- Aug 27, 2008
- 5,170
- 409
I haven't had this chance in a long time...maybe I passed it up more than I know, and I never would have done it 5 or 6 years ago, but now, hey, when the opportunity strikes, I'm jumping in! I figure I can pull a few strings to make these girls happy for a night, right? How hard...er, uh, difficult could it be, huh? I mean, I'm generally pretty resourceful, have a good imagination and can be pretty creative, so what could go wrong?
OK, so I got your attention anyway! LOL!!!
The wife called me at work yesterday and asked me if I'd like to do smoked/seared steaks today...asked her if she had some in the freezer...yup...I said take 'em out and toss 'em in the fridge. So, here I am tonight with an AMNPS, Pit-master's Choice, a converted SnP 40" for char-grilling only and 8 New York Strips, bone-in, of course.
Just a quick lazy day smoke & sear tonight to keep "the girls" happy: cold smoked @ a balmy late January's 50* ambient temp, falling to around 42* by the end of the smoke (1/2-hr after sunset), total smoke time of about 70 minutes, then poured the hot coals to 'em for a relatively quick sear for a medium-rare steak...well, medium to medium-rare for me, with a couple others here wanting medium to medium-well...I've gotten most of the family steered clear of well-done steaks a few years ago, and now most won't even eat medium-well, so in time, you can turn a dry, toughened-up steak eater onto some great eating beef. Total cooking time including the cold smoke was about 90 minutes (20-minute sear), so, low-risk from a food safety stand-point (40-140*/4hr guideline).
This is quite possibly the first time the AMNPS has graced my SnP with it's magic...almost too easy to make it work for this. Strips rubbed with Amazing Taste Steakhouse Seasoning...a good balanced flavor enhancement for a nice beef steak, and a fitting match for the AMNPS and hickory/cherry/maple smoke, I think...OK, so I was too lazy to blend up my own spices...LOL!!! This is a nice blend, though:
Nice smoke...time to close the lid. I'll leave the AMNSP alone for the duration, but last check indicated that the small amount of pellets will burn up before searing is well under way, which is fine...kinda curious how much smoke they'll take on at this low of temps:
Got some monster Idahoes to toss into a 375* convection oven for a quick baked tater on the side...first time with taters this big in the new "O", quite a bit over a pound average weight, so not sure on timing yet...wish me luck.
AMNPS is just about done here at the 70-minute mark as I figured it would be, using a cross-draft ventilation in the SnP providing a bit heavier smoke and faster burn of the pellets:
Maybe a slightly darker color...could be from warming the meat up a bit, and maybe some from the smoke:
Coals just spread out from the chimney...white LED lighting here, no flash:
No light, so you can see it's not a super-hot fire like I generally use, with mostly just one layer of coals this time around...oh, and space from fire grate to cooking grate is about 6" or so:
Mmm, almost ready for a platter...hope those taters are done...I'm hungry!!!:
These smell as good as they look...:
If you didn't take the previous views as fair warning for what's yet to come, then now's your last chance to cover those keyboards...oh, and please do clean your monitor before you continue if you have a lick & taste monitor...don't want anyone picking dust from their teeth later...LOL!!!
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
One of the monster Idahoes and my choice from the platter, with a lighter sear, finished to medium...taters were done when I walked in with the strippers, so dinner came together nicely:
Ah, that really was delicious...I almost forgot how good a cold smoked char-grilled steak can be. I gotta make more time for this in the future...haven't been cooking much lately...I know, it's my own dang fault...work, work, and work some more....so SLAP ME!!! LOL!!!
Some of the butter from the potato ended up on a few pieces of my steak...it's pretty easy to see why those high-end steak houses smear butter on a steak after plating...what a treat!!! A very good way finish a steak if I didn't have smoke and char-grilling in the equation, but I don't think I'd butter a smoked/seared steak on purpose...save it for a more bland finished steak to kick it up a bit...this steak just didn't need any kicking...it's perfect, and why mess with perfect? That was a lot of food, even for me...I was getting sluggish towards the last 1/3 of my plate, but managed to stomp it all away for safe keeping in my belly...I think it's all about the flavors, textures and moisture...I just couldn't eat it all if it's not a good balance of everything.
The Pit-master's Choice was a nice smoke, moderate intensity with 70 minutes of cold smoke, and as usual, it had great flavor and aroma...great combination...recommend this to those who haven't tried it yet for any of your next smokes, hot or cold. Thanks to Todd for a superb blend of smoke pellets...
And the taters from the convection"O"? 60 minutes @ 375* for a nearly perfect baked tater in the 1-1/4 to 1-1/3lb range..slightly crisp skin in spots with a bit of potato meat attached, so the convection does create a dryer oven as well as cook much faster...and dang, that's fast for big ol' tater! We're getting the hang of the new kitchen range finally after about a month or so...with everything new there comes a learning curve...
Don't forget to smoke & sear when time's not in your favor, or, like for me today, just having a lazy day while doing some research on the net and a bunch of emails and phone calls...this gets me away from the 'puter for a bit for a needed leg stretch while tending the grill (it's strong enough persuasion to get me up and moving anyway...LOL!!!), and it's our all-time favorite method to cook steaks, chops and lots of other smaller cuts...well, actually it's my favorite way to cook them but it's our favorite for eating, bar none.
