.......................................... and so can you
Welcome to my cooking blog, SQWIB cooks.... and so can you.
A little about myself,
I have enjoyed cooking for most of my life and enjoy creating. My specialty is recycling what’s in the fridge and pantry into an edible meal.
I am not a chef have never attended culinary school and rate my self as a novice cook at best.
Every now and then I come up with a pretty good recipe.
Some of the recipes on this blog are from others and I will post a link to them, directly under the recipe title.
In most cases, I will post a link to where the recipe came from.
If it is a recipe I created it will be marked, SQWIBS OWN.
I am sure there are a million better recipes and techniques out there than what is posted in this blog.
This is just to share the way I cook with others and hopefully some that visit will benefit from this blog.
I have many links for various techniques throughout the blog, if you are the creator where I have linked to and want me to remove the link,, please post a comment and I will be more than happy to remove the link.
If you finds a dead link, please let me know so I can update the link..
First off lets me touch on food safety; it is up to you as the chef to prepare, cook and store your food safely.
I will be posting links for food safety along with all kinds of links to recipes, forums, video tutorials, etc….
USDA Food Safety Fact Sheets, I urge you to click on the USDA link and read the fact sheets.
This is a blog in works; it will never be done but rather updated. If I change a recipe it will be stated as updated, what was updated, why it was updated and when it was updated so check back regularly.
I will do my best to keep the Blog in some type of order, such as Pork, Chicken, Sides, Sauces, Rubs etc…
I am a pic poster so you will see a lot of pics step by step. My wife thinks I am crazy taking all these pictures.
Most of what is here on this blog is Barbecued or Smoked food, if you are following a recipe; you will need to tweak it to your preferred cooking method.
Most of the recipes, tips and Techniques are for a vertical cabinet style water smoker, you can click on “GOSM Big Block”, to go to my Blog that has a ton of info there about that particular smoker.
I have recently built a Reverse Flow Offset smoker and will be practicing on that smoker as well. You can click “Reverse Flow Stick Burner Build”, to see how it was made.
You can also click on “SQWIBS RF Cooks” to see my first cook on the RF and check back regularly for updates.
Preparation and organization
Before I went into my first cook on the RF, I made sure I had everything, Wood splits, Propane, Thermometers, Gloves etc...
Same goes with the Ingredients to a recipe, get everything out before you start, you just may realize your missing an important ingredient that the neighbor most likely will not have.
So go ahead and get out all your ingredients measure everything out and set aside.
I will usually mix a huge batch of rub that I use all year long.
Make your Mop or Sauces the night before your cook so all you have to do is heat the smoker up and throw on the meat.
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Plating
In this section I will post some photos of the meal plated, I always forget to take pictures like this, so it may be a while before I get many plated pictures.
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PORK
PULLED PORK
Prepping
For a long time now I wanted to try a side by side comparison of an injected Butt vs. a non injected Butt.Went to Sams and picked up a few decent Boston Butts, total weight was 13.62lbs., bone in. I figured about a 50 percent yield.
The night before, I prepped the Butts, removing as much fat as possible to impose more bark formation.
Seasoning
One Boston Butt was injected with a marinade mix, equal parts of Apple Cider Vinegar, Captain Morgan’s Spiced Rum and Apple Cider. The other was not injected.
The marinade was also used as a mop (sprits). Rubbed both Butts, wrapped in plastic wrap and placed in the refrigerator.
Smoking
I used Cherry wood splits, because that’s all I had at the time. The Butts were spritsed simultaneously about eight times during cook. Temps were running a bit higher than I would like, sometimes peaking at 275° but I was able to maintain a good "TBS smoke" the entire time.
The Butts were done sooner than I was used to.
At approximately 6.8 lbs each, bone in, it only took about 8 hours (72 minutes per/lb.)
I was surprised at how quickly they cooked, I was worried that since this was my first cook with the RF and the fact that I was a newbie at fire management, that I might have ruined the Butts.
The Butt temps were about 195° but I was leery removing them so soon, because it had only been eight hours…I never had a Butt cook this quick, I kept moving the probe all over and kept thinking to myself, what’s this Butt all fat, then I remembered a quote I had read from a blog or forum, can’t remember which, “To check for doneness insert a probe, it should slide in very easily like butter”, well this was definitely like butter.
