Rotisserie Chicken

I got an idea in my head that I HAD to have a rotisserie for our grill so I could make chickens on it.  I found one at the hardware store that was "Universal" which turned out with me taking a grinder to the grill but whatever.  First try crashed and burned in 10 minutes........

Try number two of the night seems to be turning out much better with much lower heat and some minor equipment adjustments.

Ingredients

	1 whole chicken fryer cleaned and innards removed
	4 tablespoons course salt
	3 cloves Garlic minced
	1 tablespoon fresh rosemary finely diced
	0.5 lemon quartered
	2 teaspoons fresh thyme finely diced
	3 tablespoons olive oil
	1 Ground Pepper to taste
	1 medium onion quartered McCormick rotisserie seasoning or your own blend

Wash and dry the chicken. Place a basting pan underneath the rotisserie on your grill. Light the rotisserie burner.

Meanwhile, skewer the chicken with your rotisserie skewer. Attach cages tightly. Stuff the chicken with quartered lemon, 1 sprig of rosemary, and onion. Baste the chicken lightly with olive oil.

Next, make the salt rub. Combine course salt, freshly ground pepper, herbs and garlic to make a rub. Rub the entire chicken generously. Tie off chicken legs and thighs securely -- you''ll be surprised just how much force the slow turning of the rotisserie generates as it cooks.

Start chicken on turning and after ten minutes of grill time begin application of rotisserie seasoning.  Coat evenly and heavily.   Check regularly and re-apply when needed.  I poured some beer on it every once in a while just because it seemed manly at the time (Flex)  and I thought it needed it then re-applied  as needed. 

Roast until meat thermometer reads 160 in the thigh, about 2 hours, depending upon the size of the bird. Turn off heat, close lid and let it continue to turn, until the thermometer reads 170. Remove from grill, cover with foil, and let rest another 15 minutes.

Jungle Juice

Kristen is having a party on March 5th with her Co-Workers and decided Jungle Juice was in order.

The recipe is for 5 gallons but our container is only 3 so she just made half and split all the ingredients right down the middle.


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Ingredients:
     Alcohol
          2 Liters (approx 1/2 gallon) of Everclear
     Mixers
          1 Gallon of Orange Juice (no pulp)
          4 Liters (approx. 1 gallon) of Sprite
          2 Quarts (1/2 gallon) of Cranberry Juice
          2 Quarts (1/2 gallon) of Ice Tea (sweet, preferably flavored)
          1 Gallon of red Hawaiian Punch or Kool Aid
     Fruit
          4 Oranges
          4 Apples
          2 Limes
Directions:
     1. Pour all the Everclear into your cooler
     2. Add all the mixers and stir while adding them
     3. Perform a taste test and add more liquor or juice as desired
     4. Cut the fruit into bite sized pieces and add them into the mix
     5. Viola! You’ve got jungle juice!

Kristen Goes Big Time!!

Kristen decided she wanted a chocolate lasagna cake and it was a little more than she could chew.

Smoked Pork Shoulder (Boston Butt)

Makes 8–10 servings. 

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 13 hours
Cook Time: 11 hours





BRINE:
8 ounces or 3/4 cup molasses
12 ounces pickling salt
2 quarts bottled water
6–8 pound Boston butt

RUB:
1 teaspoon whole cumin seed
1 teaspoon whole fennel seed
1 teaspoon whole coriander
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon paprika

Directions:
Combine molasses, pickling salt, and water in 6-quart Lexan (Cambro) bucket. Add Boston butt making sure it is completely sub-merged in brine, cover, and let sit in refrigerator for a minimum of 8 hours. 12 hours is ideal.

Place cumin seed, fennel seed, and coriander in food grinder and grind fine. Transfer to a small mixing bowl and stir in chili powder, onion powder, and paprika.

Remove Boston butt from brine and pat dry. Sift the rub evenly over the shoulder and then pat onto the meat making sure as much of the rub as possible adheres. More rub will adhere to the meat if you are wearing latex gloves during the application.

Preheat smoker to 210 degrees F. Place butt in smoker and cook for 10–12 hours, maintaining a temperature of 210 degrees F. Begin checking meat for doneness after 10 hours of cooking time. Use fork to check for doneness. Meat is done when it falls apart easily when pulling with a fork. 

Once done, remove from pot and set aside to rest for at least 1 hour. 

Pull meat apart with 2 forks and serve as sandwich with coleslaw and dressing as desired.

Smoked Pork Shoulder (Boston Butt)

Round 2 with the smoker today.  16 hour brine, 24 hour rest uncovered in the fridge, rubbed at 0500 this morning and put on the preheated smoker at 0600 at 210 degrees.  Wood chunk flavors of Hickory and Pecan.

