Nibble Me This

Fire Roasted Chili Lime Wings

2012-01-27T08:47:00.001-05:00

Can you remember the first chicken wing you had?

I don't mean a fried chicken wing left over because it was the last piece from a Sunday fried chicken dinner or a bucket from KFC. I am talking about a real wing. A chicken wing cooked for the purpose of being a wing, not an "also ran". Like buffalo wings or hot wings. My first ones were at Stadium Club where my friend Carson worked as a cook.

It is the Third Annual Week of Wings over at Hot Sauce Daily, a celebration of wings. Brian and Marilyn will be grilling up wings, reviewing wing sauces, and checking out all things wing related. Hop over there and check their wing-centricity all week.

Here is my tribute to Week of Wings.

Traditional "buffalo sauces" have hot sauce, butter, spices and an acid, such as vinegar and/or Worcestershire sauce. For this one, I relied on the lime juice in the Cholula Chili Lime sauce as the acid.

Fire Roasted Chili Lime Wings

servings: 4

12 chicken wings, cut into drummettes and wingettes, tips reserved for stock

For the dry rub

1 tsp seasoned salt
1 tsp turbinado sugar
3/4 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp red pepper flake
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp dried oregano

For the sauce

5 Tbsp butter
1 clove garlic, very finely minced
1/4 cup lime flavored hot sauce*
1/2 tsp of the dry rub

Instructions

Preheat a charcoal grill to 350-375f set up for indirect heat*.
Season the 24 wing pieces with the dry rub (reserve 1/2 tsp of the rub for the sauce).
Roast the wings on a covered grill for 30 minutes.
Flip the wing pieces and roast for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, melt 1 Tbsp butter over medium heat in a saute pan and saute the garlic for 2-3 minutes.
Add the remaining butter and dry rub, whisking continuously until well blended (another 2-3 minutes).
Once the wings have roasted a total of 50 minutes, remove them to a large bowl, pour the sauce over them, and toss to coat thoroughly.
Roast the wings another 7-10 minutes, or until the sauce bakes on and the wings reach an internal temp of at least 170f.

Notes

I used Cholula Chile Lime Hot Sauce.
You can use your oven for this instead....if you insist. Just remember, it doesn't taste as good and every time you use an oven instead of a grill, an angel loses it's wings. Mmmmmmm fire roasted angel wings, heavenly!

[Standard Disclaimer] I received no compensation from Hot Sauce Daily for this post but Brian did threaten to boil ribs if I didn't post something wing related this week.

Grilled Portobello Tacos

2012-01-24T00:01:00.000-05:00

I think I saved the best for last for Fungus Among Us week.

How do I know that? Because it is obvious that my home is inhabited by "meat-a-tarians". We love our meat. So tonight when I made these grilled portobello tacos I thought my picky meatasaurus kids wouldn't like them so I also made our standard beef tacos as a back up.

To my amazement, after trying one, everyone opted for the portobello tacos over the beef ones. Even me. (Don't tell anyone....I don't want my BBQ Card revoked.)

The last topic of Fungus Among Us week is one easy tip.

Grow your own.

There are several advantages to growing your own mushrooms.

Freshness. You'll get the freshest mushrooms you have ever had. If you think "store fresh" is good, farm fresh or growing your own will blow your mind. They have a silky taste and a texture that dances in your mouth.
Exotic Variety. You can get grow mushrooms that you'll NEVER EVER EVER find in your chain grocery store and probably not even local markets. I've never seen a fresh oyster mushroom in a grocery store but a specialty like the blue oyster mushroom? Fuhget about it!
Micro-farming (or should I say myco-farming...pun fully intended). There is a big trend towards self sourcing food ingredients. Gardening, canning, and heck, sourcing your own eggs. But growing takes land or at least space. Mushroom kits can be done just about anywhere.

Mushrooms can be grown on inoculated logs or even more easily, in grow kits of sterile hay in bags like this one held by Hugh Brewer.

Photo courtesy of Brewers Mushrooms.

