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Recipes Not In My Books

Writer's picture: Stephen PeelStephen Peel

Updated: Sep 16, 2023


No specific order. Air fryer used is Ninja Woodfire, though the same settings apply for all air fryers: Air Fry/Air Crisp - Temp - Time - Start.



SPICY SOY CHICKEN (Woodfire: AIR FRY/AIR CRISP)

Marinade


  1. Create marinade: 125 ml / 1/2 cup oil (veg, olive or choice)

  2. 125 ml / 1/2 cup dark soy sauce

  3. 1 tsp 5-spice powder

  4. 2 tsp onion powder

  5. 2 tsp garlic powder

  6. 2 tsp smoked paprika

  7. 1 tsp chilli powder

  8. 1/2 tsp chilli flakes

  9. 1/4 tsp ground black pepper

  10. Mix well

  11. Coat chicken portions (approx. 8 to 10) in a bowl or zip lock bag and leave to marinate overnight in the fridge.


Method


  1. Cook the portions in the air fryer basket (other items are optional).

  2. Discard any remaining marinade.

  3. Set to AIR FRY / AIR CRISP.

  4. 200C/400F

  5. 25 minutes, turning over once halfway through.

  6. Remove when the internal temperature of the chicken is a minimum of 74C/165F and the chicken is cooked through. Check the legs close to the bone or thighs deep inside.





SMOKED PORK STEAKS (Woodfire: SMOKER)

Ingredients.


  1. 2 pork shoulder steaks, 5 cm/2 inches thick

  2. 1 tbsp sea salt

  3. 1 tbsp ground black pepper


Method.


Dry the steaks with a kitchen towel, season with salt and pepper, pat the seasoning onto the pork, and place in the fridge for 1 hour before smoking. (Cold meat smokes better.)


  1. Place the pork on the grill grate and close the lid.

  2. Pellets: All-purpose.

  3. Dial: SMOKER.

  4. Temperature: 120C/250F.

  5. Time: 1 hour 30 minutes.

  6. START.

  7. Turn the pork over after 45 minutes and add more pellets.

  8. Remove from the grill at 1 hour 30 minutes or with the pork's internal temperature at 80C/176F.

  9. Wrap the meat in foil and a tea towel for 15 minutes after preheating while grilling the vegetables in the Woodfire. GRILL/TIME 15MINS/TEMP 200C/400F/Turning halfway through.






CRISPY PORK BELLY RECIPE (Woodfire: SMOKER + AIR FRY/AIR CRISP)

Ingredients:

  • Belly pork, 5 cm / 2 inches thick.

  • Fine sea salt: 1 tbsp

  • Finely ground black pepper: 1 tbsp

  • Optional: Charcoal pellets


Method


  1. Pat the pork belly dry using a kitchen roll/towel to remove excess moisture.

  2. With the meat side up, make slices down to the fat, ensuring not to cut into the fat. Make these slices no more than 5 cm/2 inches apart. Rub the meat with 1 tbsp of sea salt and 1 tbsp of black pepper to get the seasonings into the cuts.

  3. Turn the pork over. Using a small, sharp-pointed knife, prick the skin all over, aiming for about 4 pricks per 2.5 cm/1 inch. Ensure the knife goes into the fat but not into the meat underneath. Rub the skin with more salt and pepper.

  4. Refrigerate the pork uncovered for 8 to 12 hours.

  5. Place the pork on a grill grate, not a flat plate (meat side up), to allow air to circulate underneath the pork.

  6. Charcoal pellets – give the skin an almost black look. (Optional)

  7. Dail: SMOKER.

  8. Temperature: 130C/270F.

  9. Timer: 2 hours.

  10. Press START/STOP to start cooking.

  11. After 30 minutes, turn the pork over to skin side up.

  12. Continue cooking for up to 1 hour and 20 minutes more.

  13. The skin at this time should be starting to firm and bubble slightly. At this point, we change our cooking methods.


AIR FRY/AIR CRISP

  1. Turn the Woodfire off.

  2. Dial: AIR FRY/AIR CRISP.

  3. Temperature: 200C/400F.

  4. Timer: 15 minutes.

  5. Press START/STOP to start air frying.

  6. Keep an eye on the skin to prevent burning. The pork is done when the skin has a hard, crispy feel, which can be confirmed by running a knife over it.

  7. Once cooked, allow the pork belly to rest for about 10 minutes. Avoid covering it to maintain the crispiness of the crackling.






ABERDEEN ANGUS ROLLED BRISKET (Woodfire: DEHYDRATE + SMOKER + AIR FRY/AIR CRISP

Ingredients


  • Rolled brisket: 2.2 kg/4 lb 12 oz. (This brisket was more folded than rolled, but it turned out beautifully.

  • Seasoning/rub: Of choice.

