They say smoking is bad for you, and I believe them. But whoever THEY are hasn’t had a SMOKED Potato. Now I’ll admit that I am a new comer to this concept. I honestly never heard of a smoked potato until I started my research for the perfect “Father’s Day Menu”. A dear friend of mine said that her husband loved smoked potatoes…
I was like…smoked potato?! WHY NOT?!
If you’re like me and a little intimidated by using the grill let alone adding the smoking process to the mix let me reassure you, you are in good company. I can’t remember the last time I grilled something…in fact, truth be told a family of wasps (my favorite) has found it to be a nice home…SMH!
So forget the grill! Forget the fancy smoker accessories! Today I am going to teach you how to smoke inside your very own home using a stove top, a wok, a rack and some handy dandy aluminum foil! I feel like MacGuyver…or maybe more realistically like Clinton Kelly in his craft corner…LET’S CRAFT!
INDOOR SMOKING 101
STEP 1: Line the bottom your wok with a piece of heavy duty aluminum foil that extends over the edges by at least three quarters the total width of the wok.
STEP 2: Place your smoking medium (ie: wood chips, tea leaves, sugar, rice, spices, etc) on the bottom of your wok.
STEP 3: Set a rack on top of the wok.
STEP 4: Place the wok on medium-high to high heat to allow the smoking medium to begin to smoke and smolder.
STEP 5: Place food you desire on the rack. Take another long piece of heavy duty aluminum foil to cover and crimp both edges of the aluminum foil (top and bottom) together to form a pouch trapping the smoke inside.
Depending on what you are smoking, your smoke time will vary. In this case we will only be partially baking the potatoes by smoking for an hour then we will finish off in the oven so they will be completely cooked through…totally manageable!
While we wait for our taters to get smoked let’s prep the toppings so they can get loaded later…see what I did there? (wink!)
I want these to have every essence of the grill as possible so let’s go ahead and broil some jalapeno peppers…cuz daddy likes it spicy!
Crisp up some bacon and chop them into bits…this is the real stuff ladies- your husband does NOT deserve bacon bits…correction NO ONE DESERVES BACON BITS!!!!
And cheese makes everything way better so I’ll just set this cream cheese and shredded cheddar cheese right here…do you see where I am going with this…if you’re thinking jalapeno poppers then you’re headed down the right track!
Once our potatoes are tender enough to easily insert a skewer to the center we know that it’s time to get stuffing. Slice each potato in half the long ways and scoop out the insides leaving a half an inch border.
Toss the innards with our jalapeno popper goodness topping.
…then go ahead and pile it high and deep back in the potato carcasses!
Pop our smoked loaded potatoes back in the oven for another round until they are cooked through and browned on top.
Let me just say I did not realize how ridiculously tasty a smoked potato could be. Crispy, smoky skin, spicy, salty, and cheesy filling in one bite! These should be illegal…but they’re not and Pops is going to want some! I guarantee this recipe will have your Dad singing your praises bite after bite after bite!
Who knew smoking food could be so approachable and fun? Since we are in project mode, I thought Friday we could try another new project involving infusing, homemade marshmallows with a delicious libation all Dad’s will love…
…and yes it will be boozy!
See you Friday!
Love,
JJ
- Special Equipment:
- Wok
- Heavy Duty Foil
- Rack
- Smoking Chips (I used Hickory chips)
- Ingredients
- 4 Russet Potatoes
- 4oz Cream cheese at room temperature
- 2 scallions thinly sliced
- 4-5 strips of thick cut bacon
- 1-2 Jalapenos
- 8 oz extra sharp cheddar cheese shredded
- Milk (only as needed)
- Set up your smoker by lining the bottom of your wok with a piece of heavy duty aluminum foil that extends over the edges by at least three quarters the total width of the wok. Place a couple handfuls of smoking chips in the wok. Set a rack on top of the wok. Place the wok on medium-high to high heat to allow the smoking chips to begin to smoke and smolder. Prick the potatoes all over with a fork and place on the rack. Take another long piece of heavy duty aluminum foil to cover and crimp both edges of the aluminum foil (top and bottom) together to form a pouch trapping the smoke inside. Smoke the potatoes for one hour.
- Carefully remove the potatoes from your stovetop smoker and place on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 45 minutes to an hour until you can easily pierce the potatoes with a metal skewer. Remove from the oven and allow to cool long enough so you can handle the potatoes by hand.
- Slice each potato in half length-wise. Carefully scoop the innards of the potatoes leaving a ½ inch ring of potato in each half.
- Meanwhile, preheat the broiler. Place the jalapenos on a rimmed baking sheet and allow to char on all sides. Place the hot peppers in a zip lock bag and allow to sit on the counter for about 10 minutes so that the steam loosens the skin of the peppers making it easy to remove. Remove the skins and roughly chop the jalapenos. Cook the Bacon strips till crisp in a large skillet. Roughly chop the crispy bacon into bits.
- In a large bowl mix the jalapenos, potato, bacon, cheese and cream cheese till mixed well. Season with salt and pepper. If the mixture is stiff add a little bit of milk (a tablespoon at a time) to loosen it a bit.
- Spoon the filling back into the potato shells. Bake again in a 400 degrees Farenheit for 25-30 minutes until cooked through and golden brown.
- Serve immediately and ENJOY!
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