See Food

Been making smoked salmon lately - and I put together this kit I've had for a little bit to get some space between the pieces. 

More surface area = more smoky deliciousness.

This second rack worked really well!

Thanksgiving Dawn Patrol - 28 November

Happy Thanksgiving to us all!  I am thankful for the life I live, my family, our health (Mom - let's get better now!) and the opportunities we make for ourselves.  I have been preparing this turkey for the past three days - started by deboning it, then brining it, then drying it, then stuffing it, smoking it and finally carving it.  Here it is this morning -

After the turkey went into the Big Green Egg, I went on a dawn patrol.  There was a mega high tide at 2.3', ZERO wind and a waist high swell pushing through.  I brought out the 4'10" and the Armstrong CF1600 - same setup as the past couple of sessions.

I stayed out from 6:30 to 8:45 - I had a bunch of long rides and banking turns from section to section.  I didn't want to leave, but the waves were backing down (counterintuitive to a dropping tide), the wind was starting to fill in and I had a turkey to check on.  It came out exquisite!!!

I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving!

Fixed the Big Green Egg

My egg had an under bite that was driving me nuts.  I ended up unbolting everything twice over the past couple of years and after several uses, the under bite would come back.  I was reading on the internet and found that Big Green Egg changed the band set from a rear spring assist to the side spring assist that the larger sized units use.  I picked one up and installed it yesterday.

If ease of installation and the first opening are indicators of how this band system will ultimately work out, this is going to be awesome!!!  The bands went on easily and the springs really only worked to slow down the lid once was almost opened.  I'll track the alignment over the next several weeks, but I'm hopeful that this new system will end the shifting alignment.  Time to cook more with the Egg!!!

More Big Green Egg Action - Brisket

Before

After (12 hours of slow cooking at 225 degrees F)

This came out perfect!

Slow Smoked Pork Butt - Bone In This Time

I didn't notice that the last pork butt I bought had the bone in still. The cut was more compact and the meat came out more flavorful on the pork flavor side - the rub did not have as much effect (less surface area coverage). It still got in my belly!

 

More Smoked Salmon

We had several people over for Easter. And that meant making barbecue. And that meant fixing the Big Green Egg (that I have been procrastinating on for quite some time). I ended up fixing the alignment and changing out the gaskets. And this all took a long time (a lot longer than I thought). After all that it was time to smoke some salmon and grill some chicken!!!! I wasn't able to get after shots - everything got eaten before I could shoot. Here are the befores - Happy Easter!!! The Big Green Egg is back in action!!!

Not Really Amphibious, But Totally Yummy

Last night's dinner from the Big Green Egg... If I had to specify what my most useful cooking tool ever was - it is the BGE. So yummy!!!

Smoked Salmon for Dinner

This batch came out superb! Here they are with the brine washed off. There they are staged on the smoker (indirect heat, 230 degrees F). And here they are about to get demolished - so ono! I love our Big Green Egg!

Posting Late - July 4th Weekend Pictures - Friday First

Boy that weekend went by fast... We did a bunch of stuff, but mostly on the land side of amphibious. I did go fly fishing on Friday - in fact it was with the Trout Unlimited group out here in Hawaii and we had a bunch of military guys in some form of rehab program (not Wounded Warriors or Project Healing Waters), but I didn't take any pictures. I did catch another small kaku that was hanging out in the super shallows (and lost a second), and I saw several lone oio. I took shots at the oio, but I didn't have a crabby fly on (I was fishing for kaku remember?). And I decided to try my hand at smoking some salmon. I followed a rub recipe from the "Let's Go Fishing Hawaii" cookbook and the fish came out great!!! I think we just finished off the last of this batch. YUMMY!!!

Surf and Turf for Christmas

I made some ahi poke and smoked ribs for Christmas. The poke came out great! I miscalculated and left the ribs in for an hour and a half too long - some parts got too dry. There were still some great, juicy sections - but I need to work out a better formula for the smoking time (or drop the temp in the Big Green Egg down to 230 degrees F). I hope you got to spend time with those you love and had a meal or two together - as we have all upped the rat race every year, getting to slowdown for a few days and remember why we work so hard is important. Merry Christmas!

Oh So Good!!!

Huli Huli Chicken and roasted eggplant. Oh yummy in my tummy!!!!

New Hobby -

Totally not amphibious - but very delicious. This is the second pork butt I've smoked on the new Big Green Egg and it was so ono... I've also grilled a few cuts of beef. I going to try cedar planked grilled salmon and smoking some tri-tip in the very near future. This BGE is going to ruin me for eating out... there is no comparison in quality from what this egg produces and anything most restaurants can serve (save ramen and sushi).