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Dave writes: "I dug the hole by hand several years
ago, and lined with concrete block two years ago. I got
the wood ready last weekend, Ellie and I prepared the
bird last evening, and I started the fire at 3:30 this
ayem. She went in the Smokin Hole at 6. I set up a draft
vent pipe to feed air to the bottom, and it's smokin
now. No constabulary. No problems. It was a bit dewey
this ayem, so the risk was pretty low." |
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I dug out our hole on Saturday and stacked the first
of the wood inside, ready for the ceremonial dousing
with gasoline and the tossing in of the First Match
(can you say WHUMP?). We're praying for heavy fog on
Tuesday
night/Wednesday early morn. The grass and trees in our
area are still pretty dry. Ellie
is campaigning
for a screened dome over the pit, made of rebar, covered
with 1/4" hardware cloth, with a door in it to throw
in more wood. Maybe next year I'll just build a storage
shed with a door at each end over the spot, and do our
cooking "indoors".
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| Remember, this is a day and a half before serving time! |
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| The chimney vent is new this year. |
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| Here's the TurkeyMeister having hoiked the ill-feted
bird from his final roasting place ... As always, the
juice from the apples inside permeates the meat and the
fat from bacon laid over the spices on the outside drives
the spicy flavor and smoky color through the whole carcass.
One last view from the Magic Porch of the sunset. |
| 2004 note: The difference came when we hoiked the boid out of the hole on Thursday afternoon and found that it wasn't as done as in previous years. Turns out the loose dirt in the hole was damp from the rain, and damp soil makes a poor insulator compared to dry soil. About 20 minutes in the nuclear furnace topped it off nicely. Betty Crocker says it's done when the big leg bone can be twisted out of its socket easily, which it could. The meat thermometer only read 160 (the holder says 180 for poultry, but bottom line: it was DELICIOUS.) |
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