Joe Milczewski
TVWBB Fan
Had a great cook on Saturday. Made beer can chicken, scalloped potatoes au gratin and some beans all on the WSM. Started with the chicken, rubbed with salt, pepper, roasted cumin, roasted garlic, onion powder and a little chipotle. WSM was set up to run high-heat with the Minion method. Wood chunks were a mix of apple and cherry.
And while I know the science of beer can chicken is iffy, it's fun, it gives me an excuse to drink half a beer, and I like it. The beer I used was Zonker Stout from the Snake RIver Brewery in Jackson Hole. Great stuff if you ever see it.
Of course, we needed beans. These were the Bush's Steakhouse Grilling beans, doctored with some cumin, onions, rendered bacon, hot sauce and topped with a balsamic bbq sauce the wife made last week. These went on the smoker with the chicken.
While the chicken and beans cooked for an hour or so, I got the potatoes ready. Sliced them less than 1/8" thin on a mandolin and added some rendered bacon, onions and a mix of white and orange cheddars. I layered all this is in a small, single-serving size CIS.
I was worried about the potatoes taking too much smoke, so I only put them on for about the last hour and 15 minutes of the cook. By that time, it seems to me that most of the heavy smoke is gone out of the chamber.
This is what it looked like after an hour or so...
Then on the plate...
The chicken and beans were great as always, but they're kind of hard to screw up. But the potatoes were better than I ever expected. They actually bubbled and crisped up on the top just like they would in an oven and the smoke wasn't overpowering. Will definitely add to my regular routine.
Thanks for looking!
And while I know the science of beer can chicken is iffy, it's fun, it gives me an excuse to drink half a beer, and I like it. The beer I used was Zonker Stout from the Snake RIver Brewery in Jackson Hole. Great stuff if you ever see it.
Of course, we needed beans. These were the Bush's Steakhouse Grilling beans, doctored with some cumin, onions, rendered bacon, hot sauce and topped with a balsamic bbq sauce the wife made last week. These went on the smoker with the chicken.
While the chicken and beans cooked for an hour or so, I got the potatoes ready. Sliced them less than 1/8" thin on a mandolin and added some rendered bacon, onions and a mix of white and orange cheddars. I layered all this is in a small, single-serving size CIS.
I was worried about the potatoes taking too much smoke, so I only put them on for about the last hour and 15 minutes of the cook. By that time, it seems to me that most of the heavy smoke is gone out of the chamber.
This is what it looked like after an hour or so...
Then on the plate...
The chicken and beans were great as always, but they're kind of hard to screw up. But the potatoes were better than I ever expected. They actually bubbled and crisped up on the top just like they would in an oven and the smoke wasn't overpowering. Will definitely add to my regular routine.
Thanks for looking!