Resting
The Butts came off the RF about a half hour apart, wrapped them tightly in foil and towels then placed them in the cooler to rest for about 90 minutes or so.
Pulling
After the rest I handed my wife two forks and one of the Butts in the pan and smiled. The Butts pulled beautifully and yes the bone was clean,
The Bark formation and smoke ring was perfect and the bark was not burnt.
Tasting
I was a bit skeptical so I had 6 family members pick at each one, getting input from each person. Everyone liked the pork 5 out of 6 preferred the non injected Butt and out of the 6 one like the bark on the injected one better, as far as the bark I think that was a fluke I can’t see how injecting could change the flavor of the bark.
The 5 out of the 6 said although they preferred the non injected Butt better, couldn’t really explain why.
I did not try any of the pork until everyone was done, I didn’t want to my tasting to interfere with the test.
The Bark formation and smoke ring was perfect, just a hint of smoke and the bark was not burnt but was nice and chewy, not hard and crusty.
The next day my wife tried both and said this one seems mushy…BINGO, that’s what I was looking for, it seems the injected one was a bit mushier probably mostly from the vinegar breaking down the meat, but both were just as flavorful as each other and I believe the reason everyone preferred the non injected Butt was due to the texture not the flavor.
Ok so now its day 4 of eating pulled pork and it’s still moist.
Conclusion
My conclusion is that if I were to inject again, which I doubt, it would only be with apple cider/Juice.
I can honestly say, without any doubt in my mind, that this was the best pork Butt to date, I don’t know if that is because of the RF or maybe the temperatures were slightly higher, maybe a better choice of meat, but make no mistake… there will be much more testing.
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apple hill stuffed pork loin
Loin was awesome, I was a bit surprised how much flavor from the stuffing permeated into the meat.
Sweet but not too sweet, and very moist.
ribs
ST. LOUIS STYLE PORK SPARE RIBS COOKED - 3 - 2 - 1
Ribs are prepped by trimming up St. Louis style, removing membrane then coated heavily with rub the night before, no mustard, I have cut back on the black pepper in my Rib Rub because of how much rub I use on the ribs, it was a bit spicy for some of the family.
St. Louis Style Video
So far the best luck with the ribs have been a modified 3 - 2 - 1
- -3- Smoking at 225° for a maximum of 3 hours uncovered in a rib rack.
- -2- Place in a steamer pan, bone side down and foil for 1 hour 40 minutes.
- -1- Then remove foil and smoke another 40-45 minutes.
I was getting a bit annoyed at how much juice was lost after removing the foil, so I decided to leave the ribs in the pan for the final part of the cook and as you can see from the above photo, there's no loss of juices.
I just mix the juices and barbecue sauce as its brushed on the ribs.
Next Rib cook I will try glazing after step 2
This gives me ribs that are easy to slice clean without tearing the meat and mangling the rib.
The result is pull of the bone clean just where you bite into it without the whole piece of meat coming off in 1 shot and slapping you upside your chin.
My previous Rib cooks, the ribs were good but slightly dry on the outside, resulting in hard to slice clean and the meat all coming off in one shot.
The ribs are cut down, brushed thoroughly with BBQ Sauce and served in a steamer pan.
The ribs will go a good part of the day without drying out.
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Beer Can Chicken
Smoked with Cherry Wood
Remember food safety especially with chicken, do not "cross contaminate" and keep a bleach based cleaner on hand to wipe everything down each step of the way.
When working with chicken get everything ready and mixed before ever handling the chicken.
Preheat RF to 350°.
Mix some sweet basil with butter to rub up underneath the skin in the breast area.
Prepare your beer can and pour out half the beer, take a can opener and remove the top of the beer can.
Remove chicken from refrigerator, remove the gizzard goodie bag, rinse chicken and set aside.
Add the giblets neck and liver from the bag and a teaspoon of rosemary to the beer can.
If you want to make gravy, you can add salt and other spices such as garlic and onion powder and when you remove the can from the chicken, place in a pot and dress up a bit, get creative here.
Some people do not like the taste of liver, so you may not want to add the liver to the beer can if making gravy.
I have noticed that spices such as Rosemary and Thyme added in the can really impart flavor into the chicken.
Place the Beer can on a cookie sheet. Rub chicken with olive oil and add your favorite rub or spices. Place chicken on the beer can.
