Just wanted to share a recipe that turned out very good. 5 lbs. Chicken Thies, brined in 1 pt Apple Juice, 1 Beer, 1/4 cup eel sause, 1/4 cup verry chinese, splash of wershishire sause and soy sause,1/4 cup kosher salt, 1/4 cup of sugar, sprinkle of brown sugat, some chopped ginger and garlic and brine for 10 hrs. Put directly on rack skin side down let dry and spice with suzy-Q and black pepper. I smoked it for 2 1/2 hrs at 220 deg. with 5 apple pucks. The skin was exelent! and so was the meat. Im still working on a good salmon recipe but the albacore tuna will be here very soon. Then I think I will be trying to cold smoke?
Good Luck and Enjoy
Angelo
Angelo,
Dude, that does sound good. Where is the pics???
SmokeOn,
mski
Perryville, Arkansas
Wooo-Pig-Soooie
If a man says he knows anything at all, he knows nothing what he aught to know. But...
Angelo,
That does sound good, but what is eel sauce and verry chinese? never heard of them.
<i><font color="blue"><b>Jack</i></font id="blue"></b>
Ditto to what Bassman asked.
I'm very interested in finding a good recipe for a less expensive piece of chicken, but I'd be stumped on those two ingredients[;)]
I'm well versed on the apple juice and beer - read two year old and his Dad[:D][:D][:D]
<b><font color="green">whitetailfan</font id="green"></b>
"Nice Rack"
Lethbridge, AB
dito for me to, I frequent the Oriental grocery stores, in search of someting different and pride myself on being well versed in sauces. I have never heard of eel sauce or very chinese. Sounds delish though.
If anyone likes a little spice and you want to stay with a cheaper piece of meat like thighs, the best and juiciest part of the chicken in my mind. Try Jamacain Jerk chicken, most specialty grocery stores carry some form of jerk sauce or another, or you can make your own, just google "jerk recipes". The poor maroon slaves had to take the cheap pieces of meat and make them tastey and boy did they. I make this at least once per month, it is a nieghborhood favorite. Nothing better at a pool party with a little Red Stripe beer.I like the heat as well and the jerk sauce was made for smoking. In the isalnds they use "allspice" wood to smoke. I sprinkle ground "allspice" on hickory pucks. AWSOME!
Snap
I'd walk a thousand miles to smoke a "Camel"
Well guys the eel sause is very hard to find, I had a Japanese grocery store order it for me. If you eat susi? its the sause on the unagi. Yum! and very chineese I find at the grocery store next to the very terraki. I live in california so you may not have it in some of you areas. Trader Joes also has it.
good luck im trying a turkey breast tomorow.
and if the bites good this weekend Salmon next week!
angelo
Snap
Now there is an interesting thought... Can you taste the difference between pucks with allspice and without? That could open up a whole lot more possibilities.
When in doubt smoke it.
For sure, I will even take a hand full of whole allspice and place it on the end of the burner during warm up. I will not advance the pucks into place until the allspice had stopped smoking. You cannot believe the flavour allspice imparts, never mind how good it smells. I have also taken a hand full of pucks and drilled four holes in them and placed whole allspice in the holes so i can get on going allspice smoke. Because of the course surface of the pucks they take spices well as the spice falls in the valleys in the pucks. Spices are all dried before they are refined in a mill so they smoke well.
Snap
I'd walk a thousand miles to smoke a "Camel"
Snapp,
The All Spice thing, simply great. What meats do you use it for. Just fish???
<font color="red">Just been looking around, it seems that All Spice is used in a few of the rib rubs that I have been interested in. I quess I answered my own question here. I beleive I have seen whole all spice at the local WollyWorld.</font id="red">
SmokeOn,
mski
Perryville, Arkansas
Wooo-Pig-Soooie
If a man says he knows anything at all, he knows nothing what he aught to know. But...
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">I have also taken a hand full of pucks and drilled four holes in them and placed whole allspice in the holes <hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
Snap, where do you get whole allspice? Great Idea![8D]
<i><font color="blue"><b>Jack</i></font id="blue"></b>
From my parooo-zing, (i just hate the word surfing)
<font color="blue">Jerk Marinade
<font color="red">1 tsp. ground allspice</font id="red">
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped scallions
4 scotch bonnet peppers or 6 jalapenos
1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 TB. vegetable oil
1 TB. salt
pinch of garlic powder
Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Blend for 2 minutes. Pour into a jar and refrigerate until ready to use. Jerk marinade will remain good indefinitely as long as it is covered and remains refrigerated. </font id="blue">
SmokeOn,
mski
Perryville, Arkansas
Wooo-Pig-Soooie
If a man says he knows anything at all, he knows nothing what he aught to know. But...
