Steven Raichlen's Project Smoke

Multi-award-winning author, journalist, cooking teacher and TV host Steven Raichlen takes a side journey away from classic grilling to explore the rich flavors of smoked food in the 13-part series STEVEN RAICHLEN'S PROJECT SMOKE. PROJECT SMOKE is a "how-to" cooking show that focuses on the art of smoking techniques and recipes from hot smoking and cold smoking to smoke roasting and "smoke-tisserie" cooking.

Using traditional and cutting-edge techniques in must-try recipes, the grilling and smoking authority shows how to smoke a variety of iconic foods, such as Texas brisket, Kansas City ribs and Carolina pork shoulder. In several episodes, Steven also demonstrates smoking dishes not known for being smoked, such as vegetables, pizza and dessert. There's even an episode devoted to urban dwellers on how to make smoked eggplant dip, smoked gazpacho, stovetop-smoked salmon and smoked ice cream.

Courtesy of Maryland Public Television

EPISODE GUIDE:

“Smoking 101” airs Saturday, July 11 at 1 p.m. - Smoke. It's the soul of barbecue, and you know it when you smell it and taste it. In this show you'll learn how to harness the flavor-enhancing power of smoke, starting with the essential techniques of hot smoking, cold smoking, and smoke-roasting. You'll also learn how to use an electric smoker, offset smoker, and upright barrel smoker. And that's just in the first episode. On the menu: Cold Smoked Scallops with Smoked Tomatoes and Jicama Salsa; Smoke-roasted Chicken with Horseradish Glaze, and Apple Smoked Baby Back Ribs with Prickly Pear Barbecue Sauce-the latter inspired by PROJECT SMOKE'S taping location in the scenic Sonoran desert.

“Shoulders & Bellies” airs Saturday, July 18 at 1 p.m. - If you want to enjoy the perfect ratio of crust to meat to fat, smoke a shoulder or belly. These fatty and often tough cuts were once considered poor man's food. But blast them with assertive seasonings and smoke them low and slow and you get meats that are beyond flavorful. In this show you'll learn how to smoke a luscious barbecued Berkshire pork belly and house-cured pastrami. You'll experience a Kentucky-style barbecued lamb shoulder with an unusual black barbecue sauce (called "dip" in local parlance). And to wash them down, a smoked Manhattan. Ceramic cooker, offset smoker, electric smoker, and handheld smoking device. PROJECT SMOKE has you covered.

“Surf Meets Turf” airs Saturday, July 25 at 1 p.m. - In this show, we cast metaphorical nets in the sea, over land, and in the air, working the PROJECT SMOKE magic on classic surf and turf. First, a smoked shrimp cocktail fired up with chipotle chiles and served with an electrifying Yucatan orange cocktail sauce. Next, fresh trout stuffed with lemon and dill, wrapped with bacon, and smoked on cedar planks in a mammoth ceramic cooker. Santa Maria tri-tip gets the reverse-sear treatment on a pellet grill-a revolutionary technique that guarantees crusty, smoky, perfectly cooked smoky sirloin every time. Finally, a smoked delicacy from Asia: not-so-classic Chinese tea-smoked duck served taco style. It's surf and turf on PROJECT SMOKE.

“Ribs Rock The Smoker” airs Saturday, August 1 at 1 p.m. - Ribs rank among our favorite foods for smoking and are one of the primal pleasures of barbecue. Few ribs are more primal-or satisfying-than our first dish: Brontosaurus-size, grass-fed, barbecued beef plate ribs. Next up: spare ribs from heritage breed Berkshire hogs, slathered with Jamaican jerk seasoning and smoked over exotic pimento wood. Our third rack comes from Colorado: Spice-Smoked Lamb Ribs with Cherry Cola Barbecue Sauce. And to round out the meal: a delectably different coleslaw-apple sweetened and hickory-smoked, and smoky bacon-cheddar cheese cornbread. From offset smokers and upright barrel smokers to electric smokers and handheld smoking devices, we'll show you the tools and fuels you need to get the job done.

