Smoking for real

We finally upgraded from our little table top propane grill, to a Traeger Grill. We had been using our little gas grill for the last five years. It served us well, but it was very small, and it had seen enough grease, fat, cheese, and other gunk that only about half of a burner actually put out sufficient heat to cook anything.





We upgraded to the Traeger and it is a huge upgrade. The Traeger uses wood pellets as fuel, and is powered by electricity. The wood gives your food a great flavor, and it is much easier to use than a charcoal grill. The Traeger allows you to smoke, grill and even bake (it circulates heat) so you can really make a lot of great food. Since we have bought our grill, we have made pulled pork, chicken, steak, brats, burgers, and prime rib. I have also smoked some homemade hot sausage. Poultry in general is perfect for the grill--you get great flavor, and everything is so juicy.

One of my favorite things to cook on the Traeger is a whole turkey. The turkey gets the right amount of smoke flavor, stays juicy, and doesn't heat up your house. A couple of years ago, my mom and I had a turkey throw down at Thanksgiving. She cooked a traditional Thanksgiving turkey in the oven, and I brined a turkey and cooked it on my parents' Traeger. We had the family vote on the best turkey, and I won--even my dad voted for my turkey. In an upcoming post, I will post my brine recipes, but brining is a great way to impart flavor to your meat, and keep your meat juicy during the cooking process.

This next week, I will be smoking some deer jerky on the Traeger. I will post photos and recipes when I get a minute.

Check out the Traeger grills on their website: http://www.traegergrills.com/
If anyone is interested in buying one, I know a great place to get one.