Recent Posts
Smoked Pork Shanks
Smoked Pork Shanks
Smoked pork shanks are great to have around when making collards greens, split pea soup, beans and rice, and many more dishes. They add copious amounts of hammy goodness to whatever you’re making. They also cost a fraction of the price smoking them yourself compared to buying them already smoked. The raw shanks I purchased are $1.49/lb compared to $5-$6/lb smoked.So what’s the difference between pork shanks and pork hocks? Shanks are from the front shins of the pig, aka forshank. They will have the shin bone through the center with a lot of meat surrounding the bone. The bone also contains marrow, which will add a lot of flavor. Pork hocks are from the ankle of the pig. They contain a little less meat. They contain a lot of collagen and cartilage that also adds flavor. The shanks will only need a day to brine. In the brine is pink curing salts, which will turn your shanks to ham. The shanks will take about 2 1/2 hours to smoke. I use hickory wood since it is a nice neutral flavored wood for smoking. They can be instantly used once finished, stored in the refrigerator for up to a week, or frozen in freezer paper for up to 6 months.
Equipment
- Electric Smoker
Ingredients
- 2 pork shanks around 2” thick
Brine
- 4 cups water
- 1/4 cup sea salt
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 tsp pink curing salts
Wood Chips
- hickory wood chips
Instructions
- Mix together the brining ingredients.
- Place the pork shanks in a gallon sized storage bag with the brine. Brine for 24 hours.
- Pat dry. Place on a rack and leg dry out at room temp for an hour before smoking.
- Preheat your smoker to 250 degrees. Place your shanks in the smoker.
- Smoke your shanks for 2 1/2 hours.
Gorditas
Gorditas
Gorditas are a popular Mexican street food. Gorditas are a tortilla that is thicker than a normal. The name actually translates from Spanish to “small fatty”. The dough is similar to a regular tortilla, arepa, or huaraches; except it also contains butter. Instead of pressing to a thin tortilla, it is pressed to about 1/2” thick. They are then fried until they are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. They are then sliced open, much like pita for a gyro, and stuffed with pretty much anything you want. The ones in the picture are stuffed with chicken, avocado, cheese, chipotle peppers, and mixed greens.Stop eating Taco Bell.
Equipment
- tortilla press
Ingredients
- 1 cup masa harina flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp butter melted
- 1 cup hot water plus more
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
Instructions
- Mix together all of the ingredients. Form into 2 dough balls.
- Place a dough ball in between wax paper on a tortilla press.
- Press down until it is just under 1/2” thick.
- Heat up the cooking oil on a griddle over medium heat. Place the gorditas on the griddle.
- Cook for 3-4 minutes a side.
- Take a sharp knife and slice in half.
Smoked Beans with Bacon
Smoked Beans with Bacon
This recipe is inspired by an old coworker of mine who ran the seafood department from years ago. He always talked about making ribs and baked beans in his smoker. He would place the ribs over the pan of beans toward the end of the smoking process and let the drippings fall into the beans. Now that I own a smoker, I decided to make that happen. I put a lbs of dried northern beans in my Instant Pot, taking only 30 minutes of cooking time, no soaking required. While that was going, I sautéed 1lb of diced bacon. I sautéed onions and garlic in the bacon grease. Then I added in tomato paste, molasses, brown sugar, and a cup of the northern bean stock that I saved. Let that simmer for a couple of minutes. Stir in the beans. I placed my beans in a foil pan with deep sides. I preheated my smoker to 250 degrees. I used hickory chips for smoking. Hickory is a great all purpose wood chip with a neutral flavor. You can also use mesquite, pecan, or maple wood chips. The pan of beans will take 2 hours to smoke. I happened to have also made homemade hotdogs the same day. I placed the pan of beans underneath the hotdogs the last 30 minutes of smoking, letting the drippings go into the beans. If you don’t have a smoker, you can bake these beans in the oven at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.
Equipment
- instant pot
- foil pan
- Electric Smoker
Ingredients
- 1 lb dried northern beans prepared according to package directions
- 1 lb bacon diced
- 1/2 medium white onion diced
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup tomato paste
- 1/2 cup molasses
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup bean stock saved from the northern beans
- 2 tsp white pepper
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
Wood Chips
- hickory wood chips
Instructions
- Sauté the bacon in a large sauté pan until crispy. Set aside.
- Sauté the onions and garlic in the bacon grease over medium high heat for 4 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste, molasses, brown sugar, and bean stock.
- Simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt, white pepper, and smoked paprika.
- Turn off the heat. Stir in the northern beans, making sure that the beans are evenly coated in the sauce.
- Preheat your smoker to 250 degrees. Place your beans in a foil pan. Place the pan in the smoker for 2 hours.