Heat the RF up to about 350°, remove the “Beer Can Chickens” from the cookie sheet and place directly on the grates.
Cook about 80 minutes, I did 90 minutes last time and it came out pretty good. The chicken makes for an incredible chicken salad the next day.
The safe temp to cook a whole chicken is 165°; I don’t mind overcooking these guys because they still come out OK.
Just make sure to get some butter up under the skin at the breast area, because the breast can dry out before the chicken is done.
Remove the chicken from the grill, place in a clean steamer pan and rest for about 15 minutes before carving.
If you are making gravy, do so while the chicken is resting.
Remove the skin and place on the still hot grates, if there's a hot spot on your smoker place the skin fat side down on the hot spot, carve the chicken and after the all the carving is done remove the skin from the smoker and cut into strips to serve alongside the meat.
As you can see by the first photo, I did not rub these with olive oil or place any butter underneath the skin, however it still came out pretty good.
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BEEF
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JERKY
USDA Food safety on Jerky
You want the jerky leathery, if its too rubbery place it in the refrigerator uncovered, it will dry out even more in the refrigerator over time.
General Jerky notes
- Top Round preferred but can use Bottom Round, London broil and eye of round roast.
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Must use 1.5 teaspoon of Morton® Tender Quick® to each 1lb of meat
- The cure time can go for a few days if something prevents you from doing the smoke. Cure at least 24 hours for the jerky.
- If Tender Quick is used omit all salt in the seasoning, and use soy sauces or any pre-made marinade cautiously.
- The Morton® Tender Quick® allows you to take your sweet time getting it dried out after smoking without worries of foodborne illness.
- If using a food dehydrator, use liquid smoke for a smoky flavor, set on 140° maximum. The Nesco manual says 160° but that cooks the meat and the outside gets crusty, if you are using Morton® Tender Quick® you can dry it at much lower temps. Remember you want to dry it, not cook it
- Another good tip is after slicing the meat, lay in a criss cross pattern, a sort of weave, and place in a covered dish then place in the refrigerator overnight. The next day pour off the liquid then place the meat in the cure and refrigerate another 24 hours.
- Best luck has been with flavoring the outside of the jerky while still wet.
- I have made lots of Jerky over the years without using cure and had never been ill from it, however after doing a bit of research about the "Danger Zone" , I started using cure
For 4lbs.
- 2 tsp coarse grind black pepper
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tbsp onion powder
- ½ cup Apple juice
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup Soy Sauce
- ¼ cup burgundy
- 1.5 tsp Morton® Tender Quick® per pound of meat
- ¼ c. Honey
- 1 cup Barbecue sauce
Mix all ingredients except the last 2, slice meat 1/4" thick, place meat in a ziploc bag and refrigerate for 24 hours.
After 24 hours remove from refrigerator, place meat in a colander remove meat and blot dry.
Brush one side with honey and the other side with Barbecue sauce, crack some pepper on each side and place in smoker or dehydrator.
Pepper Jerky
For 1-1.5lbs.
- 1 Tbl. Worcestershire
- ¼ cup Soy Sauce
- 3 Tbl. Captain Morgan
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 Tbl coarse grind black pepper
- 1.5 tsp Morton® Tender Quick® per pound of meat
Slice the meat 1/4" thick
Mix all ingredients except the last 2
Place meat in a ziploc bag and refrigerate for 24 hours.
After 24 hours remove from refrigerator, place meat in a colander remove meat and crack some pepper on each side and place in smoker or dehydrator.
Spicy Orange
For 1-1.5 lbs.
- zest from 1 orange
- Juice from orange
- 1 tsp orange extract
- 2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 Tbsp. brown sugar
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ¼ cup Soy Sauce
- 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire
- ¼ cup cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
- 1.5 tsp Morton® Tender Quick® per pound of meat
Slice the meat 1/4" thick
Mix all ingredients.
Place meat in a ziploc bag and refrigerate for 24 hours.
After 24 hours remove from refrigerator, place meat in a colander remove meat and crack some pepper on each side and place in smoker or dehydrator.
For 1-1.5 lbs.
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 heaping teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/4 cup Soy Sauce
- 1 Tbsp. Mustard Seed
- 1/2 tsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp Rosemary
- 1 tsp coriander
- 1.5 tsp Morton® Tender Quick® per pound of meat
- ¼ cup honey
- ¼ c.
