For BETTER barbeques

and TASTIER meat smoking!

IILITTLE CH/EFII

MB

SUPERIOR QUALITY- Luhr Jensen's "Hickory Flavor" is a specially selected 100%-pure Ozark kiln-dried hickory. It is not a mixture.

DELIGHTFUL FLAVOR- to obtain the superior flavor produced by

deep-smoldering hickory, the hickory is pre-dried then pulverized tc

a fine texture. This produces a hot smoke flavor which thoroughly per.

meates the meat in a short while.

EASY TO USE- for barbeques and hibaches, slightly dampen the flavor

and sprinkle around the perimeter of the coals. For the "Little Chief"

Smoker, simply fill the flavor pan and place over the heating element. 2 2-POUND $300 BOXES, ONLY ...

(A FUll 4 POUND SUPPLY)

LUHR JENSEN and SONS, INC. I HOOD RIVER, OREGON LUHR JENSEN and SONS, LTD. I VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA

E!Jo;: .. real, hot-smoked

Hickory Flavor at home with this

New! Elect,icl

"LITTLE CHIEF"

SMOKER

• ELECTRIC-NO FUSSIN' AROUND

• All ALUMINUM CONSTRUCTION

• USES OZARK KILN-DRIED HICKORY

• SMOKES UP TO 20 LBS. OF MEAT IN 10 TO 12 HOURS.

Printed In U. S. A.

2

The Nitty Gritty of SMOKE- COOKING

by Dan Stair

I'll never forget the man's facial Pxpresion in Las Vegas when he hit the dollar jackpot on the slot ma­chine, it was very nearly the same look produced by my neighbor when he sampled his first piece of home­smoked salmon. Smoking goes back so far that historians aren't sure when it really began. Cave-men very well could have enjoyed smoked Brontosaurus or even Saber-toothed tiger jerkey. In the pioneer days, during long cold winters, the food supply had to hold out until spring and smoking or salt curing was the way it was preserved. Frontiersmen such as Joe Meek, Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett reportedly lasted for days on nothing more than pemmi­can, smoked venison or buffalo jerky, all made pretty much with the same recipe we use today. Up until now, most smokin' recipes have been passed along by word-of-mouth and a "fly by the seat of your pants to suit yer own taste." One thing for sure, the mouth-watering smoked flavor has been around for a long time with no evidence of its popu­larity ever decreasing. Since our space at home is often limited to where there isn't always enough room to build a big smokehouse, this hook presents what we think are good ways to enjoy smoked goodies hy merely plugging in your Little Chief Smoker.

WHAT MAKES SMOKE-CURING TICK

It's a challenge for any cook to put together a different meal and wind up with the food having just the right amount of flavor. The more a cook knows about the ins and outs of how smoking works, the better their chances for a first c1ass end product. For a long time, I thought that 1t was the smoke itself that cured meat, but I now understand this is not the case at all. The whole idea seems to be a matter of sur-

rounding cured meat with smoke and drawing out the moisture to preserve it along with seasoning the meat with a rich smoke flavor. Actu­ally, it's not the smoke that cures meat but, the heat accompanying the smoke. Air is drawn in at the bottom of the smoker over smolder­ing wood to supply oxygen that has been burned. The smoke passes around the meat carrying heat with it as it looks for the small escape­ment hole at the top of the smoker. Since heat surrounds the meat, it therefore is not necessary that the meat be turned.

There are three basic ways food can be smoked, each method differs in the amount of time and temper­ature required to complete the proc­ess. The hottest and fastest of the three is SMOKE COOKERY, where temperatures run in the neighbor­hood of 200 to 400 degrees. Smoke cookery is not much more than tak­ing a backyard barbecue, pulling a cover on it, sprinkling hardwood chips on the charcoals and then cooking the meat.

The second type of smoking is COLD SMOKING, where the meat is placed on racks a good distance from a low temperature smouldering fire and cured at about 90" F for as short as several days up to a long as four weeks. Cold smoking is also known as "hard smoking" (this is dependent on the length of preserva­tion desired). The critical factor in cold smoking is the temperature. it must be below 90"F. This means the fire must be kept constant and low, tended during the night, and some­one must he on hand at all times to maintain the proper heat level. Should the fire get too hot, the meat will not come out properly.

The third way to smoke is HOT SMOKING. In hot smoking, tem­peratures run lOO"F to l90°F, allow­ing the meat to be entirely or parti­ally cooked while also adding the

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!lmokc flavor. Hot smi>king is by far the:> most popular of thf:' thrc:>e ways. With a few hand-mixed in,:;-n•dients and an el<>ctric smoker you can turn nul hams. turkc:>y. spar<>ribs. fish. hors d'oeuvres and countless other foods that have an old fashioned flavor no commNcial meat plant could c:>ver alford to produn•.

