all things food
Craving a show-stopping seafood dish that’s both impressive and easy to prepare? Our smoked cedar plank salmon is the answer to your grilling prayers. This easy seafood recipe combines the delicate flavors of fresh salmon with the aromatic essenc…
Craving a show-stopping seafood dish that’s both impressive and easy to prepare? Our smoked cedar plank salmon is the answer to your grilling prayers. This easy seafood recipe combines the delicate flavors of fresh salmon with the aromatic essence of cedar, all enhanced by a gentle kiss of smoke. It’s easier than making grilled salmon because you don’t have to worry about sticking, giving you picture-perfect…
The post Smoked Cedar Plank Salmon appeared first on Girl Carnivore.
Get ready to experience classic tri-tip with this incredibly flavorful smoked recipe! Low-and-slow smoking turns this affordable and flavorful cut of beef into an amazingly tender, smoky masterpiece. This smoked tri-tip totally delivers! While deliciou…
Get ready to experience classic tri-tip with this incredibly flavorful smoked recipe! Low-and-slow smoking turns this affordable and flavorful cut of beef into an amazingly tender, smoky masterpiece. This smoked tri-tip totally delivers! While delicious when grilled, smoking allows the meat’s rich beefy flavor to truly shine through an incredible smoky bark. Our beef recipe…
The post Smoked Tri-Tip appeared first on Girl Carnivore.
Master beef smoking: Choose the perfect wood for flavor-packed results. Our guide helps match wood to cut for BBQ perfection.
The post Grilling Guide: The Best Wood for Smoking Beef appeared first on Girl Carnivore.
Master beef smoking: Choose the perfect wood for flavor-packed results. Our guide helps match wood to cut for BBQ perfection.
The post Grilling Guide: The Best Wood for Smoking Beef appeared first on Girl Carnivore.
Craving juicy, smoky chicken that’s sure to impress at your next cookout? Smoked half chickens are your ticket to backyard barbecue fame. This cut gives you the best of both worlds: tender white meat and succulent dark meat, all bathed in an irre…
Craving juicy, smoky chicken that’s sure to impress at your next cookout? Smoked half chickens are your ticket to backyard barbecue fame. This cut gives you the best of both worlds: tender white meat and succulent dark meat, all bathed in an irresistible smoky flavor. Smoking chicken can seem daunting, we get it. Rubbery on…
The post Smoked Half Chickens appeared first on Girl Carnivore.
Slider recipes have range. Easy meal, busy school nights, game day appetizer, perfect party food — these little guys are…
The post The Best Slider Recipes appeared first on Over The Fire Cooking.
Slider recipes have range. Easy meal, busy school nights, game day appetizer, perfect party food — these little guys are a guaranteed hit no matter what.
Plus, there are so many possibilities for what goes on these slider buns. I’m stoked to show you how to make some of my favorite slider recipes!
How is it that something the size of mini burgers can be such a crowd pleaser? I think it’s because having bite-sized sandwiches is a fun way to enjoy lots of different flavors and textures and not feel like you’re locked into one kind of meal.
If you need a good reason to try a few of these slider recipes, invite a hungry crowd over and make the filings ahead of time. Since many of these slider recipes use big roasts or a ground beef mixture, you can easily cook a day or two in advance and store the meat in the fridge until you’re ready to chow down.
For more sandwich ideas, check out my recipes for Pizza Sandwich, Smoked Pulled Pork Sandwich, Birria Grilled Cheese Sandwiches and Surf and Turf Sandwich.
With slider recipes, we know the meats get all the love. And when they’re this freakin’ delicious, they should! But making sure you have delicious sauces or glazes, the best buns and a foolproof assembly strategy will take your dish to the next level.
Since a lot of sliders use large roasts like chuck roast and pork shoulder, check your recipe to make sure you’re allowing enough time for marinating and cooking. As you’re grilling, check the internal temperature of the meat to make sure it’s cooked correctly. Slider recipes with faster-cooking cuts like pork sausage, roast beef, lean ground beef and steak won’t take as long, so you have a little more wiggle room there.
