has anyone smoked many vegetables? what are the best choices? methods?

thanks,

jqs

On 5 May 2007 23:23:51 -0700, wrote:

has anyone smoked many vegetables? what are the best choices? methods?

thanks,

jqs
Sure. But IMHO veggies don't take well to a 4-5 hour smoke.

That said, I do smoke peppers, tomatoes, brussel sprouts (my very
favorite!).

With brussel sprouts I buy them fresh, cut off about 1/4" of the
bottom (stem part), put them in a cast iron pan with butter and some
olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt. Sometimes I toss in a pinch
(i mean just a pinch) of 5 spice or a head of garlic.

I cook them over mesquite till tender but still having a bit of bite.
I LOVE them this way. The smoke makes them sweet!

With peppers it's into the cast iron pan after a tossing in olive oil
to keep them from sticking and to keep the skin soft. Peppers like
jalapeno (sp) can take a nice low and longer smoke.

Tomatoes go in stainless pan that has become very stained by smoke!
Light olive oil coat with some fresh basil.

That is another thing you can try. Smoke some herbs and spices. You
will be amazed at what turns out. It's like created brand new flavors!

Try smoking some nuts too!

Cheese can be smoked via a "cold" smoking method.

Hope this helps!

wrote:
has anyone smoked many vegetables? what are the best choices? methods?

thanks,

jqs


Is weed a vegetable?

On May 6, 5:53 pm, VegA wrote:
On 5 May 2007 23:23:51 -0700, wrote:

has anyone smoked many vegetables? what are the best choices? methods?

thanks,

jqs

Sure. But IMHO veggies don't take well to a 4-5 hour smoke.

That said, I do smoke peppers, tomatoes, brussel sprouts (my very
favorite!).

With brussel sprouts I buy them fresh, cut off about 1/4" of the
bottom (stem part), put them in a cast iron pan with butter and some
olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt. Sometimes I toss in a pinch
(i mean just a pinch) of 5 spice or a head of garlic.

I cook them over mesquite till tender but still having a bit of bite.
I LOVE them this way. The smoke makes them sweet!

With peppers it's into the cast iron pan after a tossing in olive oil
to keep them from sticking and to keep the skin soft. Peppers like
jalapeno (sp) can take a nice low and longer smoke.

Tomatoes go in stainless pan that has become very stained by smoke!
Light olive oil coat with some fresh basil.

That is another thing you can try. Smoke some herbs and spices. You
will be amazed at what turns out. It's like created brand new flavors!

Try smoking some nuts too!

Cheese can be smoked via a "cold" smoking method.

Hope this helps!

That's terrific. I am considering becoming a "Smoker", and thought if
I can't smoke vegetables, it's not worth it. I'm wondering about
squashes? Perhaps halved or quartered?

On May 6, 7:39 pm, Sonoran Dude wrote:
wrote:
has anyone smoked many vegetables? what are the best choices? methods?

thanks,

jqs

Is weed a vegetable?

On Sun, 06 May 2007 18:39:02 -0700, Sonoran Dude
wrote:

wrote:
has anyone smoked many vegetables? what are the best choices? methods?

thanks,

jqs


Is weed a vegetable?

No, but if you smoke enough of it it can turn you into one.

snip

That's terrific. I am considering becoming a "Smoker", and thought if
I can't smoke vegetables, it's not worth it. I'm wondering about
squashes? Perhaps halved or quartered?

Don't know. I never tried it. But lets face it, squash is cheap enough
to try.

I think squash would be better GRILLED over some soaked wood chips
than smoking over chunks or logs.

VegA wrote:
On Mon, 7 May 2007 11:22:16 -0500, Steve Wertz
wrote:

On 6 May 2007 20:11:45 -0700, wrote:

That's terrific. I am considering becoming a "Smoker", and thought
if I can't smoke vegetables, it's not worth it.

Most of us smoke our meats, and cook their vegetables another way.
Smoked meat is much more valuable than smoked veggies, IMO.

-sw

Oh yea! But I gotta tell you, if you havn't tried brussel sprouts
grilled over mesq you really should give it a try. Yummy!

I've been thinking of buying one of those veggie basket things I saw online
last week:

http://storesense04.dynamic.net/trae...ail.bok?no=239

But, your idea of just putting them in a regular frypan is great. Now, I
gotta find a small, cheap stainless steel fry pan that I'm willing to
destroy the finish on. No way am I gonna put my All Clad in a smoker!

--
EZ
Traeger BBQ075 "Texas"
CharGriller Smokin Pro
Great Outdoors Smoky Mountain Wide Body
CharmGlow 3-burner All-Stainless Gas Grill
Weber Kettle One-Touch Silver 22-1/2"
Weber Kettle Smoky Joe Silver 14-1/2"

On Mon, 7 May 2007 11:22:16 -0500, Steve Wertz
wrote:

On 6 May 2007 20:11:45 -0700, wrote:

That's terrific. I am considering becoming a "Smoker", and thought if
I can't smoke vegetables, it's not worth it.

Most of us smoke our meats, and cook their vegetables another way.
Smoked meat is much more valuable than smoked veggies, IMO.

