Pulled Pork Sandwich W/Pickled Red Onions

Nov 08 2012

I know we’ve all seen a lot of pork butts, but it’s one of my favorite cooks. It had been thawing in the fridge over 3 days. I trimmed a little of the fat from the cap, coated with some Bad Byron’s butt rub my brother had given me. I then rubbed on some Lowensenf mustard then some more rub. I got it on the smoker, fat cap down, at 3:00 am on the 180 deg. setting, and then went back to bed.

I woke up at 7:00 am and got dressed to go out in the cold 28 deg. weather and check on the smoker. It was doing fine and I set it to 225 deg. The sun was just coming up and when I looked around it was foggy. The fog was frozen and it looked like a million tiny crystals floating in the air. What a pretty site, I was too tired to think of trying for a photo of it and went back to bed.

I made it back up before 9:00 and inserted my temp probe. At 11:00 after 8 hours it was up to 165 deg. IT. I placed it in a foil pan, added 10 oz. of apple juice 100% US apples, mixed with 2 Tbs. of red wine vinegar, 1 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce and 1 tsp. garlic juice. I covered with foil and placed in my 240 deg. oven to finish to an IT of 205 deg. After a half hour I went to 250 deg. It was done at 2:05, just over 11 hours. I let it rest about 15 minutes before pulling.

My new Maverick ET 732 remote probe came from Fed Ex. I wished I had it this am and I could have looked at it beside my bed and went back to sleep; but would have missed the frozen fog. I tried to check it in ice water but it will not go below 40 deg. I compared it in the pork butt and read very close to my old Maverick. I will try it in boiling water tomorrow.

I pulled the pork in long strands then chopped some; that’s the way I like it. I saved the pan juice and poured off the fat but didn’t think I needed to add it back to the pork. I was sampling the pork as I pulled it; the bark pieces I could taste some heat from the Bad Byron’s rub. I think it would be great on ribs.

I baked an Oriental sweet potato for a side and we had a spring mix green salad. The Oriental sweet potato was dark red skin with white potato, and we liked it better than yellow yams. I reheated some pork with Kah’s BBQ sauce and served on a toasted COWB; cheap ole white bun, topped with some of my pickled red onions. One of my better pork butts and the wife even said it was extra good!

My new toy Maverick ET 732

Fat cap side w/Bad Byron's rub and mustard

Meat side

Ready for the smoker

IT temp at 165 deg. ready to take inside to finish

Resting after reaching IT of 205 deg.

Meat with most of the fat removed

Long strands on the left and final chopped on the right

My supper

Smokin Don

Beef Barley Soup and Toasted Cheese

Nov. 07 2012

I had plenty of braised beef and onions leftover from my crockpot cook. I decided it would make some good barley soup. I would fix it for tonight’s supper along with toasted cheese sandwiches using my smoked Gouda on some rye bread.

I don’t have a lot of photos of the process but I think all know how to chop or dice veggies. I diced up some celery and carrots, normally I would have onions too but the beef had plenty of onions. I put a quart of beef broth in a soup pot along with a half cup of pearl barley. When I got that boiling I added the celery and carrots. I turned the heat down to a simmer, covered to let simmer for an hour.

After a half hour I thought it looked a little thin so I threw in a hand full of rice and added a bay leaf, a tsp. of salt and some ground pepper. The wife and I decided we didn’t want to eat until 6:30 instead of our usual 6:00pm. I let the soup simmer for an hour and 15 minutes then added in the beef and onions.
I turned up the heat and brought back to a boil, turned down the heat and partially covered for 45 minutes.

When it was time to eat I put a skillet on med high heat and let warm up. I sliced the rye bread and the smoked Gouda. I sprayed the bread on top with some olive oil spray and in the skillet then spayed the other side. I toasted each side about 1 ½ minutes. I like to use butter but the olive oil is better for me!

I served the wife and I a bowl of soup and the sandwich, we had some bought cheese garlic croutons on the soup. It hit the spot on a cold fall evening. It will taste good for lunch tomorrow and I have plenty to share with my Mother when we visit Friday.

Ingredients for my soup

Soups on

My supper

Smokin Don

Smoked Turkey Sandwich for Lunch

Nov 05 2012

I made up this sandwich for my lunch today. I used my smoked turkey, my smoked white cheddar and my pickled red onions. I had a nice sandwich bun to use.

I spread some Lowensenf mustard on the bottom, topped with some chorizo. The chorizo I bought at Wal Mart and is made by Daniele Inc. It is the Spanish style dry cured, unlike the Mexican chorizo. I browned up two slices of turkey breast & placed on top of the chorizo, then some pickled red onions. I topped that with some smoked cheddar and under the broiler to melt the cheese and brown the top of the bun.

I shared with my wife, not half, about 1/3. We both thought it was mighty tasty.

