Black Pepper Biscuits

I’ve always wanted to make my own biscuits from scratch. I finally stepped up to the challenge after watching Trisha Yearwood make these black pepper biscuits on her TV show. I figured heck, I can do that. So I did. And I was so happy that I did. These black pepper biscuits are ‘meaty’. They are not your light and fluffy little light clouds of dough. They hold up to anything and they taste absolutely divine. Buttermilk and butter… oh pinch me.

Black Pepper Biscuits

Butter Perfection

The key to these black pepper biscuits is the butter. Make absolutely sure you cut the butter into small pieces. Big ones will not do. I cut the 6 tablespoon chunk into teaspoon pats first, then I cut each pat into 9 small pieces. That worked perfectly for me. If you leave the butter too big your biscuits might just fall apart. At the least you’ll have a hard time forming them into biscuits to start with. So, smaller is better! And when they come out of the oven all hot and yummy, drizzle them with my black pepper honey.

If you want that great homemade biscuit flavor but without the work, try my bread machine southern biscuits too!

Black Pepper Biscuits
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5 from 1 vote

Black Pepper Biscuits

These black pepper biscuits are ‘meaty’. They are not your light and fluffy little light clouds of dough. They hold up to anything and they taste absolutely divine. Buttermilk and butter… oh pinch me.
Course Bread
Cuisine American
Keyword biscuits, homemade
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 10
Calories 183kcal

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 450 F.
  • Sift the flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda into a large bowl.
  • Add the butter cubes. Break up any pieces that stick together. Use your fingers to combine the butter with the flour mixture.
  • Add the buttermilk and stir until a dough forms.
  • Lightly pack the dough with your hands and place onto a lightly floured surface. Use the palms of your hands to flatten out into a 1″ thick shape.
  • Use a 2 1/2″ biscuit cutter to cut the dough into rounds. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with a silicon mat or parchment paper. Use any remaining dough scraps by pressing them back together with your hands and cutting more biscuits.
  • Brush the tops of the biscuits with the heavy cream and sprinkle generously with the black pepper.
  • Bake until starting to turn golden brown, 10-12 minutes.

Nutrition

Calories: 183kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 23mg | Sodium: 410mg | Potassium: 66mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 272IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 88mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutritional values are approximate.

Black Pepper Honey

I wasn’t sure how I was going to word this post on black pepper honey. I mean, yeah, it’s just honey, salt and pepper. It’s not like there are 50 ingredients and 25 kitchen gadgets involved here. But boy, was this honey ever good on a few toasted English muffins. I never thought about just how much salt and pepper really could make honey even better than it already is. It’s just that easy. Great anywhere you use “regular” honey, but out of this world great on a crunch English muffin!

Black Pepper Honey

Fresh Honey Is Better

My great uncle kept bees for a while when I was younger. I was (and still am) fascinated by them. It’s amazing how much different fresh honey tastes than the mass-produced honey you find in the grocery store. It’s like night and day. But, the store-bought stuff is a bit easier to find!

As an aside, we now have a number of bee keepers in my housing development. The bees are an important part of the environment. Look around, maybe you have a few keepers too!

For a little kick, using a spicy honey, like Mike’s Hot Honey!

Try some black pepper honey on my deep fried biscuits or better yet, my black pepper biscuits. Yeah, they’re crazy good.

Black Pepper Honey
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5 from 1 vote

Black Pepper Honey

I wasn’t sure how I was going to word this post on black pepper honey. I mean, yeah, it’s just honey, salt and pepper. But boy, was it ever good on a few toasted English muffins.
Course Sauce
Cuisine American
Keyword honey
Cook Time 5 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Servings 2 cups
Calories 1036kcal

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Pour honey into a medium saucepan over medium heat until you notice bubbles starting to appear along the edges of the pan.
  • Add the pepper and salt and stir.
  • Bring to a simmer then remove from the heat and let cool completely.
  • Store in an air-tight container.
  • Note: The honey does not require refrigeration, but you should use it up within a few weeks.

Nutrition

Calories: 1036kcal | Carbohydrates: 281g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 14mg | Potassium: 203mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 278g | Vitamin A: 11IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 29mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutritional values are approximate.

Black Pepper Strawberries

Don’t you just love when an incredibly simple dish comes out so fantastic? I was looking for a little something to take to dinner at my wife’s sister’s house. Nothing big, just something fresh. Since strawberries were in season I picked up a few pints and made these delicious black pepper strawberries. The perfect combination of citrus and berry with a nice peppery twist. I even added a bit more pepper than the recipe called for (because I love freshly ground black pepper). Yummy!

