Smoked Trout

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Spent Memorial Day weekend trout fishing in the mountains of West Virginia. While I didn’t catch a single fish I was sent home with a couple nice Rainbow Trout to throw on the smoker. I thought I’d make a video of my first attempt at smoking trout.

Prior to placing on the smoker I soaked the fish in a brine of salt and brown sugar for about 48 hours, which was probably way too long based on the saltiness of the finished product. I would have smoked them sooner but had a hard time finding Apple wood chips the day before.

I’m sure I’ll have plenty of opportunities to perfect my trout smoking in the future.

Authentic Texas BBQ at Jimbo’s

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It was just a few months ago that I discovered that BBQ smoke must run in our family bloodline.

After an off-hand comment on Facebook about my dream of becoming a BBQ Pitmaster I discovered that my cousin owns her own BBQ place in Northern Virginia.

If you live in the the Chantilly, Virginia area and are looking for some authentic Texas BBQ then stop by Jimbo’s Texas BBQ. You won’t be disappointed.

 

On The Menu – Smoked Meatloaf

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I’m constantly looking for new recipes and when I ran across this one for Smoked Meatloaf I just had to try it. This recipe comes from Jeff Phillips over at Smoking-Meat.com.

 

 

 

Easy Meat Loaf Recipe

  • 2 lbs. ground beef
  • 1 small onion finely chopped
  • 1/2 green pepper finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic minced (optional)
  • 1 C. fresh bread crumbs or saltine cracker crumbs
  • 2 eggs lightly beaten
  • 3/4 C. ketchup or BBQ Sauce
  • 1/4 C. milk

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Blend the mixture about 4-5 minutes and then form onto a flat cookie sheet. You can finish the top with ketchup or barbecue sauce if you like about 30 minutes before the meatloaf is finished smoking.

I used Jack Daniel’s Original No. 7 Recipe BBQ Sauce in the recipe and to top it off at the end. I smoked mine at about 225 – 250 for about three hours until the internal temp reached 160°.

I didn’t follow Jeff’s directions exactly and I used a disposable aluminum pan rather than putting the meatloaf on a baking sheet. Next time I’m going to use the baking sheet since only the top was exposed to the smoke and I don’t think it absorbed as much smoke as it would have on the baking sheet.

Otherwise, it came out great and everyone loved it. This will be a regular on the Sunday dinner meal rotation.

 

On the Menu – BBQ Chicken

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From time to time I’ll be posting photos of something I’ve cooked in the smoker. Last night it was Split Chicken Breast, which I got on sale at Aldi. I payed less than $2.00 for four fairly large pieces of chicken. What a deal.

After coating the chicken with a liberal coating of “Magic Dust” I tossed them in the smoker with some Apple wood chips and cooked them low-and-slow at about 225 for two and a half hours. About every 45 minutes I sprayed the meat with a mixture of olive oil and apple cider vinegar.

During the last half hour I basted the chicken with some Burman’s Original BBQ Sauce from Aldi’s.

I added a salad and sweet potato with a little buttery spread and brown sugar to make a tasty meal.

 

Becoming a Certified BBQ Judge

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Friday evening March 23rd I eagerly made my way South through the mountains of West Virginia on my way to the Kansas City Barbeque Society’s (KCBS) Certified BBQ Judges class sponsored by the Covington Cork and Pork Festival in Covington, Virginia.

After a quick overnight stay in Oak Hill, West Virginia I continued eastward toward Covington. When I arrived at the Covington Baptist Church I could smell the smoke from the cooker as soon as I stepped from the car. I followed my nose to the smoker and watched Ruben and Jennifer Showalter from Hogback Mountain BBQ load the cooker with chicken for the day’s “judging”. After snapping a couple quick photos I made my way inside to register and find my assigned seat.

I, like the other 63 participants in the class, had been assigned one of six seats at a judges table just like we would be seated when judging an actual competition. Our table included a Covington Cork and Pork Volunteer, three competition BBQ team members (from different teams) and another BBQ enthusiast like myself who just happened to be from Pittsburgh, PA.

Class started promptly on schedule and was led by Don Harwell from Mooreville, North Carolina. Don is a former KCBS board member as well as an instructor for the Certified BBQ Judge (CBJ) class, the Table Captains class and also serves a KCBS representative at sanctioned competitions. Being a Master Judge, it is evident Don knows his stuff. He not only educated us on the finer points of judging BBQ but also shared many useful cooking tips from his personal experience as part of the At Ease Moonlighters Competition Cook Team. After about two and a half hours of instruction it was time to get our hands dirty and actually “judge” some barbeque.

The time had come to practice what we had just learned as volunteer Table Captains presented meats from all four KCBS categories; chicken, ribs, pork and brisket. It was just like an actual event as each of us tasted each entry and noted our scores on the official Judges Plate and Judging Slip. Some entries were even staged to represent different scenarios, which would result in a Disqualification during an actual event. After each category Don talked us through each entry and made sure we understood the rules and etiquette required to be CBJ’s.

After five and a half hours of learning and tasting we all stood to be recognized as newly certified BBQ judges. I’m looking forward to judging my first event this summer.

 

Set Down and Hang On

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Welcome to Highland Hawg BBQ. My name is Kevin and I’m a West Virginia boy whose fallen in love with the art, tradition and sport of Barbeque.

Join me as I follow my dreams of becoming a KCBS Certified BBQ judge (CBJ), competition BBQ team leader and restaurateur. It’s sure to be an exciting adventure.

Hope you enjoy the ride.