Whole allspice can be found in the spice section of most grocery stores. Believe it or not it is actually a dried pimento berry. It is probally the most important spice in the islands. The name allspice suits it because it smells and tates like cinnamon, nutmeg, pepper all in one. I buy it cheap at the local bulk food store.
If I may suggest, if you make it be careful, use only scotch bonnet peppers it is important to the taste, BUT be careful with the seeds, you will want to where gloves and be sure you wash your hands before going to the bathroom OUCH !! Use only one pepper at first and taste the sauce to see if it is hot enough, then add the second pepper. Once you go to hot you can't go back. Beware this is not a pretty looking sauce, when complete it will look like mud. It doesn't even taste that good by itself. When you marinate do it a day ahead of time and stab or "jerk" the chicken or pork butts full of holes with a fork or skinny knife. One half hour before finish smoking baste with a little more sauce. This would be a good dish to go with that pineapple thing they were talkin about on another thread.
PS Per the recipe MW was good enough to provide - add twice the allspice and add a table spoon or so of brown sugar, instead of salt use a good dose of soya sauce.
Snap
I'd walk a thousand miles to smoke a "Camel"
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Angelo</i>
<br />Just wanted to share a recipe that turned out very good. 5 lbs. Chicken Thies, brined in 1 pt Apple Juice, 1 Beer, 1/4 cup eel sause, 1/4 cup verry chinese, splash of wershishire sause and soy sause,1/4 cup kosher salt, 1/4 cup of sugar, sprinkle of brown sugat, some chopped ginger and garlic and brine for 10 hrs. Put directly on rack skin side down let dry and spice with suzy-Q and black pepper. I smoked it for 2 1/2 hrs at 220 deg. with 5 apple pucks. The skin was exelent! and so was the meat. Im still working on a good salmon recipe but the albacore tuna will be here very soon. Then I think I will be trying to cold smoke?
Good Luck and Enjoy
Angelo
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
Angelo,
I hope you are still monitoring this forum. I came across your recipe. It looks interesting and I would like to try it out, and also post it on http://www.susanminor.org/index2.html , but I needs some clarification. I'm still not sure what "verry chinese" is. Is it a soy sauce, or a paste, or a spice? Is it a particular brand"? Also I am not familiar with Suzy-Q, what is it?. One more question - how much ginger and garlic do you use?
I remember being curious about these names when Angelo first posted this but forgot about it. On first guess, they struck me as brand or product names, not a type of sauce. Angelo did not specify. Anyway, not doing much today so I fired up Google. Search on "Soy Vey Very Very Teriyaki". The same company also has a Chinese marinade. Perhaps these are what Angelo is referring to. Couldn't find a company website, but a chain named Trader Joe's carries them. I reckon you can substitute any brand teriyaki but I'm not sure what to use for "chinese marinade". Maybe the standard soy sauce, rice wine (or sherry) and ginger mixture that I use on most meats before stir-frying.
Sesch;
Thanks. For the additional information. You got further than I did. When I googled "very chinese" I was getting some weird results. I did learn one thing, Chinese Soy or Teriyaki is processed differently than the Japanese varieties. It appears that the Chinese Soy and Terriyaki is much richer. Let's hope we hear from Angelo.
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Habanero Smoker</i>
<br />It appears that the Chinese Soy and Terriyaki is much richer.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">Based on the world economy right now, I think you're right.[;)][:(]
Kirk
http://www.chezbubba.com
Ya think next time I check into a hotel & they ask "Smoking or Non?" they would mind?
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Chez Bubba</i>
<br /><blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Habanero Smoker</i>
<br />It appears that the Chinese Soy and Terriyaki is much richer.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">Based on the world economy right now, I think you're right.[;)][:(]
Kirk
http://www.chezbubba.com
Ya think next time I check into a hotel & they ask "Smoking or Non?" they would mind?
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
I just might have made them a little richer. Today I bought some Chinese Soy Sauce. [:D]
I never knew there was a difference in Soy Sauce other than regualar or Lite. I haven't tried it yet. I'm planning on trying a variation on Angelo's recipe.
This recipe by Angelo had me curious. The following is my version of Angelo's Chicken Thighs. I could not locate Eel sauce, so I substituted Oyster sauce. Make sure you purchase Chinese soy sauce; there is a difference between that and the Japanese varieties. I like this recipe enough to give it another try, though I may have to adjust the amounts of ginger or garlic or both. I'll wait until I get the results from my brother, who has become the official taster.
The chicken thighs I smoked where skinless, I will try them with skin next time. I did not use any rub, but did put rubbed them with olive oil and sprinkled them with freshly ground pepper.