This is really the special sauce (literally, in some cases) for our slider recipes. What you put on the top half of the rolls and the bottom buns really depends on your filling. With something like shredded beef, a slice of melty cheese like provolone or Swiss cheese and caramelized onions is so freakin’ delicious. For pork BBQ, pile your favorite coleslaw on top. You could even put a pineapple ring on top of tangy shredded barbecue chicken. There’s no wrong answer here.
Hot sauces, your favorite BBQ sauce or mustard are great options for condiments. I’ve also got sauces and glazes in my favorite slider recipes that pair perfectly with what you’re cooking!
Get stoked for life
Born from a deep passion for food and flavor. Whether you’re grilling in the backyard or live fire cooking around the world, we have what you need to transform every meal into an adventure.
For me, sweet Hawaiian rolls are always the way to go. I’m a huge fan of King’s Hawaiian Slider Rolls. These soft Hawaiian rolls go with everything! Slider recipes will also work great with one of your favorites from your local bakery or grocery store. Just remember that the best quality bread always results in the best-tasting sandwich.
Having all the rolls already lined up out of the package is an easy way to make assembly go quickly. When you’re ready to put your mini sandwiches together for your slider recipe, keep each sweet roll joined and slice the slab of bread in half horizontally with a serrated knife. Then, grease a foil pan so the sliders won’t stick. Place the bottom half in the foil pan, spread a layer of sauce on them, then pile on a good amount of your meats, cheese slices, more sauce, and finally, the top halves of the buns.
Brush some melted butter on the tops of the buns, then put the foil bin with the sliders on the smoker and let them cook at medium heat until they’re golden brown and crispy, about 10-12 minutes.
Once they’re done, take them off the smoker and let them cool for a couple of minutes before serving on your cutting board. Slice rolls along the bread’s edges for individual sliders and enjoy whatever slider recipe you made!
Now that we’ve talked about all the options for sliders, here’s the roundup of my favorite slider recipes! Be sure to let me know in the comments which ones you tried and liked the best!
The perfect way to turn a slider recipe into an easy meal is to add tasty sides. A simple green salad, sautéed spinach, grilled asparagus or zucchini, French fries or sweet potato fries, baked beans, potato salad and tater tots are some great options!
If you find yourself with leftovers from your slider recipe, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To reheat, simply warm them up on a medium-high heat grill or a 350-degree F oven while wrapped in aluminum foil. You can also repurpose any leftover filling by adding it to sandwiches, salads, or tacos.
Definitely! You can make the filling 1-3 days ahead of time and then assemble your sliders the day of. If your slider recipe calls for any glazes or sauces, you can make them on the stovetop and store it for 1-3 days before serving. Heat those up in a small saucepan when you’re ready to serve.
Deli meats like ham or turkey work great in slider recipes. These are great options if you have some picky eaters at your table. You can even do half and half of your recipe, so you have whatever you cooked on one side and ham or turkey on the other. Then everybody wins!
Of course! If you don’t have a smoker, you can still make one of these delicious slider recipes using alternative methods. For making them in the oven, I suggest using a slow cooker or Instant Pot to cook the roasts until they’re tender and easily shredded with a fork. Finish off in the oven.
Get The Cookbooks!
All the major tastes—salty, sour, sweet, bitter, and umami—are explored in depth, along with an investigation of other components you should consider when it comes to flavor, such as aroma, heat, and texture.
The post The Best Slider Recipes appeared first on Over The Fire Cooking.
Smoked jalapeño poppers are a classic appetizer, so here’s our delicious twist on perfection. We still smoke the jalapeño poppers…
The post Smoked Fried Jalapeño Poppers appeared first on Over The Fire Cooking.
