 minutes. Add ham and beans. Cover and add approximately 15 briquettes to the lid. Simmer for 2 hours stirring every 15 minutes.
Serves: 12
Pineapple Upside Down Cake
Topping Cake Batter
4 Tbs. butter 1 yellow cake mix
1 cup brown sugar 1 cup pineapple juice
8 pineapple rings 1/3 cup water
8 maraschino cherries 3 eggs
1/3 cup oil
Prepare Cake Topping: Melt butter in bottom of a 12″ Dutch oven. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over butter being careful not to touch the sugar once it has begun to dissolve into the butter. Carefully place pineapple rings on top of the brown sugar, 7 around the outside and 1 in the center. Place a maraschino cherry in the center of each pineapple ring.
Prepare Cake Batter: In a mixing bowl combine cake mix, pineapple juice, water, eggs and oil; mix well. Spoon cake batter carefully over the top of pineapple rings. Spread batter evenly to edges.
Bake: Cover Dutch oven and bake usinge 10-12 briquettes bottom and 14-16 briquettes top for 45 minutes or until top of cake springs back when touched.
Let the cake cool for 10 minutes or so in the oven with the lid cracked. Next run a rubber spatula around the inside edge of the oven to loosen the cake. To turn the cake out, first lay a piece of parchment paper across the top of the oven so it lays flat and replace the lid so that it holds the paper in place. Make sure you have an available lid stand resting on your table for the next step. Using gloved hands place one hand on the lid and the other hand under the oven and carefully lift and flip the oven over so the cake falls onto the lid. Rest the oven upside down on the lid stand and tap the bottom and sides of the oven lightly with your hand to make sure the cake didn’t stick. Then lift the oven off the lid. The cake will be resting on the parchment lined lid and can be cooled this way or slid off the lid using the parchment paper. Allow cake to cool slightly before service.
Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream as topping.
Serves: 8-10
SMOKED SALMON PASTA
Preparation Time:- 20 minutes
Cooking Time:- 45 minutes
Total Time:- 1 hour and 5 minutes
Ingredients:-
225g or 8oz penne pasta
225g or 8 oz smoked salmon
Butter for greasing
3 eggs
450ml or ¾ pint single cream
freshly ground black pepper
150g or 5oz Gruyère cheese grated
50g or 2 oz Parmesan cheese grated
Method:-
Pre-heat oven to 375°F or 190°C. Place the pasta in a pan of boiling water and cook according to the instructions for al dente. Drain well.
Grease the oven proof dish and pour in the pasta, now flake in the smoked salmon and give it a stir to make a good mix. Don’t be too energetic, we still want nice good chunks of salmon.
Beat the eggs, add the cream, pepper and half the Gruyère cheese. Pour this mix over the pasta.
Sprinkle the remaining Gruyère and Parmesan cheese over the top and bake for 45 minutes at 375°F or 190°C until golden.
I like to serve mine simply with a salad (in other words, whatever is in the refrigerator!)
Simple Smoked Salmon
Brine:
4 cups of dark brown sugar
1 cup sea salt
8 TBS minced garlic
Brine fish for at least four hours.
Wash and dry.
Season with a small amount of brown sugar and salt.
Paint each piece of salmon with Maple syrup.
Make a small trey for each piece of Salmon out of aluminum foil.
Smoke for 2.5 – 3 hours @ 240-250.
Enjoy!
Who doesn’t love breakfast! And this one has all of my favorites in it.
Mountain Man Breakfast
Ingredients for ~6 people:
1/2 lb bacon (or pre-cooked sausage)
1 med onion
2 lb bag of hash brown potatoes
1/2 pound of grated cheddar
1 doz eggs
1 small jar of salsa (optional)
The following requires 6-9 bottom coals and 12 -15 top coals:
Pre-heat 12″ Dutch Oven.
Slice bacon and onion into small pieces and brown in the bottom of the DO until onions are clear.
