Smoking a Duck: Don't be Afraid of the Quack

A week ago or so, Hope was off for a week visiting old friends.  So, along with the youngest, we took the opportunity to throw some pieces of meat on the smoker that we cannot do when Hope is around. These types of meat would be those that fall into the "Too Cute to Eat" category.  Our first experimentation was with a smoked duck.

Duck, cooked perfectly, is a treat.  The best duck I have ever had was at a restaurant in Beijing that specialized in Peking Duck.  Roasted to perfection, juicy on the inside, crispy on the outside, and sliced thin.  Served with steamed buns, vegetables, and dipping sauces, it is a culinary delight.

So, off to the store for a nice, farm raised duck.

I took the young duckling out of the package, removed the neck and liver from the cavity, rinsed well, patted dry, then placed into a batch of Oakridge Game Changer Brine for a six hour swim.

After the brining, I rinsed the duck and patted dry.  Then, I massaged olive oil all over the outside and sprinkled some Oakridge Game Bird and Chicken rub all over the skin and inside the body cavity.

Just a quick note on the rub.  I love the smell and flavors with this rub.  Chilies, onion, and garlic are balanced perfectly with coriander and mustard powder.  Good stuff.  Just the right amount of sweet heat.  I highly recommend with any game bird or your stand issue yardbird.

I brought the smoker to 350 F and placed some pecan and apple wood in the ash pan.  Then the duck went on the top rack.  Here it is after an hour on the smoker.  The smell was intoxicating.

Once the temperature in the thigh was at 155 F, I glazed with the following:

1/2 cup of Blues Hog Tennessee Red BBQ sauce
1/2 cup of orange juice
1 Tbsp of Soy Sauce
1 tsp of sesame oil
Heat to a simmer and reduce until it starts to get thick.  I was going for Asian/American BBQ fusion.

I brushed on the duck twice in the last 30 minutes of cook time so that the glaze could set.  Then, I pulled the duck at 160 F and let rest for 15 minutes.

How was it?  The rub was great and paired nicely with the sauce.  The meat was tender and juicy and not as fatty as people say duck can be.  I think that cooking on an open rack allowed the fat to drain while cooking.  The skin was not as crispy as I would have liked.  The next time I will poke the skin liberally and scald in hot water.  This is recommended to help promote crispy skin.  My biggest issue was with the amount of meat.  The duck was quite bony and did not yield as much meat as a chicken of the the same size would yield.  This duck was only enough for two.  If you had more people for dinner, you might be cooking a chicken.

Overall, the taste was great.  I am looking forward to smoking another one of our feathered friends.

Thanks for stopping by,

Bill

The Biggest Sandwich I Have Ever Seen

Last month, I was in New Jersey for work, and my colleague and I heard people at the company we were visiting talking about this sandwich that fed six people for dinner and lunch.  We were skeptical, but the hook was set.  We were told that it was a place called Harold's New York Deli and that it was just around the corner.  So, for lunch, we decided to give Harold's a try as we are both suckers for a good pastrami sandwich.

When you walk in, here is the sign.

Ah, my first Man vs. Food establishment.  Perhaps the rumors were true.  Then, you walk through the door and see another clue as to what was in store for us.

Really, a cake that big?  Does it come with a side of insulin?  My colleague and I look at each other and start to think that our lunch may become a dinner.

We ordered the pastrami sandwich that the menu said "serves 1-3" and Chris ordered a root beer float as well.

A full liter of Stewart's root beer, a pint of house made vanilla ice cream, and a mountain of whipped cream.  While Chris started down the road to a sugar coma, I decided to check out the World's Largest Pickle bar.

This pickle bar had it all.  Barrel pickles, dill, sweet, half and full sour pickles.  They also had pickled tomatoes and three types of cole slaw.  I picked an assortment with some vinegar slaw and two slices of fresh, Jewish rye bread.  By the way, the Jewish rye was outstanding.  A crispy outside with a soft inside.  Why was it stacked at the end of the pickle bar?  Well, I got my answer when I sat down at our table.