Smoked jalapeño poppers are a classic appetizer, so here’s our delicious twist on perfection. We still smoke the jalapeño poppers until the bacon is done, but to make this smoked jalapeño popper recipe so freakin’ delicious, we then dredge and fry ’em up. It’s not that complicated, but there are a few tricks that make a huge difference for these little bites.
We get even more smoky flavor in this recipe from Cowboy Charcoal. The coals from Cowboy Charcoal burn really clean, so they’re ideal for any grilling recipe. I’ve used this stuff for everything from grilled steak nachos to birria egg rolls and stuffed lobster tails. Those coals get super hot and make it so we get the best poppers!
A jalapeño poppers recipe is always a hit for game day or a special occasion, and with good reason — that little extra kick from fresh jalapeño peppers, the different flavors in the cream cheese and the umami from the savory bacon make this classic appetizer hard to resist. By going the extra mile and frying these bad boys, you know that dish of poppers is going to disappear as soon as it hits the table.
Here’s what to keep in mind for a successful smoked fried jalapeño popper. First, make sure the bacon is wrapped super tight on the poppers. If you need to, stick toothpicks through the poppers so the bacon strips don’t fall off. Then, dredge the wrapped peppers twice in the batter for the best results when it comes to coating. The frying doesn’t take too long, so keep an eye on the clock so you don’t burn the outside batter.
For other ways to enjoy our jalapeño popper combo, you can check out my shrimp jalapeño poppers. I’ve also made a surf and tuff popper that included lobster claw meat and beef bacon strips, or even something called Texas Twinkies which offer a version of poppers that include stuffing them with brisket!
I also paid these smoke fried jalapeño poppers with a ranch dressing for dipping because it’ll help cool any of the remaining heat from the popper. You can use store bought ranch dressing if you’d like, or check out my homemade recipe below!
Ranch dressing from scratch is super simple. In a small bowl, mix together 1/2 cup of sour cream, 1/3 cup of buttermilk, 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise, 2 teaspoons of lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt, 1 minced fresh garlic clove and chopped fresh herbs of your choice (I like to use cilantro, dill and parsley). Stick it in the fridge for about 15 minutes to let the flavors meld, then serve and enjoy.
Game on! I’m so stoked for you to try these smoked jalapeño poppers. It might be my new favorite appetizer.
To make the smoked jalapeño popper filling, mix one block of full-fat cream cheese and 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese together in a bowl.
Next, pick up one of your fresh jalapeños and slice a “T” shape into it, with the top slice underneath the steam and the long slice going the length of the pepper. Using gloves or a small spoon, scoop out the seeds and ribs from the inside of the jalapeño. Be careful not to break off the stem.
Once you’ve cleaned out the jalapeño, stuff the pepper with the cream cheese mixture. Next, take 1-2 slices of uncooked bacon and carefully wrap those around the whole jalapeño, making sure to fully encase the pepper.
Season the outside of the strips of bacon with your favorite BBQ seasoning and set aside. Repeat this process for your other seven jalapeños.
Preheat your smoker or grill to 250 degrees F for indirect heat cooking. Add some wood chips or wood chunks for added smoke flavor. Then, place your jalapeño poppers on the smoker and cook for about 90 minutes, or until the thick cut bacon has become dark amber and crispy. Once the peppers are done, pull them off and place them in the freezer for 15-20 minutes to fully cool.
Preheat your frying oil to 350 degrees F. I like to use enough oil to get 2-3 inches in the skillet.
Mix 2 cups of white flour, 1 tablespoon of kosher salt, 1 tablespoon of garlic powder, 1 tablespoon of black pepper, 1 tablespoon of paprika and 1 tablespoon of cayenne pepper in a bowl. Then, whip 3-4 fresh eggs in another bowl. Finally, place 2 cups of panko breadcrumbs in a third bowl.
