Hickory And Alderwood Smoked Cobia Fish Dip

So there’s a couple of things to do while you wait for your pool to fill up with water.  Yes, Drinking beer is one of them…that’s a good guess. BUT…where I was going with this is its time to #FireUpTheSmoker.  Nothing better than some fresh fish on the smoker and a cold Busch Light in your hand wasting the day away.  Now since my Georgia Bulldogs screwed the pooch (no pun intended) and aren’t representing the SEC East in Atlanta this year… I  suddenly have some time on my hands to do something that I haven’t done in a while…smoke some fish. Thanks Georgia. 🙂 Todays choice of fish…COBIA. Caught fresh from a small drinkin town with a fishin problem, Cedar Key, FL.

THINGS YOU WILL NEED: Cilantro, Hot Pepper, Red Onion, Scallions, Lemon, Whipped Cream Cheese, Mayo, Salt an Pepper, Old Bay, Butter, Liquid Smoke, Tobasco Sauce, Worcestershire Sauce and last but not least Cobia OR grouper.

A couple hours before I put fish on the smoker I take the fish and put it meat side down in a bowl with a mixture of Water, Salt, Pepper and Old Bay and then float 2 cups of ice cubes on top it. Rap and put in fridge for 2 hours.

TIME TO FIRE UP THE SMOKER: Bring smoker temp to 190 degrees.  Drop in your Alder and Hickory wood chips. Pull fish out of brine and place on tinfoil. Sprinkle on OldBay, Salt and Pepper and rub into the fish. Place 4 tablespoons of butter on fish and around the fish. Make a bowl out of tinfoil so fish juice stays in the tin foil bowl and doesn’t get all over your smoker. That way the fish can cook in some of that delicious juice.  FISH NEVER TOUCHES MY SMOKER GRATES. Smoke the fish to an internal temp of 155 to 160 degrees. Which is about 2 hours slow smoked. When at temperature, pull fish off the smoker…grab 2 forks and pull or chunk the fish about 2 cups worth. (or however much you have) and set to the side. Cut up your Onions Cilantro Scallions Hot Peppers and place in a bowl and set aside. Mix 4 Tablespoons of Mayo and 4 Tablespoons of Whipped CreamCheese in a bowl. Add in your chopped veggies. Salt, Pepper, OldBay and squeeze fresh lemon juice on to taste. Now add in your fish chunks. Slowly mix everything together being careful not to create a paste. You want your dip to be chunky!! Garnish with fresh Cilantro, Old Bay and a squeeze of fresh lemon.  Sit back relax and enjoy with family and friends while you watch your pool fill up with water! LOL

 

Apple And ButterRum Slow Smoked Holiday Turkey

The holidays are here and you know what that means! That’s right…it’s time to fire up the smoker with friends, family and loved ones!!  There’s a chill in the air (which is a holiday bonus for us folks down in Florida.) Its been a long year of work, bills, homework and taking the kids to soccer, football and for us…BASEBALL games and practices every week. We’ve had a wedding this year (K and Bae) and next year we will welcome a new addition to the family (Naney and T.J. with little squish) Hectic, to say the least. But now all the family has flown or drove in and battled holiday traffic on the road and airports to be with one another and now its time to relax, laugh and kick up our feet and watch some smoke pour out of the smoker with the family. Its therapeutic. Its good for the soul. Its in that moment that your reminded of the most important things in life. Family. Punching the alarm clock at 6:15 am every morning to get the kids feed and off to school and rush to work has all gone to the wayside. Now its our time. Our time to sit and reminisce and be young again. When the adults sit at the adult table and kids at kids table…(even though were all grown) and swap stories of childhood and just enjoy the moment. 4 generations of family in the kitchen cooking is hectic to say the least LOL BUT ITS A BEAUTIFUL THING. Moments like this don’t come often. But when they do….soak it up.

Now us Drunk Boys love to serve up this bird anytime of the year but ESPECIALLY at the Holidays.  This is my traditional Thanksgiving, Christmas special. For this traditional slow smoked butter rum bird you will want to smoke with fruit wood chips. Us boys being from the south we like to use citrus wood…Apple, Peach, Orange and Cherry woods will all work great. Fruit woods will leave you with a more delicate smoke flavor than your traditional Hickory, Oak and Mesquite. So for todays choice of wood….I used all Applewood chips and sprinkled in a few Oak chips to give it a bit of a “woodsy” taste…….wait….is “woodsy” even a word??? The judges said yes so we’ll go with it…LOL….. But whatever taste you prefer is up to you.

