Yummo...

[Jocool]

Hanger Steaks




Wrapped asparagus


Brined corn


Picahna


Pile of turds


Lamb ribs




Beef ribs


Chestnuts


More Hanger steaks


Crisped chicken wings


Florentine T-Bone


Roasted Pumkin and garlic soup


Smoked eggs


Slow roasted marinated 2 inch thick pork chops


Pork belly


Bacon salt

[Grizz]

you had me at bacon salt......even though it was the very last pic.

[jcnaz]

Wow! You have been busy.

[austin87]

Nice work! I bet those lamb ribs were delicious little morsels, but all looks so good hard to pick a favorite!

[Jocool]

Mmmmm bacon salt.....

Thanks for looking. Yes I have been busy, and I have to say, the lamb ribs have been a tasty discovery in recent weeks. I have been playing with variations on them to get them where I want them, and I'm very close. Still need some experimenting, but my taste testers aren't complaining.

And it turns out my kids prefer the Picahna I did today, to the Hanger steaks I did yesterday. Maybe I'll do something I haven't done for a while, and just cobble up a basic meat and three vege roast.

[1buckie]

WOW !!!!!


Great display of Weberology, man !!!!

More detail on those last two, bacon salt & belly, if you get a chance !!!!

all of that looks grate !!!!!

[WNC]

Yummo is right, that's some incredible cooks!

[chuck s]

You gotta start giving us this stuff in smaller bites!!   I went into food pic shock!!   I agree how bout some details on the lamb experiments.   

[Jocool]

I'll do a more concise write up when I get a chance. Sorry if it upset you, but I'm sure your coping mechanisms have kicked in and protected you.

[Troy]

looks freaking AWESOME!!!!

The chestnut roasting contraption looks cool as hell.

[pbe gummi bear]

You've been busy, Jo! Thanks for sharing.

[Jocool]

I'll take them in the order they were asked.

More detail on those last two, bacon salt & belly, if you get a chance !!!!

all of that looks grate !!!!!

The Bacon Salt is pretty straight forward. I'm really surprised I hadn't thought about it myself. But a mate put me onto it a few weeks ago. There are two ingredients. Sliced Prosciutto and Himalayan Rock Salt. 6 slices of Prosciutto (depending on taste) was laid out on a sheet of baking paper on a baking tray. This goes into the oven at 200 C for 20 minutes. Then it is taken out to cool. Once cooled, and patted dry, it is crushed in a mortar and pestle, or using a stick mixer as I did, and throw in about 3 tablespoons of the rock Salt. The ratios will all depend on your taste. The initial batch was too weak for me so I have added some more Prosciutto. I use it to sprinkle on fried eggs, grilled corn, chips, popcorn....anything where you think bacon salt would taste good.

The Pork Belly was cooked in a baking tray with the obligatory rub with EVOO and slices put in the skin to promote crackling. Under the belly was a bunch of vegies that had been sliced and rolled around in a herb mix and some EVOO and placed on a tray so they don't hit the bottom of the pan. And that was sitting in a bath of beer. The idea was that the beer would steam the vegies, rise up and keep the pork moist under the skin, and then any drippings from the pork fat would go back down over the vegies and return to the bottom of the pan. Once cooked, I removed everything except the debris in the bottom of the pan. I then added some flour, wine and some stock to make my own beer gravy from the drippings.

Where's that drooling Homer face when you need it......

[Jocool]

I agree how bout some details on the lamb experiments.

My daughter wanted to entertain some of her uni class mates. And off course, I'm the designated cook. I discussed with her what we should cook, and we came up with lamb ribs for a number of reasons. First and foremost was that it was different. Secondly, we all liked the flavour of lamb. And lastly, price was a huge factor. If I was to cook the same amount of pork ribs, (by weight) they would have cost me about $40. Beef ribs, $20. The lamb ribs cost me $13!

I found a recipe and followed it. http://www.foodrepublic.com/2014/05/28/pitmaster-chris-lillys-smoked-lamb-ribs-recipe It included making a spicy rosemary and fig BBQ sauce. I cooked the ribs using the snake and rubbing them with the described herb paste. They were nice.....but not great. So I set about modifying the recipe to suit my needs. And also changing up the technique to give me more heat and a faster cook. This would help with rendering some of the copious fats of the ribs. I also trimmed off a bit of fat.

The second time, I again went hotter and trimmed a bit more fat off. And I also made the sauce less spicy. Believe it or not, my daughter complained that I had taken too much heat out. But guess what, I'm still the boss. This worked out really well and was the best I had done.

On the day that her friends were to come around, I went nuts with the trimming of fat. And I even went a step further and cut of the brisket end so as to reduce the cartilage mass. BIG MISTAKE! They turned out the driest and crustiest ribs I had EVER made!

I AM going to do this again. And I AM going to get them perfect! Lamb Ribs are now my 'Eleanor'!

[Jocool]

looks freaking AWESOME!!!!

The chestnut roasting contraption looks cool as hell.

Thanks brother.

The roaster is actually a receptacle that is used to drop food down into a deep fryer. I found it at an Asian stall at a local market. I took one look at it and knew it would be perfect for chestnuts. I just grab the handle and give them a shake every couple of minutes.

[Jocool]

Some pictures. First is the Pork Belly over vegies:



This is how I like serving my Hanger Steaks. A trio of condiments to dip in:



Chicken thigh with some of that gren stuff....ummmm....salad...that's what it's called: