Cherry Marinated Ribeyes (recipe), 2-Cheese Veggies in SV24: Q-View

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forluvofsmoke

Smoking Guru
Original poster
OTBS Member
Aug 27, 2008
5,170
409
Hey all! I found out late lastnight that we would be post-poning our day-trip to restock supplies and meats untils in the morning, and I realized that I hadn't made any plans to smoke today. So, I dug through the freezer (for meat) and then I dug through my brain (for ideas).

It seems I've been turning out some pretty decent recipes lately, so I figured, why try to stop a moving train when you can just jump on and enjoy the ride!

Anyway, I've used marinades bottled before, sometimes with a little docoring, but I don't recall having made my own from scratch, so here goes.  I started out with less vinegar, water, brown sugar and no salt, but my initial taste-testing wasn't quite what I was looking for. What I have below tastes really good straight-up, so it's gotta be a winner after soaking some beef in it for a few hours.

CHERRY MARINADE FOR BEEF

(for 6-7lbs of beef steak)

6 Tbls wood-aged sherry cooking wine (1.5% salt content was used)

3 Tbls white vinegar (5% acidity content was used)

1 cup cold water

3 Tbls dried fresh ground tart cherries

1 Tbsl freshly coarse ground red bell pepper

2 tsp fresh ground black peppercorn

2 tsp fresh ground garlic

2 tsp fresh ground onion

2 tsp coarse ground thyme

1 tsp coarse ground oregano

2 Tbls brown sugar

2 tsp salt

Mix well and pour over steaks in ziploc bag. Close and gently tumble bag to coat all meat surfaces,
repeating tumble every 30-45 minutes, and refrigerate for 3-4 hours before cooking.

Smoke with hickory/cherry.

***note: this marinade is not well suited to high temperature grilling or broiling due to the natural and added sugars and will scorch relatively easily***

The price paid vs regular price/lb...man, eats are getting spendy, but if you look around there are still deals to be had...we used to find these for 3.99/lb, but those days are gone...
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The good news is, I get to transform these beauties into what is sure to be a delight and delicious dinner entree...tonights victims:

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My marinade is ready for some beef:

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I'll marinate these for almost 4 hours to keep me on schedule for a 7:30 pm dinner to smoke with hickory and cherry @ 225 for approx 2 hours:

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No, on to the Cheese and Veggies. I haven't smoked much veggies lately (shame on me) as my wife or girls have been handling that, but tonight I'm home alone (that's the scary part) until dinner, so I'm handling the bulk of the meal on my own. They don't know yet (for the most part) what I'm up to, so it should be a nice surprise for them when they get home. All they know is I'm cooking steaks...that's it. They know not how I'm preparing them, whether grilled or smoked, or what flavors I'm using to bring them from the freezer to the table, and they have no idea about the veggies yet.

The main ingredients...I'll top this with frozen shaved/crumbled cream cheese, small halved pats of butter and salt and pepper:

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I'm shooting for a softer bottom layer with the broccoli, with the mediterranean blend above being uncooked for an aldente' texture, then the grilled mushroom and onions, with the cheese melting through from above:

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The veggies are all still frozen with plenty of ice crystals present, so I won't add any liquids. I'll start their smoke low @ 140-150* with cherry/hickory for about 45 minutes until the cheese just begins to melt, then bump it up to 210* when my steaks go in with additional smoke woods if needed.

Ah, just about perfect to begin a hot smoke and add my steaks:

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Time for some beef!!! 2nd grate above the dry water pan:

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3rd grate up:

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Veggie pan was previously on the 4th grate up, and will now finish on the 5th so I've got a good gap between the steaks and the pan for better heat distribution to the veggies. You don't want a pan down lower when you have meats on the grate or it will act as a heat baffle which redues heat above and slows down your meat smoking too much. You can use this to your advantage if you have something which you want to keep a bit cooler though.

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Time for the slow ride @ 210-220*...still with cherry/hickory smoke.

I'll rotate the rack positions (3rd to 4th, 4th to 3rd) and also give 'em all (including the veggies) a 180* spin for more even cooking after the first hour.

OK, I had a couple more pics after the rack rotations 'cause I didn't have this post to send this off yet, so...1-hr, 10-min into the steak smoke:

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Finish to come ASAP! Thanks for peeking!