Thanks for peekin'!
Glad to share a little smoke with ya...it's been fun, and now I'm done!
Eric
OK, so I got your attention anyway! LOL!!!
The wife called me at work yesterday and asked me if I'd like to do smoked/seared steaks today...asked her if she had some in the freezer...yup...I said take 'em out and toss 'em in the fridge. So, here I am tonight with an AMNPS, Pit-master's Choice, a converted SnP 40" for char-grilling only and 8 New York Strips, bone-in, of course.
Just a quick lazy day smoke & sear tonight to keep "the girls" happy: cold smoked @ a balmy late January's 50* ambient temp, falling to around 42* by the end of the smoke (1/2-hr after sunset), total smoke time of about 70 minutes, then poured the hot coals to 'em for a relatively quick sear for a medium-rare steak...well, medium to medium-rare for me, with a couple others here wanting medium to medium-well...I've gotten most of the family steered clear of well-done steaks a few years ago, and now most won't even eat medium-well, so in time, you can turn a dry, toughened-up steak eater onto some great eating beef. Total cooking time including the cold smoke was about 90 minutes (20-minute sear), so, low-risk from a food safety stand-point (40-140*/4hr guideline).
This is quite possibly the first time the AMNPS has graced my SnP with it's magic...almost too easy to make it work for this. Strips rubbed with Amazing Taste Steakhouse Seasoning...a good balanced flavor enhancement for a nice beef steak, and a fitting match for the AMNPS and hickory/cherry/maple smoke, I think...OK, so I was too lazy to blend up my own spices...LOL!!! This is a nice blend, though:
Nice smoke...time to close the lid. I'll leave the AMNSP alone for the duration, but last check indicated that the small amount of pellets will burn up before searing is well under way, which is fine...kinda curious how much smoke they'll take on at this low of temps:
Got some monster Idahoes to toss into a 375* convection oven for a quick baked tater on the side...first time with taters this big in the new "O", quite a bit over a pound average weight, so not sure on timing yet...wish me luck.
AMNPS is just about done here at the 70-minute mark as I figured it would be, using a cross-draft ventilation in the SnP providing a bit heavier smoke and faster burn of the pellets:
Maybe a slightly darker color...could be from warming the meat up a bit, and maybe some from the smoke:
Coals just spread out from the chimney...white LED lighting here, no flash:
No light, so you can see it's not a super-hot fire like I generally use, with mostly just one layer of coals this time around...oh, and space from fire grate to cooking grate is about 6" or so:
Mmm, almost ready for a platter...hope those taters are done...I'm hungry!!!:
These smell as good as they look...:
If you didn't take the previous views as fair warning for what's yet to come, then now's your last chance to cover those keyboards...oh, and please do clean your monitor before you continue if you have a lick & taste monitor...don't want anyone picking dust from their teeth later...LOL!!!
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
One of the monster Idahoes and my choice from the platter, with a lighter sear, finished to medium...taters were done when I walked in with the strippers, so dinner came together nicely:
Ah, that really was delicious...I almost forgot how good a cold smoked char-grilled steak can be. I gotta make more time for this in the future...haven't been cooking much lately...I know, it's my own dang fault...work, work, and work some more....so SLAP ME!!! LOL!!!
Some of the butter from the potato ended up on a few pieces of my steak...it's pretty easy to see why those high-end steak houses smear butter on a steak after plating...what a treat!!! A very good way finish a steak if I didn't have smoke and char-grilling in the equation, but I don't think I'd butter a smoked/seared steak on purpose...save it for a more bland finished steak to kick it up a bit...this steak just didn't need any kicking...it's perfect, and why mess with perfect? That was a lot of food, even for me...I was getting sluggish towards the last 1/3 of my plate, but managed to stomp it all away for safe keeping in my belly...I think it's all about the flavors, textures and moisture...I just couldn't eat it all if it's not a good balance of everything.
The Pit-master's Choice was a nice smoke, moderate intensity with 70 minutes of cold smoke, and as usual, it had great flavor and aroma...great combination...recommend this to those who haven't tried it yet for any of your next smokes, hot or cold. Thanks to Todd for a superb blend of smoke pellets...
And the taters from the convection"O"? 60 minutes @ 375* for a nearly perfect baked tater in the 1-1/4 to 1-1/3lb range..slightly crisp skin in spots with a bit of potato meat attached, so the convection does create a dryer oven as well as cook much faster...and dang, that's fast for big ol' tater! We're getting the hang of the new kitchen range finally after about a month or so...with everything new there comes a learning curve...
Don't forget to smoke & sear when time's not in your favor, or, like for me today, just having a lazy day while doing some research on the net and a bunch of emails and phone calls...this gets me away from the 'puter for a bit for a needed leg stretch while tending the grill (it's strong enough persuasion to get me up and moving anyway...LOL!!!), and it's our all-time favorite method to cook steaks, chops and lots of other smaller cuts...well, actually it's my favorite way to cook them but it's our favorite for eating, bar none.
Thanks for peekin'!
Glad to share a little smoke with ya...it's been fun, and now I'm done!
Eric
