Dr. Biggles, Ms. Goofy and Myself are judging a barbeque competition today. I needed to prove to myself that I am worthy of judging. Pulled pork was just the ticket to prove my worthiness.

To cook an eight pound pork shoulder to fall apart goodness is a two day commitment. This roast can take anywhere from 12 to 15 hours to smoke properly. The first day, you need to rub your butt. (I still get a kick out of saying that) I am using a not so secret rub. Let the rubbed roast sit in refrigerator for a couple of hours. The next step is to get the barbeque ready. I am using a Weber Rocky Mountain Smoker. Kingsford briquet’s and sugar maple wood chunks will be the fuel of choice. I started my fire at 10 o’clock in the evening. The proper smoking temperatures are 225-250 degrees.

Once the roast was tucked into the smoker it was time to get some shut eye. I only got up once to check on this baby. I was awaken by the delicious smell. Fast forward to 12:30 the next day. The internal temperature of the roast was holding at 192 degrees. It had been on the grill for over 14 hours. I put it in a pan and placed some foil loosely over the top. I let it rest for 30 minutes.

You may have heard of people talking about the bark. This roast had some serious bark. This was achieved by never wrapping it in foil. This bark had a chewy jerky like consistency. You could taste the rub. It was pork nirvana. We kept grabbing little samples. I finally had to tie up Ms. Goofy so we would have some left.

We were going to serve this beauty as Pulled Pork sandwiches. We were going to try two different sauces. One was from Memphis Minnie’s. The other was a simple sugar, vinegar sauce. We took about 3 cups of meat and place it in a bowl. We took two forks and shredded (pulled) the meat. It was so tender and so very, very great smelling. We added about 1/2 cup of sauce to the two different bowls. They were then served on rolls with some cole slaw. This was some serious barbeque. We are ready to judge some fellow barbeque enthusiast. Bring them on!

Vinegar Sauce

1. 1 1/2 cups cider vinegar
2. 1 cup of water
3. 2 tablespoons sugar
4. 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
5. 2 teaspoons salt
6. 1 jalapeno chile

Combine all ingredients and stir until blended.

One of my favorite side dishes to go with barbeque is baked beans. To create the ultimate beans you need to bake them in a low oven for hours. When the temperature is leaning to the upper end of the scale you probably do not want to run an oven. I have a Mad Meat Genius solution. Bake your beans outdoors in a portable oven. It is the perfect solution. This is a small oven with two burners that runs on propane. Today, I am baking some beans that are swimming in a bath of tomatoes, onions, bacon,sugar, molasses and spices.

Chilebrown’s Ultimate Bake Beans

Combine all ingredients together in a cast iron pot except salt. Cover with lid. Bake at 300 degrees for 4 hours or until beans begin to soften. Add salt and remove lid. Bake until beans are nice and thick with sauce.

I have fired up the Smokenator 1000 to smoke some ribs. They will be the perfect accompaniment to some baked beans. A green salad with some vine ripe tomatoes is in order. We will enjoy a nice meal without heating up the house.

A man can never have enough barbeque accessories. I was gifted a Smokenator 1000 last Father’s day by Ms. Goofy and the boys. They sure know my weak spot. The Smokenator is a device which converts your Weber Kettle into a smoker. It is a stainless steel insert that fits to the side of the kettle. You load 50 charcoals and a couple of wood chunks and you’re set. The Smokenator is fitted with a small water pan.

Today I am going to attempt to smoke a small bone-in Pork Roast. I picked up a Taylor Bi Metal Candy thermometer to monitor the temperature in the Weber. The ideal smoking range is 225-250 degrees. To achieve this temperature, I am closing the bottom and top vents to 3/16 of an inch. You can gauge this by a pencil. A pencil is 5/16 of an inch. Close the vent on a pencil and a smudge more. Light 10 charcoal in a starter chimney. When they are glowing, add them to remainder of charcoal and wood chunks. I used apple wood. Fill your water pan.

I rubbed my Pork Roast with my own special rub. Place on grill and relax. I would check the fire every couple of hours. If the temperature drops a little, open the grill and stir the charcoals with the included rod.  I cooked this roast to the internal temperature reached 150 degrees. It took approximately 4 hours. I let it rest for 20 minutes. It was a long 20 minutes.

This pork roast was so juicy that I should have worn a bib. I actually served it with some red beans and rice. It was perfect for soaking up all the yummy pork goodness. The smokenator is a great device to turn your Weber into a smoker. I may have to go out and buy some ribs for more testing.

