u/New-Composer7591

Yep, made swordfish bacon using swordfish belly. I used a pork bacon cure I had on hand of kosher salt, brown sugar, black pepper, and #1. Let it cure for 48 hours, rinsed, and then smoked at 155 for an hour.

It was an experiment and I’d say a successful one at that. Tasted like bacon. It doesn’t replace bacon, but it was a fun experiment to try.

Simple and delicious. Just a 4 oz homemade meatball I sliced into quarters, loaded with mozzarella, then squished between 2 slices of sourdough. Next time I’ll add a second meatball and make it a double decker melt. No filters.

Homemade Pirozhki’s stuffed with Homemade Sausages and other stuff!

I haven’t had a Pirozhki since I lived walking distance from Pikes Place Market in Seattle back in my 20’s. The beef and onion was my go to and I happened to find a recipe for the dough from 8 years ago that someone on Reddit posted that they said was a near replica of my beloved Piroshki Piroshki. I followed the recipe and used my own fillings and I learned a few lessons for next time, but still say it was a success. I’m not much of a baker either and it was easy enough for me to execute. Or I just got lucky. Read below for information on the recipe and the fillings I experimented with.

Ingredients

For the Dough:

2 cups warm milk
1 Tbsp active dry yeast
½ cup sugar (divided into two ¼ cup portions)
6 cups flour total (plus roughly 2 Tbsp if needed)
3 eggs
1 ½ Tbsp melted butter
1 tsp salt

For the Filling:

I used loose sausage I made at home and other leftovers. Below are the fillings in order of appearance in the first 9 pictures.

Butter Chicken

Spinach Artichoke Dip

Carnitas + Cheddar

French Onion Sausage + Gruyere

Kimchi Sausage and Queso Quesadilla

Jalapeno Cheddar Sausage + Cheddar

Apple Pie

Bacon Mashed Potatoes

Bacon Mashed Potatoes + Jalapeno Cheddar Sausage + Cheddar

Egg Wash: 1 egg, beaten

Instructions

Step 1: Activate the Yeast

In the bowl of an electric mixer, add 2 cups warm milk. Sprinkle the top with 1 Tbsp active dry yeast. Let it sit for 5–7 minutes until the yeast is hydrated.

Step 2: The Rise

Whisk 1 cup flour and ¼ cup sugar into the milk-yeast mixture until blended. Let it rise at room temperature for 30–45 minutes until frothy. (Speed run option: 20 minutes in a 100°F oven, but keep it under that temperature so you do not kill the yeast).

Step 3: Mix and Knead the Dough

Whisk in the 3 eggs, the remaining ¼ cup sugar, 1½ Tbsp melted butter, and 1 tsp salt. Attach your dough hook to the mixer. Add the remaining flour 1 cup at a time, letting it fully blend into the dough before adding the next cup. Add the final cup slowly (½ cup at a time) to avoid adding too much. Stop adding flour when the dough no longer sticks to the walls of the bowl. (Note: It only took me 5 cups total. I used all purpose flour). Mix and knead on low speed with the dough hook for 15 minutes.

Step 4: The Main Dough Rise

Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap. Let it rise in a warm 100°F oven for 1 hour (or 2 hours if rising in a standard warm room). The dough should triple in volume. Patience pays off in this step.

Step 5: Make the Filling

While the dough rises, let your creative juices flow! I had an excess of homemade sausages and other leftovers readily available so I used them. Going to make more this upcoming weekend and going to experiment with breakfast varieties that I can freeze and then pop in a microwave for breakfast on the go. Also going to make a few cheeseburger stuffings that my kids will eat. Oh and also more sweet versions and probably whatever else I have on hand. Do what you like.

Step 6: Assemble the Piroshki

Turn the dough out onto a counter. Pinch off small dough portions and roll them into individual balls (size to your preference). Use a rolling pin to roll each ball flat into a circle. I just used my hand to stretch it out, next time I’ll use a rolling pin. The dough is rather pliable to handle so I had no issues getting it flat. Place a portion of the desired filling right into the center. Fold the dough over the filling and firmly pinch the edges together to seal them shut.

Step 7: Final Proofing & Baking

Place the assembled packets onto a parchment-lined baking sheet spaced ½ inch apart. Ensure the seam side faces downward so they do not burst open while baking. Let the piroshki rise a final time in a warm 100°F oven for 20 minutes (or 30–45 minutes in a warm room) until they look puffy and are lightly touching. Brush the tops evenly with your 1 beaten egg. Bake at 360°F for 20 minutes or until the tops turn a deep, golden brown.

That’s it! Enjoy!

