Smoke BBQ, Sheffield

Given that I was a vegetarian as a teenager, I shocked myself when I finally accepted my love of meat. See, I like to think that I eat a balanced diet with lots of vegetarian meals, but I do think that there’s not much finer than a slab of red meat once in a while.

Although I also like to indulge in a bit of fine dining now and then, it’s hardly surprising that I don’t mind getting my hands dirty whilst attending to my carnivorous needs. Ribs, pulled pork, burgers and steak – there’s a time and a place for it all and if I’m in the right mood I can easily work my way through a carcass or two (just make sure there are plenty of napkins on standby).

So when an invite to Smoke BBQ arrived in my inbox along with promises of as much meat as I could possibly care to eat, I agreed to give it a go. Having tried a few meat fuelled menus in the past, I knew what to expect. Our experience would be informal, easy and filling.

Smoke BBQ is located in what I now call the ‘city’ area of town. With St Paul’s towering flats, tall office building and a few chain restaurants, coffee shops and the like, I feel like I could be in any British city round there. This is no criticism mind, it’s refreshing to see Sheffield attempt at something I have only ever seen in bigger, more arrogant cities.

The restaurant itself is huge and it’s clear that a lot of money has been spent here. It’s also clear that owners Sean and Duka have set their sights on building up a chain of Smoke BBQ restaurants – there’s a strong theme to the place and the décor is industrial in style with concrete, brick work and weathered wood. It’s an impressive space.

Onto the menu and I had already been told to expect a sample of the Smoke Sharer Platter. Priced at £30 the platter consists of brisket, pulled pork, baby back ribs, turkey leg and hot link sausage which are smoked ‘low n slow’ and finished on the pit (aka BBQ). In addition to all this meat are some twice cooked chips and a side (the husband and I passed on the chance to get some greens down us and went for mac & cheese).

We also ordered a pint of Freedom Smoke American Red each, but only received halves as drinks are either served in super annoying half pint jam jar glasses or two litre jugs. They’re expensive too. Should our favourite measure of beer be available it would set you back around £4/4.50.

The food arrived and we gasped at the sheer amount of food. I admit that I wasn’t too keen on the metal plates it was served on, but as they are infinitely better than slates I won’t complain (I know I just kinda did a bit). Tucking into the food I enjoyed the hot link sausage and the pulled pork, but I was disappointed with the rest. I’ve never had Texan BBQ (and I gather from some internet research that it is a rather unique style of cooking) but I found the meat on the ribs tough, the brisket dry and the turkey leg unappealing. I also found it all quite bland in flavour.

Sides were better and chips, and they were proper chips, not fries, were pretty good but I do think that the mac & cheese could have been cheesier. Duka, who was doing the rounds to gather feedback from customers, noticed that we hadn’t cleared our platter and on hearing our disappointment she insisted that we try something else.

Beef rib and another round of brisket was better but the meat was still too dry for my liking. Having said that, the ‘slaw’ and smoked pit beans were pretty damn good. Beans packed a flavourful punch and had a chilli kick to them whilst the slaw was fresh and zingy thanks to a mayo free dressing. On returning for more feedback, I think Duka was almost as disappointed with my disappointment as I was! Determined that I wouldn’t leave without liking something she brought me a slice of key lime pie.

Now, key lime pie is a bit of a favourite of mine (I like zingy citrus or rich chocolate in my dessert) and I’m pleased to say that this was a winner for me. Made in-house, the base had a good consistency and the filling was spot on – fresh and zingy whilst creamy.

So, I left on a high and although I was quite disappointed with some of the food, the service had been good and I haven’t ruled out going back (although I may try a burger next time… and some more key lime pie). Duka and Sean have put a lot of work into Smoke BBQ and I want to see it all pay off. Indeed, a quick read of their Tripadvisor reviews tells me that Smoke BBQ is working for quite a few people and those who have slated the place have been called for not ‘getting’ Texan BBQ.

With this in mind, I can only say that it wasn’t for me, but what do I know?

Whole Lotta Love - Beef Heart

Since shopping at the market (Castle Market and then the Moor Market) I have wanted to cook a beef heart. After cooking with chicken and lamb hearts, I know how delicious this piece of offal can be but the beef heart always looked a little threatening thanks to its sheer size!

However, a combination of events resulted in me finally making my beef heart purchase yesterday morning - the purchase of a slow cooker a few months ago, a chat with Dean's Family Butchers when strolling round the market with @BeaTheTree last week and a tweet from @BridgetEvans42 about her ox heart pie on Friday. All these events encourage me to finally take the plunge this weekend and I'm rather pleased that I did!

I picked up my beef heart from Dean's Family Butchers in Moor Market for the bargainous price of £3.99. I can't remember how much it is a kilo, but I think it was about £2.50 or so, which ensured that I had a rather lotta heart for my money.

