General Tso's Smoked Pork Loin

 

      On the smoke trail once again.  This is new for us.  I love General Tso's Chicken, but this intrigued me.  I was able to prepare the loin with new rubs, injection, etc. intact.  This is definitely an Asian Style Pork with a smoke twist, a KOSMOS recipe.  I suppose you could call this Asian BBQ Fusion.  For this I used Oak Lump Charcoal and spiked it with seasoned oak wood as well.  

1 center cut pork loin

KOSMOS SPG rub

2 cups rice of choice

1 bag steamed broccoli florets 

Sesame seeds

1/2 cup General Tso's Sauce

Extra virgin olive oil

      Rub loin with oil and cover with SPG rub.  Rest in fridge overnight.  Be sure to add more oil the next morning, it will dry out overnight.  When ready to cook, preheat pit to 250F.  Place loin on pit.  The recipe actually calls for 350F, but I prefer lower.  Even at that temp it only took 90 minutes to finish.  

Oiled and SPG

On the pit

      Heat the Gerneral Tso's Sauce in a saucepan.  When internal loin temp reaches 125F, glaze with warmed sauce, leaving in pit.  When internal temp reaches 135F, glaze again and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Temp 145 & glazed

      Cook rice and broccoli according to directions.  When internal loin temp reaches 140F remove from pit and tent it to rest for 30 minutes.   When rice/broccoli are done, slice loin thin and serve over rice/broccoli and drizzle with remaining sauce.  Serve.  Not really spicy, but the smoke really compliments it.  

Sliced, ready to plate

"In any man who dies, there dies with him his first snow and kiss and fight.  Not just people die, but worlds die in them, but not my sauce"

General Tso (paraphrased)

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Hibernating Bear w/Black Magic Sauce

 

      Now firmly in the depths of winter (lol) in South Texas it is time to try one of our black bear roasts.  I had planned to smoke one but decided to do this one in the crockpot.  This is a tried-and-true recipe from Montana Outdoors Magazine.  We made this in our small 2-quart RV crockpot.  

2 – 3 lb. bear roast 

1/2 cup chopped potatoes

1/2 cup chopped carrots 

BLACK MAGIC SAUCE

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 Tbsp butter

Add and simmer 4 minutes:

1/2 C cabernet

Add and simmer 5 minutes:

1 tsp salt

1 – 2 tsp pepper

1/1/2 tsp dry mustard

3 packed T brown sugar

1 T Worcestershire sauce

1 ½ Tbsp lemon juice

1 cup prepared brown gravy

      Brown roast well on all sides.  Place in crock-pot with a cup or so of water and salt & pepper.  Cook on Hi for 3-4 hours.

Browning in a HOT skillet

Halfway done

      Turn down to Low.  Add potatoes and carrots in large cubes.  Add more water if necessary.  Cook another 3-4 hours.  Don’t lift the lid any more than necessary.  Check internal temperature to ensure @ least 165F.  While cooking, prepare the Black Magic Sauce.  

 

Black Magic Sauce

Done is @ least 165F. This is a little over

      When temp is reached and carrots/potatoes are tender, plate the roast, slice, and add the sauce on the side.  Meat reached temperature a bit early.  Next time I would adjust cooking times perhaps shorter.  The meat fell apart with no toughness at all, fork tender.  Very much like a rich pot roast.  A hearty dish; great for fall or winter.  Barb and I loved this.  Definitely our favorite bear recipe so far.  Even with the leftovers being used with eggs for breakfast the next day it was fall apart delicious.  

Fork tender

"To abhor hunting is to hate the place from which you came, which is akin to hating yourself in some distant, abstract way.”

Steven Rinella

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A Look at Portable Power Stations

 

      Although we don't dedicate ourselves to solely boondocking as much as we used to, we still can.  We did it whenever possible for nearly 20 years, saving thousands.  But age has a way of changing how you think outside the box.  The new RV has 400W of solar panels and a 400AH Lithium-Ion battery.  We can stay 'off the grid' w/o electric or generator 5 days easily: with good sun, maybe 8.  There are, however, other considerations.  