Smoked a jalapeno cheddar pork based sausage I made. Just tossed it on the smoker raw and let it cook low and slow for about 90 minutes.

Curious to know if there is a specific way you smoke your sausage on a smoker. If you care to share, I’d love to hear some best practices.

Had some leftover Carnitas from my favorite Tex Mex restaurant that I wrapped up with queso quesadilla and Chicago style giardinera. After I wrapped it I rubbed the outside of the stuffed flour tortilla with butter and fried up the exterior shell. Damn greasy but damn good.

Been eating a lot of Faroe Islands salmon lately and wanted to share my love and appreciation for this fish.

The above picture is of a crudo featuring an 8 oz filet of Faroe island salmon I tossed in the freezer for 15 minutes, removed the skin, then thinly sliced. I plated it with a citrusy yuzu sauce on the bottom, avocado in the middle, chili crisp, and then finished with a sprinkle of flaked wild garlic salt. I ate it with those over priced multi colored Peruvian potato chips I found at Whole Foods.

Since I titled this an appreciation post, below is some ramblings about Faroe Islands Salmon if you’re interested:

Despite FI Salmon being farmed, it’s raised in open net pens in natural fjords where they’ve got strong currents, cold water, and low stocking densities compared to other salmon farms. Faroe put in place some pretty strict regulations back in 2003, and one big change they incorporated is how the fish are raised without antibiotics. Mortality rates and feed conversion numbers are also some of the best in the industry. What that means is you can’t directly measure how content or stressed a fish is, but you can measure how many fish die and how efficiently they grow. Healthy, low-stress fish tend to eat well, convert feed efficiently, and survive at higher rates. Happy fish are tasty fish.

Taste wise I find it noticeably different from a lot of farmed salmon I’ve had. Specifically distinguishable is a firmer texture, clean and buttery flavor, thicker fat lines and a rich orangish pink colored flesh. These characteristics are why it is often used in sushi and other raw preparations. I make a lot of poke bowls with it myself.

Worth noting is that it’s not a flawless farming system. Open net farming everywhere has legit concerns around waste and the local ecosystem impact. Compared to the rest of the industry though the Faroese approach is consistently ranked near the top for sustainability.

I brought home this bone in, skin on pork collar-ish cut from the butcher shop I work at and I’m at a loss as to how to make the best use of it. Should I debone and cut steaks? I know I can dry out the skin with salt/baking soda overnight then roast it and crank the heat up at the end to crisp the skin, but I want to do something different than the obvious.

I figured I would ask the creative minds of Reddit for their suggestions and make the recipe that the majority of yall thinks would be best and share the results here. So if you’re inspired by this hunk of pork, I would love to read about any creative, technical, and whimsical ideas you might want to share with me.

Per the rules of the sub, one idea and recipe I researched and am considering is:

Deconstructed Char Siu:

With this concept I would break the pork down into two distinct textural components on the same plate by removing the skin and deboning the meat to cook separately, but at the same time.

Step 1:
Lay the collar flat on your cutting board, skin-side up. Using a sharp boning or chef's knife, slice just under the skin. Keep a 1/4-inch layer of hard fat attached to the skin.

Cut the meat away from the center bone. Slice the boneless meat into long strips roughly 1.5 to 2 inches thick.

Set the bone aside in the freezer for future pork stocks or ramen broths.

Step 2:
Mix marinade components in a large bowl or zip-lock bag, submerge the meat strips, coat thoroughly, and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours. Only the meat gets marinated, not the skin.

3 tbsp Hoisin sauce
2 tbsp Honey or maltose
2 tbsp Light soy sauce
1 tbsp Dark soy sauce (for rich color)
1 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine
1 tsp Chinese five-spice powder
3 cloves Garlic, finely minced

Using a meat tenderizing tool, prick the skin hundreds of times. Do not penetrate all the way through the fat layer.

With it still skin-side up, wipe the surface completely dry and rub with 1 tablespoon of white vinegar. Next, rub 1 teaspoon of kosher salt evenly across the skin.

Leave it completely uncovered in the refrigerator overnight.

Step 3:
Roast both components at the same time using two different rack in the same oven.

Set your oven to 400°F (205°C).

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place a wire cooling rack on top. Arrange your marinated pork strips on the rack, leaving space between.

Line a second, separate baking sheet with parchment paper. Wipe any residual moisture off the pork skin and place it flat on the parchment, skin side up. Place a second sheet of parchment paper directly over the skin. Take a heavy, flat baking pan or cast-iron skillet and rest it directly on top of the upper parchment sheet to weigh down the skin flat.

Place the meat on the middle rack. Place the weighted skin tray on the rack directly above it.