All you have to do is keep them moist and in a mild environment. I'm absolutely no expert on growing mushrooms but Hugh is. Check out Tammy and his website for more info, it has tutorials on how to grow your own. If you still have questions, they'll be more than glad to answer any questions you have. If you're close enough, they can ship you a "ready to grow" kit.

Grilled Portobello Tacos

Makes 6 tacos

Ingredients

2 ea portobello mushrooms
6 ea white corn tortillas
oil for frying
shredded cheese of your choice
thinly sliced lettuce

For the marinade

1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 lime juice
1 Tbsp Mega's Taco Seasoning (recipe from HotSauceDaily)

For the Pico De Gallo

3 small tomatoes, diced
1/2 onion, finely diced
1 jalapeno chile, seeded and diced
2 Tbsp cilantro chopped
1 Tbsp lime juice
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Mix the marinade ingredients and marinate the portobello mushrooms overnight*.
Mix the pico de gallo ingredients and refrigerate for an hour before dinner.
In a small sauce pan, heat 1/2" deep of peanut or vegetable oil to 350 degrees*.
Place a tortilla in and allow to puff up for 10 seconds. Poke with the tip of a sharp knife. Press half of the tortilla under the oil with a metal spatula and fold the other half over with a pair of metal tongs for 30 seconds. Flip and repeat. Remove when golden brown, season with salt and place on a rack over newspaper* or paper towels to drain. Repeat for other tortillas.
Preheat a charcoal grill to 375f.
Remove the 'shrooms from the marinade and drain well. Grill 5 minutes per side.
Have the taco shells already loaded with shredded cheese*. Dice the mushrooms into 1/4" pieces and divide among the tacos.
Top with lettuce and some of the pico de gallo.
Serve with Black Bean Fiesta and pico de gallo on the side.

Notes

I intended to do a 4 hour marination time. Things happened and I cooked it the next night, worried the mushrooms might be over marinated. Nope! They were neither soggy nor "burned" from the marinade. They were perfect!
This is NOT a tutorial. If you don't know how to safely heat oil on a stove top, don't try this. Go buy a cup of hot coffee from McD's and pour it on your lap but don't sue me.
Do NOT use the online version of your newspaper for this purpose. It will totally jack up your laptop, tablet, or smart phone. I told you so, don't sue me.
The mushrooms cool off pretty quick so you want the cheese already in there so the diced 'shrooms are still hot and give a little melty action.

I switched to a Glad zip top bag when I realized this was going to go overnight. Works better for flipping and keeping it in the marinade anyway.

This series was written in conjunction with Brewer's Mushrooms. It is a joint project with a local expert and is not a paid advertisement. Hugh Brewer is trained in mycorestoration and Brewer's Mushrooms has been specializing in fresh gourmet mushrooms for years. Brewer's Mushrooms offers fresh mushrooms at local markets, CSA shares, grow kits, and workshops.

National Pie Day

2012-01-23T16:50:00.001-05:00

Taking a break in the Mushroom series for a quicky post..

Did you know today is National Pie Day? Yep, sure is. And you know I rarely do desserts but I know someone who does.

On behalf of Kingsford Charcoal, World Champion Pitmaster Chris Lilly has come up with some great recipes for coal-fired sweet and savory pies. I've been fed by Chris three times, the most recent at 2011 Kingsford University, and every time I have been impressed.

I was going to make it myself this weekend but work and weather preempted that idea. So I'll be lazy, use the "reprinted with permission" and just show you his!

