Smoked Crocodile
Crocodile meat is an exotic, protein-rich meat with a mild, slightly fishy aroma similar to poultry. The light-colored tail meat is particularly well-suited for hot smoking and absorbs smoke flavors intensely. A spiced lemon-herb glaze gives the crocodile an appetizing caramelized surface.
Ingredients(for 1 kg)
Instructions
Brining
4–6 hoursDissolve sea salt in 500 ml of water and submerge the crocodile meat. Cover and brine in the refrigerator for 4–6 hours, then remove, rinse, and pat dry.
Preparing the glaze
10 minutesStir together honey, lemon juice, garlic, thyme, white pepper, and olive oil until a homogeneous glaze forms. Set aside.
Smoking
3–5 hoursPreheat smoker to 120–130 °C and add citrus wood and hickory chips. Smoke meat until 54 °C core temperature is reached, then brush with glaze every 20 minutes and continue smoking to 74–77 °C core temperature.
Resting
10–15 minutesRemove the meat from the smoker, loosely cover, and allow to rest for 10–15 minutes so the glaze sets and the juices redistribute.
Pro Tip
Crocodile meat tends to overcook quickly – place the temperature probe in the thickest part of the tail meat and monitor core temperature closely.
Save this recipe to your smoking journal?
With Curination you can scale recipes, track projects, document by voice and browse over 1,269 recipes.