Once home I soaked it in cold water to rid it of any blood that may be lurking in the valves. To be honest, I'm not sure I needed to bother with this as the heart was pretty clean. I also snipped away at a valve or two, but I kept the fat on (hearts are super lean) so there was actually very little prep to do.

I had already decided that I was going to slow cook my new purchase for a number of reasons, but mostly because using the slow cooker meant that we could go to the pub for the afternoon and because the lean meat would benefit from a slow braise. 

I kept things simple and threw a couple of onions, four cloves of garlic, three carrots, three sticks of celery (all chopped up), a couple of bay leaves, some fresh thyme and a tin of tomatoes into my slow cooker and placed my beef heart on top. I then added a bottle of cheap red wine (yes, I know I should only use wine good enough for drinking when cooking, but this is supposed to be a cheap dish and I had one lurking around) and a litre of hot beef stock. I then cooked it for about eight hours on the auto setting.

The heart had a long split in it, so I could spread it open, butterfly style.

On returning from the pub I wasn't too sure how I was going to serve my heart; my only plan was to use some leftover veggies and mash I'd dug out from the freezer the night before (I've started freezing all leftover veg from a roast - not only does it save money - it comes in VERY handy at times like this as I just need to zap it in the microwave for a bit).

I kinda thought that I would also serve it up with some of the veg cooked with the heart, but on inspection, I decided not to bother as it was all too soft and 'samey' tasting. So I strained off the cooking stock and boiled some of it up on the hob, adding some gravy browning to thicken it into a rather tasty gravy. Now at this point I realise (thanks to @jjcaters4) that I should have added some Hendo's, but I didn't (please forgive me - I had spent all afternoon in the pub!).

I also have to apologise for the lack of pictures (again, I had spent all afternoon in the pub), but I can assure you it was delicious. The meat is quite compact (if that makes sense) thanks to the lack of fat, but it was still soft and tender after the long and slow cook. The taste was slightly offaly but the beef flavour came through strongly. I would say that if you're sceptical about most offal, but like chicken livers, this would work for you. And let's face it, at £3.99 a pop, there isn't much to lose...!

And, I got an insane amount of meat from my heart. Aside from feeding us last night, I have enough for another lunch today, sandwiches for the next couple of days and seven portions for the freezer! I'm not sure how I'm going to use the frozen portions, but I suspect there may be a few more sandwiches and a stir fry or two. 

Update
We've just had lunch - slices of heart served with mash, kale and more of that gravy. It was delicious (a perfect lunch for a dreary day like today) and I remembered the Hendo's this time... and I took a picture!

I made gravy with the rest of the cooking stock and I now have about a litre of tasty, ready made gravy to go into the freezer. Bargain.

Top 5 - Laura and Jim

Yay! I have another top 5 post for you all! This one comes from Laura and Jim of new(ish) blog Mashtun and Meow.

The Broadfield - the best homemade pies and sausages in the city, accompanied by a fine selection of ales.

Wick At Both Ends - excellent variety: a seasonally changing menu with an emphasis on local produce, providing modern twists to traditional British classics. Fabulous cocktails!

Revolucion de Cuba - always a crowd pleaser, and a great venue for any social occasion thanks to the fantastic atmosphere.

Urban Choola - a unique take on classic Indian dishes which offers something a little different to your usual curry house.

The Street Food Chef - speedy service, tasty Mexican food, and budget friendly. Sombreros encouraged.

Some nice choices - thank you Laura and Jim for sharing. If you would like to have your favourites posted in this section, email a list of your top five destinations for eating and drinking, including a short sentence about each, to me at live-to-eat@hotmail.co.uk.

2013

Each New Year I tend to blog a round up of the last 12 months... a breakdown of what I did and what I ate each month. It's never the most interesting of posts to write (or read) and it's generally just a summary of the last 12 months of blog posts. 

So this year I'm going against tradition, breaking the mould and switching the format. See 2013 meant a bit more to me than a few fancy meals and I want to share a list of the most important things I have learned instead. Some are a bit deep, some are a bit silly. But they all count.

I've outgrown city living
I want to move to a house, have a spare bedroom, a separate dining room and a garden.

Nobody will hand anything to you on a plate
But if you commit yourself to something, people will help you make it happen.

Money isn't everything.
I currently earn less than I did this time last year, but I'm loads happier and I no longer feel the need to escape my life with expensive nights out and holidays.

I am a good judge of character
I've known this for a while, I just need to trust my instincts a bit more.

I can't make a good risotto
I can make an average risotto, but Gav's the risotto king in our flat.

I have a husband who loves me
And will support me in whatever I want to do.

I need to drink more beer
And less wine - the hangovers are a lot more manageable.

I could live on a pound a day if I had to
But I would really rather not and I'm grateful that I don't need to.

Owning a slow cooker isn't all about turkey casserole
My mother almost put me off these things for life with her turkey casseroles, but I'm actually quite pleased I've given in and bought one.

It's ok to end a list on item 9
If I can't think of anything decent for number 10.

So, there you go. That's my 2013. What was the most important thing you learned in 2013?