Welcome back to the Chilebrown smokehouse. We are continuing to Makin Bacon. The bellies have been curing for eight days in the refrigerator. I have turned the packages over three times. The next step is to rinse some of the salt off. I took a large pan and added fresh water to rinse the bellies. I emptied and replaced the water 4 times over a 4 hour span. Take your bellies and dry off as well as you can. This is a crucial step. Place bellies on a cookies sheet with a pan underneath. Place in refrigerator and let sit overnight. Do not worry about contamination. They are already salted and cured. The reason for the overnight stay is to remove all moisture. This way your slabs will accept smoke.

I am using Apple wood chunks in a Weber Smokey Mountain smoker. I am using 2 inch blocks of Apple wood that I bought from E-Bay. I have a thermometer in the bellies and the smoking chamber. I am not messing around. I let it smoke for approx 4 hours at 200 degrees. The internal temperature of the bacon was 150 . I let these beautiful pieces of Pork Love rest on a cookie rack for 2 hours. I then wrapped them in foil and put them in the Chilebrown Ice Cave.

Ms. Goofy and I had the initial slice. It was salty to me and I am a bacon FREAK. Ms. Goofy said it was perfect. I will take her opinion over mine. Bacon Revue wil be following. Stay tuned at Mad Meat Genius.

Today I am making my version of Paella. It will be made in a custom barbeque called the ‘Texas Party Wok’. The Party Wok is made out of recycled plough discs. The middle disc holds charcoal to heat the top disc. The top disc is polished smooth to create a great cooking surface. This Party Wok is a lot of fun. Its uses are only limited by your imagination. The paella will be a combination of Chicken, Sausage,Shrimp and rice.

Ingredients

1. 3 pounds Chicken Thighs
2. 2 pounds Shrimp
3. 1 pound sausage
4. 1 cup peas
5. 2 cups rice
6. salt and pepper
7. 3 cups water
8. 1 pinch saffron
9. vegetable oil
10. small onion diced

Fire up the Party Wok. Season the chicken thighs with salt & pepper. Add some oil to the wok and fry the thighs for 15 minutes or until browned. Reserve the thighs. Brown the sausage and reserve. Place some more oil in wok and cook onion for 4 minutes. Add the rice and stir until fragrant. Add the water and saffron, then stir. Arrange reserved chicken and sausage. Place shrimp and peas into mixture. Cover with foil and let steam for aprox 15 minutes.

This is my Cowboy Paella. It is a fun party dish. Who would think that Texas would make Party Woks?

SAFFRON

The Other, Other White Meat. Berkshire Pork is a special treat. Berkshire is a breed of hog. Today’s roast comes from the Eden Farms located in Iowa. They are a cooperative of 25 small farms. These hogs are raised in a healthy, environmentally friendly way. The hogs are raised outdoors and are allowed to roam. They receive no hormones or growth promoting antibiotics. The meat is distinctive because it is richer and has a darker color. Today’s roast is called Kurobuta. This is Japanese for ‘black pork’. I was able to order this roast through Preferred Meats.

I am only prepping the pork roast with coarse salt and freshly ground pepper. It will be accompanied by some Spinach and Ricotta Ravioli. They will be dressed with some Olive Pesto. These were both procured by the “Sonoma Olive Co”. I had to throw in some Asparagus. You know I had to. I am cooking the roast in one of my favorite Barbeques. It was made by the ‘New Brauenfels’ Co. They are no longer in business as far as I know. This smoker is heavy duty. I use it for important cuts of meat. It is basically an oven. I can control the temperature with a side vent.

I trimmed some of the ‘Fat Cap’, off of the roast. I originally thought the fat was a little excessive for such an expensive cut of pork. I stuck the excess in a pan and fried it up for Mojo & Oscar. Oh! you lucky boys! Next time I will save it for sausage. The smell of the fat frying was like heaven. Is that sick? Well maybe. I just had my cholesterol checked, and I am one of the lucky ones.

I guess it is all due to the Fava Beans and Life with Ms. Goofy!!!! How did it taste you might ask? It was ‘’Pork Nirvana”!!! The raviolis and asparagus just added to the bliss.

“In some social circles, I am known as Chileverde”. That is a quote from my infamous 6 minutes of fame on Joey Altman’s “Bay Cafe”. I now go by Chilebrown. Today I am making my award winning Chileverde. Well, sort of award winning. It took the ‘Peoples Choice’ award at the “Calistoga Beer,Sausage and Chili Festival”. The judges voted the Police Captain First and the Fire Chief Second. I have a little twist to kick up my chili. I barbeque all the vegetables and Meat.

