I really needed to get all of this salmon parceled and packaged for freezing a couple of days ago, but just could not get to it. took the dogs out for a run this morning and intended to package all this up when we got back. when I started unwrapping salmon to vacuum seal somehow an impromptu lunch erupted. cold smoked salmon, two kinds of Gravlax, cream cheese, boursin cheese, crackers, chopped fresh dill, sliced grape tomato, capers, sriracha, fresh cracked pepper, and one of the most enjoyable Bordeaux's I've ever swallowed at any price. mighty large livin' for us common folk. got pretty lucky with my trial runs of curing and smoking salmon. wine, too.
my food "to-do" list
- Thread starter Jamie
- Start date
Looks good! Getting your hands on a deli slicer would probably save you some time and work, and give you more consistent thickness. Cutting all of that bacon with a knife has got to be time consuming. Now I’m hungry!
like this, Sarge.
this rinky-dink little slicer cost me $12 tmd on Ebay about 10 years ago. it is a piece of crap as far as deli slicers go, but I've got the blade extremely sharp, relatively speaking, and it does the job pretty well. to cut full slices you cannot use the safety guide. have to free hand the belly across the blade. gets a little dangerous when you get to the end of the belly and there is nothing left to hold on to. not one scrap of this bacon goes to waste. whatever I cannot slice will get chopped up and packaged as "bacon ends", which is mostly what you cut off to square up the bellies for slicing. awesome for flavoring beans of all kinds, cabbage, or for use in anything that requires chopped bacon. Nancy requested Carbonara for her birthday dinner tonight. cannot make it better than with fresh eggs and fresh bacon ends.
Sgt Fury
Sgt. Spellchecker
Looks great! As soon as I retire (soon) I’m going to dive head first into learning all that I can about smokers. I have a couple of friends that do it so I’ll be getting advice from them, as well as asking questions on here.like this, Sarge.
this rinky-dink little slicer cost me $12 tmd on Ebay about 10 years ago. it is a piece of crap as far as deli slicers go, but I've got the blade extremely sharp, relatively speaking, and it does the job pretty well. to cut full slices you cannot use the safety guide. have to free hand the belly across the blade. gets a little dangerous when you get to the end of the belly and there is nothing left to hold on to. not one scrap of this bacon goes to waste. whatever I cannot slice will get chopped up and packaged as "bacon ends", which is mostly what you cut off to square up the bellies for slicing. awesome for flavoring beans of all kinds, cabbage, or for use in anything that requires chopped bacon. Nancy requested Carbonara for her birthday dinner tonight. cannot make it better than with fresh eggs and fresh bacon ends.
View attachment 72964
my last food chore. 23 quarts of squirrel, 6 pints of venison. plus I vac packed 7 packs of three squirrels worth of parts for sous vide or braising. glad that is over. running three canners at the same time does make the job go much faster, though.
Buckmaster
Senior Member
I do that, and it never works for me when I'm canning meat. I guess I've always used white vinegar. maybe cider vinegar is better. I'll try that next time. I'm probably over filling jars. I always remove lids and hand wash the jars of squirrel and venison. is much less of an issue with beans and tomatoes. vinegar does do a nice job of keeping inside of canner from getting too messy, though.
I guess I do have one more food chore to tend to. 50 lbs of venison to thaw, grind and package. by then it will be time to make sausage.
I have 50#s of geese awaiting similar duty. We're planning a sausage party for March Madness to do it all up. Gotta get my new smoker first.
I'm selling my WSM and going propane. I'm over babysitting the charcoal and was never really impressed with how the WSM held temp, at least mine anyways. Leaning towards this model right now...
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Smoke-Hollow-44-in-Gas-Smoker-with-Window-44241GW/206288906
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Smoke-Hollow-44-in-Gas-Smoker-with-Window-44241GW/206288906
HA! I'm a "set it and forget it" kind of guy. Just sitting around babysitting a smoker does not fit my lifestyle very well. If I want to go all out, I'll build a fire and throw my grate over the coals. Other than that, I'm about to KISS my smoking endeavors!
nice. I like my electric smoker because it largely runs itself once I get it set up and adjusted to temperature I want. still have to babysit any smoker some, but with a constant, controllable heat source it is much simpler. I love my charcoal for other things. for long, low and slow cooks, (brisket, pork shoulder, bacon, large sausages, etc.) charcoal or wood just isn't for me.
Sgt Fury
Sgt. Spellchecker
I don’t own a smoker yet but will be getting one. My friends told me they have smokers that use wood pellets with an auger type feed system. I also think they are electric. From what I’m told, it’s a set it and forget it type of setup.
I've looked at the Traegers, but can't get myself to spend that coin. But those auger fed wood pellet grills/smokers are the cat's ass.
I have a pit boss pellet grill/smoker. I got it back in early summer I think. Love it so far. Really nice to put some meat on the smoker and wait for it by the pool with a cold beer in hand. I still check it about every hour just to make sure but never really needed to.
Sgt Fury
Sgt. Spellchecker
I was told they have temp gauges that go into the meat and there is an app that you can use on your smartphone to monitor the temps. He says they are designed to tolerate the heat. You don’t even have to get out of the pool! F’ing technology!
LOLI was told they have temp gauges that go into the meat and there is an app that you can use on your smartphone to monitor the temps. He says they are designed to tolerate the heat. You don’t even have to get out of the pool! F’ing technology!