12 hours later I removed the piece of awesomeness and let it rest in foil for 1 hour.  The resulting meat was incredibly tender.  Kristen was even impressed.  The internal temp was 178 when I took it off the smoke.  Next time I will wait until it reaches 185 and then the same rest time.  All in all, I was very happy with the results.  Well worth the time and effort, and I had the luxury of it smelling like home all day lol...

Way too much meat for just me and Kristen so next time this will definitely be for a group.  Recipe for the Brine and Rub are located HERE

Buffalo Wild Wings Sauces

So I love BW3's and Kristen doesn't so we compromise and I make chicken wings at home and I make her smell them. Here are some of my favorite sauce recipes. Fresh ingredients are a must.







Parmesan Garlic


§ 1/2 cup butter, melted
§ 1 teaspoon garlic powder
§ 1/2 teaspoon onion salt
§ 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
§ 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

Spicy Garlic


§ 1 Cup Frank’s cayenne pepper sauce
§ 1/3 Cup vegetable oil
§ 1 Teaspoon granulated sugar
§ 1 Teaspoon garlic powder (I use more like a Tablespoon)
§ ½ teaspoon course ground black pepper
§ ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
§ ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Medium Wing Sauce 

§ 1 cup Frank’s cayenne pepper sauce
§ 1/3 cup vegetable oil
§ 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
§ 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
§ 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
§ 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
§ 1/8 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

Hot Wing Sauce


§ 1 Cup Franks cayenne pepper sauce
§ 1/3 Cup vegetable oil
§ 1 Teaspoon granulated sugar
§ 1 ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
§ ½ teaspoon garlic powder
§ ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
§ 1/8 Teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
§ 2 Teaspoons water
§ 2 Teaspoons cornstarch

Blazin’

§ 6 fresh habanero peppers (with seeds)
§ 5 lemon drop peppers (or other small hot pepper)
§ 8 jalapenos (with seeds)
§ 2-3 garlic cloves
 2 cups white vinegar
§ 1/4 teaspoon ground oregano
§ 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
§ 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
§ 1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
§ fresh ground black pepper
§ salt

Mango Habanero


§ 2 cups Mango Nectar (found in your local grocery store)
§ Any habenero hot sauce. I recommend El Yucatan. The amount is up to you, depending on how spicy you like your wings.
§ 1 Tbsp corn syrup. (sugar works too)
§ 1/4 cup Frank’s cayenne pepper sauce
§ 1/3 cup melted butter

Asian Zing


§ 2 teaspoons cornstarch
§ 4 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
§ 1/2 cup corn syrup
§ 1/3 cup sugar
§ 1/4 cup chili-garlic sauce (sriracha!)
§ 1 tablespoon soy sauce
§ 1 teaspoon lemon juice
§ 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
§ 1/4 teaspoon salt
§ 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Carribean Jerk

§ Tablespoons margarine
§ 2 Tablespoons minced onion (white and light green parts only)
§ 1 Cup water
§ 3/4 Cup ketchup
§ 1/2 Cup plus 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
§ 1/4 Cup apple cider vinegar
§ 2 Tablespoons white distilled vinegar
§ 2 Tablespoons Frank’s cayenne pepper sauce
§ 2 Teaspoons ground black pepper
§ 2 Teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
§ 2 Teaspoons lemon juice
§ 1-1/2 Teaspoons cayenne pepper
§ 1 Teaspoon dried parsley flakes
§ 1 Teaspoon cornstarch
§ 1/2 Teaspoon salt
§ 1/2 Teaspoon garlic powder
§ 1/2 Teaspoon dried thyme
§ 1/4 Teaspoon onion powder
§ 1/8 Teaspoon ground clove
§ 1/8 Teaspoon ground nutmeg
§ 1/8 Teaspoon ground allspice
§ 1/8 Teaspoon rubbed sage

Cooking Instructions:

Heat shortening in your fryer to 350 degrees F. Fry wings for 10-12 minutes, or until light brown. Remove wings and drain on a rack or paper towels briefly. After draining wings place wings in a plastic container with a lid. Add 1/4-1/3 cup of your sauce of choice to the container. Replace lid and shake well to coat wings. Pour wings out onto a plate and add celery on the side, plus ranch or bleu cheese dressing for dipping.

Smoking in the garden!!

 First Try at the Flowerpot smoker.  Brisket with the recipe from the blog.  Will update as the day goes on.  09:35

 
 
 
 


UPDATE:

1 hour 30 minutes in and its time for a mopping and wood refill.

UPDATE:
5 hours.  Internal temp of 185.  Took the Brisket off and wrapped in foil and towels and placed in cooler for 1 hour.

Brisket turned out awesome.  I'll switch the rub next time and maybe use a sweeter wood but great first attempt.