TAKING THE CURE Following tlw correct curing

mc:>thod is just as important in get­ting the:> bc:>st flavor from your smok<'d mc:>al or fish as the:> final smoking itself. The:> smoke:> imparts that spc:>cial flavor, hut hdorc you hc:>gin smoking, a curing procedure is rc:>quirc:>d. This cur(' can lw either a drv or brine cure. both arc mixtures. or"salt, sugar and spices. The:> brine cur<> is the:> soaking of the meat in a solution of the:> above ingredients mixc:>d in wat<>r. while the dry cure is rubbed onto the meat. Dry cure will normally produce:> a saltier flavor. causing more shrinkage than the brine:> method. It's good to rc­memhc:>r that micro-organisms which cause meat f<>rmentation or spoilage nc:>NI water to flourish. Salt draws the water out from meat making for lc:>ss dc:>sirable t·onditions for spoilage to hc:>gin. One<> placed in the �mokcr. the heat from smoking slowly re­moves moisture while the !'moke it­self improves tht' taste. A piece of mc:>al can accept only so much smoke so fast and any additional �moke may he> wasl<•d since:> the meat rt•achc:>s a saturation point and heat is rc:>quired to dry it out more:> before additional �mok<> can penc:>trate. Ex­cc:>ssiv<> hc:>at will quickly cook or evt•n burn the:> meat. not allowing c:>noug-h time:> for moisture:> removal and the smoke:> to impregnate. On the other hand. if you don't cure your meat long enough. or use enough salt mixture:> thc:>n the door is open for spoilage:>.

It's I he:> salt in butter that keeps it from spoiling. As in all types of food prc:>paration. attempting to pur­chase the:> hc:>st ingredients possible:> is a good practice:>. \Vhcnevcr pos­sihl(•, usc I he:> pre-mixed curing salt available at most butcher shops and packing houses. rr curing salt isn't available, try to get the "dairy fine" grade or "three quartt'rs'' ground salt. Pure salt has fewer chc:>mical impurities (espc:>l'ially carbonates

4

and ma,:;-ncsiurs) that may delay penetration and give the:> product a biUc:>r taste:>. If you wind up in a pinch. then usc:> rl'gular tahll' !�alt. Commt•rcial smoJ..ing houst•s oftt•n use a coarse:> salt to spec:>d up th<> curing pnx·<•ss ( nx·k salt). The ust• of sugar in all brining mixtures is to reduce the hardening effect of the salt. Brown sugar or molasses may he substituted according to your taste.

As mentioned earliN, there's a drv cure that is rubbed into the meat an·d also. the:> brine .�oahi11g cure. Each has its place:> in preparing smoked products and you will find it included where it's most popular in the recipes that follow. The dry cure can lw fastc:>r although it may cause the mc:>at to shrink and have a saltier flavor. Usually, it's merely rubbed on the ml'at and letting the meat stand for the alloted time before smoking. Rc:>member to always ww;h on the meal and let it air dry before going on to smoking.

Brine curing before smoking al­lows less shrinkage, leaves the meat a little moister and seems to retain slightly more flavor than dry cure. Be sure that you use a brine con­tainer that is made from glass, plas­tic or c:>namel. J\n excellc:>nl container is the good ole 5 or 10 gallon stone­ware "crock" (also extremely effec­tive for home brew preparation). The stoneware tends to absorb fewer foreign flavors into the contain<>r walls. Using a metal container (es­pecially aluminum) may often cause the meat to discolor and pick up a hitter metallic taste:>., all reacts with aluminum. actually disintegrating it into the:> brine. You can see for your­self how this action works by taking some aluminum foil and letting salt stand on it ov<>r night. The salt eats right through the foil! In brine cur­ing. it's important to make:> enough of the solution to »uhmerge the meat entirely. A plat£> with some sort of weight can he used to keep the meat completely und<>r the surface. Should any portion protrude:> from the mix­ture into thE' opc:>n air, chant·es for spoilage will become:> c:>xcellc:>nt.

The amount of salt. sugar and spices can he:> ehangc:>d to suit your last<'. Wlwn I am in a hurry. I cut my hrining t imp for smokf'd fish in half by using I /2 part rock salt and I 2. part euring salt instead of on<'

whole part curing salt. A prehrine solution may be pre­

pared to leech out E'XCE'SSive blood and water from meat hy mixing 1/2 cup salt to one quart water and hold­ing the meal in it for about I /2 hour. Then make:> the rE'gular solution for brining two to eight hours. At the end of the normal brining time, re­move the:> meat and always rinse it niT umlc:>r cold running water and lh<>n lc:>t dry about an hour at room fpmp<>ralure before placing in smok­<>r. You will he able to notice that a tacky gla;�.e forms on the outside of the:> meat. If the wa.�h and dry part is skippc:>d, the mc:>at will sweat, cre­ating a black condensation on the in­side:> or your smok<>r that drips hack on thE' meat lc:>aving a sour taste. Jt nl'v<>r hurls to ,:;-t>ntly pat the:> rinsed niT mc:>at with a dry pap<>r towel he fore lh<' hour drying period is started. The most important keys In c:>xp<>rt curing arc:> 7'/111 E and Ai\IOUNT. PRESERVATION OF MEAT IN THE FIELD