“How to Smoke When You Don't Have A Smoker” (schedule change: no air date) - Perhaps you live in a condo or you don't have a backyard. This show is for people who want to smoke, but don't have access to a conventional wood- or charcoal-burning smoker. You'll learn how to smoke eggplant on your stovetop burner to make a spectacular eggplant dip (think baba ghanoush on overdrive). You'll learn how to smoke tomatoes, peppers, and other vegetables with a handheld smoker to make a supremely refreshing gazpacho. Salt- and sugar-cured kippered salmon gets smoked indoors in an ingenious stovetop smoker. And you'll learn how to smoke an authentic Jamaican jerk chicken on a gas grill. The secret? Strategic use of pimento (allspice) berries, leaves, and wood. Recipes: Smoked Eggplant Dip with Walnuts and Feta; Smoked Gazpacho; Stovetop Smoked Salmon; Jamaican Jerk Chicken.

“Big Bad Beef” (schedule change: no air date) - For many people, beef represents the ultimate barbecue. This show celebrates beef in all its smoky glory, from not-so-traditional beef jerky (marinated in fiery sriracha and smoked in an electric smoker) to a magisterial whole beef tenderloin smoked in an upright barrel smoker and served with horseradish cream sauce. Of course, you’ll learn how to smoke brisket Texas-style (rubbed with spices and cooked in a massive offset smoker fired with oak logs). Plus, smokehouse beans to serve on the side. We’ll even show you how to smoke-roast bell peppers directly on a bed of hot embers. Recipes: Sriracha Beef Jerky; Slam Dunk Brisket; Whole Smoked Beef Tenderloin With Ember-Roasted Peppers; Smokehouse Beans.

“Bacon 24/7” (schedule change: no air date) - Bacon jam? Bacon ice cream? Where will our bacon mania lead? We open this show with bacon you make from scratch. (It’s as simple as curing and smoking a pork belly.) And for people who want a healthier version of bacon, we cure pork loin in fennel brine and smoke it in a ceramic cooker—the Project Smoke twist on Canadian bacon. Next up: a spectacular “Tulsa Torpedo”—three pounds of porky goodness encased in a crispy bacon weave. We conclude with a bacon surf and turf in the form of bacon-wrapped snow crab poppers. Bring home the bacon? This episode shows you how. Recipes: Home Smoked Bacon; Canadian Bacon; Tulsa Torpedo (Bacon Weave Sausage Roll); Snow Crab Bacon Poppers.

“Hog Wild” (schedule change: no air date) - Pork is the heart and soul of American barbecue, especially in the South. In this show, you’ll learn how to smoke a spectacular whole pork loin roast (complete with ribs, loin, and tenderloin) on a wood-burning rotisserie. (To wake you up there’s a coffee crust and smoky redeye barbecue sauce.) Next, pork shoulder— slathered with herb paste and served with peppery West Virginia mustard sauce. And speaking of Virginia, you’ll also learn how to cure and hickory-smoke a spectacular shoulder ham. (The process involves four classic techniques: brining, injecting, cold smoking, and hot smoking.) And to serve with it: barbecued cabbage with smoked cheese and chorizo. Go hog wild. Do it now. Recipes: Smoke-Tisserie Pork Loin Roast With Red-Eye Barbecue Sauce; Smokehouse Ham; West Virginia Pork Shoulder With Mustard Barbecue Sauce; Chorizo Barbecued Cabbage.

“Thanksgiving Comes Early” airs Saturday, Sept. 5 at 1 p.m. - The secret to supernaturally moist turkey? The PROJECT SMOKE version involves a whiskey brine and a slow smoke over maple wood. The traditional side dishes get smoked, too: bacon-stuffed barbecued onions, smoky creamed corn, and a smoky bacon-apple crisp for dessert. Even the cranberry sauce (salsa in this case) has fire thanks to the strategic addition of jalapenos. Forget your oven: this Thanksgiving feast gets cooked in a ceramic smoker, upright barrel smoker, electric smoker, and stovetop smoker. Just don’t wait until Thanksgiving to try it. Recipes: Double Whiskey-Smoked Turkey; Barbecued Onions; Smoked Creamed Corn; Bacon-Apple Crisp.

