Do You Smell Smoke? The Art of Cooking Meat by Wymond Son of Wylburg
Do You Smell Smoke? is probably the best know cookbook by the renown dragon chef Wymond. It includes over 30 recipes for smoking all kinds of meat, including everything from common domestic varieties to rare imported game species.
Document Structure
Clauses
An introduction followed by recipes with step-by-step instructions, organized by the type of meat used and the major regional influences in the dish.
Publication Status
One of the more popular cookbooks in the country, especially among dragons. found in most larger libraries and available to order from most bookshops, if they do not already have a copy in stock for purchase.
Historical Details
Public Reaction
Overall, this book was well received. Some were critical of the fact that many of the recipes utilized ingredients that are expensive, if not outright Impossible to find in most parts of the country. Like most cookbooks though, most people bought it just because it was fun to look at all the crazy recipes and imagine what it would be like to be a popular chef. Most never actually tried to make any of the recipes themselves, preferring instead to just go to one of Wymond's restaurants directly and leave the actual cooking up to others.
Do You Smell Smoke? The Art of Cooking Meat by Wymond Son of Wylburg
Smoked Wild Ox
Ingredients:
1 wild ox, skinned and cleaned (can substitute regular beef)
Oak wood for smoking
For the Rub:
15lbs salt, medium-course (smoked sea salt is ideal)
8lbs extra sweet molasses
1lb cracked black pepper
1lb ground smoked chile (can be any variety, choose one that has the appropriate level of heat for your guests)
1/2lb finely minced dried garlic
1/2lb finely minced dried onion
For the Sauce:
Proper preparation is key for this recipe. Before gathering your ingredients, you will need to prepare your smoker. Make sure before you start that it s large enough to hold an entire wild ox (if it is not, you can scale down the recipe to cook a quarter ox, or even just the brisket or chuck.)
Next, you need to ensure that you have plenty of wood to keep the food over smoke for the entire cooking time. It is good to have at least 1/12 of a cord on hand, though you will probably use less if you manage it well. This wood should be cut into sections about 1ft long, quartered, and soaked in clean water overnight. If you do not soak your wood it will burn rather than smoke.
A common mistake is to get the smoker too hot. Only use enough charcoal to get the wood smoking, and keep it at the ends of the smoker. Mix the ingredients for the rub and cover the ox evenly. Then set the ox as flat as possible on your smoker's rack, making sure it is not placed directly over the coals. You do not want fat dripping onto the coals an burning. While this will certainly make a lot of smoke, smoke from flaming fat is not good eats!
Turning the ox during cooking is not necessary. Keep an eye on the smoke coming out of the smoker, and add more wood when it begins to run out. If you are burning through wood quickly, your smoker is probably too hot and you should remove some coals. If your wood is not smoking at all, you will need to add coals.
To test for doneness, stab into the meat with a claw or knife. The meat should be tender and come apart easily. It should be covered with a dark, smoky bark on the outside with a pink smoke ring below the surface. Carefully remove to a large serving platter and allow to cool slightly before serving with sauce.
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