Stir in the hash brown potatoes and cover; remove cover and stir occasionally to brown and heat potatoes (15-20 minutes)
Scramble the eggs in a seperate container and pour the mixture over the hash browns. Cover and cook until eggs start to set.(10 – 15 minutes)
Sprinkle grated cheese over egg mixture, cover and continue heating until eggs are completely set and cheese is melted.
Optional: cover cheese/egg mixture with a small jar (~ 1 cup) of SALSA.
Cover and cook for an additional 3-5 minutes.
Slice and server like quiche. (Real men don’t eat quiche but I sure get lots of requests to cook up the Mountain Man.)
Cooking times will vary with the weather and your state of awake but its almost impossible to screw up.
Ok we will call this one Firehouse Chicken because I only make it at work in the firehouse. The guys ask for it all the time but can be quite difficult to do when we are busy. Mind you I made this recipe up as I went along one day and I dont measure when I cook. I do it all by tast and smell.
2 whole chickens cleaned and brought to room temp.
brush them with a light coat of olive oil.
Use your hands to seperate the skin from the meat and spread some butter and garlic cloves under the skin.
In a sperate bowl I combine garlic salt, black pepper, crushed red pepper, paprika, some finely cut rosemary and thyme. I then mix this very well and rub all over the chickens.
Once smoker is up to temp I place the chickens in and let them do there thing. I use a charcole smoker and different wood chips depending on what is available.
I perfer to use homemade apple wood chips when the orchard gets thinned but if that is not available then I use whatever I can get in the store.
Sorry I cant give you some more specifics for measurment but I do this as I go and as long as it smells good it usually is very tasty.
Smoked Three Bean Casserole
1-15 oz can kidney beans (only drain half)
1-15 oz can butter beans (only drain half)
1 can pork & beans (do not drain)
1 lb. Ground beef, browned
1/2 lb. Bacon, chopped and browned
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 c. ketchup
1/2-3/4 c. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. Vinegar
1 tsp. Dry mustard
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Pinch crushed red pepper flakes
Mix all ingredients together in a large dutch oven or other large heat proof pan. Preheat smoker to 275*F and place Casserole on second rack and smoke, stirring occasionally, for 2 hours or until hot all the way through. We like this smoked with a 75% Cherry and 25% Hickory. Great as a main dish with cornbread or as a side to nearly any kind of meat.
CINNAMON ROLLS
ROLLS:
½ cup warm water
2 packages dry yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
3 ½ oz. pkg. vanilla pudding mix
½ cup butter, melted
2 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
6 cups flour
CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
8 oz cream cheese
½ cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups confectioner’s sugar
1 tablespoon milk
To make frosting, mix all ingredients until smooth.
In a bowl, combine water, yeast and sugar. Stir until dissolved. Set aside.
In large bowl, take pudding mix and prepare according to package directions. Add butter, eggs and salt. Mix well. Then add yeast mixture. Blend.
Gradually add flour; knead until smooth. Place in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise until doubled. Punch down dough and let rise again.
Roll out on floured board to about 34 x 21” size. Take 1 cup soft butter and spread over surface. In bowl, mix 2 cups brown sugar and 4 teaspoons cinnamon. Sprinkle over top. Roll up very tightly. With knife, put a notch every 2 inches. Cut with thread or knife.
Place in lightly greased dutch ovens. I used a 16 inch and a 14 inch dutch. Take hand and lightly press down on each roll. Put lids on dutch ovens and let rise again until doubled. Bake at about 350 degrees F. for 15 – 20 minutes. Remove when they start to turn golden brown. DO NOT OVERBAKE!!!
Frost warm rolls with cream cheese frosting. Enjoy!!!
I put about 8 or 10 charcoal briquettes on bottom and as many as I can fit around the outside edge of the lid along with 3 or 4 in the middle of the lid. Turn lid ¼ turn counter clock wise and base ¼ turn clock wise every 15 minutes to prevent hot spots. And don’t peek for the first 15 minutes.