Lets start with the ingredients.

• 8 pounds of Pork Shoulder (Butt)
• cilantro
• 1 pound of tomatillas
• 1 TBS honey2 onions
• 1 TBS cumin

Dry Rub

• Salt and pepper
• 1 TBS oregano
• 1 head of garlic
• 8-10 large Anaheim style peppers. If you can get New Hatch, I am jealous.

Take the Pork Shoulder and cut into 3 or 4 large steaks. Take a dry rub and rub the meat. Fire up your barbeque. Today I am using a custom Weber. It has a motor on the bottom. The Motor drives a shaft that rotates the grill. It is pretty slick. You do not have hot spots. You can basicaly just put the meat on the grill,put the lid on and walk away. I let them cook for about 30 minutes on a Medium Heat. Take the meat off and let cool. I then cut the meat into small cubes. I discard as much fat and gristle that I can. It is now time to grill the vegetables. I wrap the garlic in foil. I cut the onion into quarters. I get a good char on everything. Let them cool. Place everything in a food processor with the cilantro. Add a little water to get things turning. Pulse until you have a chunky mixture.
Combine your veggies and meat mixture. Add honey, oregano, cumin and salt and pepper to taste. Add some more water to make a thick soupy mixture. Simmer for approx 1 hour.
I like to serve the chili over rice with a dollop of Sour Cream.

Here is a little film clip to show you my motorized Weber.mov04516.MPG

The Tofu Challenge was an idea of Scott Pinkerton from the ‘Pragmatic Chef’. He claimed I was making fun of some Tofu dish he made. This is my version of Cedar Plank Roasted Tofu.
You may have gathered that I am not a big fan of Tofu. I racked my brain on how I could make it palatable. This dish is really simple to make and the ingredients were purchased at my local supermarket.

The main ingredients Cedar Planks and Tofu were both easy to find and inexpensive. A quick marinade of the Tofu, plank it and pop it in the barbeque. I excused myself from tasting the final product. I was bound to be prejudice. I had to find a non biased taster. I searched high and low and came up with by Bro-In-Law.

My Bro-In-Law John is an Outdoorsman. He is an avid fisherman and a great cook. He once made us a Chili. He put so much effort, sweat and passion into this Chili that he passed out before it was done. John claims that he has never met a ‘Chicken Fried Steak’ that he did not like. I respect his opinion and judgment. I also hope he will let me ride his Harley. John was kind enough to be a judge. Let’s Get Cookin!

Ingredients.

1. 1 package firm Tofu 14 ounces
2. 1 Cedar Plank
3. Barbeque Rub
4. Olive Oil
5. Salt & Pepper
6. 2 Nails & Hammer
7. 1 jigsaw
8. 1 pair of pliers

Take the tofu out of package and cut it in half. Gently take a towel and squeeze as much liquid out as you can. When tofu is fairly dry, rub it all over with your favorite barbeque rub. Refrigerate the rubbed tofu for a couple of hours. Soak your cedar plank while the tofu is marinating. After letting the tofu marinate a couple of hours, rub your tofu slices with olive oil and season with salt and pepper and place on cedar plank. Take your hammer and nail the tofu to the plank. This will secure the tofu to the plank and heat will generate through the nail.

Build a medium fire in your barbeque. Today, I am using mesquite wood. When coals are ready, place the plank in center of grill. It is a good idea to keep the lid on your grill so the cedar plank does not go up in flames. Cook tofu for 15 minutes. Remove and let rest for 10 minutes.

This is a crucial step. You should pay close attention to the next couple of instructions. Take your pliers and remove nails. Find a trash container away from your house. (Far away). With your pliers push the tofu off the plank into the trash. Take your jigsaw and slice the cedar plank into desired serving proportions.

How did it taste? Below is an interview with John about the finished tofu…
Chilebrown: Well John, How did you like the Cedar Plank Roasted Tofu?

John: Chile, it was nice for you to invite me over.Chilebrown: How did you like it?

John: The beer was ice cold. It whetted my appetite. You want to
pass me that jug of Kessler.

Chilebrown: The readers would like to know how you liked the dish.

John: Did I ever tell you about the chili I almost made. I put a lot of

Chilebrown: John stop stalling. Tell us about the dish.

