Review: Smoke Sheffield

As you may have noticed, we like our meat, and BBQ'd meat is surely the greatest. So when we heard about a new chain of restaurants, Smoke, launching their first outlet in Sheffield, we had to go and try it out.

From the outside the wafting aromas of meaty smoke entice, before becoming a fresher wood scent as you enter the restaurant. Instantly you can see from where the smoke emanates: a round open BBQ grill and kitchen forming the focal centrepiece of the restaurant.

Along with the woody whiffs, we were welcomed to the restaurant by Adam, our server for the afternoon, who was helpful and friendly throughout - we even got pre-meal story time to tell us more about the foundations and background of the restaurant.

While we perused the menu, we nibbled on complimentary BBQ popcorn, which was delightful - smoky, warm and full of flavour. The brisket came recommended, so we went all out, ordering brisket, brisket chili, and burnt ends (of brisket).

The brisket was already a favourite piece of meat: a large cut marbled with fat that keeps the meat melting in the mouth - even after the fifteen hours of cooking overnight it was still moist and succulent, with a soft intricate flavour of wood smoke. The light singe on the edges of the meat added a good crunch. This was all served with chips and a winter slaw consisting of red and white cabbage with a watermelon dressing.

The burnt ends were excellent: hearty chunks of flame-licked brisket, all smothered in a home made BBQ sauce that set the meal (metaphorically) ablaze.

The chili, whilst not overwhelmingly meaty, was really tasty and filling (and let's be honest, we didn't exactly need any more chunks of meat). The jalapeño corn bread muffin which accompanied it was incredible, and came with butter and honey to serve. Laura even got a bonus muffin to take away, which was in her lunchbox to bring a bit of joy to the first day back at work after the festive period!

The dessert menu also looked great, but our brisket-overload put paid to any plans for s'mores! Still, it's a good excuse for a return visit.

With a number of further Smoke restaurants planned across the country over the next few years, this US-BBQ idea is clearly a concept which is taking off throughout the UK. Smoke does it very well, and it's great to see what will hopefully become a flourishing chain take its fledgling steps.

Cheers,

L and J

Honey Bourbon Roast Ham

So if there are any better things to be eating this time of year, or any time of year really, than sweet alcoholic meat, I have yet to find it. Ham is one of the greatest meats as it can be eaten hot with roast veggies, warm as part of a buffet with a couscous and salad, cold with pickles or on sandwiches.

The first step is to boil the ham for 20 minutes per 450g. There are a number of options regarding how exactly to boil the meat - you can add a simple veg mix: leeks, onions and carrots with peppercorns and star anise, or boil in a few litres of coke or even ginger beer: the latter add a lovely sweet flavour through the meat. Once the ham is hot inside (test this with a skewer), remove the ham from the pot and allow to cool a little for the next step.

If your ham has a skin you will want to remove it as the texture will be rubbery and unpleasant - however, leave a layer of fat as this will render a little in the oven and intensify the flavour. Score the fat and into that rub mustard, then a mix of brown sugar, orange and chili flakes. Stud with cloves. Over the top, pour a mix of whisky and honey, and pop into a hot oven for about twenty minutes. Don't forget to baste it with the whisky honey that comes off the ham.

Perfect on its own as the centrepiece to a special occasion, or alongside a bird for a feast of a Sunday dinner.

Cheers,
Jim

                                

An unconventional Sunday dinner

After endless meals of Christmas leftovers, we decided to pop out with a friend yesterday and try something a bit different. We headed to Urban Choola on London Road, in Sheffield. It describes itself as an Indian Street Kitchen, which makes traditional Indian food including dishes which you don't tend to see in your standard curry house, and came to us highly recommended by friends and family.

Upon arrival, we were met by the friendly chef in the otherwise totally empty restaurant - I guess curry isn't the usual choice for Sunday dinner! The menu choices are extensive, with a great range of vegetarian dishes and snacks as well as meaty main meals.

I went for the Chicken Boti Kathi Roll, a dish I've never heard of before. It was delicious - succulent chicken, freshly made flatbread, and a beautifully sweet tamarind chutney. The meal also came with masala chips, which I will certainly be trying to recreate at home - a liberal sprinkle of a secret blend of spices made them really tasty and added a certain je ne sais quoi to the dish.