Camp Tenderloins
1 pork tenderloin roast (boneless chicken breasts can be substituted)
5 small red potatoes
3 carrots
1 medium onion (sweet if possible)
2 zucchini
1 tomato
1/4 lb. of fresh green beans
4 half-ears of corn (cobbettes)
garlic salt
olive oil
ground pepper
Spread 2 layers of heavy duty foil side by side, with middle overlapping. Drizzle olive oil onto foil. Place tenderloin in the center (lengthwise) of the foil. Cut potatoes into 1/4 inch slices and place on and around the meat. Cut other vegetables into large pieces and place on and around the meat. Sprinkle with garlic salt and pepper. Cover food with another piece of foil and fold the top & bottom foil together to seal the packet. Place on hot coals for 60 to 90 minutes.
One Beer Skillet Bread
3c self-rising flour
1/2c sugar
pinch salt
1 can beer
1 egg, beaten
optional adds:sliced onions, corn, bell pepper,jalapeno, chopped herbs or bacon
Preheat grill or place grate over fire accordingly. Mix ingredients EXCEPT EGG and knead lightly into a dough. Pour dough into a well greased cast iron skillet or add a bit of bacon grease to bottom and sides of the pan. Brush dough top with egg and top with add in ingredients if using.
Place skillet on grill or over indirect heat. Close lid. After 50 minutes, move skillet to direct heat and cook another ten. Toothpick test for doneness(comes out clean it’s done!)-flip onto cooling rack and cut into wedges.
I have a rotisserie seasoning recipe that is just divine, it would be so much better on meat that was smoked as well! It is equally good on rabbit.
Rotisserie Seasoning
Seasons one 4-5# bird
2 tsp Kosher salt
1tsp Paprika (I like a sweet smoked one)
1tsp onion Powder
1/2 tsp dried Thyme
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper
1/2 tsp Lemon Pepper
-pinch chili pepper-optional
Also optional, but makes it oh so much better, stuff cavity with a quartered yellow onion and 4 cloves peeled garlic.
Mix all ingredients and rub all over bird, inside and out.Stuff with onion and garlic if using. Oven roast or put into dry crockpot on low 8 hrs (or hi 4-5 hrs) or my favorite is to roast on rotisserie of grill or over open fire.
15 medium potatoes (sliced with skins on, about 1/4 thick)
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons salt
1 lb bacon
3 medium onions (diced)
Place bacon in the bottom of the dutch oven, enough to make 1/8 inch in oven. Brown bacon in preheated oven with or without the lid on;
Add onions, and cook until transparent.
Place potatoes in oven a layer at a time, seasoning as you go – Go easy on the salt because of the bacon.
When all potatoes are in stir thoroughly so seasoning and bacon and grease are well distributed throughout.
Go for about 6 coals on bottom and 4 coals on top
cook for about 20 min.
T-Bone Steaks
If you have cooked t-bone steaks on a BBQ grill, you know that if you turn your back the drippings will to catch fire.
Not a problem with the Camp Chef smoker.
Phenomenal steaks are easy:
Steak,
Garlic Salt,
Camp Chef Smoker,
Wood chips (optional)
Put your steaks on in the smoker, sprinkle with a little garlic salt.
Cook around 300 degrees until they reach the doneness that you want.
Fiesta Nacho Pie
1lbs. Of ground beef 1 (4 oz) can chopped green chilies
1 medium onion chopped 1(16oz.) can refried beans
1(8oz.) jar taco sauce 8 oz. grated cheese
1 ( 6 oz.) pack corn bread mix(prepare according to pack directions)
toping you want( tomatoes, olives, sour cream, Salsa, ext.)
Broun beef and onions in 10” Dutch oven. Add green chilies, refried beans, and taco sauce. Pour corn bread mix over beef mixture cover and bake with low heat until the corn bread is done. Sprinkle cheese on cover and heat until cheese begins to melt. top with toppings of your chose
Alt method: omit cornbread and serve mixture over tortilla chips
Dont really have any favorite , I just marinate to taste and smoke a steak till the temp reaches the desired doneness and then enjoy. Nothing better then a meal from a good smoker.
