Shopping the Darker Side of the meat isle

[raptor700]

Cant wait to see how it turns out 

 

[redclaymud]

It's in the smoker at 5pm.  I did take a few pics prior but nothing exciting.  I rinsed well and then did a Chucky on the meat . . . slashed and stabbed, then gave it all a deep rub of yellow mustard and rather than use my highly peppered rub I decided on a milder rub I picked up last summer at the Alaska State Fair. 

The stuff is great.  I used it on my turkey this year and wasn't disappointed a bit.  Just enough oooph to know you've got a good rub on the critter but not so much that the lesser bbq fans won't enjoy it also.  I've sprinkled it on just butter and bread and it's still good.  Enhances the meat more than it overwhelms with flavor.  Here's the name . . . Lead Dog Trail Dust.  Good stuff.

Almost time to take a nap.  Love that part about using electric smokers.  I wouldn't tend to use one in the summer but they are so, so useful in the winter.

 

[raptor700]

We'll be waiting for the Qview after your nap 

 

[michael ark]

Have been looking at the dark side too. Their is a organic hog farm 5mi from my house .I've been wondering what they did with the heads.I hear cheek meat is is great. 

 

[redclaymud]

added my second load of apple chips one hour after start of smoke.  There isn't any fat to this roast so I'm not sure how it should look when done.  I spritzed it with apple juice. but wonder if I should have basted it in apple juice.  Time will tell.  Worst case, it's dog food.

 

[raptor700]

Your right Red, it's either a

Hit or a miss

        

 

[redclaymud]

Pickled heart and tongue is an awesome treat and very easy to make and will keep a long time in the fridge (but usually doesn't last that long).

Simmer heart and tongue until tender. Remove skin from tongue,  trim heart and slice all into bite sized pieces. Put some sliced onion in with meat before you pour over the vinegar mixture.

MIXTURE:

2 c. water
3 c. vinegar
1 c. sugar (or less)
4 1/2 tsp. salt

2 Tbls pickling spice

Boil together. Pour over meat. Refrigerate for a few days to let the brine do its work.

Keeps in refrigerator weeks.

Great on crackers or just plain.

Barry.

I have also put hearts in my brine when making venison pastrami and they are very tasty.

I like that recipe. 

 

[moikel]

Have been looking at the dark side too. Their is a organic hog farm 5mi from my house .I've been wondering what they did with the heads.I hear cheek meat is is great. 

I eat cheeks no big surprise ,mostly beef. Cooked low & slow in red wine ,beef stock,french style. If you want recipe just let me know. Very winter dish.Hardest working muscle on the cow,so toughest & tastiest.Pork cheeks do make a great smoked product ,call it jowl bacon or guancalle theres a recent thread. Cant see why they wouldnt be good cooked but a little fatty.

I ate pig tongues at a farm stay style place in Italy back in 2005,done giardine (garden) style, sort of a sweet & sour with lots of lightly pickled vegetables.One of the Italian guests(northerner) asked the rather grumpy cook(Umbrian) if she knew how to cook tongue, I missed some of the exchange ,my Italian is pretty rough but it was accompanied by lots of hand gestures & some regional dialect.Short answer seemed to be "what would you know all you bloody northerners eat is polenta & sausage you might as well be german,of course I cook pig tongues"

They were really nice, & I got to see the sparks fly before hand. 
 

 

[africanmeat]

I will keep a piece of each and grill it with salt pepper and garlic

 

[moikel]

I like that recipe. 

This is in the same family of what I talked about in my post.The sweet/sour thing  vinegar/sugar is universal,works well with oily fish too. If you smoke in a way that then allows you to poach it,then salsa verde with those sharp flavours of capers & anchovy or with fruitta mostardo,mustard fruits,preserved fruit in mustard syrup is a great way to eat it. Tongue is rich,fatty meat, the contrast of tangy flavours make it really special.
 

 

[smokin vegas]

Yeah mustard is a good idea that way if you didn't boil all the pee out you couldn't see it or smell it.   That was gross wasn't it!!!

 

[redclaymud]

I've made a short video.  Everything turned out just great.  I probably overcooked things.  Okay, I see I need to get it on youtube.  I'll be back with it soon. 

Today's kidney sandwich was totally outstanding.  What a tastey treat.  You won't find that in any supermarket.  I'm totally going to do it again.

 

[redclaymud]

The Bath
Let meat soak in water for an hour, changing water three times.
Next I soaked it in a stiff brine of salt with water for a good 2 hours.  Longer would have been better.
Rinse very well and dry with paper towels.

The Prep
Remove the veins from the heart and attached faty looking material from the kidneys
Slice and dice the meat Freddie Kruker style, particularly the fat cap on the heart.
Slather yellow mustard and rub it into anything you can rub it into.  It's good to have an adult supervisor at this point.
Turn the meat over and apply rub to the bottom first.  Once you flip it back up you can apply a heavier dosage of rub to the top, being sure to work the rub into all the slice marks you made.

The Smoking
Preheat smoker to 225 degrees
Place roasts in a half tray to catch the juices or on a rack with a catching tray underneath.  There will be a lot of juices.
Cook to 170 degrees internal temperature for well done (about 5 hours)
Remove, let sit, carve.

I'm a bit squeemish of juices coming out of a kidney so I reserved the tasty drippings for the dogs this morning.

It was good.  Just the right flavor.  What I tasted was a bit of the yellow mustard (nothing unpleasant) and a mild rub that enhanced the flavor of the meat.  The meaty taste was different than any other beef I've tried.  It kind of reminded me of the lunchmeat my dad used to put on his sandwiches when I was growing up.

I'll give it 3.5 out of 5 Stars.  I think I overcooked the heart but the kidney was perfect in flavor and tenderness.  Maybe hearts are naturally tougher.  I don't know but I will try again.