Page 36 - Akae Beka

1. Put six big handfuls of wood chips in a big bowl of water. I
like apple, cherry and pecan wood chips, but use any you’d
There are plenty of store-bought options for BBQ rubs on the like. Let them soak for 30 minutes.
market, but I tend to use an old local favorite, the “Rendevouz”
rub from here in Memphis. As a bonus, this rub doesn’t include 2. Get your smoker to a steady 275°F.
sugar. Most all rubs start with the same basic recipe. You 3. Place the soaked wood chips in the little box in the smoker.
probably have most of the spices in your home cabinet. So, if 4. As soon as it starts smoking with the wood chips, add the
you feel like making your own, experiment with the below basic meat (fat side down) in the smoker, right on the grate. If, at
rub recipe. You can’t go wrong with it! any point, it stops smoking, add more chips.
For a basic rub, mix together: 5. About every hour or so, spritz the meat with a 50/50 mixture
½ cup paprika of apple cider vinegar and water.
½ cup salt 6. Let it go for about 4-5 hours or until the internal temperature
½ cup granulated garlic reaches 165°F. We’re done with the smoke and spritzing at
¼ cup granulated onion this point.
¼ cup chili powder
¼ cup cumin 7. Take the meat out, and wrap the butt in two layers of aluminum
2 tbsp black pepper foil, tight.
2 tbsp dry mustard 8. Place the wrapped butt back in the smoker and let it go until
1 tbsp cayenne pepper the meat reaches 198°F internal temperature. The general
½ cup Splenda brown sugar (optional) rule of thumb is that at 275°F, it should take about an hour per
pound, but every butt is different – when it’s done, it’s done!
Preparing the Butt 9. When it’s done, take the meat out. I usually let the butt rest in
Once you have the rub together, take a 6-8 lb. pork butt out a dry cooler for an hour before pulling it apart.
of the packaging and dry it off with paper towels. Once it’s dry,
cover it with some yellow mustard, nice and even. That’s right... The Stew
yellow mustard, the simple hot dog kind. It doesn’t have to be a 1 tbsp olive oil
lot. What we’re trying to do here is give the rub a nice way to 1 yellow onion, diced
stick to the butt. You don’t taste the mustard, and all together this 2 stalks celery, chopped
will form the bark. 3 lbs. pulled pork
Once the butt is covered in an even layer of mustard, start 1 store-bought cooked rotisserie chicken, pulled
shaking on the rub. Don’t be afraid, coat that sucker until it is 1 (30 oz) can whole peeled tomatoes with liquid, chopped
completely covered! If you’re preparing this the night before, 1 cup sugar-free ketchup
stick it on an aluminum pan covered in foil and place it in the 1 cup sugar-free BBQ sauce
fridge. Otherwise, it’s ready to go on the smoker! Salt and pepper to taste
Hot sauce to taste (I use 2 tbsp of Louisiana Hot Sauce)
Smoking the Butt 3 cans of triple succotash (lima beans, corn and tomatoes)
Depending on what smoker you have, the following can 1 can cut green beans
change just a bit, but generally, this is what I do for mine: 1 green bell pepper

34 Blues Festival Guide 2020