The Dead Pecan Tree is a beautiful specimen tree that has a thick green shady canopy with a light colored top. It's a dense evergreen with pyrethrin resin on its undersides and red spider veins in the center of its trunk. I've found this tree at our local nursery and it looks great, even though I grew up eating sweet corn. But as I grew older I began to crave something a little more exotic, like pecan orchard nuts, or hickory.
I went through my search for the perfect smokehouse, I thought that maybe I should start by trying to find a substitute. So I looked all over, tried cedar hickory, oak, maple, mesquite oak, even free standing pine. I finally settled on an old Chinese elm that was left on a street for scrap lumber. It had great bark, and when I pulled off the dead side it made for a great smoky trail head. I gathered up some sprigs of wild hickory, some chunks of red dead pecan, and some of sweet chestnut as well.
I brought all of these things to my woodworker, who was kind enough to let me try them out on my smoker. After about a week of curing I was ready to expand my smoker to smoke some hickory. The smoke was very rich and the hickory gave it just the right amount of darkness and Smoky flavor. It was awesome! When I put the hickory chips and smoker together for the last time it smelled like I smoked some free standing Pecan, but with just a bit less intensity.
Smoked hickory chips go great with a variety of meats including prime rib, spare ribs, brisket, turkey, chicken, sausage, salmon, tuna, grits, and any other kind of lean meat. Try using them with pork and beef for a hearty Smokey Tail Recipe, or try them with fish or chicken to make a Fishy BBQ Sauce. Other than using hickory chips I have also used pieces of apple and cinnamon to make an oversmoke for sandwiches. Theses methods work great and are sure to please your palate. So if you are looking for a good Smokey Mountain Chestnut for your home kitchen check out this smoker tip.
Smoked hickory chips with the meat on are great to use with pork and other lean meats and are a fantastic Smokey Mountain Chestnut alternative. This Smokey Mountain Chestnut alternative is a smoky, rich pork chop or cut into thin strips for sandwich filling. These thin strips of meat along with the sweet smoke flavor of the pecan wood adds a delicious depth of flavor to any dish. Try them with a Grilled Pepper Steak, a Smoked Fish Dish, or as a filling for a baked potato. I've also used them to make an oversmoke for fish like Salmon, Tuna, or shrimp. These thin strips of meat and the sweet smoky flavor of the Hickory chips create an awesome Smokey Mountain Chestnut treat for any dish.
Coal-fired oven cooks food really fast and the resulting aroma and flavor is unbelievable. Although the cook time for coleto creek power plant is longer than gas oven it still produces a fantastic smokey delicious chestnut breakfast. The coal-fired coleto Creek Power Plant is actually in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains about 30 minutes north of Atlanta Georgia. If you are not near the area you can still have the same amazing taste and enjoy delicious food with this fabulous twist on Southern cuisine.