Black Pepper Strawberries

Don’t Rush Things

You can’t skip on the time these black pepper strawberries need to sit in the fridge before you serve them. They need that hour to absorb some of pepper and citrus-flavored juices. Toss them just before serving.

Ray Lampe knows BBQ. And side dishes like this.

You can use a sugar substitute if you wish.

Also try my strawberry cheesecake salad.

Black Pepper Strawberries
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5 from 1 vote

Black Pepper Strawberries

The perfect combination of citrus and berry with a nice peppery twist. I even added a bit more pepper than the recipe called for (because I love freshly ground black pepper). Yummy!
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword strawberry
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings 8
Calories 69kcal

Ingredients

  • 2 pints strawberries rinsed, dried, hulled and quartered
  • ½ lemon juiced
  • 1 large orange juiced
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • Whipped cream

Instructions

  • Whisk the lemon juice, orange juice, sugar and pepper in a large bowl until combined.
  • Add the strawberries.
  • Toss gently to coat.
  • Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
  • Serve topped with whipped cream.

Nutrition

Calories: 69kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 1mg | Potassium: 237mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 69IU | Vitamin C: 85mg | Calcium: 32mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutritional values are approximate.

Black Pepper Wings

Visit my other site, For The Wing, for all things chicken-wing!

I really love ‘dry’ chicken wings. By dry I mean not pre-sauced. Not ewwwy dry. Good dry. And they don’t have to be complicated either. Like these black pepper wings. Salt. Pepper. Wings. Well, ok, I did have a dipping sauce, but it’s the fantastic out-of-the-bottle Stubb’s Black Pepper Anytime sauce, which is also great as a marinade. The combination of generous amounts of pepper on the wings and pepper in the sauce made for a mighty fine peppery wing extravaganza!

Black Pepper Wings

You don’t want to be shy with the black pepper on these black pepper wings. You want that pepper kick, and even a bit of pepper heat, to come through in every bite.

Stubb’s also makes a wicked habanero sauce that is fantastic on wings.

These little sauce dipping cups are great for serving dipping sauces, if I use them. They’re easy to clean up, too. And they’re also great for dipping nuggets, tenders or even for serving salad dressing.

Also try my crazy good and different chipotle pumpkin wings.

Stubb's Black Pepper Wings
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5 from 1 vote

Black Pepper Wings

I really love ‘dry’ chicken wings. By dry I mean not pre-sauced. Not ewwwy dry. Good dry. And they don’t have to be complicated either. Like these black pepper wings. Salt. Pepper. Wings.
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Keyword wings
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 45 minutes
Servings 6
Calories 355kcal
Author Mike

Ingredients

Instructions

Notes

Nutritional values do not include the sauce.

Nutrition

Calories: 355kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 94mg | Sodium: 1253mg | Potassium: 218mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 191IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 24mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutritional values are approximate.

Black Pepper Bacon

After my first time making homemade bacon (a very successful first time, I must say), I decided I’d up my game and try different flavors beyond maple. The maple bacon was a little sweet, as you’d expect, so this time I went a more savory route by making this black pepper bacon. The end result was absolutely fantastic. My goodness, what great bacon. A great pepper flavor, but not overwhelming. Not only great for breakfast, but this bacon easily made for the best BLT sandwich I’ve ever had.

A Good Butcher Makes For Good Bacon

Some of the credit for the success of this black pepper bacon goes to my butcher, Moody’s Butcher shop. The folks at Moody’s got me the most fantastic pork sides ever. They were absolutely perfect for making bacon. I mean, look at that slab. That’s just gorgeous bacon!

Black Pepper Bacon

It’s Easier Than You Think

Making bacon at home is actually really easy, much easier than I had ever expected. I love making it and eating it. And don’t worry about slicing it, just get your knife really sharp (I sharpened my Wusthof knives with the sharpener below) and you can cut bacon thick or thin, like it’s butter!

Also try making my Sriracha bacon and my chipotle bacon.

