4Rivers

A family joint opened up recently in the Orlando area; 4Rivers Smokehouse.

They sell smoked meats and all sorts of southern sides: fried pickles being my most favorite!

Anyway... I've been using the meat in recipes of my own lately. The intense smoke flavor is unbelievable!

Here are some of my recent ideas:

The pulled chicken is great in Chicken Packets, which are a take on Pillsbury's Recipe for Savory Chicken Squares. The smoked chicken is shredded and then their signature barbecue sauce is added so it makes the recipe more like "BBQ Chicken Packets" but I liked it! Try adding some chopped pickles or corn into the mix before baking to change the texture.

The smoked chicken comes in more bird looking form, I like the chicken breasts. (They are maybe my favorite thing on the menu). Instead of shredding the chicken I took the smoked chicken breast and shredded it with a fork, the meat is so tender it just falls apart. Then I added it too some tomato sauce and served it with pasta. So simple but so delicious. Don't leave the meat warming in the sauce too long though because the smoke flavor is very strong.

The turkey is probably my second favorite meat on the menu. Order the turkey dinner with sweet potato casserole and green beans and it will be thanksgiving in july! The turkey does have a tendency to dry out so it can be difficult to work with at home. I used it in a spinach egg white omelet and it was juicy and complemented the eggs well.

I did steal a recipe idea from 4Rivers for a party I went to on Friday. Only though catering 4Rivers offers a brisket bruschetta that I replicated at home using a *gasp* jarred bruschetta topping. Layer the toasted bread, the brisket, and the bruschetta topping.

Any other ideas?

Happy Eating!