“Yum Kippers—Fish Gets Smoked” airs Saturday, Sept. 19 at 1 p.m. - Sable. Lox. Kippers. Some of our most prized smoked foods come from the sea. This show explores iconic smoked seafood dishes from around Planet Barbecue. We start with salt-cured, cold-smoked salmon in the style of Bornholm, Denmark. (You’ll learn to smoke it in a monster offset barrel smoker from Oklahoma). Next, hot smoked black cod (a.k.a. sablefish) cured with a fennel-coriander rub and smoked in a ceramic cooker. Our third fish—wahoo from the Florida Keys—uses an unusual double marinating technique prior to being smoked in an electric smoker and being served with a mango-scotch bonnet salsa. For dessert: spectacular coconut crème brulees smoked in a pellet grill. It’s business as usual at Project Smoke. Recipes: Cold Smoked Salmon; Hot Smoked Black Cod; Smoked Wahoo With Mango Salsa; Coco Loco Smoked Crème Brulee.

“Smoking the Competition—Our Tailgating Show” airs Saturday, Sept. 26 at 1 p.m. - Forget the contest on the gridiron. Tailgating gets a lot more interesting when you fire up your smoker. Invest in a portable smoker (if you don’t already own one) to cook game-changers like smoked chicken nachos, spicy smokehouse wings (firepower provided by Thai Sriracha hot sauce), and Wisconsin’s idea of a po’boy— smoked bratwurst piled on rolls with smoked sauerkraut. Even our burgers come hickory-smoked—complete with a Rauchbier (smoked beer) cheese sauce. We’re smoking the competition on Project Smoke. Recipes: Smoked Chicken Nachos; Smokehouse Wings; Double Brat Po’ Boys With Smoked Sauerkraut; Hickory-Smoked Burgers With Rauchbier Cheese Sauce.

“You Can Smoke What?! Extreme Smoking” airs Saturday, Oct. 10 at 1 p.m. - By now you’re comfortable smoking ribs and barbecuing brisket. (We hope.) This show focuses on foods you never dreamed you could smoke—and won’t be able to live without once you’ve tried them. To whit, smoked deviled eggs. Camembert cheese smoked on a cedar plank with pepper jelly and jalapeños. Hay-smoked steaks served with charred chipotle salsa. (To cook the steaks, you’ll learn a cool technique called reverse-searing.) And a smoky twist on a classic cocktail—the smoky Mary (smoked with an ingenious handheld smoker). Whether you’re smoking in a kettle grill, pellet grill, stick burner (offset smoker), electric smoker, or directly on the embers, we’re smoking extreme on PROJECT SMOKE. Recipes: Smoked Deviled Eggs; Plank-Smoked Camembert; Hay-Smoked Steak With Chipotle Salsa; Smoky Mary.

“White Glove Smoke Session” airs Saturday, Oct. 17 at 1 p.m. - This show elevates smoking from the tailgating lot to the penthouse. Start with mesquite- smoked oysters electrified with chipotle barbecue sauce. A mammoth 7-bone prime rib takes a turn on a wood-burning rotisserie prior to being cut into steaks and seared over a blazing oak log fire. You can’t have meat without potatoes: the Project Smoke version comes smoke-roasted, stuffed with bacon and smoked cheddar cheese, then smoked a second time until bubbling, and topped with—what else?—smoked paprika. For dessert, there’s a rich creamy cheesecake—smoked, of course—and served with burnt sugar cream sauce. Think of this as a white glove smoke session and don’t think of firing up your smoker without trying it. Recipes: Chipotle-Smoked Oysters; Smoke-Tisserie Prime Rib With Wood-Grilled Asparagus; Triple Smoked Potatoes; Smoked Cheesecake With Burnt Sugar Cream Sauce.