SMOKED PEACH RELISH

Our perfect Smoked Peach Relish which is perfectly paired with Shrimp for a tasty dish!

Peach season! One that lends so many different options to your food experience. Whether consumed raw or used in entrees or desserts, I aim to bring another flavor level to this much anticipated seasonal fruit by adding wood-fired flavoring. Then I’ll take these flavorful peach halves and introduce you to a peach relish that is perfect for topping fish and seafood.

Visit your favorite farm stand, fresh market, or your own peach tree and pick three firm, fresh peaches and bring them to the kitchen for preparation before hitting the wood-fired grill. Oh, and we have plans for additional recipes with smoked peaches so do some extras while you have the grill or smoker going.

Easy Prep for the Grill or Smoker

Although yellow is the most common peach available, know that there is a white variety as well. Both have easy to remove pits that make them easy to prepare for your favorite recipes.

Start by peeling the skin from the peaches, you’ll need 3 for this recipe, though I’m doing a full sheet pan for additional recipes. Once peeled, using a paring knife, slice thru the center of the peach along the pit. Gently separate into two halves then remove the pit. Place the pitted and peeled peach half cut side down on a sheet pan. Continue with the remaining peaches. I’ll be using my gas grill set up with a smoker box of wood chunks to bring a smoky flavor to the fruit. I’ve placed my smoker box directly on my heat diffuser to get the wood hot and smoldering quickly. My pan of peach halves is placed on the unlit side of the grill. Lid down on the grill and allow these peaches to tenderize slightly and infuse the smoke flavor. I’ll check on them in about 15 minutes.

 Tasting Notes: Keep in mind, flavors from wood on a gas grill will not be as intense as those on a charcoal unit. Keep this in mind when you select the equipment to infuse the smoke flavor into the peaches.

Relish Ingredients for Smoked Peach Relish

While the peaches are absorbing all that great hardwood flavor on the grill, let’s get started on the base for our peach relish. To begin, I’ll get my mortar although you can also use a mini food processor. Place one minced garlic clove into the mortar. Add one chili pepper (serrano, jalapeno, & Hungarian make good choices) that has been seeded and minced. To that, add 2 tablespoons of light brown sugar. Using your pestle or the processor, pound or pulse until a paste is formed. Remember, fresh ingredients will make for the best relish flavors.

With the base paste made to our peach relish, it’s time to add the liquids to balance the spicy and sweet flavors. Start by adding 2 tablespoons of water, 2 tablespoons of lime juice and 3 tablespoons of oyster sauce. Transfer the relish base to a large bowl. Now return to the grill and remove the peach halves. These should be browned from the smoke infusion. Remove 6 halves and dice each. Add them to the bowl with the base. Let’s get ready for the final flavors.

The Ultimate Relish Flavors

The final flavors are the fresh herbs that need to be added right before serving. This includes ¼ cup of fresh, chopped cilantro and 2 tablespoons of fresh mint. As peaches tends to be a delicate fruit meat, it’s important to gently mix everything together; don’t over combine. Serve immediately with your favorite fish or seafood. In fact, this is even great with just some toasted bread. I’ve served mine today with brown rice and simple seasoned shrimp with a side of yellow waxed beans. Delicate yet full of balanced flavors that will surprise you coming from a smoked fruit.

What’s your favorite recipe using smoked or grill peaches? Leave us a comment to opine and subscribe to get all our postings on tips, techniques and recipes. Bringing innovation to wood fired cooking with recipes, techniques and the science behind the fire, smoke, and flavor. That’s SmokinLicious®.

 

PEACHES WOOD FIRED FOR A SMOKY FLAVORFUL GAZPACHO

Smoky peaches wood fired is a great way to enhance this fruit. Add as an ingredient in soup for a special flavor touch especially on a hot summer day.

One of the easiest techniques to do with fruit on a gas or charcoal grill is wood firing peaches.  Take advantage of the season with this fruit by bringing different flavors and textures for great recipe. 

Why not start with my recipe for a summer gazpacho that will cool you off during the hot season.  It’s time to take advantage of the summer harvest with fresh peaches and yellow tomatoes for fabulous summer cuisine

 

Fresh Is Key

Peaches are one of those fruits that performs perfectly on the grill, whether you use charcoal or gas for the actual cooking process.  To start, purchase fresh, in season peaches.  Wash and pat dry.  Then pass a knife through the center until you just hit the peach pit and cut through the flesh in a circular motion.  Remember, the pit will stay in place.   Take your hands and grip each side of the peach turning your hands in opposite directions to open the peach.  This will result in the pit separating from the peach flesh of one half of the peach.  Take a spoon and gentle insert the side around the pit and loosen until the pit is released from the peach flesh.  You now have 2 equal sized peach halves. 

You may do as many peaches as you like but know for the gazpacho recipe you will need at least 3-4 good sizes peaches.

 

Releasing Sweet Smoky Flavor

Once all the peaches are cut in half they are ready for the grill.  I am going to use my charcoal smoker for this recipe but you can easily use a gas grill with wood chunks as well. Just see our posting on how to add wood chunks to the LP grill.