  • Warm water: 450 ml/1 pint.

  • 2 onions, peeled and chopped.

  • 4 garlic cloves.


Method


DEHYDRATE


  1. Season the brisket and position it in the air fryer basket to ensure hot air circulation.

  2. Add pellets of choice to the smoke box.

  3. Dial: DEHYDRATE setting to mitigate early shrinkage.

  4. WOODFIRE FLAVOUR.

  5. Temp: 90C/200F.

  6. Timer: 1 hour.

  7. START/STOP to begin cooking. Flip the meat at the halfway point.


SMOKER


Once done with the dehydration, switch off the Woodfire and move the brisket from the air fryer to the grill grate, not a flat plate.

  1. Refill the smoke box with the pellets of your choice.

  2. Dial: SMOKER.

  3. Temp: 120C/250F.

  4. Timer: 2 hours or until the brisket's internal temperature nears 65C/150F.

  5. START/STOP to begin cooking. Flip the meat after about 45 minutes.


ROAST


  1. Transfer the meat to a roasting tin when it hits 65C/150F internally. Add onions, garlic, and around 450 ml/1 pint of warm water infused with a beef stock cube, beef stock, or gathered beef juices from a clean drip tray.

  2. Seal the meat with foil, ensuring the edges are wrapped around the tin.

  3. Dial: ROAST.

  4. Temp: 160C/320F.

  5. Timer: 1 hour or until the brisket reaches an internal temperature of a minimum of 91C/195F.

  6. Remove the brisket, leaving behind the juices, onions, and garlic. Wrap it in foil and rest for 20 to 30 minutes before serving.

  7. Reduce the retained juices, onions, and garlic in a saucepan to produce a rich gravy. Consider thickening with gravy granules if necessary.

  8. (Optional) Serve junks of brisket in the onion garlic gravy with crusty bread.









ROAST LEG OF LAMB (Woodfire: ROAST)

  1. Roast.

  2. Woodfire Flavour.

  3. All-purpose pellets.

  4. 170C

  5. 2 hours. However, it only took 1, as it wasn't particularly big.

  6. Temperature probe set to 60C/140F

  7. Followed a The Woodfire Way book method, including adding garlic shards to small cuts and rosemary. The recipe stated to cook for 45 minutes, then turn it over and check on it every 15 minutes until it reaches a specified internal temperature.

  8. I let it rest in foil for 15 minutes before tucking in


I cooked this at medium well done at 60C, but for medium, you could go to 50C or medium rare down to 40 or 45C internal temperature.






BELLY PORK STRIPS (Woodfire: AIR FRY/AIR CRISP)

  1. Air Fry/Air Crisp.

  2. 180C/360F

  3. 15 minutes.

  4. Dried the strips with kitchen roll and added salt to the skin. No oil.

  5. Checked on them often until they were cooked without burning.




SMOKED CRISPY DUCK TORTILLA


Ingredients

  • 1 duck (This recipe used a 1.7 kg/4 lb)

  • 1 1/2 tbsp fine sea salt

  • 1 tsp five-spice powder

  • Pellets of choice

  • 4 spring onions, thinly sliced

  • 1/2 cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced

  • Hoisin sauce


ROAST

  1. Remove giblets. Untie duck legs and wings if necessary.

  2. Pat the duck dry with kitchen roll/towel.

  3. Lightly score the skin and make a 2.5 cm/1 inch deep cut beneath each between the leg and the thigh to release fat.

  4. Refrigerate uncovered for 2 to 4 hours.

  5. Mix five-spice and salt and rub it over duck skin and cuts.

  6. Use a clean drip tray to catch fats and oils to be used with other dishes. It will keep in the fridge for a week.

  7. Dial: ROAST.

  8. WOODFIRE FLAVOUR.

  9. Temp: 180C/360F for 50 minutes. Flip the duck after 25 minutes.

  10. Press START/STOP to begin.

  11. Once the ADD/FOOD message appears, place the duck, breast side up on the grill grate.


AIR FRY/AIR CRISP

  1. Turn off the Woodfire after roasting, leaving the duck on the grill grate.

  2. Dial: AIR FRY/AIR CRISP.

  3. Temp: 200C/400F.

  4. Timer: 20 minutes.

  5. If the ADD/FOOD message appears, just lift the lid and close it again to continue cooking. If it attempts to preheat, simply hold the STOP/START button for a couple of seconds to override.

  6. Cook the duck for 10 minutes on each side. Monitor to prevent over-browning.

  7. Rest duck for 15 minutes.

  8. Shred breast meat. Separate wings and thighs.


Tortilla Wraps

  1. Warm 4 large tortillas in the microwave for 30 seconds.

  2. Spread 1 tsp or more, Hoisin sauce on each tortilla.

  3. Add spring onion, cucumber, and duck in the centre.

  4. Fold tortilla edges inward, then roll from the bottom up. Serve with extra Hoisin sauce if desired.







SMOKED BEEF RIBS

Achieving tender beef ribs on a Woodfire can be challenging without drowning them in sauces, wrapping or pre-stewing. Through experimentation, I've devised an unconventional method.

