What's on the smoker today?

household staple. smoked deer burger delight.

thawed, formed, carefully seasoned, left to soak in the dry rub for just over an hour in the fridge

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get the smoker smokin', apply burgers to top rack

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the necessities. also investigating ambient temperature differences throughout the smoker. astute readers may take note that i'm also experimenting with upgrading from Truly, @Ben Lamb - you could say i'm trying to turn into a classy mofo as i really only see Truly advertised for sorority girls these days.

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remove burgers from smoker after roughly 40 minutes. apply very aggressive heat and a cast iron. and cheese of course.

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put on dinner table and consume

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Damn, those look good! How about some details? Fat mix in burger? Temps? When I'm invited? 😉
 
Damn, those look good! How about some details? Fat mix in burger? Temps? When I'm invited? 😉

this was my mule deer buck from last fall. I ended up doing the grinding sometime around early/mid june (i'm so lazy about getting to my grinding, it's bad).

i used pork belly to provide fat at roughly a 20% mixture in the grind.

seasoning was hefty on the salt, generous on chipotle chile powder, black pepper, lots of garlic powder, and a dash of store bought al pastor seasoning. If i had to say what is the single most important step, it's letting the burgers sit in the fridge for at least an hour after seasoning.

smoke at about 185-195 for forty minutes (reality is, as i discovered, a fair amount of the smoker get's over 200 when it's set at that temp anyway) if the burgers weren't so massive i'd cut it to 30 minutes max. usually as low of a temp as i can while still maintaining pretty frequent smoke events.

after opening up the sear grate on the smoker, really only need to crank the smoker to 300 or so to really start getting flames going; since the lid stays open it never stops feeding pellets cause it can't reach temp. cast iron should be over 550 degrees.

the invite only hinges on bringing a 12-pack of Topo Chico Hard Seltzer ;)
 
this was my mule deer buck from last fall. I ended up doing the grinding sometime around early/mid june (i'm so lazy about getting to my grinding, it's bad).

i used pork belly to provide fat at roughly a 20% mixture in the grind.

seasoning was hefty on the salt, generous on chipotle chile powder, black pepper, lots of garlic powder, and a dash of store bought al pastor seasoning. If i had to say what is the single most important step, it's letting the burgers sit in the fridge for at least an hour after seasoning.

smoke at about 185-195 for forty minutes (reality is, as i discovered, a fair amount of the smoker get's over 200 when it's set at that temp anyway) if the burgers weren't so massive i'd cut it to 30 minutes max. usually as low of a temp as i can while still maintaining pretty frequent smoke events.

after opening up the sear grate on the smoker, really only need to crank the smoker to 300 or so to really start getting flames going; since the lid stays open it never stops feeding pellets cause it can't reach temp. cast iron should be over 550 degrees.

the invite only hinges on bringing a 12-pack of Topo Chico Hard Seltzer ;)
What smoker are you using Togie? I'm looking around for one right now.
 
What smoker are you using Togie? I'm looking around for one right now.

it's a pit boss pro 820 sq in, 3 or 4 year old model - https://www.lowes.com/pd/Pit-Boss-Pro-Series-820-sq-in-Black-and-Chestnut-Pellet-Grill/1000601261

having the sliding sear grate was one of the big selling points for me on the pit boss, and better price points.

the models i was seeing in the stores these days are looking swanky, same price too - https://www.lowes.com/pd/Pit-Boss-Pro-Series-850-sq-in-Hammer-Tone-Pellet-Grill/5000183179
 
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it's a pit boss pro 820 sq in, 3 or 4 year old model - https://www.lowes.com/pd/Pit-Boss-Pro-Series-820-sq-in-Black-and-Chestnut-Pellet-Grill/1000601261

having the sliding sear grate was one of the big selling points for me on the pit boss, and better price points.

the models i was seeing in the stores these days are looking swanky, same price too - https://www.lowes.com/pd/Pit-Boss-Pro-Series-850-sq-in-Hammer-Tone-Pellet-Grill/5000183179
Dang! Thats a pretty good price too. I've been looking at the Camp Chef Woodwind, with the sliding grate too. But those things are expensive! Decisions...
 
Cherry bourbon turkey nuggets
I used a breast from a jake so it’s not very big. To square it up I cut the triangle tip off of it and trussed the breast to get even cooking. Brined overnight in a basic brine. Patted dry and rubbed with a bbq rub. Smoked at 225 until about 130 degrees while spritzing it with a mix of 1 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar, 1/4 cup cherry juice, and a quarter cup of bourbon. I took it off and cranked the smoker to high. Cubed the turkey into bite size pieces, tossed in bbq sauce and back on to the smoker to give the bbq sauce a crust.

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I am very happy to report success. Smoked two pork loins with a coffee rub and a little olive oil. Kept them on foil to help them keep some moisture. They spent 9 hours on the smoker at 225 F and after half an hour rest made for a fantastic dinner. The kids even loved it - didn’t even ask for ketchup! Feeling so happy. Great way to enter the week.

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Smoked prime rib and lobster mac and cheese.

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Ribs and a chicken. I now am 100% certain I prefer baby backs over St. Louis cut.
 

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Hmm... We like the St. Louis over the baby back because they're meatier. You're reason?
These had chunks of cartilage in them and the fat didn’t render.

They were on for 6 hours at 250 and still had large chunks of slimy fat in them.
 
Smoked jambalaya

Started by smoking shrimp, yard bird, andouille, bell pepper, pablano pepper, onion, and stewed tomatoes for 1.5 hours.
Cranked the smoker to high while preheating a cast iron skillet. Once heated Poured in zatarans jambalaya mix with chicken stock and everything mentioned above and cooked until it was all absorbed. About 45 minutes. Added some grilled garlic bread and chowed down.
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Smoked jambalaya

Started by smoking shrimp, yard bird, andouille, bell pepper, pablano pepper, onion, and stewed tomatoes for 1.5 hours.
Cranked the smoker to high while preheating a cast iron skillet. Once heated Poured in zatarans jambalaya mix with chicken stock and everything mentioned above and cooked until it was all absorbed. About 45 minutes. Added some grilled garlic bread and chowed down.
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Man that looks great, been a while since I had jambalaya.
 
Tell us more about “aged”. Do you have a set up to dry age for a while, is it wet aged? Or has it just been in the freezer for a long time?

Wet aged. The buck pronghorn this loin came from was killed last Friday. I got the meat on ice within 15 minutes of the buck taking his last breath. From there I let the loin sit, uncovered in the fridge for 24 hours. Then, I vacuum sealed the loin and put it back in the fridge until about 45 minutes before putting it on the Traeger.

Antelope meat doesn’t last very long around my house, it’s a favorite of ours!
 
Cold rainy day calls for a long slow cook.

Chuck roast smoked at 180 degrees for 2 hours.


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Placed in a Dutch oven and covered with onions, carrots, and potatoes. Poured some beef broth in to cover the roast. Covered and put it back on the smoker for an additional 3.5 hours at 300 degrees.
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