I think we:> all have eome across somc:>nn<• that ahsolut<>ly could not stand the tastl' of vt•nisnn. Most claim that lhl' deN m<•at they tried was sour and had a funny flavor. The:> odds arc:> good that musk gland hairs got on the:> mc:>at that the per­son happenc:>d to l'al or possibly one of many otlwr things eould have happ('llNI in tlw preparation of the ganw to taint it. Naturally, c:>very­mw's likt's and dislikt>s are diiTNent hut. many ('XIlt'rts l'Cllllt>nd that more:> oftc:>n than not. wild game propt>rly fie:> lei cl r<•ssc:>d, storc:>d, eooled and pn•pared will provide:> a mc:>al fit for a king, particularly deer mc:>at. Fic:>lcl dr('ssing- and prc:>sc:>rvation of g-ame• is a vNy important point and t lw fislwrnwn haVl' t lw ha rdl·st hat­Ill' to wage against spoilag-e:> since:> fislwric:>s produds require morP lt>m­porary l'ar<• in the fi<>ld. For l'X­amplt•. what would a fislwrman do wlwn lw mak<•s a g-ood l'ateh in the morning, doesn't plan to rt'turn to" camp hl'fore late:> aft<>rnoon and the:> sun is glaring clown? Wdl. lht• lwst protl'dion on hot clays or any timl' you catch a fish is to at ll'ast cut th(' gills nut and hi<•Pd it (ch•an it the:> rc:>st of the:> way just as soon as you g<>l a ehance). Be sure:> to gc:>l all the:> blood and intC>rnal workjn's removed

from the belly cavity. If it's going to be a while before you can get your cateh to a cooler or refrigerator, rub the lwlly cavity with salt and cover the fish with wc:>l burlap or leaves and place in a shady spot. KE'pt in this way. the fish should he alright for a good 24 hours without icc (even those huge:> monsle>rs that always bite on Luhr .Jt>nsc:>n Lures). The com­mercial salmon trollers on the Pa­cific Ocean make dressing their sal­mon a priority project after the fish has bec:>n landed. They drE'SS the sal­mon meticulously, cleaning the cav­ity bc:>fore icing the fish down and placing in the hold. These salmon have to stay fresh for as long as seven days before hc:>ading into port. The smallest portion of blood or membrane that is left in the cavity is a prime spot for deterioration to start. Micro-organisms require warmth and moisture before they can cause spoilage. The best temper­atures for these pesky little devils to go to work is lwlwE'en 70"F and IOO"F. Meat cutlers store:> their fresh meat at tc:>mp<>ralures ranging from 33" F to 40" F for maximum preser­vation. What I've been healing the drum about is this ... "No matter how select fish or game is to start with, the way it is cared for will make all the difference in the world how it wjll finally taste on the table. ADDING FUEL TO THE FIRE

�� t ' �3��� � .. \.. � J � :'t\,c.'l-�11.:

The smoke:> flavor of your meat is dc:>pendenl on the:> selc:>ction of a good wood to gc:>n<>ratc the bc:>st taste:>. I'll bet the:> piorwvrs had some:> diiT<>rc:>nl tasting mc:>al whc:>n tlwy servc:>d up thc:>ir food smokc:>d with "buffalo chips."' Some of the:> more popular

5

woods that can be used for fuel are maple, apple, cherry, beech, old driftwood, birch, oak, manzanita roots, nut trees, grape vine trim­mings, sweet bay, green wood, river mangrove, leaves, seaweed, corn cobs, coconut husks and the best of all . . . old fashioned kiln dried Hickory Flavor. The hickory saw­dust is the very finest smoker fuel since it smolders evenly and slowly and emits more smoke. In the old "outhouse" type smokehouses, they used damp or wet sawdust or green wood to control the smoking tern· perature. One problem with wet saw­dust is when it dries out over the coals it will burn, raising the tem­perature too high. In your Little Chief electric smoker, there should be no problem in smoking with the pulverized Hickory Flavor since the heating element remains at just the right temperature, maintaining max­imum smoke production and pene­tration. The Little Chief stays at approximately 150•F to 170•F in­side so you can allow a pan of Hick­ory Flavor to burn out (takes about 40 minutes) and still let the heat inside the smoker gently work the smoke into the meat without fear of the meat burning. For example, if you smoke jerky for eight hours and prefer a moderate smoke flavor, you may want to use only two or three pans of sawdust allowing the inside heat to slowly remove the excess moisture between pans of Hickory Flavor. Chunks of hickory can be added to the standard hickory flavor sawdust to produce a longer and slower smoke. Place as many chunks as can touch the bottom of the flavor pan topping ofT with pulverized Hickory Flavor. Once the Hickory Flavor begins to smolder it starts the chunks going. Woods like, fir, pine, hemlock or any resinous or ever· green wood fuel will give the food a bitter coal tar or creosote oil flavor. Our advise is to experiment with known good smoking woods and mix them with Hickory Flavor until you come up with a smoking flavor that suits your fancy.