Next, take the cooled smoked jalapeño poppers out of the freezer. Dredge them in the seasoned flour, then coat them thoroughly in the egg wash, and finish by dredging in the panko crumbs. Set that little smokie aside and repeat for all of the poppers.
Add the smoked jalapeño poppers to the oil and fry for 3-4 minutes, or until golden crispy brown. Once done, place them on a paper towel-lined plate and let them cool. Serve this spicy bite with some ranch dressing or sour cream and enjoy!
These delicious smoked jalapeño poppers will be right at home kicking off a game day spread. Think burgers, nachos, grilled chicken, sausages or even steak if you’re feeling fancy.
If you have leftover poppers, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. Then, reheat on a grill or in a 350-degree oven until warmed. Just know that we find that the texture of smoked jalapeño poppers is best the day of, right off the grill.
The size of your peppers should be about 3 inches long. If they’re bigger than that, they get floppy and hard to eat with your hands. If they’re smaller than that, they can be hard to stuff and get all that extra flavor!
Ever cut a spicy pepper and touched your eyeball? WORST! The easiest way to prevent this experience is to wear disposable gloves while you’re cutting the peppers.
Make sure you wash your hands well afterward, along with your cutting board and the knife you used to cut. If you do get some capsaicin — the compound in hot peppers that gives it the kick we all love — on your hands and it causes a burning sensation, you can use dish soap, rubbing alcohol or even yogurt to cool things down.
Cowboy Charcoal has built a well-earned reputation as some of the cleanest and best stuff around, so you can find it almost anywhere. Check out the company’s store locator to see which hardware stores carry it near you.
Get The Cookbooks!
All the major tastes—salty, sour, sweet, bitter, and umami—are explored in depth, along with an investigation of other components you should consider when it comes to flavor, such as aroma, heat, and texture.
The post Smoked Fried Jalapeño Poppers appeared first on Over The Fire Cooking.
Our recipe for smoked party ribs was such a hit, so we decided to kick things up a notch. Say…
The post Honey Fire Party Ribs appeared first on Over The Fire Cooking.
Our recipe for smoked party ribs was such a hit, so we decided to kick things up a notch. Say a big barbecue hello to honey fire party ribs, which feature our brand-new HNY FYR BBQ Sauce! I’m so stoked for you to try this sauce — it’s spicy, it’s sweet, it does it all. If you missed out on the original party ribs, it’s one of those viral trend recipes you see all over TikTok, but this one is actually worth it. Party ribs and its spicy but sweet sibling are like smoked pork belly burnt ends, but the best thing is these recipes use individual ribs instead.
I said it in my recent roundup about burnt ends, but this type of meat candy is the very definition of barbecue. When we combine those flavors with baby back ribs — which are always great for a crowd — we’ve got the best of all worlds. Adding this new barbecue sauce when we cook the ribs in the crutch makes it so freakin’ delicious.
For more rib recipes, check out Smoked Ribs with Bourbon Mop Sauce, Smoked Garlic Jalapeño Beef Ribs, Rotisserie Beef Ribs and Cherry Cola Spare Ribs.
Get stoked for life
Born from a deep passion for food and flavor. Whether you’re grilling in the backyard or live fire cooking around the world, we have what you need to transform every meal into an adventure.
Ribs aren’t the only thing that benefit from hot sauce and honey — slaw does too! To make a simple side for these honey fire party ribs, combine a bag of coleslaw mix (or half a head of red cabbage, shredded, plus a couple grated carrots) with three thinly sliced scallions, the juice from one lime and about a teaspoon of salt. Then, toss that veggie mixture together and let it sit for about five minutes. Finally, add a dollop or two of mayo, a few dashes of hot sauce, a teaspoon of honey and a handful of chopped cilantro. Serve and enjoy with these ribs!
The stoke level is high on this one, so let’s get these ribs fired up!
First, get a good grip and begin by removing the membrane on the back of the ribs. Cut the racks into individual ribs, then slather with 1/4 cup of FYR BLK Hot Sauce. Season generously with 1 cup of my Maple Bourbon Rub and set to the side.