After 20 minutes brush the pork strips generously with glaze (equal parts reserved marinade and honey). Flip the strips and brush the other side. Return to the oven.

Around 35 minutes start probing the meat for temp. Aiming for an internal temperature of 155°F to 160°F (68°C to 71°C). Remove the meat from the oven, tent it loosely with foil, and let it rest.

Next, remove the top weight and upper parchment paper from the upper skin tray. The skin will be frying in its own rendered fat. Turn oven to Broil or crank the heat to 450°F (230°C). Blast the exposed skin for 5 to 8 minutes until it balloons, blisters, and turns into a crisp golden-brown crackling.

Step 4:
Cut the rested pork collar strips across the grain into 1/4-inch-thick medallions.

Place the crispy skin cap on a cutting board, fat-side down. Use a heavy cleaver or knife to press straight down, snapping the crackling into clean bite sized shards or squares.

Plate the meat medallions first. Right before serving, place a shattered shard of the separate golden crackling directly on top of each slice.

Serve over white rice. Top with scallions.

I work at a high end whole animal butcher shop in VA and was fortunate enough to bring home some lamb ribs from the prestigious Elysian Fields out of Waynesburg, PA in the US.

Elysian Fields’ pure bred lamb is notorious for its mild, well-marbled lamb without the typical gamey flavor commonly associated with Australian and NZ variants. Chef Thomas Keller co-founded their Pure Bred line and features the lamb at TFL. Despite the high price tag, you can find this lamb at Michelin starred restaurants nationwide in the US. I imagine it’s at other spots in Europe unless TFL is the only one with access. I could only afford this small, less than 1/2 lb, cut and packed it straight off the block.

Notice from the cross section that that these riblets are not to be confused with the more commonly known rack of lamb. Lamb ribs are located on the lower ventral side of the rib cage, stretching down toward the belly compared to a rack of lamb which comes from the back.

They have a lot of connective tissue, fat, and lean meat so I smoked them just like spare ribs. Seasoned with a simple dry rub of Lawrys, salt, and pepper to really be able to appreciate the taste of the lamb.

Damn tasty lamb. If you ever come across anything from Elysian Fields, I highly suggest you buy it. This coming from someone who would pick lamb last from a list of protein choices.

We’re all very familiar with the viral smash taco, wellllI I only had garlic naan and a small fist worth of homemade carbonara sausage on hand so I leaned into it and reinvented the smash taco using Mediterranean ingredients and made my wife this masterpiece.

I start out by swapping out a flour tortilla for soft and fluffy garlic naan bread. Raw carbonara inspired sausage (ground pork, crispy guanciale, pecorino Romano, Parmesan, garlic, egg yolks, and black pepper), is smeared directly onto the naan and smashed meat side down onto a hot pan until browned and caramelized. Once flipped, I turn the heat down to low as to not burn the bottom, but ensure the sausage is fully cooked that was pressed on the naan. Next it gets piled high with shredded mozzarella cheese and covered until melted. Then I hit it with a layer of rich marinara sauce and finished with a generous amount of Vienna spicy Chicago-style giardiniera for a spicy, tangy crunch. From there I just fold it over into a thick, messy, delicious and comforting street food hybrid.

Whadya think? Is it a taco? A wrap? Flatbread sandwich? Or just stupid food?

Didn’t suck!

Emptying out the fridge and made a burrito. Leftover flank steak with caramelized onions mixed with bacon jam, the kids Mac and cheese, and just a smidge of cabbage. I wrapped this beast up using markouk bread, so technically a wrap, but identifying as a burrito. Would eat again.

Sliced a lot of bacon by hand as our slicer was down at work

First time using the lotus method approach for drying. My temperature is lower than the standard lotus method as I use my garage fridge and it hovers between 48 and 53, so maybe it’s called the low and slow method. I chopped my plants on 6/30 and hung it in my tent for 48 hours before transferring it into the fridge. The bud looks and smells like the day I chopped it, which is great. I am wondering if this is considered dry enough or if I should let it keep drying. At the temps I am drying at I expect it to take longer than a traditional lotus method dry. Based off of this snap test do you think it could use more time? I have never successfully dried my grows in the past and end up with hay like flavors, so I’m stoked that this smells fruity and gassy but don’t wanna f it up. I tossed a small bud with about 3” of stem still intact into a mason jar with a hygrometer after I took this video to see what that gets too. After tossing in the bud and sealed the container the humidity started dropping from the 60% it started at, I’m hoping that the air in the jar is just being acclimated after popping the top off a new jar. If I check in a few hours and the hygrometer reads rh of 60% or below should I start trimming and curing despite not achieving a crisp and clean branch snap? I wasn’t able to weigh a before weight, next time I’ll incorporate that.