FREEZING AND THAWING FISH Fresh fish stored in air tight con­

tainers will last three to four days in a refrigerator. If the fish are not going to be used immediately, the sooner they are cured or frozen, the better. Freezing fish can be done by

6

double wrapping thC'm in a mois­ture proof material, sealing them in an air tight container, or freezing them in water (glazing). If air reaches any portion of the fish in the freezer, chances are the meat will become "freez<'r burnt" (dehydra­tion and oxidation). Fish not prop· erly prepared for the freezer can't he expected to keep very long.

Before freezing fresh fish in water, remove fins, head, tail, and double check for any bruises. Cut fish into usable chunks. Make a solution of one cup salt to every three quarts water and dip the chunks briefly in this saline solution. With a poly con­tainer or used milk carton, drop large chunks in and surround com· pletely with water, allowing for ex· pansion of the frozen water. Sub· merged and frozen in water, fresh fish will keep from eight months to one year. Actually. the best i nsu r· ance of a first class freezing job on fresh fish is to pick up some "Freeze­Guard" at your favorite sport shop. This Freeze-Guard is made for freezing fish and works like a mil­lion bucks!

To thaw frozen fresh fish, plaCC' in refrigerator at 37• F' to 40•F.

SLOW thawing of fresh fish tends to keep the flesh firm. Fish frozen in an air-tight container should he placed in a refrigerator at 37• F to 40• F' for thawing. Fish that wa'l frozen in water, place under running cold tap water to gradually thaw. Fresh fish that have been frozen actually tend to make for better smoked fish since the freezing SC'ems to open up the cells to acc�?pt thC' smoke better.

If in doubt as to whC'thN or not thC' meat is spoiled, press gently down on the skin with your finger, if the flesh springs hack the meat

ought to be all right. If a dent re­mains, chances are it's a borderline case and could be spoiled.

Refrigerated smoked fish will last about two weeks. Frozen smoked fish will keep a good year. Wrap in usable sized packages.

Right away when smoked fish is mentioned, a lot of people think of smoked salmon or herring. It's easy to smoke fish and there are all sorts of difTerent kinds of fish that can be prepared. To name a few, striped bass, sturgeon, tuna, blues, smelt, halibut, trout, cod, bass, lake trout, and steelhead. Once the fish have been prepared for curing (see sec· tion on preparation of fish for smok­ing), the real work is done. After smoking hundreds of pounds of fish for demonstrations on smoking and for our family, here's my favorite recipe ... from the way friends dive into the fish smoked this way, I'd say that it goes over in a big way.

"SURE-FIRE SMOKED FISH.!"

Mix these ingredients in a brine container ... For every I quart of water:

2 cups regular or brown sugar I cup curing salt I cup rock salt The above amount is about right

for up to 10 pounds of fish, for larger quantities increase portions accord­ingly. Place fish chunks skin side up in brine. Submerge a large dinner plate or plastic lid just below the brine surface to insure no portion of the meat pieces are protruding from the brine into the air. Cure fish in brine solution for five hours (six hours for saltier flavor). When cur­ing time has elap£ed, rinse each piece, rubbing meat gently until the slippery feeling from the brine solu­tion is rinsed off. On a spread out towel, place fish skin side down and pal excess moisture away with paper towels. Allow fish to air dry for 60 minutes (now is a good time to plug in smoker for pre-heating). you'll know when air drying step is com­pleted because fish gets a tacky glaze on the outside. Smoker should he adequately preheated so fish will begin curing immediately when put in smoker.

With the air drying completed, fish is ready to he put on smoker racks. Should additional seasoning such as garlic, onion, maple flavor-

FOllOW THESE EASY STEPS FOR FILETING YOUR FISH

7

8

ing, or brown sugar (1-(iVI'S rich flavor) be desired. now's the timl' to ruh it in. Arrange the ml'at on the smoker racks skin side down so that the pieces are not touching each other (lets the smokl' surround meat bettl'r). Put the thickest chunks on the bottom rack and the thinner pieces on the top rack since the bot­tom ones t

_end to complete smoking

fastN. It rs not necessary to turn the fish once they are placed on the racks.

HOWTO USE YOUR LITTlE CHIEF

This smoker can be operated in a patio. open carport, fireplace, shed or other place where air currents are not too strong but yet will draw smoke away. The smoker can be op­erated on asphalt tile, wooden floors, and rubber tile without fear of heat damage. It is a good idea to put paper towels, aluminum foil or news­paper under the smoker to protect the floor against any possible juice leakage. DO NOT operate the elec­tric smoker on an excessively long line or cord since the lowerl'd volt­age to the heating element may not produce the proper temperaturl'.

Since a good deal of smoking is done outdoors, the wind and t€'mper­ature will have considerabl€' I'ITect on the total required smoking time. For example, fish will smokl' faster when it's 75 degri'I'S outside than whl'n it's near fre(•zinl-(. For a "rule­of-thumb," when the temperature is below 50 dl'grl'es. the smokN should hi' used in its original carton (DO NOT THROW ORIGINAL CAR­TON AWAY). The carton insulates and maintains the proper internal tempNature for cold weather smok­ing. If you havl' lost your original

9

carton, merely drop Luhr J�nsen & Sons a request and they w1ll send you a replacement carton for your !;moker at no charge.

