When I first got a stovetop smoker, it came with a very simple user’s manual that said to season fish with salt and pepper and smoke it with 2 tablespoons of smoking dust for 15-20 minutes. This user’s manual was … Continue reading Hot Smoked Salmon, Dry or Wet Cure?
Ham hocks (pork shanks) are an inexpensive cut of meat. They can be turned into something delicious by first hot smoking them and then cooking them sous-vide. This is a technique I’ve used before on ham of lamb and brisket, and I wanted to try it on a ham hock. It was absolutely delicious. A light smoky flavor, tender and juicy. Many recipes call for brining the ham hock first, but there does not seem to be a reason to do this for this preparation. The sous-vide cooking allows the smoky flavors to penetrate all the way to the core of the meat and will turn the meat completely tender without drying it out. Continue reading “Smoked Ham Hock Sous-Vide”
Pulled Pork is a BBQ recipe from the Carolinas, recently featured on Putney Farm. I thought it would be nice to do a sous-vide version. When you hot-smoke meat for a brief time and then finish cooking the meat sous-vide, … Continue reading Pulled Pork Sous-Vide with Spiced Apricot Chutney
When I mentioned hot-smoked scallops, Conor was intrigued. And so we decided to make this as an appetizer before the lobster and couscous, combined with roasted peppers because that is such a lovely combination. You could also add pea puree to that, but since we were already having peas with the couscous we left that out. Now I’ve blogged about hot-smoked scallops and about roasting peppers separately before, but Conor made such great pictures that I just had to share them with you. And I have not told you about the combination before, so there. Without further ado, here is how to … Continue reading Hot-Smoked Scallops with Roasted Bell Peppers
I had picked up a very nice double magnum of 1998 red Sancerre from Henri Bourgeois at the winery, and decided to open it for a dinner party with friends who I knew would enjoy it. A double magnum equals 4 regular bottles, so I had to think of several dishes that would be eaten with this wine. I decided that if we would drink one wine with all three savory dishes of the meal (antipasto, primo, secondo), then an appropriate theme would be to base all the dishes on the same main ingredient. Since red sancerre (similar to red … Continue reading Smoked Ham of Lamb