      In the past 5 months while boondocking I needed a solution to power my CPAP without readily available 120VAC.  Further research and a recommendation from my best friend led me to the portable power station arena.  My friend uses a Jackery unit for his wife's CPAP needs.   

      This is not a new science but much improved.  There are many products out there relating to these needs and the best thing is the battery technology now so much better that you can use these for your RV, camping off grid, backpacking, and even home backup.  Yes, I said backpacking.  Although these units aren't light (some are smaller), they do offer recharge via solar.  Of course, they offer solar panels of all sizes that will easily fit their own individual product. 

 

 These are the top options available:

Best Portable Power Stations (2024): Power Capacity, Portability, Camping, and More | WIRED

      Jackery, rated #1 and Bluetti, #2 are at the top of their game.  Most offer 12VDC output at 2048-watt hours at 2000 watts with recharging times at 2 hours with solar connections, 12VDC cigarette plug or 120VAC.  

      Additionally, there are options for a complete home back up system.  For example, Jackery offers a 5000W home backup system with solar panel recharge.  Others are similar.  I'm not going to deceive you.  The prices for these systems can run from a couple of hundred dollars up to $5000.  Your individual needs and requirements will dictate this.  

      I can however quote you the specs and price of the unit I purchased for my needs.  The Jackery 300 Plus provides 120VAC power, the duration depending on the wattage required.  For me, it will provide wattage sufficient to run my CPAP for up to 6 hours.  Recharge time runs anywhere from 2 to 5 hours depending on conventional or solar.  

      The only drawback I have found with all of these units is their individual cabling and connector requirements.  It's like Microsoft and all the programs that can only run on that platform.  It was not easy for me to adapt the unit to any conventional cabling needed to connect from solar panels, car chargers, or USB unless you bought their particular items.  I have been able to recharge mine with conventional 120VAC when available, but also with a USB C to SAE connector for a set of portable solar panels I have.  

      In the end the unit works very well for my needs and once I circumnavigated the product connectivity issues, I have been happy.  Price for my unit is $299.  

"I bought some batteries, but they weren't included"

Steven Wright

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Smoked Chicken Alfredo

      Welcome to the World of Winter Smoking here in South Central Texas.  Of course, the usual ribs, pork butt, brisket, etc. will be meeting the fire, but I am trying a few new things this year.  This is one of those.  It blends the best of wood pit smoke and Italian cuisine.  I used the wood pit with oak lump charcoal and splits for this process.  

Several chicken breasts (according to your needs, I butterflied mine)

KOSMOS Dirty Bird rub

2 jars alfredo sauce

2 Tbsp minced garlic

16 oz. spinach

1 pack cherry tomatoes

Salt n Pepper

Noodles of choice (no yolk noodles or Rigatoni work well)

      Season chicken breasts with Dirty Bird rub and salt/pepper to taste.

      Smoke the chicken at 275Fº.  When internal temperature hits 165ºF, pull off the heat. This won't take but an hour or so.  Let it cool down, and dice.

       Add a little butter and garlic to a kettle, and sauté on grill.  Add spinach and chopped Cherry tomatoes.  Cook down.

      Cook noodles; drain and set aside.  

      Grab a large enough pan to hold all the food.  Add noodles, spinach/tomatoes, and diced chicken.  Top with Alredo Sauce and put back into pit.  Grab large enough pan to hold all the food.  Add the noodles, spinach/tomatoes, and diced chicken.  Top with Alfredo Sauce and put it back on your smoker or grill.  Remove when chicken begins to darken so it doesn't burn.  Serve.  

      This was an easy cook taking only about 2 1/2 hours start to finish.  Tasty! This was an easy 2-3 days worth of meals for us. 

"Barbecue is like jazz. It can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be"

Bob Gibson

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Leakey Inn Back Porch Bar n Grill

 

      One of the more historic locations in all of Leakey, the Inn has always been the heart of the town.  A favorite of tourists for years coming to town for the river and its attractions throughout the summer.  In the winter, it doesn't slow down much, being a favorite of locals for the 'Back Porch' bar often having live music and dancing.  Recently they expanded this to include food.  