Eric
 
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Here ya go! Ah, what a pair these made for tonight's dinner!

Veggies just about to come out of the Vault:

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The cheese are just starting to melt away, so they are still pretty much intact...this adds tons to the texture. Also, the veggies were done to very firm for the broccoli, beans and carrots, and aldente' for the squashes...nothing was really soft, and that's how we love our veggies, just cooked enough to get some seasoned flavor into them, and some great flavor out of them, with some crunch here and there...yeah!:

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And the beef:

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The veggies were drizzled with the liquids from the pan which had a bit of water, but the seasoned butter is what I really was after, and it added quite a bit to the overall flavors:

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Mmmmmmmmm---oooooooooooooooooo!!!...rare to med/rare for mine...juices were sealed into this steak so well that after resting, none hit the plate when I sliced it open...but you can see it in the grain of the meat...man, was this good!!!:

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The steaks and veggies were both a huge hit tonight. Both my daughters, who aren't big veggie eaters, went nuts over these. My wife said she could fill up on the veggies and wait until morning to eat the steak, but she did eat her fill of both. The steaks had a really deep flavor from the smoke and marinade and were a good pair for the beef. I tasted a hint of the sherry, which reminded me of a beef/veggie/rice stir-fry I used to do years ago. The cherries actually seemed to be very smooth, which I think had a lot to do with the sherry and vinegar...good stuff, and I'll be doing it again for sure.

My youngest daughter said I'll have to try to stop cooking such addictive food. I guess my tinkering with flavors and methods keeps 'em guesing as to what's next, but they love the outcome every time.

Man, this was so simple, so easy, yet so delicious!

BTW, I've put the marinade into the Wiki with the cherry rub recipes already...yeah, it's that good.

Thanks all! It's been fun, and now, I'm done!

Eric
 
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That just well looks....those ribeyes look spectacular! Even with the bone in just how I like them. Side that up with your cheesy vegetables and you're set!
 
Good Lord Eric, you just keep turning out one great meal after another. Your really raising the bar for all of us. Like I said before it's like going to smoking school. Thank-you.
 
looks great!!! can't wait to see the end product!!!!


 Thanks Les! This marinade is hit if you're looking for something different.


You neglected to issue a DROOL ALERT!!!!!  Now my keyboard is damp........
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You know, Dave, I used to do that, but I figured most of you would know ahead of time...the word assume, when broken down can be read as...well, you know. LOL!!!

 
That just well looks....those ribeyes look spectacular! Even with the bone in just how I like them. Side that up with your cheesy vegetables and you're set!
Thanks Mark, this really is too easy to not give it a try...the marinade and the veggie dish.
 
Good Lord Eric, you just keep turning out one great meal after another. Your really raising the bar for all of us. Like I said before it's like going to smoking school. Thank-you.
Al, that was pretty tasty stuff. My wife even mentioned today that she was watching my kids eat the veggies, and they couldn't put down their forks. I think I could probably auction the remaining 1/3 pan of them for pretty high bids tonight. I made a lot of extra in hopes that it would be enough for a second meal, but there's not quite enough left for that. Oh well, it is good to know you can find a way to get kids to eat veggies...must be pretty tasty!

Oh, and the steak? Yeah, marinated or dry rubbed are both good, IMO, but for me to make a first-time marinade from scratch just by looking through the fridge and pantry and putting together a decent tasting recipe...hmm, I gotta say, 3 years ago, I didn't have this kind of energy or interest for cooking, so, I'll keep it coming when I can and enjoy the ride will it lasts...maybe it'll be one of those never-ending rides? Ha-ha! It's all good fun and good eats.

Great smokes to ya, Al!

Eric
 
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Well your steaks look fabulous as always there Eric.
 
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Well your steaks look fabulous as always there Eric.
Thanks Mark, I'm glad I tried a marinade...nice twist from the usual dry rubbed method, and with flavors you can't get from a dry rub...well...let me just say that some of the flavors would be a bit difficult to duplicate in a dry rub. I've come out with some rather un-conventional rub flavors already, so I guess I should never say never.
 

Eric
 
Awesome, it all looks great...
Thanks Paul!

Man, I forgot that this smoke was only 4 days ago. I guess I've been a busy smoker for the past couple of weeks...time flies when you're havin' fun!
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Eric
 
Great looking meal - cleaning up the keyboard now from the drool
 
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