Smoking Meat (24 page)

¼ to 1/3 cup heavy cream (35% milk fat)

Preheat the oven to broil. Slice off the top portion of the garlic bulb so the cloves are visible and the top is flat. Spray the bulb lightly with the cooking spray, or brush with vegetable oil, then wrap the bulb in foil and place on a baking sheet. Broil for five minutes. Remove the foil and broil for one to two minutes longer. Remove the garlic from the oven and cool to room temperature.

Place the potatoes in a stockpot with enough water to cover them, and set over medium-high heat. Add the salt and bring to a rolling boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the potatoes are easily pricked with a fork (about 20 to 30 minutes).

Remove potatoes from heat and drain in a colander, then return them to the pot. Working quickly while the potatoes are still very hot, grasp the roasted garlic bulb at the bottom and squeeze the cloves into the pot with the potatoes. Discard the bulb. Add the butter, more salt, and the pepper, and roughly mash with a fork or potato masher until thoroughly combined and the butter is melted. (Do not beat with a hand mixer or beater, especially once the potatoes have cooled, as this will result in gooey, sticky potatoes.) Add the heavy cream a little at a time, and mix well until the potatoes are the desired consistency. Serve immediately.

TripleBQ Mashed Potatoes

Traditional mashed potatoes get a new twist with barbecue seasoning, crisp bits of bacon, and garlic. Try these with sliced
Garlic & Onion Brisket
and
Abi’s Summer Succotash
. You can substitute any brand of barbecue seasoning (like McCormick) if you can’t find the KC Masterpiece label. Special thanks to tripleBQ from
www.smokingmeatforums.com
for sharing this recipe with us.

3 Tbsp + 2 tsp barbecue seasoning (such as KC Masterpiece
BBQ
Seasoning)

3 lb new or red potatoes, peeled and quartered

1 lb smoked bacon, chopped into small pieces

2 tsp minced garlic

½ cup (1 stick) butter

1½ cups whole milk

Kosher salt and coarsely ground black pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of water and 3 Tbsp of the barbecue seasoning to a boil over high heat. Add the potatoes and reduce the heat to medium. Boil for 20 to 25 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Remove from the heat and drain in a colander. Transfer potatoes to a bowl and mash them immediately, while still very hot.

While the potatoes are boiling, fry the bacon in a frying pan over medium heat until crisp. Drain on paper towels. Sauté the minced garlic in the bacon fat for one to two minutes; remove from the pan with a slotted spatula and set aside.

Add the butter, milk, and the remaining 2 tsp of barbecue seasoning to the mashed potatoes. Stir in the fried bacon and the sautéed garlic, and season with salt and pepper.

Christi’s Cheesy Taters

This simple and satisfying potato dish can be whipped up in a hurry using a bag of frozen potatoes. These go especially well with smoked meatloaf (
Abi's
and
Ray's
). Thanks to Todd (BigBaldBBQ) at
www.smokingmeatforums.com
for sharing this recipe with us.

24 oz bag frozen shredded potatoes

10½ oz can cream of chicken soup

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup sour cream

½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened

½ cup onion flakes

1 tsp table salt

½ tsp coarsely ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Spread into a lightly greased 9- × 9-inch casserole dish. Bake uncovered in the oven at 350°
F
for one to one and a half hours, or until bubbly and browned.

Smoked Pommes de Terre

Some folks have no doubt been smoking potatoes for years, but I found out this is a tasty thing to do quite by accident. I always insert a digital probe meat thermometer into a small potato set on the grate of my smoker so I have an accurate reading of the smoker temperature. When done cooking, I used to just toss the potato over the fence for the cows. But one day I took a bite of the potato on a whim, and it was surprisingly good! I’ve been eating them ever since, and I now put even more potatoes in the smoker to serve with the rest of the meal. This particular method comes to us from my friend Rob Wyman (RobInNY) at
www.smokingmeatforums.com
.

6 to 8 russet potatoes

¼ cup vegetable oil

PREPARATION

Wash the potatoes and rub the skin of each one with the oil. Pierce each potato with a fork twice on the same side.

SMOKING

Prepare your smoker for cooking at 225°
F
to 240°
F
. If you are using a gas, an electric, or a charcoal smoker, make sure to have enough wood chips or chunks on hand to produce smoke for about three hours.

Once the smoker is ready, place the potatoes pierced side up on the grate, and bake until soft and mushy inside (about three hours; the potato should feel tender when you squeeze it lightly). The potatoes will be very hot, so handle them with care. Serve hot, either unopened or “flowered” by slicing the skin and squeezing the potato flesh from the ends and upward from the bottom.

Traditional Baked Beans

There’s nothing like good old-fashioned baked beans, and because these are made in a slow cooker, there’s no need to soak them ahead of time.

