experiments

[coraa]

I ran out of bagels for lunch, so instead I toasted a piece of garlic naan, spread cream cheese (actually, Neufchatel, but who's counting) on top, sprinkled over capers, and topped that with lox (actually, gravlax from Ikea; I think the difference is that gravlax includes dill in the curing process?). Cut into quarters, it was sort of a cream-cheese-n-lox pizza. Tasty!

For dinner, I am going to experiment with adding smoke to my grilling repetoire when I make grilled chicken. I have never smoked anything in my life. Wish me luck!

EDIT: I am steeping lemon, garlic, and thyme (my favorite flavor combo for roast or grilled chicken) to make a brine for the chicken, and let me tell you, they are making the WHOLE HOUSE smell of garlic and lemon and thyme. It's like some kind of bizarre aromatherapy....

EDIT 2: Brining now. Brining never, ever fails to feel like magic to me, when applied to chicken parts. It's insurance against overcooking and incredibly effective seasoning, all in one! And it's not even hard!

Comments

[daedala]

Woo, good luck with smoking! And report pls!

I just made boned pork chops per Cook's Illustrated's slightly odd technique, and they were wonderful. (Lightly oil, salt, and pepper them; sprinkle a tiny bit of sugar on one side; put them sugar-side down in a cold pan. Heat on medium till browned, then turn over and cook, covered, on low to 140F. It was much better than the usual way of heating them on the stove.)

[squirrel-monkey.livejournal.com]

Good luck! Are you smoking outside or in the oven?

[coraa.livejournal.com]

Outside, on the grill. I'm trying the Cooks Illustrated method for smoking on a gas grill—putting the soaked wood chips in a foil packet and putting that off to one side of the grill, over fairly high heat.

[squirrel-monkey.livejournal.com]

Nice! Best of luck with it. I've been experimenting a little with smoking in the oven, using a pan of black tea under the poultry, on high heat. Please let us know how your gas grill version goes!

[coraa.livejournal.com]

Oh, tea-smoking in the oven sounds like a great idea!

I will definitely post about my Adventures in Grill-Smoking.