{"id":7530,"date":"2024-12-06T08:25:01","date_gmt":"2024-12-06T13:25:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dahlman.online\/?p=7530"},"modified":"2024-12-06T08:25:05","modified_gmt":"2024-12-06T13:25:05","slug":"smokin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dahlman.online\/index.php\/2024\/12\/06\/smokin\/","title":{"rendered":"Smokin\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This is a part of the “Sunday Story” series – even though it’s not Sunday. No politics today – just a story about “smoking”!!!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thanksgiving<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s the week after Thanksgiving \u2013 and just now I\u2019m smoking a turkey;\u00a0\u00a0well, sort of.\u00a0\u00a0This year Jenn and I decided to not \u201cdo\u201d Thanksgiving.\u00a0\u00a0Instead, we met my sister and her husband at Cooper\u2019s Hawk, a restaurant in nearby Columbus, to enjoy their Thanksgiving feast.\u00a0\u00a0It was a great dinner, with great company, great food, and great wine; all for a great price. And no dishes to clean-up afterwards!\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But, when you have a smoker, sooner or later you\u2019ve just gotta smoke.  And so today, December 5th<\/sup>, a Thursday, I\u2019m smoking a turkey breast.  Sooner or later, they\u2019ll be mashed potatoes and gravy, dressing and green beans \u2013 a full Thanksgiving repast for just the two of us.  Why a Thursday in December?  Because we\u2019re retired, and we have a day at home, and the turkey is defrosted.   Why not?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Challenge<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

But smoking a turkey breast is always a challenge (as is the full bird, way too much food for just the two of us).  I can smoke baby back ribs (my best thing), spiral sliced ham (really good too), chuck roast (good \u2013 needed to stay in longer), and even chicken (a whole chicken is good, but chicken wings and pieces aren\u2019t my favorite).  I\u2019ve even been a part of a whole brisket (shared with the neighbor, who gets up at 3 am for work anyway \u2013 it takes over 12 hours).  That was delicious.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve also tried pork chops (too big to eat), pork tenderloin (really good), and even salmon (I liked it, but the rest of the family thought it had a \u201cweird texture\u201d).\u00a0\u00a0Anyway, one of the best things I grill is salmon \u2013so why mess it up?\u00a0\u00a0And then there\u2019s steaks and tenderloins, also really, really good on the grill.\u00a0\u00a0I know what I like, and I like those grilled and medium rare \u2013 not smoked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Windchill <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

But turkey always gets within ten degrees of being done (165), and then stops.\u00a0\u00a0I leave it in an extra hour, and still it\u2019s holding at 153, not budging an inch (or a degree).\u00a0\u00a0So for the past couple of turkeys, it\u2019s been 30 more minutes in the 1929 Magic Chef Restaurant class oven at 350 degrees, the centerpiece of our kitchen.\u00a0\u00a0(Remember that advertisement on TV, where the lady asks an architect to design a house around a faucet?\u00a0\u00a0Jenn designed our open kitchen\/dining room around that cast iron stove that took seven boys and two grown men to get into the house!!!).\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Part of the challenge with turkey, is I\u2019m always smoking it in the winter.\u00a0\u00a0Today, it\u2019s 22 degrees with a 22 mph wind, making the windchill 7.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s cold, and while the smoker doesn\u2019t \u201cfeel\u201d windchill, it\u2019s still a stand-alone smoker sitting in the middle of the sundeck in the side yard.\u00a0\u00a0In the past, I\u2019ve found smoking in sub-10 degree weather didn\u2019t work out \u2013 the smoker couldn\u2019t hold temperature, and we had to bring that ham in to finish in the Magic Chef.\u00a0\u00a0It ended up dried out.\u00a0\u00a0But this is a new smoker, and it\u2019s not quite as cold as that first Arctic day.\u00a0\u00a0So I\u2019m hoping we get solid heat.\u00a0\u00a0So far, it\u2019s been on for three hours and holding the 260 degrees needed to get the turkey done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Flavor and Patience<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As far as flavor is concerned \u2013 I like hickory smoke for ribs and beef, and apple smoke for ham,\u00a0\u00a0turkey and chicken.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019ve tried hickory with everything and like it fine, but apple is less overwhelming.\u00a0\u00a0And I\u2019ve put everything from Guinness beer to apple vinegar in the \u201csteam\u201d, but water works just fine with turkey.\u00a0\u00a0If it smokes for four hours, it still comes up tender and juicy.\u00a0\u00a0(Oh, and one more trick for turkey \u2013 injections!!! I inject Zatarain\u2019s turkey marinade several places into the bird.\u00a0\u00a0The flavoring is good, but the juiciness is awesome.\u00a0\u00a0No \u201cchewy\u201d white meat in this turkey!!).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s supposed to take 3 \u00bd to 4 hours.\u00a0\u00a0But my smoking experience is like that famous line from the old Charlton Heston movie about Michelangelo, The Agony and the Ecstasy<\/em>.\u00a0\u00a0 The Pope (Rex Harrison) comes into the Sistine Chapel and asks Michelangelo (Heston) busy painting the “Creation\u201d when he would be done. The artist grumbles, \u201cWhen I am finished\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The turkey is done at 165 degrees.\u00a0\u00a0When will that be?\u00a0\u00a0When it\u2019s finished.\u00a0\u00a0Or when I can\u2019t wait anymore \u2013 and the Magic Chef can finish the job.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019ll still be great!!!!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Post Script<\/em><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

So the turkey breast stayed in the smoker for over five hours – and “stalled” at 154 degrees. It took another 25 minutes in the Magic Chef to get to 165, but it was well worth it. Tasty, smoky, juicy — and enough leftovers for sandwiches and even another dinner in the near future!!!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sunday Story Series<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

2021<\/h4>\n\n\n\n