Jim ordered the Lamb Seekh Sizzler, an absolutely enormous dish!

The buttered naan was lovely, oozing with butter and yet still perfectly crisp on the outside. The meat was wonderfully cooked and seasoned really well, and the sizzling peppers and onions were a delight.

The rest of the menu looked great too, and had we gone for an evening meal rather than just for lunch we'd have also sampled some of the small plates. Overall, it was an excellent meal, and great value - we will definitely be paying Urban Choola another visit in the near future.

Laura x

Bloglovin!

Now that we're becoming a bit more established, we wanted to make it easier for you all to keep up to date with us. We're now on Bloglovin - please head to the link below to follow!

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Love,

L, J and T x

Salt Beef and Pastrami

I have written previously about salt beef and brisket... it is one of my favourite pieces of meat as it becomes tender and delicious when cooked slowly and the fats in the meat dissolve deliciously and keep the meat juicy and tender.

This time I am using a full brisket, weighing about 2.5kgs, and two slightly different brines, one for the salt beef and one for the slightly sweeter pastrami. 

Ingredients:

Brine:

300 grams sea salt

150 grams sugar

30grams Prague powder #1

Half bulb garlic crushed

Large knob of ginger, chopped roughly

1 cinnamon stick, crushed

Tbsp mustard seeds

Tbsp cracked black pepper 

Tbsp Szechuan peppercorns

Tbsp cloves

Tsp chilli

(And for the pastrami only) 3tbsp honey

Coating for pastrami:

2 Tbsp Mustard Seed
2 Tbsp Corriander Seed
2 Tbsp Black Pepper

Method:

Boil the brine ingredients with 1.5 litres of water, dissolving the salt, then leave to cool. 

Whole Brisket

Split the meat into 2 pieces - use a thinner piece, about 1/3 of meat, for the pastrami. Undo the trussing on the smaller piece and open it out. Pierce both pieces of meat all over to allow the flavours and salt to permeate, and place each piece of meat into a plastic or ceramic bowl (don't use aluminium as it can react with the meat).


Split the brine over the meat, adding the honey to the pastrami brine. Make sure that you cover the meat completely in liquid - if you are short, top up with a little more boiled water.

Brining the beef

Once this is done, weigh down the meat with a plate to ensure it remains completely submerged in the brine. Cover the bowls in cling film and place in a constantly cool place, whether it be a garage or cellar, or a freakishly large or empty fridge. Turn the meat daily so as to get the best coverage of flavours through the meat.

Leave for between 5-7 days then remove from the brine and rinse if needed - test the saltiness of the meat by lightly frying the a small sliver of meat. Depending on the taste you may need to rinse more than once.

Boil the salt beef

The cooking method used is the major difference between the pastrami and the salt beef. The beef is simply simmered for around 3 hours with a bouquet garni and carrots, onions and leek (never on a hard boil as this will start to dry out the meat). The pastrami is slightly more complex, but definitely worth the effort...

Cooking the pastrami

Coat the Pastrami and place over the chips

Add a couple of handfuls of smoking chips to the bottom of a roasting tin. Place the meat on the grill tray and put into the tin. Start with a blow torch (if you have one) on the chips, or on the hob to get the smoke going, then cover with tin foil leaving plenty of space for smoke to cover the meat. This process can either be done completely on the hob if you have a good extractor or in the oven at about 170°c for around 90 minutes.

Seal the meat so that the smoke/steam is contained

The next step is to steam the meat, using the same pan as before. Clean the chips out from the previous step and add a layer of water to the bottom of the pan, again covering with tin foil. Place on a gentle heat for 90 minutes, checking that the pan doesn't burn dry.

Serve hot on sandwiches with pickles or sauerkraut.

Whilst salt beef does need a bit of patience, it is definitely worth all the effort put in, as the meat at the end is tender and moist and a real show stopper for any occasion.

Enjoy,
Jim

Visit Smokedust for Prague Powder and Smoke chips as well as other paraphernalia.
For more recipes and ideas visit Love Salt Beef

Happy Christmas!

A very happy Christmas to you all - hope you have a day filled with good food, drink and merriment.

