Show Us What You're Cooking! (SUWYC)- Volume 21, Spring 2021

[jfmorris]

Gotta play catch up on my weekend cooks! Didn't get on the Pit much over the weekend, believe it or not. Computer fatigue had set in after working hard last week I suppose.

On Friday morning, SWMBO mentioned she would really like chicken kabobs for dinner, and that a couple of the kids were coming over for dinner with the new grand baby. I told her to have at it, but advised use of boneless skinless thighs, and convinced her to not bother cutting the chicken up - just put it in her marinade, and make veggie skewers to cook separately. Her marinade was a mix of honey, soy sauce, olive oil, pepper and curry powder - something she got from her sister many years ago. Mild but flavorful.

So, inspired by my recent chicken shawarma experience, I skewered up almost 5 pounds of boneless skinless chicken thighs after they marinated all afternoon, and put them down on the SNS Deluxe Kamado, following with the veggies about 45 minutes later. I just brushed marinade on the veggie kababs during their 15 minutes of cooking. After it was done, we just slid the veggies off the skewers, and I carved the chicken off the kabobs like I did the shawarma a few weeks ago.

Everything came out great, and I am loving the multiple levels of cooking on the SNS Deluxe Kamado, and temp control is much more responsive than my Weber kettle. So far, I am really enjoying cooking in traditional kamado mode, as it lets you sear on the upper charcoal grate and cook on the main and elevated grates as well.

[jfmorris]

Believe it or not, I'm repeating this cook today! Yvonne bought twice as much chicken and veggies as we cooked Friday, and it needed to be used or frozen by tomorrow, so onto the grill it goes! I mixed up things on her marinade for the chicken though, adding some toasted sesame oil and ginger, to give it a more Asian flavor profile.

[smokenoob]

I read covid has caused the average person to gain 29 pounds, you are bringing up the average!!!!!
noice!

[jfmorris]

smokenoob haha. We punted on cooking tonight due to a big lunch, so the second round of shawarma will wait until tomorrow. I don't think an extra 24 hours in the marinade will hurt it.

I agree with you on the weight gain. I'm where I was two years ago, but right after Christmas was miserable. I've dropped 15 pounds since December just by watching my portions.

[jfmorris]

Since we had leftover chicken and veggies for Saturday, the next cook of the weekend was on Sunday afternoon. I pulled a USDA Prime tri-tip from Porter Road out of the deep freeze on Friday afternoon, and put it in the fridge to thaw. Saturday night, I opened it up and salted with kosher salt overnight. After a hard Sunday afternoon of yard work, we opted for me to just grill the tri-tip and accompany it with a simple salad.

First - the meat itself was spectacular, and had some nice marbling. Weight was 1.98 pounds:

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I seasoned at the grill with Hank's Bonafide Beef rub:



Ran this cook on the SNS Deluxe Kamado. Probably the 4th cook I've gotten on the same load of B&B lump charcoal, having done ribs, steaks, chicken, and now tri-tip without adding charcoal over the past week or two. For most of the cook, I ran with the tri tip up on the back of the elevated grate, with the kamado lid closed, but all vents wide open, until it was about 120F in the center as measured with the thermapen. I turned it a couple of times during that 45 minutes.

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Finally, with the lid open and fire blazing, I dropped it to the center of the main grate to get some sear and hit my final temp. I was shooting for medium-rare (135) in the thickest end, and medium-well at the little tip (145) per the request of SWMBO.

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The final results were spectacular. And note - this was my first ever tri-tip. It's not something you can buy in this area, hence the need to order it online from Porter Road.

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Sadly, and I was hesitant to post this photo, and I did NOT fan the meat out because I was embarrassed. It ended up overcooked. All was pretty much medium-well due to carry over cooking. Should have pulled it sooner. However, the quality of the meat saved the day, and it was juicy, tender and flavorful. And to be honest - this tri-tip had more uniform thickness than some I've seen in photos, so that probably made it harder to achieve different levels of doneness.

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My final conclusion: I'll buy tri-tip again sometime, but to be honest, while it was really good, I am not sure it was that much different than a good NY strip, ribeye or other quality peice of meat. I would probably buy it more if it was local and didn't cost $29 for a 2 pound piece of meat. Until then, my next steak will likely be some USDA Choice Angus flank steak from Sam's Club, at $5.99 per pound. Or NY strip for $9.99 a pound.

[Old Glory]

Love Tri-Tip. That looks great!

[Henrik]

jfmorris - you legend! If that was your first tri-tip? My hat off to you. Great to see you using the Bonafide Beef Rub also, it's a great match for some bovine delights like a TT.

[jfmorris]

Henrik thanks! It was my first and only tri-tip. Not sure what kind of legend I am - maybe more a cautionary tale! We finished the rest of the tri tip last night, and with the Bonafide Beef Rub it was definitely a winner! Thanks!

[LanaiBoy]

Did two briskets over Easter weekend. One was for me and mine while the other was donated to family. Rosemary smoke roasted potatoes and green beans.

[jfmorris]

Great looking cook! I see you have two WSM's going side by side. Do you ever use the bottom grate for smoking? I've always though that if I had a WSM22, I could load it up with 6 or 8 Boston butts - 3 or 4 on each cooking grate. Or briskets at each level.

[Henrik]

Great bark!

[LanaiBoy]

jfmorris, I haven't done that yet. I should probably give it a shot. I am very fortunate to have to 18 inchers. My first one I got for $20 at an auction and the other for $60 on FB Market. I wouldn't mind a 22 inch someday though as well.

[frailinryan]

Lamb chops on the Weber Kettle/SnS.

[Henrik]

Nice!!!

[Spinaker]

Oh wow! This is a meal!