When I sat back down, Chris was half way through his root beer float and was starting to twitch from the infusion of sugar.  Also, this monument to smoked beef was looking me right in the eye.

Serves one to three?  Try four people comfortably.  There was a good pound of pastrami on each side of that sandwich.  It even came with a side of fries!  Now I see why they had bread stacked up on the pickle bar.

The pastrami was good.  Tender, juicy, a slight kiss of smoke and just the right amount of fat and seasoning.  We finished it all and Chris even polished off his float as well.  We passed on a slice of cake that served "one to three".  My suggestion if you go to Harold's, skip breakfast and plan for a light dinner.  Overall rating, A.

Thanks for stopping by,

Bill

I've Got a Bone to Pick with You...

As a matter of fact, I have a few dozen bones to pick with you.  Time for some rib practice for the upcoming season.

As you can see, we picked up some beautiful looking St. Louis spares from our butcher, Dave's Country Meats in Valencia, PA.  We trimmed them up nicely and started with seasoning.

First, we slathered some yellow mustard on the front and back, then rubbed both sides with 1 cup of Oakridge Secret Weapon Chicken and Pork rub and 1/2 cup of turbinado sugar.  Then, we allowed the racks to sit and come up to room temperature while we brought the smoker up to 225 F.

Ribs are our nemesis.  They kept us from at least a top ten at Oinktoberfest last September.  Most of the time, it is a combination of taste and tenderness.  One, they are not sweet enough.  Two, we have tenderness problems.  So, for this cook, I wanted to see how long it would take to get the ribs cooked without foiling.  I decided on a six hour cook time.  So, when the smoker was up to temperature, I put a mix of pecan, apple, and hickory in the ash pan, placed the ribs on the top rack of the smoker, and walked away.  After two hours, I added more wood.  After three hours, I rotated the ribs in the smoker.  Then, after five hours, I started my glazing:

1 cup of Blues Hog Regular

1/2 cup of honey

4 Tbsp of Blues Hog Tennessee Red

After the first application of sauce sat for 30 minutes in the smoker, I added a second coat and let the ribs go for 30 more minutes.  Then, I pulled them and let them rest for 15 minutes before slicing.

Chilebrown, does the knife look familiar?  Great call.  I love it.  But, I digress...

Here they were after slicing.

Nice, bite on the meat.

The flavor was there, but I do need to add a bit more sweet.  As for the tenderness, the ribs were good, but had just a bit too much tug.  Next time, I am going to cook for seven hours and see how they turn out.  

Thanks for stopping by,

Bill

Steak on a Stick

We have been making a push lately to work off the excess inventory in our chest freezer.  Chest freezers are great for allowing you to pick up meat in large quantities when on sale.  Just vacuum pack your bounty and they keep your treasure almost like new.  The bad thing is you tend to forget what inventory is inside and items tend to get lost.  Last weekend while rummaging through the meat cave, I found our last half rack of beef ribs.  So, that was dinner.

First, I took the rack, peeled the membrane off of the back, then washed and dried.

Usually I add some sort of BBQ rub that is made with beef in mind. This time though, I had the steak on the stick theme in my head.  So, I seasoned them just like I would a steak going on the grill.  Sea salt and cracked pepper, as well as some onion powder and granulated garlic.

I brought my smoker to 250 F and added pecan wood to the ash pan.  The ribs went on the top rack of the smoker.

Here they are after about two hours.  Notice the heavenly light that is bathing this meat treat?

My target for beef ribs is about four hours of cook time.  This is usually a temperature of about 180-190 F internal.  I go out and check my ribs after three and a half hours and start probing with my thermometer.  When it slides in like butter, you know you are done.  This rack took about three hours and 45 minutes and had an internal temperature of 187 F.  I brought them inside and let them rest for 15 minutes before slicing.

Served with a baked potato and a side salad.  These ribs lived up to my expectations of Steak on a Stick.

Thanks for stopping by,

Bill