John: All I can say is YUK! And you will never ride my Harley!!!!! There you go Scott. Steak is good and Tofu is YUK!

April is National Gardening Month. The National Gardening Associations motto is, “When you garden, you GROW”. This statement is so true in my life. You can just feel it in the air. Spring is the time to get your summer vegetable and flower garden started. There are a lot of chores to be done. The weeds need to be pulled. The soil needs to be turned and amended with manure. Decisions need to made. What should I grow? Will I be totally organic this year?

To plant a seed and nurture it from infancy to when it flowers is the miracle of life. One can not explain the satisfaction of eating a meal that you have created from the earth. It takes some work to start and maintain a garden. I find it relaxing and soothing. I did not always feel this way.

Mexican Fertilizer

My first experience with gardening was quiet by accident! I was a teenager living with my parents, upstairs, overlooking the backyard garden. It was the ‘Party 70’s’.’ Cheech and Chong’ were our”Role Models and Heroes”. Smoking was very” Kool and Hip” according to them. The ‘Smoke of the Day’, had a by product of “Stems and Seeds That You Don’t Need”. I had an idea of recycling then. It was to throw the waste out my window.Litlle did I know the consequences!

My father went to the “ ‘Navelet’ gardening center downtown”. Apparently there was a bunch of plants growing below my window that he could not identify. He had brought them some samples of the plants,. He returned: “’Paul’, I need to talk to you!” I did not have a clue what he wanted. My dad looked pretty serious! What did he want? My father replied, with a very disssapointing tone,” I just got back from ‘Navelets’, they told me the sample from underneath your window was cannabis.” My mouth dropped, and before I could reply, my father said,” It must be that Mexican Fertilizer”

My Father was a Gardner by trade. ”World War II “came around and he served. He returned, married, and had two children. He had a career at the Post Office; He still made time to tend his garden. Flowers were his specialty. There was a lot of pride grown in his garden.. Being a juvenile, I was an unwilling participant in the mowing and cleanup of my father’s garden.

The experiences I had with my father made an impression. I am now experiencing joy in the garden. I did get to share my garden with my father in his later days. He would love the flowers and produce I would bring him. The majority of the plants I grew were from seed, and some were heirloom. He was now gardening through me. It was a time that we were together.

I went to Berkeley to buy a Haas Avocado tree. I knew my dad was in the hospital. When I returned, there was a phone call from the chaplain. I did not know how to deal with the sorrow, so I planted the tree. I named the tree “Dad”.

“Dad” I won’t be using any of that Mexican Fertilizer.

Go out and plant something. It is National Gardening Month, so take advantage of it. You will be rewarded!!!

One of my hobbies is cooking in Dutch Ovens. I have entered a couple of contests and had some success. It is amazing what you can cook in a Dutch Oven. The temperature can actually be more consistent and more efficient than your home oven. Lately I have been having fun cooking Sourdough Bread. I was gifted my Sourdough Starter by Dylan of ‘Sourdough Monkey Wrangler’.

I am on a competition team named “The Meatmen.” We will be competing this June in Carson City, Nevada at the ‘Rendezvous Day’ event. We just finished competing at the ‘Sportsman Expo’ in Sacramento CA. We took Second Place and are very proud! You can view some of the pictures from the competition here.

Ingredients

1. 1-1/2 cup water
2. 1 tablespoon yeast
3. 4 cups bread flour
4. 2 cups whole wheat flour
5. 2 teaspoon salt
6. 1 cup sourdough starter
7. 1 tablespoon honey
8. 1/4 cup of oil

Proof yeast in water for 10 minutes. Add starter, honey, 1 tablepoon of oil and two cups of bread flour. Mix and let rest for 1/2 hour.

Divide mixture into two halves and reserve one half. With one half, add 2 cups of whole wheat flour and 1 teaspoon of salt. Knead for 5 minutes. Repeat with other half but use bread flour. Cover both halves and let rest for 15 minutes.

Roll each half into logs 1-1/2 inches by 12 inches and let rest for 15 minutes.

Lay both logs side by side and twist together. Take the twist and coil into a circle. Take your Dutch oven and use the rest of the oil and coat the pan. Place your dough into the Dutch Oven. Let it rise for 45 minutes.

Cook it in your Dutch Oven for approximately 45 minutes.

I am a little concerned for when we cook at the Rendezvous in Carson City. It is at a higher elevation. Do any of you Sourdoughs have any suggestions?