food OCD’S: SMOKE, FIRE, & FRY

[OCD Chilehead]

Chuck here. Chile enthusiast. Amateur cook. I enjoy cooking and eating good food.

I own multiple smokers.
3 Weber Smokey Mountains and an accessorized Oklahoma Joe that I need to tune up. By tune up, I mean cut the old smoke stack out and relocate it at grill level. It sucks.
I prefer the WSM over anything else though. I also cook with Disco’s. Nothing like being outdoor and cooking.

So here we go…

Corned beef heavily seasoned with black pepper. Smoked low and slow until stall and wrapped with butchers paper. I was at 10hrs with this one. Let my heat drop for a second. Like I said, I’m an Amateur.

Babybacks are seasoned with wet mustard, GoatWeed pepper flakes, Blue Agave nectar powdered pineapple, ginger, garlic seasoning. Cooked for 2 hours. Sprayed every 30min with pineapple juice. Wrapped in butchers paper for 1 hour, unwrapped and smoked for a remaining 40 min.

I’m on a diet so no sides.

 

[Downriver]

Good looking corned beef Chuck. And those ribs look bangin! Love my WSM 22 as well.

Questions:

1. Is pineapple powder a commercial thing, or is that something you made yourself? I've never seen it, but I've never thought to look for it either. I can definitely think of some uses for it though.

2. Are these "historical" pics, or did to just cook this? I ask because isn't it like COLD in CO right now, lol?

 

[OCD Chilehead]

Good looking corned beef Chuck. And those ribs look bangin! Love my WSM 22 as well.

Questions:

1. Is pineapple powder a commercial thing, or is that something you made yourself? I've never seen it, but I've never thought to look for it either. I can definitely think of some uses for it though.

2. Are these "historical" pics, or did to just cook this? I ask because isn't it like COLD in CO right now, lol?

Hey Rick. The powder I used is commercial. I’ve made my own in the past. I’m out of pineapple powder right now. I’ll buy more as the season gets warmer. I like to make my own stuff. I found some of this at the store. And it’s good! It has no salt. I use mrs dash as well. No salt. I like to add salt if needed to dishes. I think most spice mixes are way to salty.

As far as the Smoking goes, I Smoke and BBQ all year. I’ve run that smoker in 20* weather, no jacket and with no issues. I’ve done overnight Pork Butt in 30 degree weather. I can usually get 10-12 hours out of my smoker on a bag of briquettes. Depending on the brand.

And these are real-time pics. Just cooked. Lol

Th and for stopping by!

 

[OCD Chilehead]

Lunch egg white omelette. Serrano, Sadabahar peppers, green onion, Chihuahua mexican cheese and smoked Bratwurst. Home made salsa.

 

[Downriver]

The omelette looks great Chuck. So does that Sunshine seasoning. I like the ingredients in it. I'll look for it the next time I'm out. Thanks for the tip.

 

[OCD Chilehead]

SWEET, SPICY & SOUR CHICKEN WINGS

Marinate wings in Dark Soy, Agave nectar, fish sauce, lemon, spices, and homemade Chile oil.

Pressure cooked in Instant Pot using pot in pot method. 5 minutes. (Need to save the liquid)

Placed wings on wire rack and in the oven for 10min.

Take juice and spices from pot. Strain and sauté in the Instant Pot to reduce. Add brown sugar, Ginger, Lemon juice and Basil. Reduce and add chicken wings from oven. Slowly add a little corn starch mix to thicken sauce. Done. The sauce will not run off the chicken.

Pictures don’t do it justice. Nice heat, with sweet and sour taste. Reminds me of a Tamarind. Very sticky like the consistency of honey.

 

[OCD Chilehead]

PIZZA!

Sorry, no pics of the process. Was to hungry. Lol. I cheated and got some fresh flat bread from local independent bakery. She is amazing at what she does. A true artist. Plus she’s cute and has tattoos. Lol

Managed to get a pic of the eats before it was all devoured. Tastes way better when you shred your cheese versus buying the pre-shredded. Made the sauce as well as fresh orange bell.

 

[Ratatouille]

That looks amazing!

(I just recently learned that grated cheese from the store isn't just only grated cheese. That's why it tastes better when you shred it yourself.)

 

[OCD Chilehead]

That looks amazing!

