The next time you buy a ham from the grocery store, forget about warming it up in the oven! Why not use your smoker to add more smoke flavor? So you may be asking, why do this when most hams are already smoked? Answer: more better smoke! Will it be too much smoke? NO!! And to top things off, add a layer of apple butter and upgrade that grocery store ham into a delicious masterpiece.
Directions
Start your smoker at 250F using cherry or hickory wood. Remove the ham from the packaging and place it face down on a cooling rack. When the smoker reaches temp, place the ham on the smoker for at least 2 hours.
At around 1 and a half hours, add the apple butter to a cast iron sauce pan and then warm it up on the smoker for 30 minutes.
At 2 hours, brush the apple butter onto the ham until it is all applied. Increase the smoker temperature to 275, then cook the ham for 1 hour. At this point, remove the ham and let it rest for 10 minutes. Slice, eat, and enjoy!
Are you ready to step up your usual St Patricks day meal? Why not try corned beef and cabbage on your pellet smoker? Nothing beats the delicious flavor of smoked brisket and you get even more flavor with a corned beef brisket! Add to that a smoked cabbage stuffed with bacon, onion, and jalapeño and you have a winning meal!
Directions
First, remove the corned beef from the packaging and wash off the red liquid. Save the seasoning packet for later. Place the corned beef in a container and submerge it in water. Place the container in the refrigerator and allow it to soak overnight. This will draw out the salt from the beef. On the next day, remove the corned beef from the water and pat it dry with paper towels. Place the beef on a sheet of cellophane, then apply the garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper. Grind up the seasoning packet into a powder, then apply it to the corned beef. Finally apply the dried thyme. Flip the beef over and apply the same seasonings in order. Next tightly wrap the beef in the cellophane and place it back in the refrigerator for 1 more night.
On the third day, get your pellet smoker started at 275 F with cherry wood pellets. Remove the corned beef from the refrigerator and unwrap it from the cellophane. If you like, you can dust on more of the seasoning. When the smoker reaches temp, place the beef on the smoker fat side up. You should expect a 4 – 6 hour cook time and the beef should reach a finishing temp of 185 F. When the beef reaches around 150 F – 160 F you should wrap it in butcher paper or aluminum foil. This will help to make the beef tender. When the beef reaches 185 F, place it in a cooler and close the lid. Let it rest for 1 hour before unwrapping and slicing.
To prepare the cabbage, first remove the tough leaves on the outer layer. Next cut the core out of the center of the cabbage using a chefs knife. You want to get a nice sized cavity carved out, roughly the size of a can of soup. Next, place the cabbage in a foil pan, then roll up a sheet of foil to create a ring to hold the cabbage in place. Apply BBQ rub or salt and pepper to the cavity. Next add 1 tablespoon of butter to the cavity. Slice the bacon into bits then fry the bacon in a pan. Remove the bacon when it starts to foam. Remove most of the bacon grease leaving behind about 1/4 inch. Next dice the onion and jalapeños and fry them in the bacon grease until the onions begin to turn translucent. Stuff the cabbage cavity with bacon onion and jalapeño. Add the remaining to the foil pan. Add more seasoning and butter to the top of the cabbage stuffing. Place the foil pan in the smoker and cook for 2 hours. Next wrap the cabbage and extra bacon onion and jalapeño mixture in two sheets of aluminum foil. Cook for another hour then remove it from the smoker. Let the cabbage rest for 10 minutes to cool down, then open the foil and shred the cabbage.
Pulled chicken sandwiches are a tasty treat that is easy to make and full of flavor. With this recipe we brine our chicken overnight to add moisture and flavor. Then we smoke it low and slow for several hours and finish it on grill for a kiss of fire. And of course you can build your sandwiches any way you like or you can follow our quick and easy sandwich recipe.