BRINE:
1 pt Apple Juice,
1 12 oz Beer (use a premium beer)
1/4 cup kosher salt,
1/4 cup Brown sugar,
1/4 cup Chinese Soy Sauce,
1/4 cup Oyster sauce,
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Chopped fresh ginger (approximately 1 square inch piece)
3 Cloves of Garlic, chopped
6 pounds Chicken thighs
DIRECTIONS:
Combine all ingredients in a nonreative container, except chicken. Refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours to allow the flavors to blend. In the mean time, remove any extra fat from the chicken thighs and rinse well. Pat dry and place thighs in a nonreactive bowl or plastic bag. Pour brine over thighs, refrigerate and brine for 10 hrs.
Remove thighs from brine, and place on oiled inverted racks, skin side down (I'm not sure if this produced better result, I had skinless thighs), and let air dry in the refrigerator until the thighs feel tacky to touch (approximately 8 hours or overnight).
Allow thighs to set at room temperature for one hour, prior to smoking. During this time you can dust them with your favorite rub, or just black pepper. Smokeat at 220 degrees F. for approximately 2 hours, or until meat temperature is 165 degrees F; using 5 apple or maple bisquettes.
I would echo Snapper's comment to use Scotch Bonnets (or Habaneros) for an authentic taste, but you have to like heat! And be very careful when chopping these, gloves are a must!
Also, you can find Walkerswood products in certain stores, or order off their website. Their Jerk sauces and marinades are da bomb!
http://www.walkerswood.com/
As far as eel sauce, sounds like what is brushed on unagi (broiled eel) in a sushi restaurant. I've seen this made before and here is a pretty standard recipe. Of course, it's much easier to buy a bottle, then again, I don't think the roasted/simmered eel remains are gonna be a deal-breaker for Jerked chicken thighs.
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 tbs mirin
2 tbs sake
Sugar to taste
¶ Pour ingredients into a saucepan, and simmer until slightly thickened. You may adjust the proportions according to your taste. If you want thicker, sweeter sauce, increase the amount of mirin and decrease the amount of sake. If you want more fragrant, drier sauce, do the opposite.
¶ For the real sauce:
Ingredients as above
Head, fins and the backbone of eels
¶ Over hot coal, roast the head, fins and the backbone of eels until charred. Put in the above sauce and simmer for half an hour, or until the grease from the eels is well blended with the sauce. Add a tiny bit of sansho, if you like.
Walkerwoods is the best jerk rub that is commercially made. I use it often, and fortunately I live relatively close to several Jamaican specialty stores and restaurants, where I can purchase it.
As for the Eel sauce, I found it on line. Amazon.com has a gourmet store, which they allow several other vendors to use their site to sell their products. I ordered some yesterday; one bottle is $1.50 for 50mls (or .22 of a cup). I ordered four bottles, so I will be trying the thighs again soon http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00023Z4TC/ref=wl_it_dp/103-6475438-0451060?%5Fencoding=UTF8&coliid=I8UY87XDU6QO8&v=glance&colid=3I5ANMUX2RUJY .
I am still trying to tweak this recipe. I did use eel sauce this time. It came out real good, so the eel sauce does make a big difference. Eel sauce is hard to find, and becomes expensive if you have to order it on line. You can leave it out of the recipe; it will still taste good, but different. I believe I can make a substitute for eel sauce by using mirin, smoked fish (which is easier for me to get then eel), soy sauce, and a sweetener. If it comes out half way good, I will post that recipe. Also I have reduced the salt and added Teriyaki sauce. In addition, I've increased the ginger, Worcestershire sauce and garlic. It is more of a marinade than a brine.
Marinade:
1 pt Apple Juice,
1 12 oz Beer (use a good beer)
2 Tbs. kosher salt,
1/4 C. Dark Brown sugar,
1/4 C. Chinese Soy Sauce,
1/4 C. Teriyaki Sauce
1/4 C. Eel Sauce (optional)
1 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce
Fresh ginger, coarsely chopped (3 inch piece about the diameter of a quarter)
4 Cloves of Garlic, crushed
6 pounds Chicken thighs
DIRECTIONS:
Combine all ingredients in a noncorrosive container, except chicken. Refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours to allow the flavors to blend. In the mean time, remove any extra fat from the chicken thighs and rinse well. Pat dry and place thighs in a noncorrosive bowl or plastic bag. Pour marinade over thighs, refrigerate and brine for 7 – 8 hours.
Remove thighs from marinade, and brush off any pieces of ginger or garlic. Place thighs on oiled inverted racks, skin side down (I'm not sure if placing the thighs skin down produces better results, I tried both skin down and skin up – I could not detect any noticeable difference), and let air dry in the refrigerator until the thighs feel tacky to touch (approximately 8 hours or overnight).
Allow thighs to set at room temperature for one hour, prior to smoking. During this time you can dust them with your favorite rub, or just black pepper. Smoke at 220 degrees F. until meat temperature is 165 degrees F; using 5 – 6 apple or maple bisquettes.