(I just recently learned that grated cheese from the store isn't just only grated cheese. That's why it tastes better when you shred it yourself.)

Thanks!

That’s good to know, had know idea why it is so different.

 

[OCD Chilehead]

Pork shoulder. Smoked!

Seasoned overnight. Took forever to cook, but it’s worth it. Had 25mph gusts today. Had to adjust here and there. Normally I can set it and forget it once I’ve got the temps to where I want it.

 

[OCD Chilehead]

Needed some more heat. Made some Purée today. Ended up with 8 small jars. Used roughly :

1 pound, 13 ounces of Chile.
2 cups of vinegar
8 tsp Agave Nectar
2 tsp Sea Salt

Down side is, need to keep my hands above the waist for a couple days.

 

[Ratatouille]

Not only above the waste. Remember not rubbing your eyes as well.

 

[Tinkerbelle]

you can wear gloves OCD, you know that right?

 

[OCD Chilehead]

Not only above the waste. Remember not rubbing your eyes as well.

Yeah, that’s how I know it’s wearing off. When my eyes don’t burn anymore from touching them.

 

[OCD Chilehead]

you can wear gloves OCD, you know that right?

I always intend to use gloves, but end up not using them. I’m always careful until canning. I will take your advice under consideration next time. Lol

 

[HellfireFarm]

Making powders and candies all the time, I've just gotten used to something always burning...

 

[OCD Chilehead]

Got a 18” another R2BBQ. That’s 4 WSM’s!!!
I have a problem.

I’m loving this size. I used minimal charcoal had good control. Perfect. My other 3 are 22”.

Did a trial run on some drum sticks.

 

[OCD Chilehead]

Well I’ve neglected this thread. Mainly because I bbq and smoke multiple times a week, I just forget to take any pictures. Lol

Today was spare ribs. On the smoker 220* at 3:10pm. Off the smoker at 10pm. 7 hours NO wrap. Smoked with lump charcoal and some hickory and apple. Lump is my go to now. No more briquettes. I feel I get a cleaner more controlled burn with lump. Plus it has a nice natural smoke smell to it. Tried something different. I spritzed with Cran-Grape cocktail juice every 30-45 min. Kept the temp between 240-250.

Rub was yellow mustard, honey mustard, agave nectar, tiny bit of garlic powder, Kinders Japanese bbq seasoning, Cayenne pepper, sweet Paprika and some Aleppo pepper flakes.

Ribs were still moist after 7 hours. Little to done. Very good though. Not the best quality of ribs, but I made it work. I quit the 3-2-1 method. I use to do 3-2-1, 2-1-3, 1-2-3. I’ve tried it all. Just no wrap is what I’m doing lately. Oh my son made burgers but I didn’t bother to take pictures. Lol

 

[Downriver]

Lookin good @OCD Chilehead !

You don't see a smoke ring on ribs every day.

Did you ever wrap in butcher paper? Whose lump you using? Curious minds wanna know, lol.

 

[OCD Chilehead]

Lookin good @OCD Chilehead !

You don't see a smoke ring on ribs every day.

Did you ever wrap in butcher paper? Whose lump you using? Curious minds wanna know, lol.

Thanks DR!!

The ribs were over down. They were still moist, but fell of the bone. I like them intact. I was messing with the plants late last night and thought it was 9pm and actually it was 10pm. Stupid disorder. Should have pulled them 40min prior is my guess.

The lump I’m using is Royal Oak. I really liked there briquettes. Way better than Kingsford. They don’t sell them anymore. I also have a new bag of Kamado Joe. It came with the used new 18” WSM I picked up for $100. I usually just smell the bags. If it has a Smokey smell I buy it no matter what brand. But Royal Oak is my go to. It’s like $15 for 15.5lbs. Prices have gone up on everything.

People say it’s hard to start. I don’t think so. I get my propane torch and some tiny pieces of wood and ignite in the middle. If you don’t have wood, just use the torch to get a couple pieces in the middle red and it’s one. That’s the easiest for me. I usually heat charcoal on my side burner of my propane grill. I need to make a smaller charcoal starter. I use to fill the starter up with charcoal and pour the coals in the middle. Uses a lot more charcoal. If you can get a handful of coals going, it’s better. Not as quick but I think it’s more controlled burn.

And there is your ADHD answer for the day.