Black Pepper Bacon
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5 from 1 vote

Black Pepper Bacon

Making bacon at home is really easy, much easier than I ever expected. I love making it and eating it. And don’t worry about slicing it, just get your knife really sharp and you can cut bacon thick or thin, like it’s butter!
Course Side
Cuisine American
Keyword bacon, homemade
Prep Time 7 days
Cook Time 2 hours
Total Time 7 days 2 hours
Servings 2 pounds
Calories 3967kcal

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Rinse the pork belly and pat dry. Place into a large resealable container or baggie.
  • Combine the remaining ingredients and rub over all sides of the pork.
  • Seal container and place in fridge for 7-10 days.
  • Rinse the belly well to remove any remaining cure. If you want you can sprinkle it with additional freshly ground black pepper.
  • To smoke, fire up your smoker for cooking at 225 F. Use whatever wood your prefer. I used apple.
  • Smoke the bacon for 1 1/2 – 2 hours or until the internal temperature reaches 150 F.
  • Store smoked bacon in a plastic bag or container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
  • Remove belly from smoker and let cool slightly before placing in the fridge for an hour.
  • Slice bacon as desired. Bake, pan fry, or use however you wish!

Nutrition

Calories: 3967kcal | Carbohydrates: 114g | Protein: 65g | Fat: 361g | Saturated Fat: 132g | Cholesterol: 490mg | Sodium: 14398mg | Potassium: 1518mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 107g | Vitamin A: 112IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 171mg | Iron: 5mg

Nutritional values are approximate.

Black Pepper Jerky

After making homemade bacon on my Weber Smokey Mountain smoker, I figured the next logical thing to try would be making homemade black pepper jerky. The curing process for jerky is similar in ways to curing bacon, but it doesn’t take as long. The smoking process is different, since the jerky needs to dry out on the smoker.

Black Pepper Jerky

How was it?

The end result was fantastic. A great peppery flavor, with a little kick of heat. The meat was tender, with a little bit of tug, as you’d expect from jerky. We loved it. Everyone loved it.

Things to keep in mind

The most important things to keep in mind when making jerky is to start with a lean cut of meat (I used a lean top round), sliced super thin, and smoke at a fairly low temperature, 150 – 175 F.

The fire

I lit just a handful of charcoal using my charcoal chimney. The easiest way to do that is to turn the chimney upside down, putting the charcoal where you’d normally put newspaper, and putting newspaper where you’d normally put charcoal. I put just enough unlit charcoal in the bottom of the WSM to cover the bottom grate.

Slicing

To make slicing the beef easier, I sat it in the freezer for about 30 minutes first. Then I used a very sharp knife to get very thin slices.

Pack it in!

To fit as much jerky on my Weber Smokey Mountain as I could, I suspended the meat on skewers. But, I have to admit that skewering the meat and feeding it through the grill grates took some time. You can easily fit 3-5 pounds of jerky on an 18″ smoker.

Jerky on the Weber Smokey Mountain

Conclusion

I was surprised with how easy making jerky was. I’ll definitely be trying different flavors out soon. Also, you can follow this recipe for making jerky at home in the oven. You’ll want to add a teaspoon or two of liquid smoke to the marinade to get a smoky flavor. Also, If you can’t get your oven down to 150 F, set it as low as it’ll go. Then put a wooden spoon in between the door and oven to let some air out as the jerky cooks on racks.

Black Pepper Jerky
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5 from 1 vote

Black Pepper Jerky

This black pepper jerky was fantastic. A great peppery flavor, with a little kick of heat. The meat was tender, with a little bit of tug, as you’d expect from jerky. We loved it. Everyone loved it.
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Keyword dehydrator, jerky, nesco snackmaster pro
Prep Time 2 days
Cook Time 6 hours
Total Time 2 days 6 hours
Servings 2.5 pounds
Calories 2402kcal
Author Mike

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Note: Freeze the meat for at least 30 minutes to make slicing easier.
  • Whisk together the remaining ingredients.
  • Place the meat in a large resealable baggie or container. Add the marinade. Stir to coat well.
  • Refrigerate for 2 days, stirring occasionally to make sure the meat gets well coated.
  • Fire up your smoker for cooking 150 – 175 F. Use a light wood, such as apple or pecan.
  • Shaking off any excess marinade. Place the meat on paper towels (use lots of them) and pat dry.
  • Place meat on the smoker (I skewered ours so I could hang it, see the picture above) and smoke for 5-6 hours or until the meat is dry.
  • Let cool for an hour before devouring.

Nutrition

Calories: 2402kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 166g | Fat: 182g | Saturated Fat: 70g | Trans Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 644mg | Sodium: 5901mg | Potassium: 2941mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 377IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 231mg | Iron: 22mg

Nutritional values are approximate.