The UK Woodfire's SMOKER setting isn't as low-temperature as its US counterpart. Consequently, I've used the DEHYDRATE setting for a low and slow cook, minimising meat shrinkage while ensuring it remains tender and bones detach effortlessly. Those in the US can use this method too.

The only other variable is that the meat can differ in size, fat content, age and quality, so I encourage you to experiment and get back to me on how you cooked your ribs without stewing, wrapping, or cooking in the sauce.

Trimming

  1. From both the meat and bone sides, remove the silverskin.

  2. To do this on the bone side, lightly slice along the bones. Then, slip a knife beneath the skin over the meat, removing it as you would from a fish fillet. No need to remove it from the bones.

  3. The goal is to rid the ribs of skin and excess fat, fully exposing the meat.

  4. Once trimmed, season with your preferred steak rub or seasoning. You can use a binder to get the seasoning to stick, such as yellow mustard, Dijon mustard, or olive oil, but use it sparingly so the smoke can penetrate, then refrigerate for a few hours.

Ingredients

  • Beef ribs (2.2 kg/4 lb 13 oz used here)

  • Seasoning of choice (steak seasoning used here)

  • Binder of choice (a fine coating of olive oil used here)

Method:

Stage One:

  1. Place the ribs on the grill grate, bone side down.

  2. Pellets: Your choice (Maple used here).

  3. Dial: DEHYDRATE.

  4. Temp: 90C/190F.

  5. Time: 1 hour.

Stage Two:

  1. Flip the ribs to bone side up. This allows heat to penetrate the bones without overcooking the meat.

  2. Pellets: Your choice (Maple used here).

  3. Dial: SMOKER.

  4. Temp: 120C/250F.

  5. Time: 1 hour.

Stage Three:

  1. Return the ribs to bone side down for gentler cooking.

  2. Dial: DEHYDRATE.

  3. Temp: 90C/190F.

  4. Time: 1 hour.

Stage Four:

  1. Keep the ribs bone side down.

  2. If any pellets remain unburned from stages one and two, let them burn off. If they've all burned down, do not add more.

  3. Monitor the ribs and spritz occasionally if they seem to be drying out. Water with a splash of apple cider vinegar used here.

  4. Dial: SMOKER.

  5. Temp: 120C/250F.

  6. Time: 1 hour or until the internal temperature of the ribs reaches a minimum of 96C/205F.

  7. Wrap ribs in foil for 30 minutes.


Note: If the ribs' internal temperature stalls at around 90C/195F for over 10 minutes, increase the heat to 130C/270F until the temperature reaches 96C/205F.


Serving suggestion: Ribs on a bed of fried rice with a barbecue sauce. A mixture of Hoisin sauce and barbecue sauce was used here at a ratio of 50/50.







SMOKY BACON RIBS


Ingredients:

  • Bacon ribs (salt-cured ribs). Adjust quantity based on the number of servings. I've used 2 racks for this recipe, each cut in half.


Method:


  1. Place the ribs in a large pan and cover them with water. Put on the lid and bring the water to a boil.

  2. Once boiled, discard the water and refill the pan with cold water to help remove excess salt.

  3. Bring the water to a boil again, then reduce the heat and let it simmer. Continue simmering until the meat is tender and almost falling off the bone, which can take up to 2 hours. For this recipe, the ribs were simmered for 1 hour and 30 minutes after reaching a boil the second time.

  4. Remove the pan from the heat and drain the water.


Note: At this stage, you can shred and boil some cabbage, drain it, place the ribs on top, and serve. The combination of cabbage and ribs is a traditional dish that remains popular today, especially when bacon ribs are available. You're more likely to find bacon ribs at a butcher's, which may also accept special orders, than at supermarkets.


To continue with the Smoky Bacon Ribs:


AIR FRY/AIR CRISP

  1. Lay the ribs on the grill grate. I've used a foil layer underneath the ribs, as there's minimal liquid residue at this point, which aids in easier cleanup.

  2. Pellets: Add your choice of pellets to the smoke box for a smoky flavour.

  3. Dial: AIR FRY/AIR CRISP.

  4. Temp: 160C/320F.

  5. Timer: 15 minutes.

  6. Press the START/STOP button.

  7. Halfway through the cooking time, flip and rearrange the ribs for even cooking.

  8. Once the ribs have soaked up some smoked and dried out a little more, remove them from the fryer and serve.


(New, recipe not in my books)








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