-sw

Oh yea! But I gotta tell you, if you havn't tried brussel sprouts
grilled over mesq you really should give it a try. Yummy!

On 2007-05-07, EZ wrote:

But, your idea of just putting them in a regular frypan is great. Now, I
gotta find a small, cheap stainless steel fry pan that I'm willing to
destroy the finish on. No way am I gonna put my All Clad in a smoker!

I recently used a La Crueset dutch oven in my smoker and it was green to
start out with but turned color after spending several hours in the smoker.
Needless to say, I was concerned that I had ruined the finish (porcelain
enameled version over cast-iron), but after lightly scrubbing with a brush
and some soapy water, it all came off w/o much ado.. If the All-clad is
not coated (no Teflon hopefully) and just a plain metal pan it should be
just fine.. Sure it might look odd afterwards, but I'd bet it would look
just fine again after a bit of cleaning.. YMMV.

snip
But, your idea of just putting them in a regular frypan is great. Now, I
gotta find a small, cheap stainless steel fry pan that I'm willing to
destroy the finish on. No way am I gonna put my All Clad in a smoker!

I only use stainless for tomatoes because I don't like how they turn
out in cast iron. Must be an action between the iron and the acid.

I guess you could pot them in anything that won't burn up.

Rick F. wrote:

If the All-clad is not coated (no Teflon hopefully) and just a
plain metal pan it should be just fine.. Sure it might look odd
afterwards, but I'd bet it would look just fine again after a bit of
cleaning.. YMMV.

Ah, there's the rub. Cleaning. I hate cleaning

You're right, though, I'm sure a plain stainless steel All Clad pan should
be able to survive just about any cooking effort, no matter what. After all,
isn't that why I paid the big bucks to get one?

--
EZ
Traeger BBQ075 "Texas"
CharGriller Smokin Pro
Great Outdoors Smoky Mountain Wide Body
CharmGlow 3-burner All-Stainless Gas Grill
Weber Kettle One-Touch Silver 22-1/2"
Weber Kettle Smoky Joe Silver 14-1/2"

VegA wrote:

I only use stainless for tomatoes because I don't like how they turn
out in cast iron. Must be an action between the iron and the acid.

Yes, I'm thinking you're not really supposed to put anything acidic in cast
iron, or aluminum either. I don't want to start a war over non-reactive
pans, but I've read that it's best to use one for acidic foods.

I guess you could pot them in anything that won't burn up.

Right you are. You'd think that with all the many varieties of cooking
vessels I have, I'd be able to find a likely candidate for throwing a few
veggies on the grill.

--
EZ
Traeger BBQ075 "Texas"
CharGriller Smokin Pro
Great Outdoors Smoky Mountain Wide Body
CharmGlow 3-burner All-Stainless Gas Grill
Weber Kettle One-Touch Silver 22-1/2"
Weber Kettle Smoky Joe Silver 14-1/2"

Steve Wertz wrote:

You can get really chreap cast iron at the restaurant supply and
sporting good stores. There's always foil, too.


Thanks for the tip, Steve! As it turns out, I had a $50 gift certificate for
Bed Bath & Beyond, and a 20% coupon to boot. Went there on my lunch break,
and lo and behold, they had a couple of All Clad pans on clearance for
$14.95 each. A 7-1/2" all-stainless skillet, and a 1-qt. all-stainless sauce
pot, and the lid for my 2-1/2 qt. fits it. And, they had a cheapo non-stick
grill skillet and a better all-stainless grill "wok." Both had big holes in
them. I bought all 4, and paid $1.23 of my own money.

Seems I now have no excuse for not turning out great grilled/smoked veggies,
shrimp, etc.

So, beyond just brushing them with olive oil, and sprinkling on the herbs of
your choice with a little S&P, I'll need to find some other recipes to try.
For tonight, I already went to the store yesterday and got a fair amount of
sweet peppers, zuccini squash, cherry tomatoes on the vine, onion, garlic.
We'll be throwing some of all of this on one of the above-mentioned pans
tonight!

--
EZ
Traeger BBQ075 "Texas"
CharGriller Smokin Pro
Great Outdoors Smoky Mountain Wide Body
CharmGlow 3-burner All-Stainless Gas Grill
Weber Kettle One-Touch Silver 22-1/2"
Weber Kettle Smoky Joe Silver 14-1/2"

kilikini wrote:
EZ wrote:

snip
a couple of All
Clad pans on clearance for $14.95 each. A 7-1/2" all-stainless
skillet, and a 1-qt. all-stainless sauce pot, and the lid for my
2-1/2 qt. fits it. And, they had a cheapo non-stick grill skillet and
a better all-stainless grill "wok." Both had big holes in them. I
bought all 4, and paid $1.23 of my own money.

Congrats on your score, EZ. I'd do garlic butter on veggies, balsamic
vinegar and olive oil is also good. I wish you much success!

kili

Thanks, kili! Great ideas. I'll give them a try!


--
EZ
Traeger BBQ075 "Texas"
CharGriller Smokin Pro
Great Outdoors Smoky Mountain Wide Body
CharmGlow 3-burner All-Stainless Gas Grill
Weber Kettle One-Touch Silver 22-1/2"
Weber Kettle Smoky Joe Silver 14-1/2"