Like a club sandwich with the three best friends I never did have…Fluff, Nutella, and Peanut Butter

I’m spoiled here in Va with easy access to pork from Autumn Olive Farms. The genetics combined with the the terroir from the Blue Ridge Mountains and the unique biome of the Shenandoah Valley is what sets this meat apart.

They raise their hogs entirely outdoors, letting them free-range, roam, and root for wild plants, insects, seeds, fruits, and nuts. Because the farm sits on land where the water is deeply embedded in limestone and the soil is fed by the oldest mountain range in the world, the pork is packed with minerals and nutrients that translate directly to the plate and into my belly. I ate every last bite of that rich and buttery fat cap.

This specific cut is from their Berkabaw breed. This
is a proprietary cross they developed between Patterson’s Registered Berkshires and purebred Ossabaw Island hogs. The result is unreal. You can see the difference between typical store bought quality in the raw cut. That deep, ruby red color and that incredible fat cap are worlds away from the pale, watery stuff at the grocery store. The Ossabaw genetics give it this insanely rich, low melting point fat that renders beautifully, while the Berkshire side keeps the muscle fibers incredibly tender.

I rubbed the chop with Meat Church’s Honey Hog and smoked it over oak, cherry, and hickory to an IT of 125* then seared it in stainless steel to get a deep, hard crust. Sliced it up and served it alongside a mountain of fries and a stub of homemade beef jalapeño cheddar sausage I smoked with the chop.

If you ever get a chance to source from a farm focusing on heritage lines and natural terroir like this, do not pass it up. It will completely ruin your standards you held for pork forever.

Left is Mephisto Appletizing and right Speedrun Seeds Froot Fuel. First plants I’ve attempted to grow in years. Looking forward to the next run I’ll start in a few weeks.

Brined a brisket, ground it up, made patties, coated in pastrami rub, smoked em low and slow for 3 hours until it of 125*, seared it off, loaded it with Reuben fixings between a toasted pretzel roll. I loved it. Worth taking 8 days to make.

The inspiration for this one goes back to when I was 8 years old, visiting my cheek-pinching Sicilian great-grandmother, who always had piping hot, cast iron skillet full of Bagna Cauda awaiting us. Traditionally we ate it with bread, cabbage, bell pepper, celery, you get the gist. My family’s recipe calls for a boatload of olive oil, garlic, anchovies, sardines, butter, and black pepper. I still make it exactly the same way to this day, which is actually how this whole idea came about. I had some leftover bagna cauda on hand, along with some ground pork from work that I needed to use up, so I mixed em up, added just a smidge more of salt, and put them in casing.

I’ll eat these on a roll or would be great on pizza too.

No issues with dryness in this case.

Started with 70/30 high quality single ground local beef from the butcher shop I work at.

Ground together some Aleppo Pepper, sumac, Za’atar, granulated garlic, paprika, dried parsley, and cumin until uniform.

Added that to the ground beef in a stand mixer. Mixed for 8 minutes or so until it had some meat peaks, used smidges of cold water when it looked a little dry.

Once it had the consistency I was looking for I spread it out on a small sheet pan and let it sit overnight to dry cure.

About 24 hours later I took it out of the fridge, fired up the smoker to 275*, rolled out 150g beef logs, slid some waterlogged wooden skewers up in em, tossed it on the smoker for about 35 minutes until an IT of 155*. Pulled em off and let em rest.

Hooked up some store bought garlic naan, some feta (wish I had goat on hand), pickled onions, and a zippy little curry sauce to fuse it all together. Served it with fries. 10/10 cuisine.

I ate it two nights in a row it was that satisfying. Maybe some fresh pomegranate seeds too to help cut the heat and add more texture, but now I’m just rambling.

Left to Right:

Meatball: Beef/Pork/Ricotta/Parmesan/Italian Spices

Beef and Broccoli: Beef/Broccoli/soy/ginger/garlic/brown sugar/msg/sesame oil/hoisin/beef bouillon base

Black garlic Tonkotsu Ramen: Beef/black garlic/soy/sesame oil/ginger/white pepper/toasted sesame seeds/scallions/cooked instant ramen noodles

French Onion soup: Beef/Caramelized onions deglazed with sherry/diced Gruyere/onion powder/beef bouillon base

Got the beef from a friend who celebrated EID by slaughtering a cow. It was just beef that was butchered randomly. A true hack job. I added some brisket trimmings I had on hand from another project, mostly hard fat. The beef I was gifted was pretty lean.

I used The Sausage Maker hog casings. Was less than impressed with their pliability compared to what I use at work. What other brands of casings do people use aside from this company?