- Whole Smoked Gator Recipe

#smokedgator #gatorrecipe #howtobbqright

WHAT MALCOM USED IN THIS RECIPE:
- 31lb Whole Alligator sourced from Gamekeeper Butchery https://www.gamekeepermeats.com/
- HowToBBQRight Red Handled 5" Boning Knife https://bit.ly/H2QKnife6
- Malcom's King Craw Cajun Seasoning http://bit.ly/KingCraw
- Killer Hogs Hot Rub http://bit.ly/TheHotRub
- Killer Hogs The BBQ Sauce http://bit.ly/TheBBQSauce
- Old Hickory Wing Basket http://bit.ly/WingBasket
- Thermoworks Thermapen http://bit.ly/H2QThermapen
- Weed Burner "Flame Thrower" https://amzn.to/3hfjLAc

The BBQ Ninja, Craig Verhage, https://www.instagram.com/thebbqninja/ offered to stop by and show my how to smoke a whole gator. My buddies at Game Keeper Butchery sent us a 31lb alligator and we started with a 24 hour Gator Brine (recipe below).

After the brine, Craig trimmed all of the fat out of the gator’s tail. If you don’t remove the fat the meat can have a “fishy” taste. Then we seasoned with my King Craw cajun seasoning and Hot Rub. But you can really use just about any seasoning you want...

The tail is stuffed with a cream cheese, spicy boudin mixture. Then we placed the gator on the Outlaw Smoker.

Once the Outlaw was up to 275 using pecan wood, we loaded the gator on the cooking grate. It took about 4 1/2 hours for the gator to get to 165 internal in the tail where Craig said it was done. We removed the gator from the pit and hit the bark with a 50/50 blend of my The BBQ Sauce and Vinegar Sauce. Then Craig broke out the propane torch and hit the gator with a “cajun brûlée”.

Then he removed the stuffing and pulled all of the muscles off the tail followed by the leg meat and jowls. Then he chopped it all up into bite size pieces. Craig serves “gator rolls” (a play on the lobster roll) using a hot dog bun, a little stuffing and top with chopped pieces of gator meat with a drizzle of bbq sauce.

Ingredients:
- 30lb whole alligator dressed
- 1/4 cup Malcom’s King Craw cajun seasoning
- 1/4 cup Killer Hogs Hot Rub
- 1 bottle Killer Hogs The BBQ Sauce
- 1 bottle Killer Hogs Vinegar Sauce

Directions:
1. Place the cleaned and dressed 30lb whole gator in an empty cooler. Pour the brine solution (recipe below) over the gator. 4 gallons total should cover the gator depending on the size of cooler you are using. Place a 20lb bag of ice over the gator to weight it down and keep it cold during the brine process. Soak the gator for 24 hours in the brine.
2. Remove the gator from the brine and allow it to drain well. Pat the outside down with paper towel to remove excess moisture.
3. Place the gator backside up on cutting board, split the tail muscles around the bone and trim away all the fat under and around the muscles.
4. Season the gator with King Craw cajun seasoning and Killer Hogs Hot BBQ Rub on all sides. Stuff the tail cavity with the boudin cream cheese mixture (recipe below) and season the top of the stuffing with the same cajun and hot rub. Prop the gator’s jaws open with a block of wood (careful the teeth are sharp!)
5. Place the gator on a 275 degree bbq pit using pecan wood for smoke flavor.
6. Cook until internal temperature in the tail reaches 165 degrees on an instant read thermometer about 4 1/2 hours total.
7. Remove the gator from the pit and glaze the outside with 50/50 Killer Hogs BBQ sauce and Killer Hogs Vinegar sauce.

To serve:
1. Remove the stuffing, tail muscles, tenderloin, leg meat, and jowls
2. Chop the meat into bite size pieces
3. Place a little of the stuffing into a hot god bun topped with chunks of the gator meat
4. Drizzle the top with bbq sauce and enjoy!

Gator Brine Recipe
- 4 gallons water
- 4 cups sugar
- 4 cups salt
- 6oz Malcom’s King Craw cajun seasoning
- 2oz cup dry Louisiana crawfish/crab boil seasoning
- 2oz Louisiana liquid crab boil
- Juice from 2 lemons

Bring one gallon of water to a boil with all the other ingredients. Reduce to a simmer stirring often to dissolve dry ingredients. Remove from heat and allow cool. Stir in adding water (or ice to speed the cooling process) Pour over the gator in a large cooler. The gator should be completely covered with the brine. Soak for 24 hours. Also helps to weight the gator down with a 20lb bag of ice.

Gator Stuffing
- 2 blocks cream cheese softened at room temperature
- 1 lb jalapeño pork boudin sausage casing removed
- 1 package Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix
- 8 strips crispy bacon crumbled
- 1 Tablespoon King Craw cajun seasoning
Place the cream cheese, boudin, ranch mix, bacon, and King Craw in a large mixing bowl. Stir well to combine and store in the refrigerator until ready to stuff in the gator.

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