Preheat your smoker for 250 degrees Fahrenheit to cook these ribs indirectly. Add wood chips or wood chunks if you desire. Then, add the ribs to cook indirectly until they reach 165 degrees F internal temperature (about 1.5 hours).
Once the ribs hit temperature, add to a foil bin with your Pendleton Whisky and all the ingredients for the crutch: 2 ounces Pendleton Whisky, 6 tablespoons of unsalted butter, 1 cup of HNY FYR BBQ Sauce, 3 tablespoons brown sugar, 3 tablespoons sliced jalapenos, 2 tablespoons minced garlic and 1.5 tablespoons of honey. Cover in foil and place back on the smoker for one more hour.
After your hour, uncover the ribs and let them cook on the smoker for another 20-30 minutes to caramelize. Once you’re good with the texture, pull them off the smoker and let cool for 10 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
Classic BBQ sides are the way to go here. The simple honey slaw is so freakin’ delicious with these ribs, and you can try the jalapeno-cheddar cornbread from my original smoked party ribs recipe too. A simple green salad would be great too.
If you’ve got leftovers, wrap them in foil or an airtight container and store in the fridge for 3-5 days. A low, slow oven is the best way to reheat these juicy ribs so they don’t dry out. Place your leftover ribs on a baking sheet, cover tightly with heavy duty foil and reheat at 200-205 degrees. Make sure you’ve got extra barbecue sauce for this next meal!
Baby back ribs usually have more meat on the top of the ribs than on the sides of the ribs. That’s why they work well in this honey fire party ribs recipe.
The bones are more curved and they come from the upper part of the pig’s back. St. Louis style ribs and spare ribs are actually two names for the same cut. They have more meat between the bones and fat between the ribs and come from the belly of the pig. The meat on St. Louis style ribs isn’t always as tender as baby back ribs, but the flavor is awesome.
No worries! You can use your favorite homemade barbecue sauce instead. Because we want to get that extra honey flavor, I’d bump up the amount of honey in the crutch to about 3 tablespoons.
Make a Gold Rush cocktail. It’s basically a whiskey sour with honey syrup in place of the simple syrup. See? Honey’s great with everything!
Get The Cookbooks!
All the major tastes—salty, sour, sweet, bitter, and umami—are explored in depth, along with an investigation of other components you should consider when it comes to flavor, such as aroma, heat, and texture.
The post Honey Fire Party Ribs appeared first on Over The Fire Cooking.
Steak pinwheels are so fun, easy and freakin’ delicious that I just can’t stop making them. There are so many…
The post Fajita Steak Pinwheels appeared first on Over The Fire Cooking.
Steak pinwheels are so fun, easy and freakin’ delicious that I just can’t stop making them. There are so many flavor bomb options out there! These fajita steak pinwheels are a new spin on our classic grilled steak pinwheels, since they add fajita vegetables and shrimp on top of the steak.
The key to making fajita steak pinwheels is flattening out the skirt steak before you start rolling it. The thinner you can make the steak, the easier it will roll and the better the steak fajita pinwheels will stay together.
You know that feeling you get when you’re at a restaurant, you order steak fajitas, and they bring out that sizzling cast iron skillet? Everything smells, looks and tastes just incredible. These fajita steak pinwheels are all that, and the pride of knowing these are homemade. Also, the butter we’ll make in this recipe is out of this world.
For more pinwheels, check out Spanish Garlic Steak Pinwheels, Italian Beef Pinwheels and Green Chili Salmon Pinwheels.
Add flavor to everything you’re cooking
shop over the fire spice lines
I don’t know about you, but a homemade fajitas recipe doesn’t feel complete to me without a bowl of chips and salsa.
