Grilling goes back to the Arawak Indians who used a wood structure to roast their meats over an open fire. The Spanish call it barbacoa, to barbecue. The Biker Chef was introduced to grilling by his father, like so many fathers and sons. It’s a guy thing, usually. They enjoyed grilling the traditional foods during their summer days on the lakes, hot dogs, hamburgers, brats, potatoes, veggies, fish, and more. Gas grills are more convenient, but charcoal has better flavor, and The Weber is the best, according to the Biker Chef. For his birthday last year, I gave him  The Smokenator 1000 to add to his outdoor cooking adventures.

So far, he’s used it for beef brisket, pork shoulder, various cuts of chicken, spare ribs, baby back ribs, sausage, and the best Thanksgiving Day turkey we’ve ever had! You can use many different kinds of wood for smoking. The Biker Chef prefers apple wood, soaked in water before using in the Smokenator.

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The Biker Chef made an ancho chile rub, which has a paste consistency. He gently lifted the skin away from the meat and rubbed the paste between the skin and the meat, wrapped it in plastic wrap and put it in the fridge over night. He got up early Thanksgiving morning, fired up the Smokenator, dropped in some apple wood, filled the water pan, about five hours later it was fully cooked. He pulled it off the grill, wrapped it in tinfoil and let it sit for an hour. This is the biggest tip: Allowing it to rest forces the juices to stay in the meat which makes for a very tasty tender product.

Ancho chili rub:
use 3 or 4 ancho chilis, seeded and stemmed
4 cloves of garlic
salt & pepper to taste
2 cups of water and half a can of beer
1/3 cup chopped onion
Simmer on stove top until the anchos absorb all the water. Puree in blender. Put back on stove and reduce until it has a paste-like consistency. Stir often, or it will burn. Cool down enough to work with, and rub it under the skin of the bird.

A well fed family is a happy family!

A well fed family is a happy family!