Happy Labor Day weekend to my fellow bloggers, I jumped the gun a little bit and put some ribs and chicken in before the official holiday. Nothing fancy, just some McCormick's rub and apple and hickory smoke. It's been a long year, looking forward to 2014 and hopefully grilling and getting a good buzz around the campfire with The Captain and Gunney. I'm going to enjoy the hospitality and all the beer I can drink at the Red Dog Lodge next year if I have to f**king walk to Michigan.

. Can't wait to see you next year Brother's in Smoke...

Spring Snow

Not too long ago we had a spring storm blow through and leave us with a couple of inches of snow. While it wasn't much, it was enough to put me in the mood for some smoked meat and good brew to pass the day. I've often heard of the "East VS West" style of BBQ, and while I've tasted many varieties of Western tomato-based BBQ sauce, I've yet to have a chance to try the eastern style. A quick Google search, and then I found myself locking the Chevy K1500 in 4 Hi and heading to the grocery store and the liquor store. The simple recipe is below, and you've got to try it. At first bite, it's an odd flavor, certainly something you're probably not accustomed to if you're used to "KC BBQ Sauce." But after that it becomes more and more delicious and you have to wonder if maybe those Eastern fellas aren't on to something. It's a simple tang that really lets the smoked flavor of the pork-butt shine through. Spring's not far off, time for the gang to reassemble and post more recipes. Look forward to hearing from all of you again !

Ingredients :

1 cup white vinegar

1 cup cider vinegar

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 tablespoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce (e.g. Tabasco™), or to taste

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:

Combine the white vinegar, cider vinegar, brown sugar, cayenne pepper, hot pepper sauce, salt and pepper in a jar or bottle with a tight-fitting lid. Refrigerate for 1 to 2 days before using so that the flavors will blend. Shake occasionally, and store for up to 2 months in the refrigerator. Baste liberally on the finished meat to taste.

Brew selection : I'm not sophisticated enough to pair my brews with my dinners, I wish I was that worldly. That said, I had a few Boulder Beer Brewing "Buffalo Gold Premium Ale" with my shredded pork sandwiches. The reviews on www.beeradvocate.com run mostly pretty average, I thought it was a good light beer. From one of their reviews :

A: The beer is slightly hazy yellowish amber in color and poured with a finger
high white head that quickly died down and left intermittent lacing. A light
amount of carbonation is visible.S: The smell is quite sweet and also has
some aromas of floral hops.T: Like the smell, the taste is dominated by a
moderate amount of malty sweetness and also has some fruity flavors.M: It
feels light- to medium-bodied and clean on the palate with a moderate amount of
carbonation.D: The beer is easy to drink and refreshing; it would be a good
selection on a hot summer day.

Applewood Smoked Pie

Feast your eyes on the first pizza of my grilling career. A handful of places offer such tasty treats, in my neck of the woods. I went with a deep dish crust brushed with olive oil and a slight dusting of garlic.




Last Saturday when I smoked the brisket for taco's, I wanted to perfect my charcoal management skills so I threw a whole chicken in there when the beef was done.




After 2 1/2-3 hours of wood smoldered excellence, here was the finished product.


This pie is coated in a BBQ sauce that I picked up when I visited Memphis, in July, sliced Red Peppers, Baby Bella mushrooms, onions and pulled smoked chicken. How bout that shit???











Rolling Rock is good with anything. I know you seasoned fellas like to drink that shit that is so thick it leaves residue on the glass, but I'm not man enough yet to roll with you guys.









I had Fat Tire when I was in Denver, does that count?

"Blanco Diablo" Brisket Tacos

I have made brisket a handful of times, but never for this purpose. The idea came from a block party my neighborhood had a few weeks ago. My neighbor served the shredded brisket with pico de gallo and flour tortilla's. When ever I use a recipe, it is only a guide line, not gospel. I did a little research to see what spices are used in real carne asada tacos and came up with my own little recipe. This is a 5 lb brisket that I actually cut off from an over sized 14 pounder that I bought from the local butcher about a month ago. A perfect size for a sacrificial lamb. I smoked it hard for about 3 hours, then cheated and put it in the crock pot. She fell apart just looking at her.










While that was cooking, I made up some fresh pico de gallo to smother the corn tortilla wrapped, lime splashed, queso embedded shredded goodness. ¡dios mío. Any beer served with a lime goes well, if you didn't catch on to the theme.


Pico de Pollice

-1/2 white onion
-9 Roma tomatoes (remove all guts)
-2-3 green onions
-3 Serrano chilies
-1 tsp fresh ground pepper
-2 tbsp lime juice





Growing up in Little Mexico has it's benefits, poco o nada.

King Brisket

This last weekend I broke rank and did not smoke a pork butt, but the mighty beef brisket. I saw on here recently Capt Kingsford posted his brisket, so that got me thinking brisket it is. My confidential source at McCormick's gave me the yet to be released "Cowboy Rub". I have to tell you after tasting it, all you would need would be a set of chaps and a Stetson(Saunders has a set of chaps for you) and you'd feel right at home on the range. Seriously, it was good tasting shit.

Note: The custom engineered cutting board. I saw a guy on triple DDD that had one like this, and it looked like a must have.

First at bat...

I have been plotting on the time to jump in and show the goods. The problem is if I wait til I have comparable cooking accessories I will sit in the backseat for a few years and let some great chunks of meat go by without due attention. Charcoal is King around here and that is how I smoked this bad bitch. This was a 9 lb brisket rubbed with honey mustard and some goodness I have been working on for awhile.




I smoked with mesquite wood (normally I use apple), in my battle field tested barrel smoker for about 15 hrs. Upon it's completion I wrapped it in tin foil and let it sit for an hour or so. This is what perfection looks like.





Check out that smoke ring! I am an amateur when it comes to blogging, so I don't have a presentation picture with the whole spread, I will be sure to hone in my skills for the follow up!

Pizza from a trailer? WTF

This dude came in for service last week. The rear of his Denali couldn't keep up with the tonque weight of his trailer. I told him to bring in the vehicle and trailer for inspection.....
This is what he showed up with.
Turns out, this is his business. He gets hired to show up to parties and events and make f-ing pizza. How cool. This oven gets up to 800 degrees and can make a large pizza in 90 seconds.
I know where this guy lives. He better make sure this thing is locked down.