I don’t do recipes per se. My favorite outdoor recipe is my hot smoked turkey that I do every year around the holidays. I prefer cherry wood. I do a dry rub on the turkey with olive oil, bell’s, pepper, salt and garlic and stuff it with onions. Cook until it hits the internal temp you like. Everyone fights over the skin.
Ribs!! you don’t want to sit around and cook all day! So what we do is get a rack of spare ribs, Rub them down with a generous amount of pork spice rub. Put them in the propane smoker ( we used our friends smoker we dont have one yet!) at about 250 degrees, along with Russet potatoes, soaked sweet corn in husk! this will go in roughly around 10:00am so we can eat around 5-6pm When we are camping. We all will get together and add all sorts of meats, ribs, chicken, steaks, etc. so when its dinner time we have a huge BBQ buffet!
Pork Spice Rub:
2 (0.7 ounce) packets Italian salad dressing mix
1/4 cup paprika
1/3 cup chili powder
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons lemon pepper
2 racks pork spareribs
2 cups hickory wood chips, soaked in water for 1 hour
Backwoods BBQ Sauce:
1 (12 ounce bottle) chili sauce
1 (12 ounce) can cola
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup steak sauce
1/4 teaspoon Liquid Smoke
1. First, combine Italian dressing mix, paprika, chili powder, brown sugar, and lemon pepper in a small bowl. Rub over ribs on all sides, and keep adding spice mix until all spices are on the ribs.
2. Preheat grill to medium. Place about a third of the woodchips in the gas grill’s smoke box. (See footnote.) Place ribs on the grill in a rib rack for indirect cooking, close the lid, and cook for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Every hour, add more wood chips to the smoke box.
3. While the ribs are cooking, make the sauce: stir together all ingredients in a saucepan and place over medium heat. Cook for about 15 minutes, then remove from heat.
4. When the ribs have 20 more minutes to go, take ribs off rack and place meat-side down on the grill. Brush with barbecue sauce. Pile the ribs over a pan to catch the drips, and cook for 10 minutes with the grill lid down.
5. Open the grill, baste the ribs again, and stack. Cook for 10 more minutes with the lid down. Serve, using remaining sauce to dip the ribs.
Grilled Elk steak with Teriyaki mushrooms
Ingredients:
1/3 Cup La Choy Teriyaki Stir Fry Sauce-Marinade
1/2 Cup sliced onion
PAM Grilling Spray
1 Teaspoon seasoned salt
1/2 Teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 Package (8 oz each)sliced fresh button mushroom
4 Boneless Elk top sirloin steaks
Directions:
1. Spray the grate of your outdoor grill and utensils with grilling spray. Preheat grill to medium heat according to the manufacturer’s directions.
2. Spray a large skillet with grilling spray and heat over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and onion, then cook for 8 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Stir in the stir fry sauce and set aside.
3. Sprinkle the steaks with seasoned salt and pepper. Grill them for 10 minutes or until medium done (160 degrees F), turning over after 5 minutes.
4. Transfer the steaks to serving plates. Spoon the mushroom mixture evenly over the steaks.
Fresh trout, 1 slice bacon each side (outside), salt peper inside, sliced onion inside, wrap in foil. pace on fire ring for 5 minutes per side, truning 4 times
SMOKED TURKEY GAZPACHO
2 medium cucumbers, peeled and diced, divided
1 quart (32 fl oz) canned low sodium vegetable juice, divided
8 (1 ounce) unsalted tortilla chips
1 can (14.5 oz) no salt added diced tomatoes
8 ounces smoked turkey, cut in small dice
Preparation Time: Approximately 10 minutes
Preparation: In a blender or food processor, combine one cucumber, half the vegetable juice, the tortilla chips, 8 ice cubes, and pureé until completely smooth. Pour the contents into a serving bowl and add the remaining cucumber and vegetable juice, diced tomatoes, and the smoked turkey. Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 24 hours before serving. Serving Suggestions: Garnish with lime wedges, if desired.
