Smoker recipies

[Big Cliff]

Well after seeing that misfish scored a smoker and was having fun with it I decided it was something I'd like to get back at. I hadn't done much in the way of smoking meats and things for a long time and pretty much only did a bit of smoked fish once in a while so I picked up a Little Chief smoker and got back at it. So far I've only done a couple of things but I'm super happy with the results. since it seams there a few others that enjoy doing it I thought it might be fun to share some smoker recipes, tricks, and tips.

My first attempt was a nice Brisket about 6 lbs. (I got the butcher to cut one in half for me)

I like to keep things simple in the beginning then build on a recipe as I go so this time I did it Texas Style just kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. I mixed about 2 TBS of coarse salt and 2 TBS of fresh ground pepper in a spice shaker and sprinkled the brisket with that then rubbed it in.

I used 3 pans of Alder over about 3 hours then removed the brisket from the smoker, wrapped it in un coated butcher paper (but foil might have been a better choice) and put it on the top rack of my BBQ. It took a bit of playing around and I had to prop the lid of the BBQ slightly open but I managed to get the BBQ to hold about 225°F and I left the brisket in there for about 8 hours with a meat thermometer in it until it got up to 160 °F internal.

I wasn't going to serve it that night so I let it cool then put it in the fridge.

The next day I put it back in the oven at about 150° still wrapped in the foil and left it there for about 3 hours removing it from the oven about 1/2 an hour before serving it.

The meat was so tender you could almost cut it with your fork and it was beautifully moist and full of flavour, as good as or better than I have ever had anywhere else. I let what little there was left over chill in the fridge then sliced it paper thin and vac-packed it for sandwiches.

Anyway if any of you have tried and true recipes you'd like to share, I'm looking for some more to try.

[Squid]

Sounds so yummy Cliff!!

[jimmer]

I got into smoking again this summer for the first time in years.  I smoked some whitefish and pike.  I went with the dry brine - 4 cups of brown sugar and 1 cup of salt - adding spice before I put it in the smoker.  I found that the end product looked great, but I found it very salty. Do people feel it's okay to reduce the amount of salt used in the recipe or am I possibly putting too much on for the amount of fish if prepared?

I haven't done beef or any other meat in a long time.

 

I am using a Brinkman Charcoal Smoker that I made into an electric one.

Cliff's brisket sounds amazing!

[misfish]

I have cut my salt way down. I will do 2 cups of brown sugar and a 1/4 cup of salt when I do the dry mix. If I do the brine,I will use 1/2 a cup of salt. I have not had any complaints. 

I also just let the water flush in the cure bowl while I am washing off the cure. Helps a ton. I did start letting it dry in the fridge for 12 hours max, but have found letting it sit out and air dry for 6 is plenty. To each their own I say. This is what works for me now.

[misfish]

2 hours ago, jimmer said:

Cliff's brisket sounds amazing!

Sure does

[Sinker]

On 9/10/2019 at 2:50 PM, jimmer said:

I got into smoking again this summer for the first time in years.  I smoked some whitefish and pike.  I went with the dry brine - 4 cups of brown sugar and 1 cup of salt - adding spice before I put it in the smoker.  I found that the end product looked great, but I found it very salty. Do people feel it's okay to reduce the amount of salt used in the recipe or am I possibly putting too much on for the amount of fish if prepared?

I haven't done beef or any other meat in a long time.

 

I am using a Brinkman Charcoal Smoker that I made into an electric one.

Cliff's brisket sounds amazing!

I do 6 to 1 brown sugar and salt. Comes out great. Not salty at all. 

S. 

[Rattletrap2]

On 9/10/2019 at 11:33 AM, Big Cliff said:

Well after seeing that misfish scored a smoker and was having fun with it I decided it was something I'd like to get back at. I hadn't done much in the way of smoking meats and things for a long time and pretty much only did a bit of smoked fish once in a while so I picked up a Little Chief smoker and got back at it. So far I've only done a couple of things but I'm super happy with the results. since it seams there a few others that enjoy doing it I thought it might be fun to share some smoker recipes, tricks, and tips.