Directions
First thing to do is to cut out the backbone of the chickens and snip the breast plate so that the chicken will lay flat. This will allow for the chicken to cook evenly so that you are not drying out the breast meat while waiting on the thigh meat to reach proper temperature. Next you should brine your chickens overnight so that they stay moist during the smoking process. For this brine we will place each chicken in a gallon zip seal bag, then add 1 tablespoon kosher salt, 1/2 teaspoon dried sage, dried thyme, and dried rosemary. Finally add 2 cups of apple juice to the bags, seal em up and put them in the refrigerator for 24 hours. Every few hours you should flip the chicken bags over to allow each side to soak in the brine.
After your chicken is brined, wash off the brine and herbs then place the chickens on a cooling rack. Next you want to cut the skin down the center so that you can pull the skin back and season the exposed meat. Heavily season the breast, thigh and drum meat. Flip the chickens over and season the back side. Flip the chickens back then pull the skin back in place to cover the meat. The skin will keep the meat from drying out, and because this is pulled chicken, we really don’t need to worry about keeping the skin all pretty for slicing into. So season the skin and these chickens are ready for the smoker.
Get your smoker running between 240 and 260 Fahrenheit using pecan wood. You can also use hickory or mesquite but avoid using apple if you decided to brine with apple juice. That’s just too much of the same and you should try and layer the flavor instead. Place the chickens on the smoker and let them go for several hours until the temperature in the breast reaches 150 F. At this point get your grill fired up and transfer the chicken to the grill. Place the chicken skin side down and close the lid. Cook for at least 10 minutes keeping an eye on the grill for flare ups. Flip the chickens to back side down then cook until you reach 165 F in the breast and 175 F in the thighs. At this point remove the chickens and allow them to rest for 10 minutes.
When the chickens have rested, put on some heat gloves and start to hand shred the chicken. When it comes to heat gloves, we are talking about a liner glove with a nitrate outer glove. These offer the best movement and touch while blocking heat from your skin. Pull the chicken being very careful not to include any bones or cartilage. When you are done, make a second pass looking for bones. It is very easy to overlook bones when pulling chicken meat. And when it comes to skin, this is up to you, but it will add a nice flavor to shred up and include the skin.
Okay sandwich its time! This is a simple sandwich we are making, it’s just a burger bun with a slice of baby Swiss. Then we add the pulled chicken, some dill pickle chips and some BBQ sauce. Of course you can make whatever sandwich you like, but we hope you give this one a try and let us know what you think.
Cheese, bacon and potatoes. So what part of that is not delicious? This recipe brings a ton of flavor from your pellet smoker or stick burner and compliments every meat that you smoke. No lie there is a bit of effort involved for this recipe, but it can be split into multiple days if needed.
Directions
First, remove the cream cheese from the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature. While this is in progress, slice the bacon into bits and fry it a skillet on medium heat. While the bacon is cooking, dice the onion and jalapeno pepper. After the bacon has cooked for about 8 minutes, drain most of the grease and leave about 2 – 3 tablespoons in the skillet. Add onion and jalapeno, then continue to cook until the onion becomes translucent. Next add the flour and stir for several minutes. Next, slowly add the heavy whipping cream followed by the regular cream. Continue to stir on a medium heat, and add a few slices of cream cheese. Stir until it melts into the sauce, then continue to add more until all is incorporated into the sauce. Reduce the heat to low and stir occasionally as you work on the potatoes.
Wash the potatoes then use a mandolin with a thin blade and slice the potatoes. Add the slices to a large bowl filled with water to prevent them from turning brown. When the potatoes are all sliced up, use a stick of butter or vegetable shortening to grease up a 12 inch cast iron skillet. Next, remove the sauce from the burner and lightly cover the bottom of the 12 inch skillet with a layer of sauce. Add a layer of potatoes to the skillet until the skillet is fully covered. Next cover the potatoes with some of the sauce mixture followed by shredded cheese. Repeat these steps until all the ingredients are used. Smoke at 275 for 3 hours (do not stir) then cover the skillet with heavy foil and cook for another 30 minutes. Check the potatoes for tenderness using a toothpick and continue to cook if needed. The toothpick should pierce through the potatoes with little resistance. If the potatoes are still too firm, cover and cook another 30 minutes.
Print This Recipe