For a 10-12 lb. gobbler your probably looking at around 5-7 hours of smoke time. Set your smoker temp anywhere from 225-240 degrees and smoke the bird to an internal thigh and breast temp of 160-180 degrees.  For me, I set the internal smoker heat to 235 degrees and cook to an internal meat temp of 165 degrees. I then pull it off the smoker and wrap and let sit for an hour before served.  Now lets get started!

THINGS YOU WILL NEED: 5 sprigs of Rosemary. Gourmet Warehouse’s ButterRum  injectable marinade. 3 cut up apples (for the water/beer pan) 1 can of Reds Apple Cider. Applewood dry rub, Garlic powder, Mesquite smoked salt, Smokehouse black pepper, Olive Oil and last but not least…Ol’ Tom.

THE NIGHT BEFORE:  Gently insert your hand into the gobbler between the skin and the meat and seperate.  Work your way down the breast and then back around the wings and legs. This will allow you to get the dryrub down between the skin and meat.  Rub down bird with olive oil. Sprinkle on your Salt, Pepper, Garlic Powder and Applewood dryrub. Pull apart a sprig or two of Rosemary and sprinkle all over the bird. Grab your Butterrum marinade and inject 3-4 ounces into breast and legs. Wrap tight and place in fridge over night.

 

TIME TO FIRE UP THE SMOKER: Pull the bird out of the fridge and let sit 30 mins. Bring the smoker temp up to 235 degrees. Fill half the water pan with water and pour half of a reds apple cider beer in pan. Seeing that reds apple cider beer is like 2 bucks a can I suggest that you pour the other half in your mouth. 🙂 Just sayin. Usually I just drink/use cheap American beer but because I’m in the holiday spirit I decided to splurge on the good stuff. But what would a good blog be without a shameless Busch Light plug? Well,  if you ask my wife she’d tell you it be a good blog. 🙂 I digress.  Add 3 cut up apples into water pan and place Ol’ Tom on the smoker. Insert internal thermometer into thickest portion of breast and smoke to an internal temp of 165 degrees. Once at temp pull bird off and double wrap in tinfoil. But before you close up your bird in foil…pour out some butterrum marinade in bottom of  the tinfoil under the bird and close it up and let rest for an hour or so. Afterall…He’s had a loooong day. After an hour or so slice breast and pull or shred the rest of meat. Drizzle pan juice on top of meat…toss and serve. Enjoy!!

Hickory and Oak Smoked Beef Stew

OK, I’m just going to come out and say it. There’s nothing better on a cold, wet, dreary Sunday when you have to spend the day hungover and sulking because you know tomorrow is Monday and you have to go back to work. Your favorite college teams have lost or won the night before….and you’re just ready for some down home, good ol’ fashioned #ComfortFood. No I’m not talkin about Cracker Barrel (for once)…. I’m talkin about some home made stew. There’s just something about watching football on Sundays while knowing a big pot of stew is cookin on the stove. The smell of Rosemary and Garlic wake you up from your Sunday afternoon nap and it just makes you feel good down inside. Hickory an Oak Smoked Beef Stew is just what the DR. ordered.

 Main Ingredients:

Olive Oil, 4lbs Chuck Roast, 8 Red Potatoes, 4 Celery Sticks, 1 White Onion, Bag of baby carrots, Mesquite Smoked Salt, SmokeHouse Pepper, Oregano, Garlic and Onion Powder, Thyme, 1 Bayleaf, Fennel Seeds, Adobo Meat powder, Garlic Salt, 3 Sprigs Rosemary, Beef Broth.

SEASON YOUR CHUCK ROAST WITH: salt, pepper, garlic powder and garlic salt after you have rubbed it down with some olive oil and then set in smoker with an internal smoker temp at 190 degrees for 10-15 minutes to get a light hickory and oak smoke to meat. While meat is on smoker cut up your onions, potatoes, celery and carrots an place in bowl. SEASON YOUR CUT UP VEGGIES in the bowl with salt, pepper, oregano, garlic an onion powder, thyme, fennel seeds,2-3 Rosemary sprigs, adobo powder, bayleaf and garlic salt an set aside.