Making the sandwich

After broiling

My Lunch

Smokin Don

Beer Braised Beef, Smashed Potatoes and Roasted Cauliflower

Nov. 04 2012

I was getting hungry for a good beef roast and some potatoes. Saturday I bought some small Yukon gold potatoes, a head of cauliflower and an arm roast from my butcher. I like chuck roasts but the arm roast has less fat, I picked out one about 2.5 pounds that had a little marbling. I decided to stay inside for this cook and do the roast in my Crockpot. Saturday evening we took the kids & grandson out after his basketball game. We ate at a local Mexican place that has great food.

I used Pioneer Woman’s recipe for the beer braised beef but added about 2 teaspoons of beef bouillon granules and some corn starch at the end to thicken a little. The potatoes were my own method and I used Emeril’s recipe at food net for the roasted cauliflower. I could do both in the oven, same temp and time.

I seared my roast and got it in the crockpot with the sautéed onions & garlic and the beer. I used Yuengling lager for the beer. I got it on before 10:00am so it would have about 8 hours to cook for our supper. I did it on high for the first 45 minutes then went to low. I baked some take home and bake sandwich buns to have. One half of one is just right for one serving.

I had my potatoes and cauliflower ready for the oven and at 4:30 I removed the roast from the pot to cool a little and shred. I went to high on the crockpot then added some cornstarch mixed with a little water. The meat was fall apart tender and put it back in the crockpot after shredding and removing what little fat there was. At 4:55 I put the potatoes and cauliflower in my preheated oven at 375 deg. All would be ready at 5:30.

Searing the arm roast

The onions and garlic sauteing

Here I just added some beer to deglaze the pan

Onions, garlic and beer were added to the pot, roast on top then just enough beer to almost cover the meat.

My Yukon gold potatoes. I boiled them for about 25 minutes until fork tender, placed in the dish I had sprayed w/olive oil, and smashed coarsly with a fork. I poured over a 1/4 stick of melted butter, salt, pepper, dried parsley flakes, and some dried garlic flakes.

Cauliflower w/olive oil, salt, pepper, dried garlic flakes and some crushed rosemary

The roast is done and ready to remove and shred

The shredded beef

Back in the pot

Potatoes are done

Cauliflower is done

My Plate, some good eats and we will have some good leftovers. Thanks Ree, Pioneer Woman for the recipe.

Smokin Don

Cider Braised Bacon Sandwich W/Pickled Red Onions

Nov. 02 2012

I saw a post from a blog that was a sandwich made from pork belly. It was braised in apple cider then sliced and fried. It was topped with pickled red onions, and it sure looked delicious. I had a piece of bacon about 4 X 5 inches, left from my beer braised bacon. I tried to find the blog post again but never could; I know I need to book mark anything interesting.

I made up my own recipe for braising; one cup of apple cider, 2 Tbs. of apple cider vinegar, 3 Tbs. of raw honey, about a Tbs. of dried garlic flakes and some fresh ground pepper. I placed the bacon in a sauce pan with the braising mix and enough water to cover. I brought it to a boil then put it in a 215 deg. Oven for two hours. It went in the fridge overnight. The next day I took the bacon out, dried and back in the fridge.

I found a recipe for pickled red onions; 2 red onions sliced thin, blanch in boiling water for one minute, drain and back in the pan. Then you add a cup of cider vinegar, a teaspoon of salt and enough water to barely cover the onions; bring to a boil for one minute then cool some. Place it in a quart jar, seal and in the fridge after cooling at least overnight.

I decided to do the bacon on the smoker along with some corn meal mush. I needed a good healthy salad to go along; that would make me feel better about eating the bacon! I found one on food net by Guy Fieri, Spinach Pear and Pomegranate Salad with Gorgonzola and Champagne Vinaigrette. It called for champagne vinegar for the dressing; I can never find it around here so I used red wine vinegar infused with pomegranate.

Today I sliced the bacon ¼ inch thick; I just had enough for two sandwiches. In the meantime my wife’s sister called and said her & her husband was stopping in on their way to Port Clinton from Cincinnati. I said I could give them some of my left over creamy chicken tortilla soup and had enough salad for them. I baked two take home & bake sandwich buns, one cut in half was big enough for our sandwiches and served the other to my guests.

I put the mush on the smoker, preheated to 300 deg. After a half hour I put the bacon on. I did them for another hour. In between this I made up the salad, my wife’s sister and husband got here at 4:45. By 5:00 I reheated the soup and served them the soup and salad with bread. At 5:30 the bacon and mush were done so we had our sandwiches topped with the pickled red onions, the mush, salad and bread.

My bacon really got black but didn’t taste burnt. I am not sure why the bacon I saw in the blog looked normal color but they used pork belly and I think they fried it. I have cooked thick sliced bacon before at that temp for an hour and looked good. I was not going to post this but it was good and I would do it again but maybe try frying it.

The pickled red onions would be good on most sandwiches. The salad was really good and would complement most any meal.

Bacon after overnight in the fridge

Bacon ready to slice

Pickled red onions

The salad

My salad

My sandwich and mush

Smokin Don

Mary's Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup

Oct 30 2012

The past week end was cold, damp and windy. I had been going to buy a whole pork loin and do a couple of different cooks I want to try. Sunday I had been to Mary’s blog “Deep South Dish” and saved a great looking recipe Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup, I had to try this sometime. Monday we got winds; 30 mph steady and +50 mph gusts thanks to hurricane Sandy. Monday evening I decided to make the soup for Tuesday’s supper.

