Last Friday after reading a post about Making Bacon, I had decided that it was time for me to finally break down and buy a smoker. I have been thinking about buying one for a while now, but after realizing I could make more and more of my favorite foods in my own backyard that really sealed the deal.

Ironically, it was just at the right time. This weekend, I spent an awesome day with Frog, Crispy, Stone, and Lord KP (Yes, He IS a landowner in Scotland) about 20 miles offshore of Port Canaveral. We landed quite a few nice kings, snapper, some random reef fish, and a bonito that had some massive shoulders on him. All in all, I ended up coming home with about 8lbs of fresh kingfish.

I’m not the biggest fan of kingfish. Fresh king, with lots of seasoning is actually a decent meal, but after that it can go south fast. In fact, while searching for recipes I found one the Florida Sportmans Forums that went something like “Steak, rinse in a salty brine, coat in olive oil and throw in the trash.” — Which is a lil upsetting, but shows that there is a liking disconnect between Kings and other Florida fresh fish.

So, I decided to smoke it all, and turn it into fishdip. I’ll post my recipes and results in the future. But so far, all I can say is … wow … I love my new smoker … And as an added bonus, I think every neighbor within 300yards came outside to see where the wonderful Hickory Smell was coming from. Awesome. (People being Neighborly is a Lost art in Avalon)

I’m thinking that this Sunday I might do ribs because I’m having issues finding pork bellies in Orlando (for Bacon) — We’ll see…

In the meantime, I present you with the newest member of our family…. Ol’ Smokey…