4½ cups water

1 lb dried small white beans, rinsed

½ lb bacon, chopped into small pieces

½ cup mild-flavored molasses (blackstrap is also fine, but will result in a stronger taste)

½ cup lightly packed light brown sugar

1 onion, chopped

1/3 cup ketchup

2 Tbsp Dijon mustard

½ tsp table salt

½ tsp liquid hickory smoke

Combine all the ingredients in a slow cooker. Cover and cook on the low setting for 13 to 14 hours or until beans are soft. For best results, stir the beans two to three times while they cook, but do this quickly to reduce unnecessary heat loss.

Dutch’s Wicked Baked Beans

These beans will make even “chili heads” happy. You can increase the heat in this recipe by chopping the jalapeños with the seeds in, but be careful about serving it this way to those with sensitive palates, especially children or the elderly. To make these beans family friendly, omit the jalapeños and the mustard powder. If you are making this as a side dish for
Smoked Pork Spare Ribs
, start cooking the beans when the ribs have three hours left to cook. You can smoke the removed flap of meat from the ribs for one to one and a half hours, then dice the meat and stir it into the beans before placing them in the smoker.

6 to 8 strips bacon, chopped into
-
-inch pieces

½ medium onion, diced

½ green bell pepper, diced

1 to 2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and diced

55 oz can (or two 28 oz cans) Bush’s Original Baked Beans (or any brand you prefer)

8 oz can crushed pineapple, drained

1 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 cup ketchup

1 Tbsp mustard powder

PREPARATION

Sauté the bacon pieces in a frying pan over medium heat until crispy; remove from pan with a slotted spoon. Add the onion, bell pepper, and jalapeños to the same pan and sauté until tender, about five minutes.

Combine the remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the sautéd bacon pieces and vegetables. If the mixture looks dry, add additional ketchup, ¼ to ½ cup at a time. Pour the whole contents into a 12- × 9-inch, or a deep 9- × 9-inch, aluminum baking pan.

SMOKING

Prepare your smoker for cooking at 220°
F
to 250°
F
. If you are using a charcoal, a gas, or an electric smoker, be sure to have enough wood chips or chunks to produce smoke for about three hours.

Once the smoker is ready, place the pan of beans on the grate and smoke cook for two and a half to three hours. (Alternatively, you can cover the beans with foil and bake in a 350°
F
oven for one hour.) If you are smoking ribs or other meat above the beans so that the tasty juices can drip down, place an instant-read thermometer into the beans without touching the pan to make sure the temperature of the beans reaches at least 160°
F
.

Gary’s Famous Oyster Stuffin’ Muffins

This is a clever way to serve individual portions of oyster stuffing at Thanksgiving (or any other time you’re in the mood for turkey, stuffing, and cranberry sauce). Special thanks to my friend Gary (iGolf2) at
www.smokingmeatforums.com
for creating this excellent recipe and sharing it with us.

1 Tbsp butter

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

½ large onion, finely chopped

6 slices white bread, lightly toasted and cubed

6 slices whole wheat bread, lightly toasted and cubed

¾ cup chicken broth

1 egg

½ tsp garlic powder

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp coarsely ground black pepper

12 freshly shucked oysters

Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Add the celery and onion and sauté until soft.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the white and whole wheat toast cubes, sautéed celery and onion, chicken broth, egg, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Add more chicken broth or toast cubes to achieve the desired consistency, which is moist but not soggy or runny.

Lightly grease each cup of a regular muffin tin and preheat the oven to 350°
F
.

Spoon the mixture into each muffin cup to about two-thirds full. Use your thumb to make a small bowl shape in the top of the mixture, then place a shucked oyster in each “bowl.” Top the muffins with more batter until full.

Bake the stuffin’ muffins in the preheated oven for about 45 minutes, or until the muffin tops are golden brown.

Moink Balls

The most amazing things can sometimes be the simplest—like these tasty and easy-to-make morsels. Part beef (
moo!
), part bacon (
oink!
), the name “moink balls” has stuck. Larry Gaian from TheBbqGrail.com invented these for a wedding, and they have since become quite the novelty. If you’re in a pinch, you could use frozen beef or Italian meatballs instead of making your own.

2 lb ground chuck or ground beef (80/20; see the introduction to the
Beef
chapter)

½ cup fresh white breadcrumbs

2 eggs

1 Tbsp kosher salt

1 Tbsp coarsely ground black pepper

½ Tbsp garlic powder

3 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 Tbsp Frank’s RedHot Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce

1 lb thinly sliced bacon, chopped in half

Jalapeño or habañero pepper jelly, or barbecue sauce (optional)

PREPARATION

Combine the ground chuck or beef, breadcrumbs, eggs, salt, pepper, garlic powder, Worcestershire sauce, and Frank’s RedHot in a large mixing bowl, and mix until well blended. Using your hands, form twenty-four 1-inch meatballs.

Wrap a half-slice of the bacon around each meatball and secure with a toothpick inserted all the way through the ball.

SMOKING

Prepare your smoker for cooking at 225°
F
to 240°
F
. If you are using a charcoal, an electric, or a gas smoker, be sure to have enough wood chips or chunks on hand to produce smoke for about two hours.