According To Smoky

Welcome to According to Smoky. Here you will find the latest and greatest from C. Clark "Smoky" Hale notable 'baster', author, publisher, television star in both the barbecue and 'the real' world. And yes, he is a real person and not the webmaster.

Smoky will be offering his talents, techniques and secrets discovered over the last 150 years, or so. He will be to the point, pull no punches and if you suffer through the process, you will become a much better outdoor cook, turning out masterpiece meals for friends and family alike.

In this column, Smoky discussing live game ‘He Be Smokin’ . . . . . take notes!

So, with no further adieu, we turn the mike to Smoky. You're on Smoky . . . . .

Thanks PC,

OUTDOOR COOKING WITH SMOKY HALE

Without getting too gamy, here’s the game plan. First, you get some game, then you clean it quickly and thoroughly. Then you have all sorts of options to score with.

There is a slight nip in the air, the squirrels are feasting in the oak and hickory trees — and the bird feeders— and people keep asking for more on cooking game. So, it’s time to cover the wilderness scene. While most of this refers to larger game animals, such as deer and elk, the same principles apply to smaller game and wild fowl.

Those who have tasted game, properly prepared, know that it is deliciously different— although it should not be so different as to be at all offensive to even the most delicate palate. Game animals, unlike their penned and plumped domestic cousins, have little fat interspersed in their muscles. This marbling, as it is called, is what makes beef tender enough to broil and chew without working up a sweat. On the other hand, that fat that the animal has worked to store up for winter has a rather distinctive flavor and, on most game, is removed before cooking or storing.

There are a couple of essential elements to serving good game. First, and foremost, is that the game must be properly treated after it is harvested. With deer, or any game animal, bleeding, gutting and cooling should be accomplished as rapidly as possible.

A gut shot deer, dragged out of the woods, loaded on the back, or the hood, of a pickup and flaunted around the territory for several hours before gutting and cleaning is unlikely to ever be fit to eat. It is my studied opinion, however, that the idiots who do this should be forced, at the point of a gun, if necessary, to cook and eat the whole carcass! Regardless of how big the rack, if you can’t make any shot but the gut shot, let it go! The competent hunter/sportsman will place his shot well or decline to fire.

Continued on Page 2

Smoky's 5th basic position for really great barbecue'n.

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