Texas Pork Ribs
Whatever kind of pork ribs you prefer ( remove inner membrane so the dry rub will soak in ) Trim off outside fat. Vigorouly rub in Casper’s BBQ rub all over ribs, wrap in foil and refrigerate overnight.
Smoker pit @250 degrees
Remove ribs from foil and put close to firebox ( searing) for about 20 minutes each side. Then re wrap in foil, meat side up for 2 hours, then flip. Apply favorite BBQ sauce to both sides ; keep wrapped in foil 15 minutes. Open foil, add sauce to meaty side and smoke 15 minutes longer with foil open… do not loose juices.
3 tablespoons yuzu juice
3 tablespoons plum vinegar
2 tablespoons pickled ginger juice
1 tablespoon siracha
100 grams dried goji berries
3 fennel bulbs, cored removed and thinly sliced
1 head kohlrabi, julienned
1/4 bunch parsley
Maldon sea salt
coarsely-ground black pepper
1/2 cup D’Artagnan Black Truffle Oil
100 milliliters extra-virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons pomegranate molasses, divided
1 orange, zested and juiced
1 lemon, zested and juiced
2 tablespoons Chinese black vinegar
1/3 cup Grade B maple syrup
1 bay leaf
1 sprig rosemary, about 2 inches long
25 grams salt
25 grams muscovado sugar
800 grams D’Artagnan Venison Rib Rack
compressed apple wood, in 2-inch chunks
fennel pollen, to garnish
Rating:
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Preparation
Recipe Tips
To make pickled goji berries, combine yuzu, plum vinegar, ginger juice and siracha in a small saucepan and bring to the boil over medium heat. Remove from the heat and pour the liquid over the goji berries. Refrigerate to cool.
To make fennel salad, Combine the fennel, kohlrabi and parsley. Season with sea salt and pepper. Combine the 3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses, truffle oil, extra-virgin olive oil, orange zest, orange juice, lemon zest and lemon juice to make vinaigrette. Dress the fennel salad with vinaigrette.
To make pomegranate glaze, combine 1 tablespoon of pomegranate molasses, black vinegar, maple syrup, bay leaf and rosemary in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Allow to cool and strain.
Combine kosher salt and muscovado sugar in a mixing bowl and stir to combine. Rub the mixture onto the venison and place it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. This will lightly season and cure the rack of venison.
Place the apple wood blocks onto an open flame; allow it to catch on fire. Blow out the flame and place in into the bottom of a grill. Place venison onto cake rack and place over smoking blocks, cover with the grill lid and allow it to smoke for 20 minutes.
Drizzle the meat with olive oil and place onto a hot grill. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes on each side until rare or medium rare. Place the meat on a cooling rack, brush with the pomegranate glaze and keep warm. Rest for 8 to 10 minutes.
To serve, slice the rack into 6 equal chops and season the cut side with a sprinkle of Maldon salt. Place on a warm plate. Place salad next to venison, sprinkle with pickled goji berries and a dusting of fennel pollen.
Dont Remember Original Source I Think It Was Cooks.com
5 lbs. ground venison
5 tsp. Mortons tender quick salt
2 1/2 tsp. coarse black pepper
2 1/2 tsp. garlic salt
2 tsp. mustard seed
1 tsp. smoked salt
Mix all together. Refrigerate covered 3 days, mixing each day. Fourth day shape into rolls, place on broiler pan to cook so meat can drain. Bake at 175 degrees for 8 hours, turning meat halfway, 4 hours.
Simple, but amazing!
Camp Potatoes
1/4 cup of oil in the bottom of dutch oven – heat until oil is warm, then add:
- 10 red potatoes that are pealed and chopped
- 2 large onions copped
- 5 cloves of finely chopped garlic
- Add salt and Montreal steak seasoning
Cover with a lid and stir every 3-5 minutes to keep it from burning – keep lid on when not stirring.