Much confusion seems to exist in regards to how often the flavor pan should be refilled with sawdust. It takes about 45 minutes for a pan of hickory flavor to exhaust itself (un­less chunks of hickory are added). Meat can reach a saturation point with smoke, accepting only so much Fmoke at so fast of a rate. Three to four pans of sawdust will usually complete smoking of fish ve�y ni.ct;IY. so instead of constantly mamtammg a dense smoke, we suggest merely Jetting the sawdust burn itself out and refilling the pan every 1 V2 hours to two hours. The heat removes moisture and then impregnates smoke flavor evenly. Some smoking recipes will suggest that the smok­ing fuel be dampened . . . DO NOT dampen pulverized hickory flavor as moisture will be transferred to meat and the object is to remove the moisture.

Once the meat is on the racks and actual smoking has begun. the smoker should l'jOT he unplugged or allowed to cool until alloted time is completed. ll is important to maintain a steady and constant tem­perature.

After fish has been in the smoker for about six hours, begin checking for doneness every half hour. There are some fairly good indications you can u.;;e to tell you when the fish is ready to remove from the smoker. The meat will become grayish pale and then as it approaches comple­tion, it begins to darken and get firmer. When it is close to being fin­ished the outside has a bronze glazed appearance that's similar to the out­side of a roast turkey. Since the meat color is different with each species of fish, you can't rely on

10

color alone. Gently break a couple of pieces open, checking to see that they are done in the center (the meat should easily flake apart). To­wards the end, the thinner chunks are often done before the thick ones and these should be removed.

When £moked fish is taken from the smoker, let it chill at room tem­perature for one-half hour, then re­frigerate in air tight containers to chill for one to two hours before serving. While the smoked fish is still warm, the outside appearance can be spruced up by brushing it with melted butter, vegetable oil, corn oil, soya oil, or cottonseed oil.

Don't count on your home-smoked fish to be a vivid red like what you see offered at the local meat market, because much of the commercially smoked fish is artificially dyed red­dish orange for consumer sales ap­peal. The reddish color (kippered) that is natural to Chinook and Sock­eye salmon seems to he what the ultimate goal is for the finished smoked fish. no matter what the species. Most of the time, smoked cod, halibut, herring, bass, etc., is colored. If you wish to color your own smoked fish pick up some red and orange food dye, prepare a solu­tion ( lf.c ounce red, lf.c ounce orange per two gallons of water) and dip fish in the solution for approximate­ly one-half minute after rinsing off the brine. ·

For flavor variation in smoked fish. spices are often added di­rectly to the brine. For a more pronounced taste, the spice can he rubb�d into the meat after removal from brine and washing (just prior to air drying). A little experiment­ing may be in order to develop the exact flavor cure you like best.

White Pepper All Spice Onion Salt Ginger Garlic Lemon Juice Molasses Dill Honey Mace Bay Leaves Brown Sugar Maple Flavoring Taha;;co Sauce

Soy Sauce

If my "Sure-Fire Smoked Fish" recipe doesn't do anything for you then here's what most hooks will recommend as a basic to work up your own cure with .. .

Standard Seafood Brine For every 1 Quart of Water s;. Cup Sugar

:Y. Cup Curing Salt lf.c Ounce Pepper

DRY CURING FISH Preparing seafood products by

means of the dry cure method is nothing more than basically leaving the water out of the brine process.

Clean. cut and ready the fish as you would for brining method, except you rub in the cure instead of soak­ing it in, pieces thicker than one inch should be scoured with a knife for maximum penetration. Standard Seafood Dry Cure

2 Cups Brown Sugar 4 Cups Curing Salt (2 cups rock

salt and 2 cups curing salt may be substituted)

After rubbing dry cure mixture into meat thoroughly, put each piece skin side down stacking one on top of the other in large deep bowl or plastic container. With a dinner plate or plastic lid that has about five pound of weight exerted on top, cure meat at room temperature for four hours. Drain away accumulated liquids. remove meat from howl and rinse each piece thoroughly under running cold tap water before ar­ranging skin side down on a towel. Dry excess water from mrat with a paper towel, begin preheating the smoker. and add additional !'cason· ing. Meat should air dry for 60 min­utes at which time a tacky glaze should have formed on the outside of the fish. Fish is now ready to begin smoking. (See "How to Use LHtloCh� SMOKIN' CRAYFISH, PRAWNS AND SHRIMP

If uncooked, peel and pre-cook meat in bouillon four to fivt> min­utes. Place meat in standard fish brine for two hours. rinse under tap water. arrange on paper towel, dry­ing l'xcess moisturP with towels. Allow to air dry. Srt either an oiled screen or cheese cloth on smoker racks and arrange shrimp so they are not touching. Smoke for l'h

hours or the time it takes to exhaust two flavor pans of hickory sawdust. SMOKED OYSTERS