Photo courtesy of Kingsford Charcoal

Old-Fashioned Grilled Peach Pie
Pitmaster Note: In the South, mouths drool whenever fried pies are mentioned. Traditionally they are fried in a pan with butter until crisp and brown. To heat things up, I have taken the this traditional dessert to the backyard barbecue. By grilling the peaches prior to making the filling and then crisping the dough pocket over hot charcoal, you can make this Southern dessert a coal-fired masterpiece.
Makes: 8 pies
Prep time: 45 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:
For the Dough

2 sticks butter
1/2 cup cold water
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup flour for rolling out dough

For the Sugar Rub

1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/16 teaspoon nutmeg
2 pounds ripe peaches (3 large or 4 medium)
1 tablespoon butter
6 tablespoons light brown sugar
3 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon orange juice
1 tablespoon oil

Instructions

Cut butter into 1/2 inch cubes and refrigerate. Measure the water and refrigerate. In a small mixing bowl add flour and salt and mix well. Add in the cold butter until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs. Slowly add water, mixing continuously, until a dough ball is formed. Seal the dough ball in GLAD® ClingWrap and place in the refrigerator overnight.
Sprinkle countertop or cutting board generously with flour. Remove dough from the refrigerator and place onto the floured prep area, roll out to a thickness of 1/8 inch. Cut the dough into 5- to 6-inch diameter circles. Removing extra dough from the prep area to re-roll and make more pie shells. Immediately peal, lift and flip the dough circles making sure they don’t stick. Yield should be 8 pie shells.
Preheat the grill using Kingsford® charcoal, until the internal temperature reaches 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a small bowl add the sugar rub ingredients and mix well.
Remove the pit from the peaches and cut each peach into 8 wedges and remove skin. Generously coat the peach wedges with the sugar rub mix. Immediately place the peaches on the grill grate for 2 minutes on each side, or until they caramelize. Remove the peaches from the grill and dice them into 1/2 inch pieces. Place the peaches and butter into a medium mixing bowl. When the butter melts, add the brown sugar and flour and mix well. Stir in orange juice.
Place 2 heaping tablespoons of peach filling onto the center of each circle of dough. Lightly moisten the edges of the dough with water. Fold the dough in half creating a half moon with peach filling. Gently press the pie edges together and crimp them with a fork.
Prep the charcoal grill grate by using a grill brush and to brush on a light coat of oil. Transfer the pies to the grill and cook over direct heat, uncovered, for 3 minutes on each side or until the dough turns a crispy golden brown.
Remove from the grill and serve.

Notes

Recipe created by world champion pitmaster, Chris Lilly on behalf of Kingsford® charcoal

For more grilling ideas for "pies and otherwise", check out Grilling.com.

Mushroom Swiss Burger

2012-01-22T09:44:00.000-05:00

I tried to stay away from the totally obvious recipes this week for mushroom week but there is one I can't pass up.

The mushroom Swiss burger is a classic. It's on menus, dinner plates and backyard grills everywhere.

But first, it's mushroom week...

Today's topic is the care and handling of fresh mushrooms.

Before I could understand how to care for harvested mushrooms, I had to learn about what happens to them once harvested. What surprised me is that the mushroom is very much like meat when harvested. At first, it's a lot like dry aging beef. Enzymes react and start breaking down the mushroom into flavorful amino acids and the 'shrooms start to lose moisture, concentrating flavor.

The problem is that occurs much faster than the long periods of dry aging beef, it happens in something more like 4 days (McGee 9489) instead of the month or more that beef needs. After that, the process begins to shift from "aging" to "deterioration". That is why buying fresh mushrooms from a local source is better than buying "fresh" mushrooms that you have no idea how long it took to get from farm to shelf.

The good news is that you can slow that whole process with a two practices.

Keep it cool, fool. Refrigeration at 40-45f slows the activity of the enzymes and will prolong the life of your mushrooms.
Keep it dry, guy. As mushrooms age, they will give up moisture. While that does concentrate the flavors, moisture condensing on the surface of the mushrooms invite bacteria which begins spoilage. If you buy one of those cellophane wrapped pack of mushrooms, take them out, and store them in a closed paper bag.

Speaking of dry, that's another area of controversy. I have read, heard, and been told a kajillion times NOT to wash mushrooms because they'll soak up all that water, be mushy, and bland. So I was surprised to learn that it is fine to wash them in water as long as you use them immediately afterwards (FlavorBible 15282 and McGee 9490).