Cook until potatoes start to brown (approximately 30 minutes).
Optional: Add precooked sausage
SUNDAY MORNING SMOKED SALMON
Source: Raichlen on Indoor Grilling (Workman, 2004)
Method: Smoking
Serves: 4 to 6
Advance
Preparation: 4 hours for curing
Category: Seafood
Ingredients:
1-1/2 pounds skinless salmon fillet (preferably a center cut piece)
2 cups vodka
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup coarse salt (kosher or sea)
2 tablespoons cracked black pepper
Cooking oil spray (optional)
For serving:
Toast points or bagels
Cream cheese
Capers
Diced red onions
Chives
Sliced tomatoes
Chopped hard-boiled egg
Other Items Needed:
1 tablespoon hardwood sawdust
Stovetop smoker
Directions:
Run your fingers over the salmon fillet, feeling for bones, Using needle-nose pliers or tweezers, pull out any bones you find. Rinse the salmon under cold running water, then blot dry with paper towels. Place the fish in a nonreactive baking dish just large enough to hold it and pour the vodka over it. Turn the fillet over. Let marinate in the refrigerator for 20 minutes, turning the fillet twice.
Place the brown sugar, salt, pepper, and coriander in a mixing bowl and mix well, breaking up any lumps in the brown sugar with your fingers. Drain the fillet and blot it dry with paper towels. Dry the baking dish. Arrange a third of the sugar mixture in the bottom of the baking dish in the shape of the salmon fillet. Place the fillet on top and cover it with the remaining brown sugar mixture. Cover the baking dish with plastic wrap and let the fish cure in the refrigerator for 4 hours. When its properly cured, there will be a pool of liquid at the bottom of the baking dishthe liquid the salt has drawn out of the salmon.
Rinse the fish under cold water to wash off all the brown sugar mixture, then blot dry with paper towels.
Set up the stove-top smoker. Place the sawdust in the center of the bottom of the smoker. Line the drip pan with aluminum foil and place it in the smoker. Lightly coat the wire rack with cooking oil spray. Place the wire rack in the smoker. Place the salmon fillet on the rack with what was the skin side facing down.
Cover the smoker and place it over high heat for 3 minutes, then reduce the heat to medium. Smoke the salmon until cooked through, about 18 minutes. To test for doneness, press the fish with your finger; it should break into clean flakes.
Transfer the salmon to a wire rack placed over a plate and let it cool to room temperature, then refrigerate, covered, until ready to serve (salmon prepared this way tastes best served chilled). Serve it with bagels and the suggested accompaniments. Refrigerate the salmon for up to 4 days.
my fav http://www.johnsonville.com/recipe/cheesy-pepper-poppers.html
Bacon Wrapped Turkey
2 Full Turkey Breasts
1lb Bacon (I prefer the peppered variety)
2 packages McCormick’s Brown Sugar and Bourbon Marinade
Cut the turkey breasts into 2-3 inch chunks. Take the bacon and wrap it around the pieces, using a toothpick to secure them. I like alot of bacon, so I use 2-3 slices of bacon per turkey piece. Once all of the pieces are wrapped, mix the marinade according to the directions on the package. Arrange the pieces on a 9×13 pan and pour the marinade over the top of the turkey. Cover with plastic wrap and set in the fridge. After about 20 minutes, turn the turkey pieces over, to evenly coat them in the sauce.
While the turkey is in the marinade, begin soaking your wood chips. For this recipe, I like to use the Jack Daniels Oak Barrel smoking chips. I soak them in water for about 45 minutes, then place them in the smoker and set the temperature at about 250 degrees. Once its up to temperature put the turkey pieces in and smoke for about 2 1/2 – 3 hours, turning once to evenly smoke. I call them done when the turkey can be pulled apart with your fingers.
Simple, easy, and everyone raves about these.
