South Carolina Mustard Sauce

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In South Carolina, barbecue is flavored with mustard as a dominant ingredient rather than just an incidental spice. Vinegar makes an appearance here as well.

Ingredients

Yellow Mustard, Cider Vinegar, Sugar, Margarine, Worcestershire Sauce, Louisiana-style Hot Sauce

Instructions

In South Carolina, barbecue is flavored with mustard as a dominant ingredient rather than just an incidental spice. But vinegar makes its appearance here as well, plus some hot sauce. As in North Carolina, the sauce is primarily used over smoked pork. But you could serve this over grilled pork chops.

  • 3/4 cup yellow “ballpark” mustard

  • 3/4 cup cider vinegar

  • ½ cup sugar

  • 1 ½ tablespoons margarine

  • 2 teaspoons salt

  • 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

  • 1 1/4 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

  • 2 teaspoons Louisana-style hot sauce, or more to taste

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan, stirring to blend, and simmer over a low heat for 30 minutes. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour before using.

Yield: 1 3/4 cups

Heat Scale: Mild

Texas Beef Brisket New Mexico-Style

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Okay, okay, we borrowed a Texas technique and changed the rub to reflect our chilehead tastes.

Ingredients

Brisket, Lemon Juice, New Mexico Chile Powder, Cayenne, Brisket Basting Sauce

Instructions

Okay, okay, we borrowed a Texas technique and changed the rub to reflect our chilehead tastes. For years we have been perfecting recipes using a smoker known as an Oklahoma Joe’s. It is a horizontal, cylindrical smoker about three and a half feet long and about fourteen inches in diameter. It has an attached, dropped fire box that allows smoking with fairly cool smoke because the fire is separated a bit from the smoking area. Because smoking is so time consuming, it makes sense to smoke several things at once. In addition to brisket, we also smoke a turkey breast. Some cooks use the basting sauce as a mop during the smoking process and eliminate the long marinade at the end of smoking. Leftovers, if there are any, make the best barbecue sandwiches when served on a crusty hard roll with your choice of sauce from chapter 3.

  • 1 9 to 10 pound brisket (“packer trimmed” preferred)

  • ½ cup lemon juice

  • 2 cups mild red New Mexican chile powder

  • 1 tablespoon ground cayenne chile

  • 2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper

  • 1/4 cup garlic powder

  • Brisket Basting Sauce (recipe below)

Thoroughly coat all surfaces of the brisket with lemon juice, and rub in well. Combine the chile powder, cayenne, black pepper, and garlic powder in a bowl, and sprinkle generously all over the brisket, rubbing it in well. Make sure that the brisket is entirely covered. Allow to marinate for at least an hour before smoking.

To smoke the brisket, build a hardwood fire in the fire box using pecan, oak, or any fruit wood. When the fire is smoking nicely, place the brisket on the rack fat side up, to let gravity and nature do the basting. Place the breast as far from the heat source as possible, and close the smoker. During the smoking, do nothing to the brisket. The smoking will take approximately 8 hours at 200 degrees smoke temperature. This means a lot of beer will be consumed while you wait and tend the fire.

After the brisket has finished smoking, remove it from the smoker, slather it generously with Brisket Basting Sauce, wrap it tightly in aluminum foil, and return it to the smoker. Close off all of the air supplies to the fire, and allow the meat to “set” in the pit for about 2 hours.

Yield: A 10-pound brisket will yield about 10 to 20 servings, depending on the individual brisket and the size of the appetites of the guests.

Heat Scale: Medium

Brisket Basting Sauce

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After a brisket has been smoked, it is basted in this sauce for a couple of hours before being sliced and served. Some cooks, however, slather the sauce on during the smoking.

Ingredients

Chili Powder, Cayenne, Margarine, Beer, Lemons, Parsley, Worcestershire Sauce

Instructions

This recipe is from Red Caldwell, who revealed the secrets of Texas barbecue to us when we were editors of Chile Pepper magazine. After a beef brisket has been smoked, it is basted in this sauce for a couple of hours before it is sliced and served. Some cooks slather the sauce on during the smoking. It can also be used with smoked lamb or pork.

  • 2 tablespoons commercial chili powder

  • ½ teaspoon ground cayenne chile (or more to taste)

  • 1 pound butter or margarine

  • 2 onions, chopped fine

  • 5 cloves garlic, minced

  • 1 ½ cups beer, such as Shiner Bock

  • 4 lemons, quartered

  • 1 bunch parsley tops, minced

  • 2 cups vegetable oil

  • 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce

  • 2 bay leaves

In a pot, melt the butter, add the onions and garlic, and saute for 4 to 5 minutes to soften. Add the beer, squeeze in the lemon juice, and add the lemon rinds to the pot. When the foam subsides, add all of the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a medium low and simmer for 20 minutes.

Yield: About 5 cups

Heat Scale: Medium

Excerpt from Barbecue Inferno, (Ten Speed Press, 2001), and available from

Datiled Eggs

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If you can’t find the Datil Dew Burgundy Mustard, use any mustard with chile peppers in it.

Ingredients

  • 12 hard cooked eggs

  • 1/4 to 1/3 cup Datil Dew Burgundy Mustard

  • 1/4 to 1/3 cup mayonnaise

  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Peel the eggs and split them in half lengthwise. Scoop out the yolks and combine them in a bowl with the mustard, mayonnaise, and salt and pepper. Mix until smooth. Spoon the mixture into the egg halves or place the mixture into a quart-sized plastic bag. Clip off one corner of the bag and pipe the mixture into the eggs.

Paul’s Devilish Roasted Chicken

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This roast chicken recipe with pizzazz is practically a meal in one.

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup Devil Drops

  • Juice of 1 lemon

  • Juice of 1 lime

  • Juice of 1 orange

  • 1 teaspoons salt

  • 5 cloves of garlic, sliced

  • 1 whole chicken (about 4 pounds)

  • 4 carrots, cut into large chunks

  • 1 large yellow onion, cut into large chunks

  • 2 baking potatoes, cut into large chunks

  • Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Combine the hot sauce, the juices and the salt. With a small sharp knife, make little slits all over the chicken and slide the garlic slices into the slits. Put any remaining garlic in the chicken cavity. Pour Devil Drops and juice mixture over the chicken, adding some to the cavity. Let stand, basting frequently for one hour. Or, place the chicken in a basting bag and turn frequently.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the chicken in a large baking dish. Add the carrots, onion and potatoes. Grind black pepper over the chicken and the vegetables.

Bake for 45 minutes, turning the vegetables and basting the chicken occasionally. Lower heat to 325 degrees and cook for another 45 minutes or until the chicken and vegetables are cooked through.