Truth be told, I wasn't even going to post a recipe for this because it's just a burger. Grill your burger, throw Swiss cheese on it and top with some sauteed mushrooms.

Grilled Mushroom Swiss Burger

Serves 4

Ingredients

4 ciabatta rolls
4 slices baby Swiss cheese

For the burger patties

1.25 lb ground chuck
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp whatever signature seasoning you want to add

For the mushrooms

8 oz white mushrooms, sliced
3 Tbsp butter
2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1 Tbsp parsley, finely minced

Instructions

Preheat a charcoal grill set up for direct heat to 450f.
Mix the burger ingredients together and form into four 5 ounce patties about 1/2 inch thick.
Grill patties for 4 minutes per side. Top with a slice of cheese during the last minute.
Remove and keep warm.
Place a skillet on the grill and melt the butter.
Add the mushrooms and cook 6 minutes, tossing frequently.
Add the garlic and parsley, cook two more minutes or until the mushroom liquids are mostly evaporated.
Serve burgers topped with the 'shrooms.

Marinated Mushroom Antipasto Kabobs

2012-01-21T11:00:00.001-05:00

For this recipe, you could buy a jar of marinated mushrooms from the grocery store....

Or you could buy mushrooms and make your own and they will taste infinitely better.

When you buy mushrooms, you not only have to decide what variety (porcini, shitake, etc) to purchase, you have to choose what kind to buy (fresh, dried, jarred). So what kind is the best? That's up to you. Here are my thoughts on each.

Clockwise from left: Dried porcini, dried wood ear, portobello, dried oyster, shiitake, button, & Green Giant.

Fresh Mushrooms

General: Fresh is relative. Store fresh is good but farm fresh from local producers is even better. Days spent on trucks in shipping make a difference with fresh mushrooms.

Pros: Better taste and texture, more nutrients,

Cons: Highly perishable

Dried Mushrooms

General: "With a few exceptionas (chantrelles, oysters, matsutakes, drying intensifies mushroom flavor by a combination of heightened enzyme activities and browning reactions between amino acids and sugars." (McGee 9491)

Pros: Easy storage, easier to find exotic varieties, last for eternity, you can use the reconstituting liquid as a flavorful broth

Cons: even when reconstituted, the texture isn't the same, relatively expensive compared to fresh by weight

Canned/Jarred Mushrooms

General: If I do use them, I prefer to use ones in glass so you can at lease see what you are getting and you can store a partial jar.

Pros: Available long term

Cons: precooked texture, lack of quality control in cheap brands, can seem slimy. Probably are the reason that most people who hate mushrooms (cough - Jenn's Chris - cough) hate mushrooms.

Fire roasted mushrooms make these kabobs much more interesting to the palate. First, the lower temperature cooking (instead of sauteing or direct grilling) takes advantage of the mushrooms enzymes (McGee 9498). Second, the subtle kiss of wood smoke brings out the earthiness of the 'shrooms.

Marinated Mushroom Antipasto Kabobs
Servings: 6 appetizer portions

12 ea white mushrooms, wiped clean and stems removed
6 slices hard salami, cut in half
12 stuffed olives
12 cubes of smoked gouda

For the marinade

1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp roasted red pepper, finely diced
1 Tbsp parsley, fresh and finely chopped
1 Tbsp stone ground mustard
1.5 tsp Mediterranean Spice Sea Salt*
1/2 tsp black pepper, ground
1/2 cup olive oil

Instructions

Preheat a charcoal grill to 300f and set up for indirect cooking*. You could also roast these in the oven.
Mix the marinade ingredients together.
Dip the mushrooms in the marinade to coat them.
Toss a small handful of wood chips* on the coals and roast the mushrooms on the grill with the lid closed for 15 minutes.
Remove mushrooms and return them to the marinade. Allow to marinade for at least 4 hours.*
Remove mushrooms from the marinade (reserve marinade) and assemble the kabobs on cocktail skewers.
Drizzle with some of the reserved marinade