1/4 cup salt
1/4 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
2 tablespoons ground white pepper
2 tablespoons onion powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon ground cumin
10 pounds baby back pork ribs
1 cup apple juice
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup barbeque sauce
Stir together the salt, white sugar, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, black pepper, white pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, paprika, and cumin in a small bowl to make the dry rub. Rub the spice mixture into the baby back ribs on all sides. Wrap the ribs well with plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 30 minutes prior to cooking.
Place the baby back ribs onto the wire racks of the smoker. It is ok if the meat is touching, but to not stack.
Place the racks into a smoker, fill the smoker pan with apple, grape, pear, or cherry chips, and bring the smoker to 270 degrees F (130 degrees C). Smoke for 1 hour.
Stir together the apple juice, 1/4 cup brown sugar, and the barbeque sauce. Brush the ribs with the sauce every 30 to 45 minutes after the first hour. Cook the ribs in the smoker until the meat is no longer pink and begins to “shrink” back from the bones, 3 to 4 hours. Brush the sauce onto the ribs one last time 30 minutes before the ribs are ready to be taken out of the smoker.
Once the ribs are done, wrap them tightly with aluminum foil, and allow to rest 10 to 15 minutes. This will allow the juices to reabsorb into the meat and make the ribs moist.
Spicy Honey Chicken
Ingredients:
8 boneless skinless chicken thighs, about 2lbs (you could use breasts as well but thighs stay more moist)
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
Rub:
2 teaspoons granulated garlic (you can sub 1 teaspoon garlic powder here)
2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
Glaze:
1/2 cup Honey
1 Tablespoon Cider Vinegar
Instructions:
Combine the rub spices in bowl and mix well.
Use kitchen shears to trim off any excess fat from the chicken pieces. Pat dry. Drizzle oil over chicken and rub in with your hands to lightly coat all the pieces. Then toss chicken with the spice rub to coat all sides well. Use your hands and get in there! Grill chicken for 3-5 minutes on each side, until cooked through.
While chicken is cooking, warm honey in the microwave so it’s not so thick. Add the vinegar and combine well. Reserve 2 Tablespoons of the honey glaze for later after the chicken has cooked to pour on right before serving. Take the rest and brush on chicken (both sides) in the final moments of grilling.
Simple, but good. I have an old grill with one of the side smoke boxes on it. With that, I take some turkey legs, coat them with olive oil and rub with salt and chili powder to give it a bit of kick. After that, double wrap in foil and place in the main section of the grill. In the firebox, I build a nice small fire with hardwood. I try and use mesquite, but just depends on what I can get. I close the baffles to get it nice and smokey and let the turkey legs smoke for a few hours. I will check on them here and there and rotate them on the grill about every hour or so. Once I see they are done, I pull them off and serve! The family loves having the fair style smoked turkey legs and it is always a winner.
Smoked venison meatloaf
1 9″ x 13″ foil pan
1 1/2 lb Ground venison
1 1/2 lb Ground pork
3 Eggs, slightly beaten with a fork
1 med Green pepper, diced small
1 can (10 1/2 oz) Condensed French onion soup
3/4 cup Bread crumbs
1/8 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp Ketchup
1 Tbsp Dried parsley
1 Tbsp New Mexico chile powder
1 tsp Black pepper, freshly ground
1 tsp Dried oregano
1/2 tsp Dried thyme
1/2 tsp Ground cumin
1 pound of bacon, optional
Method
Prepare your smoker (225-250º).
Poke 12-14 holes in the bottom of the foil pan. I used a knife and made slots about the size that a penny would fit through.
Put the venison and pork in a large mixing bowl and make a well in the center.
Add all of the remaining ingredients to the well.
Roll up your sleeves, get your hands in there, and mix everything evenly so that all of the ingredients are well incorporated. Be careful not to mix so much that the mixture turns to a pasty consistency.
Divide the meat mixture evenly into two portions.
Form each portion into a loaf that’s about eight inches long and relatively even in thickness. You want it to be solid with no air pockets and a smooth exterior.
Put each loaf in the pan, centered and separated from each other. For added flavor, lay strips of uncooked bacon over each loaf.