Meow-ry Christmas!

Love,

L, J and T x

Advent - the final batch of drams! 18-24

As Christmas day draws near, so more and more of our little advent windows are emptied. Here are our reviews of the last few drams...

Day 18
Laura - Greenhook Ginsmiths Gin. Another American one and I have come to expect good things from across the pond. This is a fine example of a classic gin, with a clean juniper flavour and a beautiful aromaticism. A good one to sip on!
Jim - Yellow Spot. An Irish whiskey of great quality with a nose of vanilla poached apricots, and a bourbon sweetness. This is accompanied by a velvet caress across the tongue tasting of fruits and a nutty touch down the neck.

19
L - St George's Rye Gin. You can definitely taste the rye! It's hearty, smooth and very rich. Once again this month, I have found myself surprised at just how unique a gin can be. It's described on the St George's website as "a gin for whiskey lovers" which I would definitely agree with - it even won over my usually gin-hating uncle, who was drawn in by the delicious malty aroma.
J - Auchentoshan Three Wood - two sherry casks and a bourbon come together to make this sweet, tropical fruit nose and a palate of treacle and dark fruits such as cherries. The colour of red bronze brings with it light nuts and a long finish of sticky sweet oak.

20
L - City of London Dry Gin. A fairly harsh (but not unpleasant) juniper flavour that softens into a lovely warm finish. I love the history and story behind gin, as well as just drinking it, and this company truly embodies this, even down to featuring plenty of fantastic Hogarth-esque imagery on their website. I'd really like to pay the distillery a visit!
J - Johnnie Walker Platinum Collection. Smells of pudding... fruits, custards and (oddly) smoke. All round, a very festive nose. A tickle of smokiness continues across the roof of the mouth. Fades to a nutty dark chocolate.

21

L - Professor Cornelius Ampleforth's Bathtub Gin Navy Strength. Surely a good sign when your gin is ever so slightly brown. This is 57%, and in Jim's words, "fucking incredible". It smells cinnamony, and a bit like a very tipsy gingerbread man. The key notes I got on the taste were brown sugar and cardamom, a winning combination. The finish lasts for AGES, and as well as the cardamom spice there's also some clove in there. I could rave about this gin for hours.
J - Scapa - malted toffee and rich caramel on the nose. Spiced oranges present in the taste, with a smoky finish across the palate.


22
L - Mason's Yorkshire Dry Gin. Being from Yorkshire myself, I was very excited to see this one. It is lovely - peppery, fragrant and clean. A credit to my beautiful home county!
J - Glenfiddich 15 year old Distillery Edition. Spiced custard on the palate, with a hint of freshly ground black pepper and a long finish of buttery sweetness, followed with flavours of sherry.

23
L -Breuckelen Glorious Gin - well this definitely lives up to it's name. Very aromatic, with a creamy, almost herby scent (rosemary is one of the five botanicals in this). The flavour is citrussy but with a malty hit that keeps it smooth. A long finish that tickles in the tum.
J - Yamazaki 12 Yr. A sweet tender tasting whisky, with a flavour of delightful flowers which skips across the tip of the tongue. The orange sugar flavours creep up the nose and down the throat, before the end slinks away with a fruity woodiness that fills the mouth.

24 - And so we reach the final dram!
L - Smooth Ambler Greenbrier Gin - a savoury character in the flavour soon gives way to a sweet, citrus finish that resonates in the throat for ages, which I particularly appreciated today as I finally polished off the last sip of what has been a great advent!
J - Glenfarclas 40 yr - Spectacular. Apples, and peppered dark chocolate drift across the nose, with a light sherry. The rich characterful texture gently caresses the tongue with medjool dates, and figs seasoned with spice and demarara sugar. The finish is much like chewing on a leather jacket wearing gingerbread man. Simply divine.

Overall... what can we say?! It's been a rollercoaster of flavour and an absolutely incredible ride! Both calendars were sensational, not a bad drink between them, and despite the fairly big outlay they represent fantastic value for money. We've both had the opportunity to taste drinks we would never have thought to buy a full bottle of, or even come across in a bar, and each revelation has been a delight.

This will very likely become an annual event - head on over to Master of Malt to join us next year!

Slainte,

Laura and Jim