[Dr. Pepper]

frailinryan I love those lamb ribs/chops! I looked at the Weber recipe, and approve of your mod of cutting the racks into one bone per slice. Greatly increases the surface/flavor to mass ratio. Perfectly done.

[fcy]

Yesterday I cooked the Perfect Pulled Pork recipe for the 3rd time, but the first one I actually managed to stay at 225F (I only lost patience at the very end...) not because I'm better at controlling my kettle but because FireBoard 2 Drive with a Pit Viper is amazingly good.

I think next time I'll try texas crutch or higher temperature for a faster cook and a softer bark.

[Richard Chrz]

In an effort to try and use my cooking further into my O/T drills in fine motor movement, as well as more about dish structure, colors, plating, edible plants. Left over smoked pulled pork ramen in my home made beef rib soup stock, my wife's Virginia Bluebells are blooming, so I added some new color. Ramen is getting weekly rotation if I have left over smoked meat.

[Old Glory]

Beautiful!

[Andrrr]

Great looking dish you have there. Well done.

[Dr. Pepper]

Yum! Very pretty presentation, and the bark on that pork is so inviting.

[Old Glory]

Tri-Tip Reverse Seared on Mongo. Rubbed with Oakridge Santa Maria Rub. Roasted Golden Beets and Beet Greens.

Searing on the Blazin' Grill has far surpassed my expectations.

[theroc]

Very nice! Is mongo your Blazin' Grill?

[Old Glory]

theroc yes, Mongo Only Pawn In Game Of Life.

[IdSmokeThat]

Its warming up out here in socal perfect time for some ceviche. Made it with snapper and shrimp. Little mayonnaise on the bottom of a tostada and lots of avocado. Tiny bit of chipotle Tabasco to set it off. Amazing

[SheilaAnn]

Except today.... kinda cooler....where are you located?

Ceviche looks bomb! The lemons look like little grapefruits with the lighting in the pic.

[IdSmokeThat]

SheilaAnn those are zebra lemons I grow in my backyard they are actually pink inside ( in case you were unfamiliar ) it's funny you aren't the only person who said that. I live near Idyllwild actually. I worked out in thousand palms today constant 50 to 60 mph winds it was miserably fun. Our weather is bipolar as of late isn't it?

[SheilaAnn]

IdSmokeThat cool lemons! I had the pleasure of trying a Valentine Pomelo the other week. It was like candy! Yeah, the weather be like...... 😜

[JakeT]

rickgregory I followed your suggested recipe and am more than pleased. Thanks for the advice!!


Cut and packaged some bacon I did yesterday. This was quite the batch! I’m sure I’ll be making more before long!! I used the end trimmings from "squaring up" the slabs to make lardons for jambalaya and stews and what not.

[rickgregory]

Dr. Pepper - I don't remember what I told Jake but my usual recipe is a 2:1 salt:sugar cure optionally with pepper and bay leaves etc. Rub, slip into a ziplock bag (2 gallon for most bellies), cure for 7-10 days (I use the free side calculator even though it's for wet cures).

Remove, rinse, dry, sprinkle with pepper if you want, smoke low (ideal around 200F if you can) until they hit 150F. Remove, cook, slice, store.

https://ruhlman.com/homemade-bacon/

[JakeT]

rickgregory it was the ruhlman link/recipe

[rickgregory]

Figured it was. I have 4lbs of belly to cure soon, too. Love that recipe.

[Attjack]

This is my first pork chop from the new pig. The last pig was an overly fatty and the chops showed it. I was also able to specify that I wanted thick bone in chops.

Grilled pork chops, Thai tomato salad, and yakisoba.

[Dr. Pepper]

fcy Thick, bone-in chops? Reminds me of the panda at the bar joke: Eats, shoots, and leaves.

[Attjack]

fcy Thick, bone-in pork chops. Thick so it can get a good sear without drying them out and bone-in for flavor and added nutrients.

[Dr. Pepper]

Attjack Bones for chewing!

[Ernest]

[RonB]

SheilaAnn - this is basically Kenji's take on McD's fries, and it makes the best fries I have had. I do make several tweaks though. I cut the fries a bit larger so they stay hot longer, and I use half the vinegar he uses. This gives a slightly crisper crust.

https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2010/05/perfect-french-fries-recipe.html#:~:text=%20Directions%20%201%20Place%20potatoes%20and%20vinegar,golden%20brown%2C%20about%203%201%2F2%20minutes%2C...%20More%20

[Richard Chrz]

agreed, that is my method as well. excellent fries Ernest

[SheilaAnn]

Ernest and RonB I used to work for a local chain restaurant and we did the fries that way too. If memory serves, first fry at 325F and for service, 365F. I have not used vinegar though, like Kenji.

[ssandy_561]

Oven roasted cauliflower steak topped with a Parmesan, sweet pepper, cauliflower "crumble" sitting in a tomato carrot sauce.

[Whiskeyman53]

Put a 4# point cut corned beef in the smoker today. Heavy on the black pepper and granulated garlic.

[jhoskins]

I figured out that instead of making sandwiches for lunch... I can make delicious chicken curry wraps/rolls... I decided I had to try one before putting them all away for lunches, yum. Curried chicken, green peppers, onions, pickled onions, cilantro, scallions, chilies, lime juice, and chili chutney on some paratha.

[JakeT]

Pan seared duck breast with Japanese BBQ sauce. Mmm

[Attjack]

Tell me about the sauce?

[JakeT]

Attjack It's life changing. Somewhat similar to teriyaki but more savory/umami. Similar...but definitely in a league of it's own.

https://bachans.com/

[Attjack]

Ah, I've seen it advertised. I'll have to check it out. Thanks!