Smoke until the center of each loaf reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees.
Smoked Thanksgiving Turkey
*Season the bird to your liking – usually just plain old salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning for us
*Smoke over low heat using alder wood chips for 2-3 hours
*Wrap the bird in foil and finish baking in a 325 degree oven until done
This produces a very moist, flavorful bird every time. Makes my mouth water just thinking of it.
This is a recipe I love, super easy and everyone loves it. Follow the link where it is posted on my blog.
http://www.suhuntandfish.com/2012/02/amazing-grilled-chicken-recipe.html
Here’s my recipe for Ken’s Kentucky Brisket – sounds a little complicated but it is worth it!
•1 (4-pound) beef brisket, trimmed
•2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
•2 tablespoons chili powder
•2 tablespoons paprika
•2 tablespoons salt
•1 tablespoon garlic powder
•1 tablespoon onion powder
•1 tablespoon black pepper
•1 tablespoon cayenne
•2 teaspoons dry mustard
•2 teaspoons ground cumin
•Mesquite wood chips, soaked for a couple hours
Mix up the dark brown sugar, chili powder, paprika, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, cayenne, dry mustard, and cumin and rub it into the meat. Seal in a plastic bag and marinate in the frig for at least six hours. Take it out and let it come up to room temp.
Smoke at 180 to 200 degrees with water and wood chips (soaked) until you get internal temp of about 185 or so. Will take about 4-5 hours, maybe more. Be patient and don’t fool with the meat anymore than necessary during smoking. Let it rest for at least 20-30 minutes and then slice it against the grain.
Here’s my Brisket Sauce recipe:
•2 tablespoons vegetable oil
•3/4 cup chopped yellow onions
•2 tablespoons chopped garlic
•4 cups ketchup
•1/2 cup dark brown sugar
•2 tablespoons cane syrup
•1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
•1/2 cup yellow mustard
•1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
•3 tablespoons hot red pepper sauce
•2 teaspoons Essence, recipe follows
•1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or more to taste
Use a large pot and heat the oil, then add the onions and cook until carmelized – about 3-4 minutes. Throw in the garlic and cook for another minute or so, then add everything else. Get it to a boil, then lower the heat and let it simmer gently until it thickens up and the flavors are married to your taste.
Invite all your friends and enjoy!
Pulled Pork!
1 Boston Butt
inject with Creole Butter – Tony Chacheres
coat in yellow mustard then rub with your favorite dry rub
Smoke slow and low 225F until the butt reaches 200F Yes 200F!
For smoke I like a combination of hickory and mesquite.
Once temp is reached wrap in aluminum foil cover with a towel and place in a cooler for 2 more hours.
The butt will be juicy and fall right off the bone for easy pulling.
Time 12 – 16 hrs so I start mine for an overnight smoke.
I do not have a recipe…But I ‘ll assure you if I were to win I’d have one in a hurry.I have two brothers that smoke.Sure will be happy to join in the fun.
I love to smoke ribs.
The night before I’ll take a rack of ribs and rub them thoroughly with mayo then I cover them with a rib rub and let them sit overnight. I fill my smoker with lump charcoal and light it with a propane torch, no lighter fluid. Once it gets to 300 I put the ribs on and spray liberally with apple juice. I turn them and spray them with the apple juice about every 1/2 hour. Once the begin to get tender I add some apple wood to the charcoal to allow the smoke to add flavor to the ribs. I continue cooking untill the ribs litterally fall off the bone.
Stuffed jalapeños!!!!
15 jalapeños (sliced,seeded and washed )
1(8oz) cream cheese (stuff the jalapeños)
1 pck smoked bacon( wrap stuffed jalapeños)
1pck toothpicks
While wearing gloves slice peppers in half and seed them. After seeded and washed wrap with bacon place a toothpick through them to hold the cream cheese inside while grilling. Cook on open grill let them get flame kissed making sure bacon is cooked and yummy you have a new favorite dish!!
My husband would love this smoker!! I would love to win this for him!!