This morning I woke up to a snow covered yard. I went to the grocery and bought the stuff to make the soup, they had some half turkey breasts so I got one to do along with the chicken for the soup. I had planned to do up one and vacuum seal some for my grandsons school lunches. I got it in a brine of ½ gal. water, 1/3 cup kosher salt, a scant ¼ cup of sugar and 3 Tbs. molasses. I could leave it marinate for 2 ½ hours and get it on an hour after starting the chicken.

I spatchcocked the chicken, put a pat of butter under each breast skin, seasoned with a little Lawry’s seasoning salt and got it on the smoker at 12:00 noon. I started on smoke mode then eased up to 325 deg. after 15 minutes to do to an IT of 180 deg. breast temp. My smoke deck was keeping the wind off but I was bundled up pretty good. I was thinking about all those people who didn’t have power from the storm and may have to endure a week or more without it. I was glad we didn’t lose power and could enjoy some warming soup for supper!

I rinsed the turkey breast and seasoned with seasoning salt: I got it on at 1:00. At 1:30 the chicken was done so I let it cool. About 2:30 I pulled the meat from the breast and one leg quarter for the soup. I kept tabs on the turkey breast and pulled it at an IT of 180 deg. I tented it with foil and let cool. It went in the fridge; I will slice it up tomorrow. I had brushed it once with butter and molasses.

When my daughter in law & grandson stopped in at 3:00 after school I had started making the soup. I followed Mary’s recipe pretty close, I used smoked paprika instead of sweet. I assembled mine a little different. I sautéed the onions and garlic in the butter, added the meat and seasoning, heated through then added the flour and then the chicken broth and milks. For soups and stews I like to season the meat. I had it done by 4:00 and gave a big bowl to my daughter in law to take home.

I left the soup on low and the wife and I ate about 5:30. We both loved it, great flavor! I put some white tortilla chips in the bottom of a bowl and ladled the soup over. On top of that went some crushed smoked Korean crackers and some shredded Fiesta style cheese. I had some smoked Korean crackers on the side. It sure hit the spot.

Thanks for the recipe Mary, it’s a keeper, and I will have to stay away from your blog if I ever want to get my pork loins done!

Soup ingredients

Chicken and turkey on the smoker

Chicken done

Turkey breast done

Seasoning for the soup, gray salt, cumin, onion powder, smoked paprika and chili powder.

Onions, garlic, chicken and seasonings simmering

Soups on

My supper

Smokin Don

Braised Bacon (pork belly), spaetzel and cabbage

I have wanted to do a pork belly and have read a lot of recipes. Most do a cure on a fresh pork belly first then various methods of cooking. I thought now bacon is cured pork belly so why not use bacon and cut out that step, and I love bacon. I decided on a beer braised recipe, I did not have to do the cure and made up my own cooking method. For my sides I would have fried cabbage and fried spaetzel and would serve the braised bacon on the spaetzel with the braising liquid over.

I bought a piece of bacon 2, ½ pounds from Kah Meats, my butcher. I cut three nice squares from it to use. I smoked it today, early morning, for 1 ½ hours.

I used my Lodge cast iron chicken fryer with lid to do the braising. I added some olive oil and seared the bacon, top and bottom then removed and set aside. I added a chopped onion, some chopped baby carrots, and two stalks of celery, chopped and some thyme. I stirred and cooked awhile then added a little beer to deglaze. I used Yuengling black & tan. I placed the bacon pieces over the veggies, poured in most of the rest of the beer, and enough chicken broth to all but cover the bacon.

I added a bay leaf, covered and in a preheated oven at 280 deg. I left it in 3 hours checking the liquid about every hour. After the three hour I removed the bacon and placed a cast iron plate over and some plates to press while cooling. The recipe said to discard the veggies but for me they would stay. I strained most of the fat from the liquid.

I put the bacon back in the pot and on the smoker, uncovered. I did it at 180 deg. for one hour then went to 225 deg. My Traeger was running closer to 235 deg. Average so I let it run there another two hours. The sauce was reduced down nice. I placed it on a burner on low to hold while I prepared the sides.

I got the cabbage on frying and boiled the spaetzel, and then it went into a skillet with some olive oil and butter to brown some. I placed the bacon under the broiler to brown the tops some.

I served it up with some buttered crusty bread, sure tasted good. If I did this again I would probably do the final step by just doing the bacon on the smoker, directly on the grate, at a high temperature to render more of the fat and crisp up. My wife didn’t eat any of the fat and I didn’t eat the top layer; I had the thickest piece with the most fat on top. The thinner layers of fat were fine for me. The meat was melt in your mouth tender.

Bacon and liquid

Bacon smoking

Smoked bacon, spaetzel, and cabbage

Searing the bacon

The veggies

Ready to add the liquid

After 3 hours at 280 degrees

Ready to go back on the smoker

All done and the sauce reduced

Fixing the sides

My Plate

Smokin Don