If oysters are still in their shell, sc.rub shells under running water w1th a brush. Normally oysters are �huck�d either one of two ways. By msertmg a strong knife between the sh.ells, slicing the muscle (this is tr1cky to master and should he done carefully with gloves on so as not to cut hands) or the oysters can be opened by steaming in a kettle with about an inch or water in the hot­tom. Turn up the heat and the oys­te� should pop open in five to six mmutes. To firm up oysters. afll'r removal from shell, they should be blanched. �efore blanchin.g, cut larger oysters mto smaller p1eces. Blanching is easy, put the oysters in a metal strainer and dip them into boiling water until the edges curl (usually ta�es a�ut two to three minutes). Rmse w1th cool tap water. Place oysters in standard fish hrinl'

for 40 minutes. Rl'move from brine and air dry 45 minutes. Put oystl'rs on an oiled screl.'n or cheese cloth in the smoker and smokl' them 50 to 75 minutes. You can tell when the oys­ters are about done. because their edges look dri<>d out. If in doubt. remove one and taste it. Be careful not to overcook oystNS as they'll lw tougher than H - - -.

SMOKED CLAMS Clams are opened by st<>amin� in

a kettle (see smoked oysters). Shak1· clam meat from shell. split 1wck and cut out stomach with scissors. wash clam in cold water, picking out any noticeable sand particles from meat. Cure meats in standard fish hrinl' for 20 to 30 minutes.'l'akl' from brine and allow to air dry for 40 minutes. Place on oill'd scrN•n in �>mokPr and smoke for two to 2Y2 hours. SMOKEY SMELT

Thesl' are delicious and will com<> out best if prepared freshly t·aught. Dress smelt hy rl'moving heads and guts with a pair of scissors. Place in standard fish brine for llh hours.

II

Remove from brin(', air dry for 45 minutes, and arrange in preheated smoker. Smoking lime for smelt is three lo four hours.

SMOKED HERRING OR ANCHOVIES

Only fresh anchovies should lw used. With a pair of scissors. remove head and guts. Large anchovies or herring can be filleted by splitting down the back with a sharp knife, making two halves. Prepare a stand­ard fish brine with dcsired spices. cure fish in brine 30 lo 45 minutes. Remove from brine, rinse under running cold lap wal('r, preheat smoker, and air dry for 60 minutes. Smoke herring or anchovies two to three hours.

For saltier and ch('wier smoked herring or anchovies, usc lhE' "Sure Fire Smoked Fish" recipe. Standard dry cur(' may also he used alloting a six lo eight hour curing period.

SMOKED SEAFOOD "QUICKIES" FOR EVERYDAY COOKIN' EZ Smoked Fish Filets

I pound fish fillets Vs teaspoon paj>rika

2 tabl('spoons butter 1/1 slic('d onion rings

I teaspoon Wore<>sl<>rshire sauc<' (('mon juicc

Place fillcLc; in grcas<>d shallow bak­ing "dish (haking dish should h(' pyr('x and also fit into Lillie Chid Smoker easily). Sprinkle with lcmon, Worceslcrshirc sauce. sail. pepper and paprika. Place in prc­heqled smoker for I 'h hours (about lh<' timc it lakcs for two pans of hickory flavor lo burn). Remove from smokcr. place uncovercd in oven prcheated to 350 degrees. Bak(' for 20 minul<>s.

SMOKED SALMON OR TUNA SPREAD

For sandwiches that are a real treat, drain liquid from canned sal­mon or eannccl tuna, place in greased baking dish that will fit casily into smoker. Flake fish with fork, spread­ing out over thc dish. Place in pre-11Caled smokcr and smoke for one hour (time it takes for one pan of Hickory Flavor to cxhaust itself). Removc from smoker, allow to cool

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and prepare your favorite sandwich spread with smoked flavor<>d fish.

WOW!!!!!

JIFFY SMOKED FISH PATTIES 2 cups flaked fish (eanned or

leftover) 2 beaten eggs l cup bread crumbs or craekcrs I tablespoon minccd onion Dash pepper and salt Placc fL'!h in greased baking dish

that will fit easily into Little Chief Smoker. Separatc fish evcnly over the bottom with a fork and put un­covered in smoker for one hour. Allow to cool and combine fish with rest of ingredients. Mix eomplctely. mold into ;;attics and fry in hot bul­ler or haeon grease until golden brown. Thcsc will also go ovcr great on toast with whitc sauec or make up a smoked fishburger with all thc trimmings!

As you can scc. thc Little Chief Smoker is a hig hclp to thc eook that wants to turn out a mcal that's an extra treat. Usc somP imagination and goodies likP the following can he whipped up, mokpd Clam Dip, Smoked Shrimp or Tuna Casserole. Smok<'d Broilcd LohstPr. FrPnch FriPd Smokcd Shrimp, Smoked Crah and Chc<'SP Sandwich<'s arP just a few of many SPafood dishPs that will delight pveryonP at thc lahlP.