I’m going to set up an indirect method of cooking the peaches to keep them from getting too soft.  That means my hot coals will be in one half of the grill while I do the actual cooking of the peaches on the half without hot coals.  Keeping the lid on will ensure that the heat is collected in the grilling area for an even cook.

 

Flavor In No Time At All

I have the benefit of being able to use the SmokinLicious® charwood product which is a blend of charred and uncharred wood. It allows for a lot of smoke vapor. I place my peaches with the skin side down on the grate, keeping all the peach halves on the non-coal side of the grill.  I’ll let them cook for about 10 minutes and then rotate them so the flesh side is on the grate.  Once cook through, I will remove and place them on the skin side to cool.

 

Seasonal Fresh Ingredients

With the peaches wood fired and ready, it’s time to collect the other ingredients for the gazpacho:

• 3 cups peaches wood fired
• 3 medium yellow tomatoes, chopped
• 1 medium sweet yellow pepper, chopped
• 1 medium cucumber peeled and chopped – I’m using 3 mini cukes
• ½ cup chopped sweet onion
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/3 cup lime juice
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon marinade for chicken
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• ¼ teaspoon hot pepper sauce (optional)
• Reserved chopped peaches, cucumber and yellow tomatoes for topping/garnish
• You will also need a food processor or blender

 

Blending Your Way To Fabulous Flavor

Time to bring all the ingredients together starting with the wood fired peaches, yellow tomatoes, yellow pepper, cucumber, sweet onion and garlic.  Process all these items until thoroughly blended.  Now add the lime juice, vinegar, marinade, salt, sugar, and pepper sauce if you are including this.

Time to refrigerate for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.  You must wait for everything to blend and make the most fabulous gazpacho ever!

With the smoky tang of the peaches wood fired meeting up with the coolness of the tomatoes and cucumber, this gazpacho has just the right amount of tang, kick, and sweet to make this a summer favorite.  Once the soup has chilled, place in serving bowls and top with chopped smoked peach, cucumber, and tomato.  All the fabulous seasonal ingredients the season can offer in one bowl!

We hope you’ll try your hand at this recipe.  We’d love to see your photos of your version of the recipe.  Leave a comment and subscribe.  Keep following us as we bring you innovative tips, techniques, and recipes on working with wood for cooking, grilling & smoking.

WOOD FIRED GRILLED WATERMELON BECOMES A STAR

You may have seen segments on grilling watermelon before which show slices of watermelon on a standard gas grill.  Although I agree that the heat generated from the grill will produce a sweet outcome, there is no comparison to doing a grilling technique that incorporates wood for added flavor.

In this segment, I’ll show you how to grill watermelon on a grill of your choice with wood chunks for the unique combination of sweet and char flavors that only comes from grilling with wood.

 

Easy Prep

I think this is by far, the easiest preparation for the grill.  All you need is a watermelon of your choosing and a grill; gas, electric or charcoal.  Just 2-3 wood chunks from SmokinLicious® and about 20 minutes once you have a lit grill, and this method of bringing flavor to the standard watermelon will be complete.

As watermelon contains a lot of water, it is essential that you work with a medium heat setting on your gas grill and hot coals with a moderate flame for the charcoal grill.  If using a gas grill, be sure to set up the wood chunks on just one side of the grill and allow the chunks to smolder first so there is plenty of smoke vapor.  Since watermelon grills in no time at all, you want to have enough smoke vapor produced to give a great tasty outcome for both a gas grill or charcoal grill method.  Electric smokers are self-contained allowing for simple dialing in about 15 minutes worth of smoking time.


For the watermelon, cut lengthwise in half and cut each half into individual slices about 1-1/2 to 2” thick.  Or, you can remove all the rind and grill just the watermelon meat.  Keep fire safe tongs at the ready so you can turn the watermelon slices just once as they evaporate some water and sweeten up.  DO NOT leave the grill!  This fruit requires a careful watch so stay put and you’ll have every piece cooked to perfection.

 

So Many Uses

You’ll see how the watermelon darkens in color, get bits of char coloring to the skin, and is less water soluble.  That’s the perfect outcome.  Now it’s time to think about how to use your wood flavored melon.


First, you can enjoy it as is.  When I serve this naked, I just give one additional flavor such as fresh, chopped mint.   But if you’re looking for a lunch or lite dinner entrée, think salad by including some baby arugula, goat cheese and a splash of balsamic vinegar.  For a spicy version, sprinkle the wedges with red pepper flakes, a bit of granulated sugar, and lime zest.  Wood fired watermelon also works great with other summer favorites like grape and cherry tomato, pepper slices, sugar snow peas, and cucumber.  No matter how you choose to serve it, grilled watermelon with wood flavoring is going to top your list of grilled favorites.

Proving that there’s more to wood-fired cooking than just animal proteins, SmokinLicious® brings you great ideas for recipes featuring a wood-fired ingredient.  Bringing you tips, techniques, recipes and the science behind the fire and smoke.