Shortly after posting about the salmon I intended to smoke, I was whisked away to Cheyenne, Wyoming on business. I barely had enough time and foresight to toss the fish into the freezer. I was a little worried about refreezing it, but the other option was to chuck it in the trash so I figured I'd be at least no worse off. And luckily it was only slightly freezer burned. I just thawed it for 2 days in the fridge with a big weight (stone bread pan) to squish some more juice out.

Today I jury-rigged up a smoker out of a cardboard box and the pieces of the terra cotta smoker that I'm still trying to build. My wife was a bit worried about having a hot object in a cardboard conveyance, so I made sure to have the fire extinquisher around just in case. Not a bad idea anyway, I suppose. Thankfully, no fire.

Following AB's recipe I cooked it until it hit 150 degrees F. Well, to tell the truth it was getting late and I was getting impatience, so I cut it off at 143. Please don't call the food police. The fish had been sitting in there for over 5 hours, so I'm quite sure any nasties had been eradicated.

The texture was a lot like canned tuna, but the flavor was so much better. So much smokier, although curiously it seemed to oscillate between strong and mild. The outside layer had developed this especially tasty thick, somewhat cruchy skin. The BBQ ribs I had in Cheyenne last week had a similar layer and it was equally delicious then. I believe those ribs were also dry smoked so I'm quite looking forward to using that technique on a lot more munchables. I had a bit of my salmon on a sandwitch with some mayo and it was to die for.

Not sure when I might next try the salmon. I have a feeling that wild salmon is a rare catch around here. I'm thinking that I may try smoking some trout if the streams are especially nice to me this year. I'll try out a number of different rubs and woods (I used apple, btw).

Last week at Walmart they had a big case full of frozen, wild salmon. Would you believe it wasn't even from China! Full fledged Alaskan salmon. Well, that farm raised, color added atlantic salmon just doesn't compare (or so I hear) so I couldn't pass up a 2lb fish for $5. Wasn't quite sure what to do with it, but I knew I wouldn't have another chance soon (and sure enough they were all gone the next time I visted).

We had half of it tonight baked with mustard, honey and butter. It was pretty good, I have to admit. I'm not really a fish guy so I found that a little surprising myself. My tastes sure have changed in the last 5 years. I think a good part of that is mental.

So what to do with the other half? Well, smoke it of course! I haven't finished my terra cotta smoker yet, so I figure I'll jury rig one of these bad boys. Since I only have half a fish, and it was a little smaller than AB's, I dropped the proportions by quite a bit. It's sitting in the fridge right now. I'll smoke it tomorrow evening and post about it, of course.

Last night I whipped up another batch of my jalapeno mayonnaise. Boy is that good stuff, and really easy to make. I didn't take pictures so you'll just have to make do with old fashioned instructions.

First, acquire some jalapenos. How many depends on how much mayo you want and how spicy you want it. I used 5 medium sized peppers and made a pint of mayo, which ended up being on the mild side. Roast those puppies until their skins are all black and charred. You can do that over a gas stove or under the broiler. A trick to getting the skins off is to set the peppers on a plate and cover with a lid right after removing them from the heat. Water will condensate and the skins will slip off pretty easily.

Rough chop the peppers into smallish bits and toss into a blending machine. I've used blenders, I've used food processors, and I've done it by hand. Take your pick. Puree the peppers with a few tablespoons of mayo, just enough to give the mixture some bulk. Less blending equals a thicker sauce so adjust as you like.

Mix in enough mayonnaise to dilute to the correct taste. Store in a glass jar in the fridge for a month or so, maybe more. I've never done tests but I've never had any go to waste either.

One thing I'd like to try in the future is using homemade mayonnaise. It also is pretty easy to make and using different oils leaves open endless possibilities. I'm thinking mainly of trying some chili oil. Spicy.

Another Alton Brown granola recipe for you. This one comes in bar form. How can you go wrong with anything in bar form? I've played with a number of variations on this one and have found it quite flexible as well as quite delicious. Loads better than most of the granola bars you can get at the store, although I'm still trying to get it a little more chewy.

You know that feeling you get when you eat half a sandwich only to discover the bread is moldy? C'mon, fess up. We've all done that, and we know that sinking feeling you get in your gut. No amount of brushing your teeth really makes your mouth feel clean.

Well, that was the way I felt last week as I was listening to a podcast of KCRW's Good Food while driving to Wyoming. They were discussing a new trend in food packing where meat containers are filled with carbon monoxide to prevent the meat from turning brown. "That's horrible", I thought. Then they described the packages and that's when it hit me. That's exactly the meat I've been buying from Walmart. Well, I guess I should have expected it from them.