My first attempt was a nice Brisket about 6 lbs. (I got the butcher to cut one in half for me)

I like to keep things simple in the beginning then build on a recipe as I go so this time I did it Texas Style just kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. I mixed about 2 TBS of coarse salt and 2 TBS of fresh ground pepper in a spice shaker and sprinkled the brisket with that then rubbed it in.

I used 3 pans of Alder over about 3 hours then removed the brisket from the smoker, wrapped it in un coated butcher paper (but foil might have been a better choice) and put it on the top rack of my BBQ. It took a bit of playing around and I had to prop the lid of the BBQ slightly open but I managed to get the BBQ to hold about 225°F and I left the brisket in there for about 8 hours with a meat thermometer in it until it got up to 160 °F internal.

I wasn't going to serve it that night so I let it cool then put it in the fridge.

The next day I put it back in the oven at about 150° still wrapped in the foil and left it there for about 3 hours removing it from the oven about 1/2 an hour before serving it.

The meat was so tender you could almost cut it with your fork and it was beautifully moist and full of flavour, as good as or better than I have ever had anywhere else. I let what little there was left over chill in the fridge then sliced it paper thin and vac-packed it for sandwiches.

Anyway if any of you have tried and true recipes you'd like to share, I'm looking for some more to try.

Cliff, I also like the Texas style brisket. I smoke mine to an internal temp. of 160 - 165 deg. F and then wrap it (Texas crutch!) in either foil or butcher paper and continue heating until it reaches 200 - 205 deg.F. I then leave it wrapped and place it in a dry cooler wrapped in beach towels and let it rest for anywhere from 30 minutes to a couple of hours. It stays really hot!

When the butcher cut your brisket, did you only get the flat? There are two main sections. The Point (thicker, fatty end) and the flat (thinner, lean part). Occasionally, Costco has the whole packer briskets for a decent price. So far, mine have been decent cuts.

I like the heavier woods like Mesquite or hickory for briskets and the fruit woods like Pecan or cherry for ribs and pork.

Glad your first one turned out nice!

[woodenboater]

crushed mustard seeds, celery seeds, oregano, paprika, cayenne, lots of ground pepper, some chili flakes and smoke at 225-250 °f for a bunch of hours.

[smitty55]

Cliff I've mentioned here before but one of the easiest and most appreciated things I put into my smoker is well spiced fresh pork chops when they go on sale. I mix up the spices at times but have really taken a liking to using curry on one side. After a few pans of chips they are about half cooked when they come out. Some are eaten fresh while the others get vacuum sealed and frozen for future meals. They are really good and quick to cook up.

 

Cheers

[misfish]

On 9/12/2019 at 8:52 PM, smitty55 said:

 but have really taken a liking to using curry on one side. After a few pans of chips they are about half cooked when they come out.

 

Guess what I,ll be smoking Sunday ? LOL

Bought fresh this morning, and a bag of hickory chunks. How much curry did you use ? Sprinkled or rub in ? Mine will net get frozen, but all cooked up. Will use left over for stir fry and noodles.

[smitty55]

1 hour ago, misfish said:

Guess what I,ll be smoking Sunday ? LOL

Bought fresh this morning, and a bag of hickory chunks. How much curry did you use ? Sprinkled or rub in ? Mine will net get frozen, but all cooked up. Will use left over for stir fry and noodles.

I pretty well coat the whole side with the curry and work it in with a fork. The others side will get steak spice and whatever else I feel like at the time, including fresh ground black pepper.

Cheers

[misfish]

22 minutes ago, smitty55 said:

I pretty well coat the whole side with the curry and work it in with a fork. The others side will get steak spice and whatever else I feel like at the time, including fresh ground black pepper.

Cheers

Thanks

I will report back once done.

[misfish]

Oh forgot, you spice the day of,or day before ?

[smitty55]

8 hours ago, misfish said:

Oh forgot, you spice the day of,or day before ?

Day of, don't usually wait more than an hour before going in the smoker. It's not like they're cooking fast at 160°. I like to finish them in a hot cast iron, plus I don't mind a pink tinge in my pork.

 

Good luck

[misfish]

Came home to rain, and I have no cover area for them. Well I do,but would smoke out the neighbors. LOL

Put away for a sunny day.