HICKORY .SMOKED: Chicken,

Pheasant, Duck, Grouse, Quail, Ptarmigan

The flavor of smokpd ehickPn takPs a hack seal to nom•. rrs important that your SPieetion hP only "GradP A" fryprs or roast('rS. Tlw frPshPr thc hcltcr. Chicken can pasily he

flavur smoi..Pd whoiP, halvt>d, or cut 111 pil•ccs. If ehiekPn is froz<>n. thaw 1n refrigcrator complctply. Prepare the following brine in stoneware crock or non-aluminum container. For every 2 quarts of water:

1/2 cup hrown sugar I cup curing salt 4 tablespoons black pepppr I tablespoon onion powder I hay leaf

lj1 cup lemon juice y, teaspoon mapll' navoring

After mixing brine thoroughly. immerse chicken using weighted plate or lid to insure no portion of the meat protrudes from the brine surface. Let chicken cure one hour per pound. When brining period is complete, remove. rinse under cold tap water. wipe away excess mois­ture, and allow to air dry for one hour. A whole hird should be sus­pended from built-in meat har of the smoker rack (see Illustrations # !�. .. , .. ) . Cut-up chickcn pieces should he placed on smoker racks. out of the smoker. for air drying. Preheat smoker while allowing chicken to air dry for 60 minutes. Be/ore placing the chic/len in the smoher. rub the following mixture into the meat:

1h cup brown sugar I tablespoon onion or

garlic powder 4 tablespoons black pepper

Put chickPn in smoker, if hotlom rack is not being used. fabricate a drip pan from aluminum foil to lay on bottom rack. Smohe I Yt hours per pound.

Even though it takcs only 45 min­utes for a pan of hickory flavor saw­dust to exhaust itself. it's not nec­Pssary to dump thP ashes and refill flavor pan pvery 45 minutPS. Refill flavor pan only four times during entire smoking uf ('hicken (lw sure and r<>ad section "Adding Fuel to the Fire" about thc usc of "chunks" with hickory flavor).

Brush the outsidP of m<'at ""ith butter every llh hours. Othcr s;>•• ... may be addcd to bullcr for Pnnch­ing flavor of thP chickPn. sauc• , 1'"'

t<>riyaki saucc, harlwcuP sauce, or beer. . •

Your ch1ckcn should cook eom­pletely in the Little Chief Smoker hut, to hc sure of don!'ness. use the old reliable joint tcst. M<>rcly twist the leg hone gently. if it movps freely in the socket joint the bird is ready

•

to eat. If for some reason the chicken didn't cook completely (may hap­pen during cold wpather), preheat oven to 300 degrees and finish ofT in oven, being careful not to over-cook.

One thing that's great about smoked chicken is you can eat what you want and freeze the rest for up to seven months. Take what's left. individually wrap pieces in plastic bags or foil for freezing, or chicken can be flaked from bone and then frozen. Whl'n it's thawed, smoked chicken makes dPiicious sandwiches, soup, salads, snacks and makes a big hit on a fishing trip.

FLAVOR SMOKED: Turkey, Goose

Turkey is one meat that is made to be smoked, the flavor's superb and when done, it turns a scrumptious golden bronze. A 10 to 15 pound turkey fits very nicely in the Little Chief Smoker. Whether you prefer fryers, young hens, roasters, or young toms, purchase the freshest "Grade A" bird you can gel. If the turkey is frozen, complctPly thaw before placing in turkey brine (for thawing instructions, sec turkey label).

SMOKED TURKEY BRINE For each four quarts of water ... l1h cups curing salt

'h cup brown sugar 3 cups cider

1h teaspoon ginger 4 tablespoons black pepper·

'h cup lemon juice '12 ounce maple flavoring

Thoroughly mix all above ingredi­ents in a non-aluminum container that is large enough to completely submerge the hi rd. Sinwoer ot•(•r me­dium heal five minutes for pound.

Remove bird from brine and allow to air dry for at least one hour, begin preheating smoker. Rub skin with a modest amount of brown sugar. us­pend the whole-bird from meat bar on smoker rack after removing grills from rack (sec illustrations ::: .. , . . ,

. ) . Leave bottom raek in smoker and fabricate a drip pan out of aluminum foil. Smoh(' one hour per pound. basting with melted butter every 11/2 hours. Refill flavor pan with hickory flavor PV<'ry thrN• hours (spe section "Fuel for the Fire'' ahout USP of chunks with hickory flavor).

\

Remove turkey from smoker and place in roasting oven preheated to 300 degrees. The turkey should have a rich golden brown color and the leg joint will move freely and easily in the socket when done. Turkey smoked in the above manner will keep about the same as a normal roasted turkey. To freeze, remove meat from bones with sharp knife, freezing in individual useable sized packages. Keeps up to seven months frozen . . . that is if there is any left!

JIFFY SMOKED TURKEY OR CHICKEN

Place pre-cooked turkey or chicken in open greased baking dish that will fit in smoker and smoke for one hour. Remove from smoker and serve. Makes lip smackin' salads sandwiches, gravy, casseroles . . .