In a big pot drop some olive oil in bottom and bring to med high heat. Place the roast you just pulled off the smoker and place it in pot and sear both sides and edges to lock in juice. 1min per side. Pour in 32ozs of beef broth and then pour bowl of seasoned veggies into pot. Bring to boil and then turn down to simmer and let cook 5 hours. That’s plenty of time to get in a sunday afternoon nap on the couch with the wifey an dog and watch football as you fade in and out. And when you wake up you will have some down home, good ol’ fashioned comfort food ready to dish in a bowl. After 5 hours in the pot your meat will be so tender you can pull it apart with a spoon!  This is one of my favorite stews to make. It always reminds me that the holidays are just around the corner and THAT…. is one of my favorite things! Hope you enjoy!!

The Family

 

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DrunkBoysBBQ 3-2-1 Competition Style Pork Ribs

Smoking and grilling is an outdoor aphrodisiac…LOL. Nothing gets the juices flowing like the smell of hickory an oak smoke pouring out of the smoker on a cool fall Saturday in the south with family, friends, GEORGIA football and a cold beer in hand!! Now that I’ve takin you to a better place….lets talk ribs!!

One of my favorite things to throw on the smoker is some St. Louis or baby back ribs. Now, a couple things to get done hours before we #FireUpTheSmoker. Grab all your rubs and injections. Make sure to remove membrane off the back of ribs.PREPARATION :Once membrane is off rub down ribs with olive oil, Mesquite smoked salt, Smokehouse pepper and lots of RibRub. Grab your Gourmet Warehouse Applewood marinade and inject 2-3 ounces or to your own liking. Next, pour 4 beers into container with a shot or 3 of Jack Daniels. Again…to your own liking. I don’t judge 🙂 Let ribs sit in beer and jack overnite in the fridge and soak up all that apple cider beer and Tennessee goodness. Now, Lets #FireUpTheSmoker!!!

Bring internal smoker temp to 250 degrees. Fill water pan with half water and half applejuice. You can even slice up a couple apples and throw them in water pan as well. When it comes to smoking ribs I use the 3-2-1  rule. I smoke them 3 HOURS UNWRAPPED. 2 HOURS WRAPPED 1 HOUR SITTING IN A COOLER. The only way your ribs wont be ‘fall off the bone” tender is if you can’t count to 6 LOL. Lay ribs on smoker rack and cook 3 hours UNWRAPPED spritzing ribs with apple juice in a spray bottle every hour for 3 hours. After 3hours pull ribs off smoker and place in heavy duty aluminum foil. Coat ribs with BBQ sauce. Add a little bit of apple juice in bottom of tinfoil so that it will stay steamy and moist while wrapped and back on smoker. Wrap tight and throw back on smoker WRAPPED for 2 hours still at 250 degrees. Now you’ve just bought yourself two more hours to do this…..

After 2 hours is up…and you’ve somehow coaxed yourself off of the hammock… pull ribs off smoker and place in cooler or microwave for 1 hour. After they have sat for an hour open them up an add more BBQ sauce if needed. Crack a cold beer, turn the game on and cut up an serve!! If cooked right… the bone should pull right out of the center of meat….Also if cooked right… you wont be able to get rid of your neighbors. Speaking of which…everyone say hello to the Foo’s! Heres to great food..great friends and good times…cause afterall..aint that what its all about? Enjoy and GO DAWGS!

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Hickory an Pecan Smoked Sliced RoastBeef

One of my favorite cuts of meat to smoke and slice paper thin….Top Round. I usually will buy nothing less than

4lbs. You want a thick center for a good rare to medium rare slice. Trim 3/4 of fatcap off of the bottom but you leave

the rest for flavoring. Now for the rub….you can use your own butt rubs or whatever it is that you enjoy. As for me

my rub and injections are as follows:

CookShack Rib Rub….LOTS!! DO NOT SPARE!! Garlic salt, Pepper and finally Mesquite Smoked Sea Salt. If you cant find mesquite smoked sea salt any ol salt will do. For my injectable marinade I will always use Gourmet Warehouses’ AppleWood Smoke.

