Bacon - In A Fish Smokert?

The kids voted a dinner plan change for tonight - spaghetti can wait, we want BLTs!!! And so it will be. :biggrin:

Round Two: Pepper Bacon

The second batch was one piece plain, and two pieces coated with cracked black pepper mixed with a little onion powder and garlic powder.   


I used apple pellets in the AMPS and  found that I could sneak the AMPS in on the bottom tray of the MES, so that it sits right beneath the drip cup that the sloped drip deflector drains into.   This kept the AMPS from having a direct radiant/convective heat path to the belly on the lowest smoking rack. 

This time I set the MES at 110-120 and it seemed to hold that pretty well, with chamber temps ranging between ~105-124 depending on where the MES was set and how much the AMPS was putting out.   I did have another AMPS problem with it going out after about  1/2 a length of one side of the maze being burned, and then again after I had restarted it, when it burned about 1 more length and then quit.  Unknown why this is, the positioning this time prevented any drippings from landing on it. 

Anyway, after about 11 hours I called it good, and popped them in the fridge:


And this morning:



Overall, this batch seemed a little less smoky that the first, probably due to overall lower temperatures, a bit less time, and maybe the use of apple rather than the pitmaster blend.  Just about the right amount of saltiness, and a hint of sweet - my wife loves the pepper bacon option and probably will pick this as the standard recipe.   After some time with the vacuum sealer we have a big stash in the freezer just waiting for special occasions in the months ahead.

Today's Smoking Project?   I've got about 6# of tuna loins from a fishing trip last October off the Washington coast.  They've been sliced into about 2" think mini-steaks, and are brining in this recipe:  http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/111829/smoked-tuna-lots-of-tuna-with-qview

I'll put those on later today for a 2-3 hr smoke in the cedar smoker that I borrowed, and we'll see how they turn out.

I'm feeling optimistic .....

Thanks Bear!   I've got several friends volunteering for taste test duty.    And, I think tonight is going to be BLTs and some homemade split pea soup for dinner - perfect for a drippy, cool June evening here in the Seattle area.....