'

OLD FASHION

The mountain men that relied on jerky as an everyday food would never have thought that today jerky would bring over $10.00 per pound in the grocery store. The long-last­ing munchin' flavor of jerky is still as popular as it ever was. Whether it's on a fishing or hunting trip, skiing at the mountain, or watchin' a good TV show, we never seem to bt> able to get enough smoked jerky. You can't buy venison or bufTalo meat but. it's easy to make mouth waterin' beef jerky at home. The fol­lowing is an excellent recipe for not only beef but, elk, moose bear, deer, etc.

There's one thing about jerky, the poorer the cut of meat, the better ,the jerky is. No matter what grade of meat you use, the taste will be the same but, the texture will be dif­ferent. We've found that flank or round steak is dandy jerky meat.

To prepare jerky for smoking, it must be sliced with the grain. not against the grain as meat is nor­mally cut. Before beginning, make sure that the knife is very sharp. Trim ofl all fat! Fat will spoil giving

14

a rancid taste to the jerky. Slice the meat approximately one-half inch thick, four inches wide and six to 1 2 inches long. (I've got my butcher talked into cutting mine on his meat slicer. You can partially freeze the meat and it is often easier to cut. Prepare the following brine for jerky . . .

Jerky Brine For every two quarts of water:

I cup curing salt 1h cup sugar

4 tablespoons black pepper * I teaspoon liquid garlic­

optional Using a non-aluminum container.

place strips of cut meat in brine solution so that they are completely submerged. If they appear crowded, repeat the above brine mixture. A plastic lid or dinner plate placed on the surface will aid in holding down the meat strips. Cure meat in brine for eight to 10 hours.

When brining time has elapsed, remove meat strips and wash each piece thoroughly under cold running tap water. With paper or cloth towels, remove excess water and let air dry completely for 60 minutes. Once air drying process is complete rub in any seasoning of your choice: Some popular ones are onion salt garlic salt and pepper. Place meat strips in preheated smoker.

Smoke meat nine to 12 hours, re­filling the hickory flavor pan every 2'h hours (see section "Adding Fuel to the Fire" about use of "chunks" with hickory flavor) . You'll know when jerky is done, it will become stilT like a twist of rope. For a quick check for doneness, break open a stick and check the center. Remove from the smoker and cool. Jerky sh_ould be kept refrigerated. Jerky sttcks can be cut relatively easily by clipping with a pair of scissors.

You can also make jerky from lamb brisket, and even turkey. Slice the turkey up, follow the above rec­ipe and before ye know it . . . "TUR­KEY JERKY !

HICKORY GLAZED HAM

The following recipe adds a smoky flavor to a precooked ham that no commercial meat processing plant could afTord to produce. Remove any outside skin and score ham fat with a sharp knife one-fourth inch deep,

making diamonds by cutting criss­cross parallel lines. Preheat smoker rub the outside of the ham with thi� mixture.

1 CJJP brown sugar 1 cup curing salt spike with cloves-optional Remove the two top racks from

the Little Chief Smoker and place ham on bottom rack. Smoke four h�urs, refilling flavor pan every 80 mmutes. At the end of the third hour of smoking, brush ham with a solution consisting of one-half tea­spoon diluted in one-fourth cup water. When smoking time has elapsed, remove and cool. Ham should be wrapped and refrigerated, preparing with favorite precooked ham recipes.

JIFFY HICKORY FLAVOR PORK For old fashioned hickory flavor

in a hurry, place any of these cuts in a Little Chief Smoker until one­half pan of Hickory Flavor is ex­hausted (about 25 minutes ) . Re­move from smoker, allow to cool and prepare with your favorite recipes. Mmmmmmmmm! BACON

a!)!J!)·· PORK ROAST . CANADIAN BACON · r?Si�J�:E::�s ��z

PARERIBS PORK CHOPS PORK HOCKS

The electric Little Chief Smoker opens up a brand new family menu for such dishes as smoked pork chops and sauerkraut smoked ham with scalloped potatoes, smoked bar­becued spareribs, or smoky pork roast.

Preheat smoker. Prepare your favorite pork and bean casserole in a pyrex container that will fit easily into the Little Chief Smoker. Smoke beans for three hours, stir occasion­ally, refilling hickory flavor every 60 minutes. Remove from smoker and bake covered in preheated 350 degree oven for one hour.

SMOKEY HICKORY CHEESE

Cheese can't be bought with the smoky flavor that can be added with this quick smoking method.

Jack or swiss cheese seems to work best. Usc baking cup that cheese can mold into without spill­ing ·over. Smoke cheese for 1 '/2 hours. placing cup on middle grill of smoker. Refill flavor pan with Hickory Flavor every 45 minutes. Allow to cool after removing from smoker and refrigerate. Once chilled shake from mold and serve. Keep refrigerated.

�

Other Handy Booklets published by

LUHR JENSEN AND SONS, INC. Hood Hiver. Oregon !)7(�11

• Nitty Gritty of Salmon Fishing Nitty Gritty of Steel head Fishing Nitty Gritty of Trout Fishing

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