Mix all ingredients except the last 2
Place meat in a ziploc bag and refrigerate for 24 hours.
After 24 hours remove from refrigerator, place meat in a colander remove meat and blot dry.
Brush one side with honey and the other side with Dijon mustard, crack some pepper on each side and place in smoker or dehydrator.
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SIDES
sqwib's macaroni and cheese
(Recipe test #3)
Ok here was the dilemma, some of my family like “Oven Baked Mac n’ Cheese”, while others like the smoother creamier type like the velveeta shells.
I know everyone will eat the smoother type and not complain, especially Stephen and I.
So I decided to work from an “Oven Baked” type and tweak it to a smoother “kid friendly” type.
Recipe: (Test 1) cooked on Reverse Flow. [FAIL]
- 2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni
- 4 tablespoon butter
- 1 cup yellow cheddar cheese
- 6-8 slices American cheese
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese
- 4 cups whole milk
- 1 cups heavy cream
- ½ – ¾ sleeve of Ritz Crackers
Salt and pepper to taste
In the smoker 2 hours 230° - 250°
Pour 2 cups of uncooked noodles in a 9 x 13 greased pan
In a Saucepan bring milk and heavy cream to a low simmer using a very low heat, stirring continuously, add butter, and add the rest of the ingredients, reserving a ¼ cup of mozzarella and ¼ cup of cheddar for the top. Stir until everything is smooth.
Remove cheese sauce from flame and pour over top uncooked macaroni.
Bake 350 for 1 hour or until golden brown and bubbly
This was made for a party of 12 and 2 did not like it, my son Stephen and I did not care for it, I thought it was to lumpy inside and dry, I believe the cheese sauce had curdled and did not have much flavor.The cheese had curdled most likely
It was worse the next day.
Recipe: (Test 2) Baked in Oven [FAIL] But a little Better
- 2 cups cooked elbow macaroni
- 4 tablespoon butter
- 1 cup yellow cheddar cheese
- 6-8 slices American cheese
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ½ – ¾ sleeve of Ritz Crackers
Salt and pepper to taste
In the smoker 2 hours 230° - 250°
Bake 350 for 1 hour or until golden brown and bubbly
To prevent this dish from becoming too brown and crusty, cover with foil for the last 15 min. of baking if needed.
This was made for our family of 5 and Stephen and I thought it was just so so. It was not as lumpy or dry (curdled) like the first batch and was greasier, I believe I need to use more processed cheese.
Recipe: (Test 3) cooked on Reverse Flow [EUREKA!!]
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon red hot
- 1 lb. American cheese
- 1 lb of Velveeta cheese
- 8 oz. cream cheese
- 1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed Cheddar cheese soup
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup yellow cheddar cheese
- 2 cups cooked elbow macaroni
- ½ – ¾ sleeve of Ritz Crackers
- 6 – 8 slices of cooked chopped bacon, or crumbled
chicken stock, optional
¼ cup parmesan optional
In the smoker 2 hours 230° - 250°
Sprinkle a small amount of Bacon on top followed by some cheddar then the Ritz crackers then rest of the cheddar and and mozzarella.
Bake 350 for 1 hour or until golden brown and bubbly
To prevent this dish from becoming too brown and crusty, cover with foil for the last 15 min. of baking if needed.
I decided on the bacon at the last minute
Conclusion
Total success, everyone loved them and they were perfect the next day and even tasted good cold.
They had a great consistency, very creamy and not too rich, with a decent crust on top.
The goal here was to find a happy medium between a traditional “Oven Baked Mac n’ Cheese” and a smoother type Mac n’ cheese that most kids love
I had done a little bit of research and the problem may have been that the cheese was curdling either from the heating the cheese too high to quickly or in the oven, so to avoid this I used processed cheeses for the cheese sauce and the cheddar and mozzarella for the crust.
moink balls
I decided to do some moink balls this weekend and also did some research to find out what the heck these moink balls are.
From various forums I have found out they are basically meatballs wrapped in bacon.
Hamburger = (moo) wrapped in bacon = (oink) for MOINK, I am not sure how true it is but it sounds good to me.
Later I discovered the creator is Larry at BBQ Grail who has an official MOINK page.