      Additionally, they now offer a cold case sandwich and snack selection, including soup for lunch.  The specials vary from day to day.  

      Barb and I go to town several times a week and this day we decided to stop in for a bite between errands.  On this day we decided to try the sandwich case and soup of the day.

Selection of homemade sandwiches and goodies

Barb ordered the Turkey Grilled Cheese n Chips

I ordered the Turkey Tomato Provolone with homemade Tomato Basil Soup

      We loved our food.  The sandwiches were very good and the soup delicious.  Our lunch tab totaled $27; a bit pricey for lunch. This place aims to please with its service, selection, and hospitality.  We have yet to try the dinner menu.  On the weekends they add music and dancing.  You'd be surprised just how many attend in a town of only 400 folks

.  

"There are things about growing up in a small town that you can't necessarily quantify"

Brandon Routh

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Arrival, Fitting the new RV, and Settling In.....

     

   

      Another winter in heaven ala Leakey TX, for our 5th year.  We don't have any real projects (I think?) this year, but just want to pick up where we left off.  First up would be to position the new Arctic Fox on our pad.  It is 5' shorter than our Rockwood Windjammer, so we want to get it where it can access the sewer connection as well as the water with little or no adjustment. 

       Admittedly, when you're accustomed to all the room and amenities of a large 35' RV, scaling down takes some adjustment, to a point some compromise and balance.  While here, we have the luxury of having 2 small cabins to share the load.  What the hell, at least there is NO SNOW.  We arrived the day after they got 1" of rain so the ground was a bit soft, but we parked with little problems.  In fact, the new RV fits just fine on the patio slab with no adjustments.        

      Once we inventoried the property, utilities, cabins, and uncovered the Polaris we were on our way.  Next up I ordered 800 lbs. of corn for the feeder to be delivered.  We won't be hunting this year but wanted to continue to feed the deer.  Thank God the neighbor helped my old ass with this.  Barb uncovered and set up all the other necessities from our storage for the garden and the patio.   Unfortunately, our Pampas Grass did not survive.  Time for a new plan.  The Chola and Purple Sage in the drive garden are doing pretty well.  The DirecTV satellite setup was its usual pain in the bahookie.  It took 2 1/2 days to get the dish aligned.  

Chola & Purple Sage

I had help from the neighbor for 800# of apple corn

"Welcome to the Winter of Chillaxin' & BBQ"

Rich, Barb, Roux, and Josie Wales Hilts

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Brock vs The Bear Sliders

 

      Sliders have become very nearly a mainstay for folks looking for something simple, but still very tasty.  A part of a much larger, easy to accessorize menu for casual weekend get togethers.  During this fall's visit to our oldest grandson, we offered the option of bear meat for him to try.  He eagerly accepted.  Brock, 22, is somewhat particular about his tastes and I took this as a personal challenge.  Last night he and his mom made us some pretty spectacular Muffalettas.  I have had a bit of success in the past introducing him to London Broil, Quail, Venison, and Reindeer.   This trip I offered two choices of bear meat, with the first being this meal. 

1 pound bear burger

1 small pack goat cheese

Several slices of Provolone cheese

Bread n Butter pickles

Fried onions

1 pack Hawaiian rolls (these are the best)

Choice of sauce (I like Hidden Valley Cajun)

 

      Fry small patties of burger till well done (165F), adding provolone cheese after turning over to melt.  Slice rolls in half (by sheet) and brown in skillet.  Set aside in warmed oven to keep warm.

   

      Brown onions in skillet till caramelized. (you can use raw if you like) Assemble as follows.  Lay bottom sheet of rolls on counter.  Layer burger, cheese, pickles, and onions on top.  Add sauce and replace top half of roll and serve. 

      Brock loved these, in the end devouring 5 of them.  I had one, Barb 2, and we sent the rest home with him.  Barb and I could only watch with a combination of pride and amazement.  Next up for us is Bear Steaks with Morel Mushrooms.

"Okay, grandpa, can I have another and another, and yet another?" (insert Grandpa smile here)

Brock Hilts

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