Up in Smoke - Charcutapalooza Challenge 4

The Smoke Challenge for Charcutapalooza ended up being a ton of fun and produced some fantastic flavors. In the brining challenge last month, I did a taste comparison of pork and beef using both a corning preparation and a goose fat confit technique.  My conclusion is that the confit produced a far superior experience and although the corned beef was very tasty, the confit disappeared immediately.  

Confit of Pork Shoulder and Beef Brisket

When the smoke challenge came out, that was the kick to take the experience to a new level.  The corned beef and pork went on the smoker for about 7 hours at 180 degrees, transforming them to pastrami and what turned out to be the best pulled pork of my life.

Smoking the Brined Meat (before spices)

After smoking, the meat rested for a day and was simmered in an inch of water for 4-5 hours, flipping once.

Hot Smoked Pork (left) and Beef Brisket (right)

It's pretty amazing how the color transformed during the final cooking step.  The leftover juices were used as a base for baked beans and added a great depth to the dish.

Pastrami (Brisket, Corned, Spiced & Smoked)

 The Brisket ended up being the superstar of the competition.  A thinly sliced bite was an explosion of complex flavors, unraveling the sweet, spice, salt and smoke flavors from the super tender meat.  The pork was as good as it gets in the barbecue world and the pulled pork sandwiches were contenders for any roadside or old school joint.

As a side benefit, I smoked the home cured brown sugar bacon at the same time.

Home Cured Smoked Bacon

Potatoes and Peas are in

The garden section planting began yesterday.  This is the area we recently cleared and the pigs grazed on last year.  They did a good job cleaning up invasive plants.  Tilling was very smooth and the bedding and manure from the animals left a rich soil behind. Potatoes, Peas and early crops are going in this spot.

Last week we finished burning the brush from the two large pine trees that were overhanging this spot and the Russian olives that had overtaken the area.  The coals and ash were spread out before tilling, which should be a beneficial additive to for the potatoes.

The Potatoes were the first priority to get in the ground.  They've been greening up for about three weeks to break dormancy and stimulate the growth of sprouts before they go in the ground.  The varieties we're planting this year are:

• Kennebec
• Yukon Gold
• Irish Cobbler
• Adirondack Red
• Adirondack Blue
• Red Pontiac

Two 50' rows of Wando Peas  went in to the right of the potatoes.  It's very tempting to companion plant in between the potato rows, but last year the dense planting strategy ended up being very difficult to maintain and we're going to keep things spread out and mulched this year.

38 Pounds of Seed Potatoesaa

We're starting this next stretch under row cover with six foot metal hoops for frost and pest protection.  The furrower attachment on the tiller was used to clear the trench for the hoops and spread out the dirt for laying on the fabric to secure it.  A variety of early vegetables will go in this spot.

Spring Chicks

The weather has been beautiful the last few days - perfect for the arrival of our spring broilers.  We got a batch of 100 Cornish Cross chickens from Purely Poultry, whom I've found to be very reliable and one of the best deals on broilers on a small scale.  We also get a discount because we're repeat customers.

Cute fuzz balls on arrival

Chickens and other poultry can be shipped when they are a day old because right before they hatch, they suck up the extra fluids in the egg and have enough protein, fat and water to last three days before they need replenishment.  This provides enough of a window to priority ship the birds to the farm.  The hatchery usually adds a couple extra birds because there are generally a couple birds that die during shipment.  Surprisingly, all 104 chicks survived the trip and were particularly perky, so we're off to a strong start with this batch.

Jayla loading chicks in the brooder

They spend two to three weeks in the brooder, then they're off to pasture where they supplement their diet with grass & bugs.  That should be just in time for the arrival of our Guineas and Muscovy Ducks, which will go through a similar process.