I tried making them using JD Sausage, some were stuffed with Cheddar and some stuffed with pepper shooters, not sure if its still considered a Moink ball, (officially no) but for the sake of keeping this blog somewhat organized, I'll post it under Moink balls
I had my Brother Jim prepping the Moink Balls
BACON WRAPPED HOT DOGS WITH CHIPOTLE BARBECUE SAUCE
Served with a side of "Dutch's Wicked Baked Beans"
beef brisket chili
This is a decent throw together chili if your stuck. I did not post an actual recipe for this because this is something to get creative with on your own.
philly chili
I used some jerky that I made a few months ago that wasn't all that good.
I did not put any measurements down, this is something to have fun with,use your imagination.
dutch's wicked baked beans
I half the sugar add a chipotle and use crushed instead of chunked pineapples when I make these
sauces, mops and rubs
CAROLINA RED Sauce
- 1-1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper or hot dried red
- 1 Tablespoon sugar (Brown sugar optional)
- 1 teaspoon salt
Stir together all ingredients, dissolving the sugar and salt. Serve at room temperature.
This sauce is awesome on pulled pork.
Chipotle Barbecue Sauce
I looked on line forever for a decent barbecue sauce and after a bit of research and tweaks, here is what I have come up with.
- 2 cups ketchup
- 1 cup Apricot Jelly
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 4oz. cans chipotle chilies (smoked jalapenos), chopped
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon celery salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Fresh Medium Grind black pepper
Preparation:
Heat Oil in sauce pan, add onions and garlic, Sauté until soft
Stir in Apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, celery salt and black pepper.
Add remaining ingredients and simmer until sauce is desired consistency.
Tips, use a food processor to mince the garlic and onions for a smoother consistency.
make sure to stir the entire time.
A variation of this is to replace the Apple Cider Vinegar with Red Wine Vinegar.
In place of the Chipotle in adobo use smoked jalapeño or plain jalapenos sautéed first.
dipping sauces
Prepare the night before and refrigerate
Pork Dipping SAUCE:
(very good)
Ingredients:
· ¼ cup hoisin sauce
· ¼ cup pineapple juice
· ¼ cup crushed pineapple (optional)
· 4 tsp grated, peeled fresh ginger
· 2 tsp soy sauce
· freshly ground black pepper
Directions: Mix all ingredients and refrigerate
Chicken Dipping SAUCE:
(awesome)
Ingredients:
· 2 cups ketchup
· 1 cup Apricot Jelly
· 1/2 cup chopped onion
· 1/4 cup water
· 4 chipotle chilies (smoked jalapenos), chopped
· 1/4 cup brown sugar
· 2 tablespoons oil
· 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
· 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
· 2 cloves garlic, minced
· 1/2 teaspoon celery salt
· 1/2 teaspoon Fresh Medium Grind black pepper.
Directions: Heat oil in a sauce pan. Add onions and garlic, Sauté until soft.
Stir in brown sugar, celery salt and black pepper.
Add remaining ingredients and simmer until the sauce thickens, stirring the entire time.
Tips, use a food processor to mince the garlic and onions for a smoother consistency.Beef Dipping Sauce (Horseradish):
(so so)
Ingredients:
· 6 Tbsp prepared horseradish + 2 tbl Wasabi (optional) for more heat
· 1/2 cup sour cream
· 3 teaspoon
· 2 Tbsp mayonnaise
· 2 Tbsp chopped chives or the greens of a green onion
Directions: Mix all ingredients and refrigerate
mop ''sprits''
For the mop , mix Equal parts of the above, I would not recommend using this as an injection.
I used this last time for injecting a butt as a test and believe the apple cider vinegar broke down the meat too much making it mushy.
If you do inject, try it without the vinegar.
PORK RUB
· 1/3 cup coarse salt (kosher or sea)
· 1-1/2 cup (packed) Sugar in the Raw
· 1-1/4 cup paprika
· 1 Tbsp freshly coarse ground black pepper
· 2 Tbsp garlic powder
· ¼ cup dried onion flakes
· ¼ cup onion powder
· 1 tsp cayenne pepper
· 2 tsp chili powder
· 2 tsp coriander or Ginger
· 1 Tbsp rosemary
Some facts on SUGARS.
