Category: Jae & Trae

The Adventures of Jae & Trae: Drumsticks

,
jkleist

As we were discussing what to smoke next Trae made a great point. Sunday was going to be Super Bowl Sunday. I had to be reminded of this since I do not follow football, like at all. What the Super Bowl means to me is I am one step closer to baseball season. Wanting to take the next step up from doing chicken wings I decided to throw some drumsticks on and get one step closer to a whole chicken and eventually a turkey. Trae was on board so I jumped in.

First up I prepped my wings in the rub the night before. all I do is put them in ziplock bags with the rub and mix the chicken and the rub together. About 30 mins before I want to smoke them I took them out and arranged them on some baking trays and put some more rub on them.

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Next up I set Trae to smoke and let them smoke for 1 hour.

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After an hour I turned up the heat to 350 and let them go for another hour or an internal them of 165 degrees. Once you hit that they are ready to eat.

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I could not wait to bring them in the house so I had to sample one to make sure they came out right. They did so I had another. Then I decided to share these bad boys with other people. I recommend drumstick for and party or event. Pair them with chickens wings and you will have a chicken feast.

Here is the break down:

PREP:

  • Place drumsticks in a ziplock bag with the rub over night
  • Remove and place on a baking sheet and sprinkle with more rub

GRILL:

  • Smoke for 1 hour
  • Turn up heat to 350 and grill for another hour or when chicken reach 165 degrees

MY DEETS:

  • Apple wood
  • Rubs, monster rub and Kirkland sweet mesquite rub

The Adventures of Jae & Trae: Salmon

,
jkleist

Normally me and Trae love beef or pork but every now and the we venture out and try something new. After a lot of arguing about price point and what was available we landed on salmon. We decided to try a recipe found over at Traeger.

To start brine your salmon in a mixture of brown sugar, salt, pepper, and vodka. Yes vodka.


I let it sit for about 4 hours. Once done in the brine remove it and pat dry with paper towels and try to get any excess salt off. You can even rinse it if you want, just make sure it is dry before putting in the smoker.

Place it on the grill and let is smoke for about 45mins to an hour then crank up the heat to 225 for 1 additional hour.

Once off it not only looks amazing it smells amazing. Try to

Here is the breakdown:

PREP:

  • Mix together brine
  • Salt1/2cup
  • Brown sugar – 1 cup
  • Pepper 1tsb
  • Vodka 1cup
  • Place brine and salmon in a large ziplock bag
  • Brine for 4 hrs
  • Remove salmon and rinse and pat dry

GRILL:

  • Set to smoke and let traeger start up (5mins)
  • Once smoking place on grill for 45mins to and hour
  • After and hour turn heat to to 225 and let cook for another hour

MY DEETS:

  • I used apple wood pellets
  • Salmon was from Costco

 

The Adventures of Jae & Trae: 3.2.1 Ribs

,
jkleist

Well we are back from another fun outing. We were hanging out and I was like, “Hey Trae! What do you want to do today?” Well He reminded me that my dad had bought me two full racks of St Louis style ribs, so looks like ribs were on the menu. After a few web searches I landed on the 3,2,1 method. That is 3 hours of smoking, 2 hours of steaming, and 1 hour of roasting. Here we go.

First up I had to defrost and peel off the membrane.

  
Once the membrane was off it was time for the mustard glaze and the rub.

  
Once seasoned I let the ribs sit in the fridge for a few hours. When ready I fired up Trae place the ribs in for the 3 hours of smoking.

  
After the 3 hours, I removed the ribs and placed them in foil boats. Once in the boats I poured in apple juice (next time I am going to add in a little bourbon) and on top of the ribs I sprinkled brown sugar and honey, then wrapped them up and place them back on the grill for the 2 hours at 225 of steaming in Apple juice.

  

After the 2 hours I carefully removed the ribs from the foil and placed them back on the grill for 1 more hour at 225. Once on the grill I brushed them with my bbq sauce mixture. By this time it is dark and the ribs smell and look amazing.

  
The hour is up and it’s time to pull the ribs off. They look great. The meat has pulled away from the bone. By this point I am ready to eat.

  
Now let them rest for about 20 minutes. Cut and arrange them on a fancy plate and serve to your self or share with your guests. It’s up to you really. Here is a look at the smoke ring and how juice they are.

  
The breakdown for my ribs:

PREP:

  • Peel membrane off
  • Spread Glaze thinly on both sides of the ribs
  • season with Favorite rub

MOP GLAZE:

  • 1 Cup mustard
  • 1/4 cup of apple juice
  • 2 tbs spoons Worcestershire sauce

*if too thin or you want it sweeter add brown sugar

GRILL:

  • Start the Traeger grill on Smoke with the lid open until the fire is established (4 to 5 minutes). Leave on smoke and close the lid.
  • Place ribs on grill bone side down and Smoke the ribs for 3 hours. 
  • After 3hrs Set the temperature to 225F.
  • Tear off four long sheets of heavy-duty aluminum foil. Pull up the sides to keep the liquid enclosed.
  • Sprinkle top half ( meat side) with brown sugar, then top with honey and add some apple juice ons the side not the top. (Use a bit more apple juice if you want more tender ribs).
  • Lay another piece of foil on top and tightly crimp the edges so there is no leakage. Repeat with the remaining rack of ribs. Return the foiled ribs to the grill and cook for 2hrs.
  • Then Carefully remove the foil from the ribs – watch out for hot steam – and brush the ribs on both sides with your favorite Sauce.
  • Arrange the ribs directly on the grill grate and continue to grill until the sauce “tightens” for 1h.
  • Let the ribs rest for a 10-20 minutes before serving.

MY DEETS:

  • For mustard Glazed I used beavers hot and spicy mustard instead of just yellow mustard
  • Used McCormiks Pork Rub
  • BBQ Sauce I Used a mixture of sweet baby rays, TJs bold and smokey, TJs Sriracha BBQ, TJs apple bourbon BBQ, Honey and Worcestershire.
  • Note for next time, use bourbon in the foil with the apple juice

The Adventures of Jae & Trae: Chicken Wings

,
jkleist2 Comments

I recently had the opportunity to get a Traeger Grill for $30. I could not pass it up. Trae came with a hopper full of wood pellets so I figured I should test this new relationship out with my favorite go to: CHICKEN WINGS.

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I decided to try out 3 different rubs.

  1. Trader Joes Poultry Rub
  2. “Monster Rub” – it is just a mix of the leftover rubs all mixed together
  3. Kirkland Smokey Sweet Mesquite Rub

 

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I was all set to embark on the delicious adventure but our relationship got off to a rocky start. Trae would not get up to temp or start to smoke. Come to find out, after scooping all the pellets out and into a bowl, that Trae was a little backed up. After clearing it out, Trae was running like a champ.

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After about an hour we had created something great.

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Here is the verdict:

  • Monster Rub. It was sweet and savory.
  • Kirkland Rub. It was sweet with some heat.
  • TJs Rub. Just ok. Probably a good rub to do sauced wings.

Here was my method:

  • The Night Before: Coat wings with a little bit of oil and evenly coat with the rub of your choice.
  • To Start: When ready to cook, start the Traeger grill on Smoke with the lid open until the fire is established (4 to 5 minutes).
  • Chicken Wings: Set the temperature to 350 degrees F and preheat, lid closed, for 10 to 15 minutes. Arrange the wings on the grill grate. Cook for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink at the bone, turning once halfway through.