No frills has a great deal on ribs. They are single racks, not double,and just the right size to hang in the smoker. Im off after next weeks work, so will be doing some smoking. I bought one rack,but thinking about it,I can hang 4-6 of them, so back I go.

[Sinker]

If I hung ribs in my smoker they would fall for sure. Some racks i can barely lift out and they fall apart. Maybe I'm doing it wrong? They melt in your mouth and taste amazing, so I can't complain. 

Fish on the other hand, all gets hung off the racks with skewers. 

S. 

[misfish]

14 minutes ago, Sinker said:

If I hung ribs in my smoker they would fall for sure. Some racks i can barely lift out and they fall apart. Maybe I'm doing it wrong? They melt in your mouth and taste amazing, so I can't complain. 

Fish on the other hand, all gets hung off the racks with skewers. 

S. 

I seen racks at Starskys ( store on Dundas ) They had ribs that got hung in the smoker. Butcher twine still attached. I am not looking for fall off the bone. I want like a bacon texture. Will see what happens. If I want fall off the bone, I can get that off the BBQ.

[GBW]

Here is a post of mine from the past for fish.

Brine: Soy (500ML), water (2L), honey (3 spoons), sweet chili tai (1/4 jar), pinch of brown sugar and then diced jalapeno peppers. *edit to add* oh and I boil the brine and then let cool before I use it so the brine is well mixed.

The wood used for smoking is key. I like apple & black cherry in the smoker together

When I make a brine I keep some for a misting/spray bottle. Part way through the smoking process I'll give the fish a mist. The fish turns out super moist and not like a dry jerky. Also I don't pat it dry I put it right in the smoker after it's sat for 24hrs in the brine. My old unit had a large drip pan and I was learning at the time but if I was going to make some anytime soon that's how I'd be doing it. Big Cliff has eaten it this way and said it was great, so has young_one (or what ever name he's using now).

For rib's and jerky I still use the same wood (apple and or black cherry) and I use Mrs. Dash on pork rib's then a bit of Diana's sauce that has maple to it.  

 

[misfish]

2 hours ago, Sinker said:

Fish on the other hand, all gets hung off the racks with skewers. 

You leave the skin on for that ? I tried the hang with no skin, fell off the skewer..

[Old Ironmaker]

You guys kill me. All these fantastic recipes and no sharesies? When we move, sign is going on the lawn this week I hope, the 1st thing I am going to get is a small smoker so I can make candy too. It's just the 2 of us and I don't intend on smoking enough to sustain the winter months. Can't wait really especially seeing and reading what you guys can do with a smoker. Watch now, I bet we get a great deal on a Condo made of stona and no smoker allowed. You don't even need to know how to cook I'm told. 

[misfish]

 

 

 

10 hours ago, Old Ironmaker said:

Watch now, I bet we get a great deal on a Condo made of stona and no smoker allowed.

Hope you get good understanding neighbors. I do. ?

 

[Old Ironmaker]

What would one of those go for Brian? Could do a whole Pig or small Cow. 

[misfish]

1 hour ago, Old Ironmaker said:

What would one of those go for Brian? Could do a whole Pig or small Cow. 

LOL

 

https://www.amazon.ca/Smokehouse-Products-Little-Chief-Smoker/dp/B000ZKZJMY/ref=asc_df_B000ZKZJMY/?tag=googleshopc0c-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=292948251512&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=11713468233340627247&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9000801&hvtargid=pla-434326929300&psc=1

[pics]

When smoking fish I brine for 12 to 18 hours, then rinse and lightly pat with a paper towel. Then I let it sit with a fan on it until it forms a nice pellicle. And I always smoke with a pan of water above the heat.. home-made charcoal and maple chunks with fiber chips mixed in... 

[Sinker]

On 9/16/2019 at 6:54 PM, misfish said:

You leave the skin on for that ? I tried the hang with no skin, fell off the skewer..

Nope. Just make sure you don't skew it too close to the top or it will fall off. I keep a rack above the water tray in mine, just to catch the odd one that falls off. Most don't though. 

 

S.