RUB DIRECTIONS: After you rinse meat off pat dry with paper towels. Rub olive oil all over meat to help rub stick. Next sprinkle on pepper, salt, garlic salt and rib rub to taste…again, DONT GO EASY ON THE RIB BUB :} Grab your injecter and inject 2 to 2 1/2 ounces of applewood marinade into meat. Wrap and let it sit in the fridge anywhere from 2 to 24 hours. THE LONGER THE BETTER! (That’s What She Said)

After A few hours on marinade and a couple cold Busch Lights marinatin’ in my system…its time to #FireUpTheSmoker.  Now for those of you who don’t know….these are a FEW of my favorite things. Yes, theres a song there somewhere. This is why you should drink an Q’…not drink and blog. :} Bring meat almost to room temp. Bring smoker temp to 190 degrees..once there place meat in smoker and place internal meat thermometer in the center of meat. Do not place by the bone (if your using a 7 bone in) for this will give u a false reading.  Fill water pan and add wood chips. For me, today I used Hickory an Pecan. You can use whatever you like..from Mesquite to Applewood To Oak. I slice my top round paper thin and prefer my roast RARE in the center…so my target internal meat temp will be 120 degrees. Once meat is at 120 degrees pull meat off and double wrap in heavy duty tinfoil and place in insulated cooler or microwave for 30 mins to an hour. The meat temp will rise to about 125. If you want a more medium rare to medium bring internal temp to about 130 to 135 degrees. Slice meat….grab some beers and put on the Georgia game and enjoy your Saturday! GO DAWGS!!

 

Beer in the Rear (aka Beer Can Chicken)

What you’ll need:

For the Beer Can

4 chopped garlic cloves
one-quarter of an onion, chopped
lemon pepper
rosemary
garlic salt

For the Bird

5 lb roaster chicken
4 oz gourmet warehouse key lime marinade (for injection)*
salt & pepper
6 garlic cloves
olive oil
lemon pepper
can of your favorite beer (preferably warm)
fresh rosemary sprigs
1 lemon
spray butter

For the Smoker

hickory chips
spray bottle with lemon water
chopped fruit (apples, oranges,e tc.), optional
rosemary, optional

1. Pour out half of the beer (this is NOT alcohol abuse because the beer is warm!) or add it to the water pan. The can needs to be half empty to allow the beer to boil and steam. Add to the beer can: 4 chopped garlic cloves quarter chopped onion lemon pepper rosemary garlic salt

2. Gently slide your hand between the skin and the meat to separate them. Work your hand all the way down and around wings and legs. This is where you’ll put your marinade.

3. Add all of the marinade ingredients to your food processor. Pulse until thickened then taste and adjust seasonings, if needed. Pour marinade between skin and meat, and carefully rub it all around wings, legs, and breast… of the bird, that is. Coat the outside of the bird in olive oil. This’ll help the marinade stick to the bird. Coat the bird with spray butter (so it gets nice and brown in the smoker), then season with salt, pepper, garlic salt, and lemon pepper. Inject the lime marinade, and the bird should plump right up. Place it over the beer can, and use toothpicks to seal it up to keep the moisture inside the bird chamber. We want that steam from the beer to slow cook the bird.

   

4. Prepare your smoker. Set the smoker temp to 230 degrees, and add your hickory chips. Add water and beer to the water pan. I also add fruit and rosemary to the water pan if I have some hanging around the fridge. This’ll give the steam a fruity tone for the bird. If I have them, I’ll also add a mixture of Tabasco chips (for a slight spicy note) and pecan chips. Place an internal thermometer into the thickest portion of the bird but away from the bone because the bone will give a false reading. Cook at 230 degrees until the meat reaches an internal temp of 165 degrees. Remember… SLOOOW and LOOOW. Every 45 minutes, open the smoker and spritz the bird with room temp lemon water to keep it moist. A dab will do ya’. After the first hour, spray the bird with butter. When the bird reaches 165 degrees, take it out of the smoker and CAREFULLY remove the beer can because it is HOT; I learned the hard way. Save the juice inside the beer can. Wrap the bird in heavy duty foil for 30 minutes (NO LESS) to allow the juices to return to the meat.

5. After 30 minutes, you can use two forks to shred the meat or use your fingers to “chunk” it. Your bird should be dripping moist. Put all the meat into a bowl, and pour the juices from bottom of the foil, along with some of the beer can juice, onto the bird meat, and mix. Season with a little salt, pepper, and lemon pepper. Crack open a COLD BEER, and enjoy with friends and the fam!