To make this easy roasted tomato salsa, cut 2 pounds of Roma tomatoes lengthwise, then put them on a foil-lined baking sheet skin side down with 1 onion (peeled and halved), 1 jalapeno (halved lengthwise, ribs and seeds removed if you don’t want it too spicy) and 4 unpeeled garlic cloves. Then, turn on your oven’s broiler and broil all the veggies for 6-8 minutes.
To finish the salsa, process all the roasted ingredients in a blender with 1 tablespoon of lime juice, 1/2 cup of fresh cilantro and kosher salt to taste. Serve with your favorite tortilla chips.
Get your senses ready for some sizzling steak fajitas — but even better.
Preheat your grill for a two-zone cooking at high heat (around 400 degrees Fahrenheit). Then, place a cast iron skillet over the hot coals and add some olive oil or beef tallow. Sauté your bell peppers and onions with 1.5 tablespoons of Jalapeno Lime Pilsner Rub for 5-7 minutes until softened. Once the fajita vegetables are done, pull them off the grill to cool for 5 minutes.
First, lay one of your 2-3 skirt steaks out on a cutting board, slice them in half and cover with parchment paper or a sheet of plastic wrap. Using a heavy mallet or food mallet, hammer the skirt steak until it is less than 1/2 inch thick. Then, slather the surface area of your steak with beef tallow and season both sides with 1/4 cup of my Jalapeno Lime Pilsner Rub. Next, add a layer of sliced Monterey Jack cheese, followed by your sautéed veggies.
Carefully roll the skirt steak up lengthwise to create the pinwheel. Secure the roll with two strings of butcher’s twine and slice between them to make two separate pinwheels. Repeat this process with the rest of the skirt steak for all of the pinwheels.
Add your pinwheels to the hot side of the grill. Then sear each side for 1 minute per side, or until they have developed a nice crust. Once they have a nice crust on the outside, pull the pinwheels over to the cool side of the grill. Cook until they reach 125 degrees F internal temperature (about 10-15 minutes more). When the steaks are done, pull them off the grill and let rest for 10 minutes.
For the shrimp, place a cast iron skillet on the medium-high heat side of the grill with a little beef tallow. In a large bowl, season your shrimp with 2.5 tablespoons of my Jalapeno Lime Pilsner Rub and 1.5 tablespoons of sliced jalapenos, then add to the skillet. Cook for 4-5 minutes until the shrimp are no longer translucent but an opaque white.
Finally, place the cooked shrimp on top of your pinwheels. Mix together 1 cup of melted butter, 2.5 tablespoons of chopped cilantro, 1 tablespoon of jalapeño paste and 1 tablespoon of my FYR Red Hot Sauce for your spicy butter and garnish over everything. Serve and enjoy!
Basically anything that goes with steak fajitas goes with fajita steak pinwheels! Think arroz rojo (Mexican rice) or even a corn salsa if you’re feeling fancy.
If you have any leftover fajita steak pinwheels, wrap them up tightly in aluminum foil. Then, place them in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. When it’s time to reheat, open the aluminum foil and add a little beef tallow to keep the meat moist while warming over the grill or in a 250-degree oven for 10-12 minutes.
There are plenty of ways you can adjust the spice level up or down in this fajita steak pinwheels recipe. You can change the amount of sliced jalapeños in the shrimp, or play with how much jalapeño paste and FYR Red Hot Sauce you want in the spicy butter.
Sure! Flank steak is a solid option for fajita steak pinwheels. Just make sure you butterfly it and pound it to that 1/2 inch thickness so it’s easy to roll into flank steak pinwheels.
I love a good pepper jack cheese for these fajita steak pinwheels, or you could even use slices of provolone cheese if you want something milder.
Get The Cookbooks!
All the major tastes—salty, sour, sweet, bitter, and umami—are explored in depth, along with an investigation of other components you should consider when it comes to flavor, such as aroma, heat, and texture.
The post Fajita Steak Pinwheels appeared first on Over The Fire Cooking.
