Iiiiiiit’s Smoker Season!
This afternoon, I fired up the smoker for the first time this autumn and, as I do each year, had to spend a good deal of time cajoling the charcoals to light up. I don’t know why this happens the first time I use the smoker each year, but it does: I arrange the coals just so, then douse them with lighter fluid, then light them up and the coals catch right away and I rejoice. And then in a moment, the coals die down to nothing and the smoker gets cold. I mutter some unkind words under my breath, add some more fluid, light again, and repeat about two more times. Then it lights and I don’t have another problem for the rest of the season. So, that’s done now.
In preparation for tonight’s BBQ extravaganza, I marinated some seitan this morning with a Good (as opposed to regular) barbecue sauce from Bigg Riggs Farm, coating the seitan in a zip-top bag and letting it marinate in the fridge for the better part of the day. Knowing what was to come later, I also soaked a hickory plank all afternoon in a shallow baking pan full of water.
Later in the afternoon, as the coals were heating up (for real this time, as opposed to the false starts prior), I pulled out an acorn squash and sliced it down the middle, scooped out the seeds, sprayed both cut sides with cooking spray and wrapped them both in foil, poking a few holes to allow the smoke to seep in.
Once the smoker was nice and hot, I placed the squash on the lower grill grate and then added the second grate on top. Then I placed the hickory plank – now with the BBQ seitan arranged on top – on the second grate, closed the lid, and let ’er rip for the better part of two hours, keeping an eye on the temperature at first because, again, the smoker and sometimes have little fights.
This time, however, we were harmonious, and before I knew it, it was time to cook the cabbage! I sliced a small cabbage (also from Bigg Riggs, now that I think of it) and placed the leaves in my trusty French oven along with two pats of Earth Balance butter and plenty of seasoning: Garlic powder, salt, pepper, and nutritional yeast all made an appearance. Then I set the heat to Low, put the lid on, and let the cabbage steam for half an hour or so, stirring every so often and adding a little more spice halfway through. By the time the smoker foods were ready, so was the cabbage!
I could smell the hickory before I’d even made my way out to the smoker, so I knew tonight’s barbecue was going to be good. And let me tell you, it most certainly was. The wooden planks are a revelation to me in terms of the smoker, and without giving too much away I can assure you that you’ll be seeing quite a lot of them in the months to come!
“I think this barbecue could fool meat-eaters,” LeeLee said over dinner, as we both chowed down on our seitan stuffed between two slices of wild-rice bread. And he’s precisely right. Never have I enjoyed such a meaty barbecue in all my years as a vegetarian! The long marination process coupled with two hours on a hickory plank in the smoker led to a wonderful, wonderful final product – and no leftovers. Always a great sign!
:)