Basic Reheating Of Some Smoked Meats Food

BASIC REHEATING OF SOME SMOKED MEATS

Steps:

• AVOID MICROWAVE OVENS FOR REHEATING MOST SMOKED MEATS! This is usually the number one reason the taste of smoked meats is rubbery and tasteless after trying to reheat smoked meat in the microwave. The microwave heats from the center, pushing all the natural moisture out of the meat along with it's smoke flavor. So, it tends to wind up "unnatural" tasting like shoe leather.
• SMOKED TURKEY OR SMOKED CHICKEN: Turn the oven or smoker on about 225 or 250 degrees, and allow for the temp to get there. Wrap the turkey or chicken in a foil packet with about 1/4 cup of chicken broth or turkey broth. If you don't have either, vegetable soup broth works fine too. You DO NOT want to steam your meat, so do not put too much liquid in. You just want about a 1/4 amount of liquid to a pound of meat. When the oven or smoker is up to temp, put the foiled meat on or in the heat for about 10-15 minutes per 1 pound of meat. If you have more meat adjust your timing by 5-7 minutes per pound. Then, allow your meat to rest for 2 minutes before serving. This allows the smoked meat to soak up juices again.
• METHOD #1 SMOKED PORK BUTT OR SHOULDER (for SMALLER PORTIONS): The secret to pulled pork or shoulder is to freeze or refrigerate the meat in a freezer sealing bag. The food saver bags work well with this idea: Place your bag (yes, including the bag) of pulled pork in a pot that's big enough to hold it, adding enough water around it to come midway up the pot. Place the pot on your stove top and begin heating the water on LOW. Once the water has heated to LOW, you can increase the temperature to MEDIUM LOW to MEDIUM increasing temperatures slowly. This allows the meat to heat up without loosing any flavor whatsoever. This process takes a progression of time, about 10 to 20 minutes (also depending on how much meat you have). But, you never need to add anything to keep the moisture locked in. METHOD #2 explains how to heat in the oven if you have a full pan size.
• SMOKED BRISKET: If you have a small portion in a freezer bag, try Method #1 for smoked pork butt or shoulder. You'd be surprised but this method also works too. Reheating brisket needs a little bit of liquid. The 1/4 cup of beef broth is a suggestion based on a pound or two of brisket, BUT could use more or less depending on how tender the cooked brisket is. Check the brisket for tenderness by pulling apart a slice. If the brisket pulls easily apart use a little less liquid, if the brisket is hard to pull when tugging on it, add a little more beef broth. Once determining the tenderness, heat oven or smoker to 250 degrees. Heating the brisket on a higher temp will cause less time on heat, which ultimately will cause less drying of the brisket. Put the meat in foil packet with pre-determined liquid or beef broth and place on heat for 10-15 minutes per pound of meat. Another suggestion besides beef broth is making an au jus sauce.