Notes

Mediterranean Spiced Sea Salt is from the McCormick's Gourmet Collection. Alexis bought a jar at Food City about a month ago and I've liked using it in several dishes. You could substitute half kosher salt and half Italian seasoning.
Instead of the normal ways of indirect grilling (offset coals, plate setter, etc), I used a ceramic pie pan as a heat diffuser.
Use a mild wood like alder wood or fruit woods. Hickory and oak would probably be too harsh on mushrooms, overpowering them with smoke flavor.
If you were just making marinated mushrooms and not eating them immediately, once you have marinated them overnight, drain the marinade and pour in enough olive oil to cover the mushrooms. I will keep them like this for up to a week or more on refrigeration.

Quick bath before fire roasting.

My "quickie indirect grill set up".

They are done when they brown and start to shrink, 15-20 minutes at 300f should do.

Butter Poached Lions Mane Mushrooms

2012-01-18T12:19:00.000-05:00

"It tastes just like chicken."

You hear that a lot when someone is trying to describe something to someone who has never tried it. It is such a worn out phrase that people make jokes about it.

But when Hugh Brewer of Brewers Mushrooms dropped off the Lions Mane kit and told Alexis that these mushrooms taste like LOBSTER, I was intrigued. A mushroom that tastes like lobster? Now I just needed some ideas for what to make.

Mushroom Flavor Pairings

I've heard people say that mushrooms go with anything because they have a tendency to take on the flavors of what they are cooked with. But mushrooms actually are a natural flavor enhancer. According to Harold McGee, mushrooms contain many free amino acids including glutamic acid, making them a organic source of monosodium glutamate (McGee 9473). The flavor enhancer Guanosine monophosphate was first discovered in shiitake mushrooms (McGee 9473). So they don't just "take on" flavor, mushrooms amplify flavor.

Gourmet exotic mushrooms offer a world of flavor possibilities with hints of things like cinnamon, pepper, garlic, pine needles, butterscotch and in the case of Lions Mane, shellfish (McGee 9481).

Here are some common flavor pairings for mushrooms as listed in The Flavor Bible. John "Patio Daddio" Dawson recommended The Flavor Bible to me and it quickly became one of my most frequently used kitchen tools. If you develop your own recipes, you want this book. It was money well spent for me ($17 Kindle edition). These are only partial listings from the book but give some good general ideas.

Mushrooms in general

asparagus, bacon, beef, butter, carrots, cayenne, chicken, chives, cognac, chives, cream, garlic, ham, leeks, lemon, oil, onions, oregano, parsley, peas, pepper (black, white), pine nuts, pork, potatoes, radicchio, rice/risotto, rosemary, sage, salt, seafood, sesame oil, shallots, sherry (dry), sour cream, soy sauce, spinach, stocks, tarragon, thyme, vinegar (esp balsamic, red wine, sherry), wine

Chantrelle - same with emphasis on beef and chicken stocks

Cremini - same and goat and parmesan cheese, truffle oil,

Matsutake - savoy cabbage, black cod, custard, sashi, fish, chervil, Japanese cuisine, mirin, other wild mushrooms, sake, shrimp, tempura, tofu, rice wine vinegar

Morels - asparagus, caraway seeds, cheese (fontina, goat, parmesan), chicken mousse, heavy cream, eggs, faro, fava beans, fiddlehead ferns, Serrano ham, lamb, Madeira, thyme, sherry vinegar, ramps, sweetbreads

Porcini/Cepes/King Bolete - almonds, arugula, brandy, cheese (fontina, garrotxa, parmesan), chervil, roasted chicken, cream, eggs, hazelnuts, Italian cuisine in general, mint, button or cremini mushrooms, pasta, arborio ric, sake, tamari, white truffles, balsamic vinegar

Portobello - cheese (manchego, parmesan, ricotta), mint, pasta, polenta, spinach, thyme, sun dried tomatoes (I personally like with fire roasted chiles, cilantro)

Shiitake - bacon, basil, brandy, clarified butter, chile peppers, coriander, Japanese cuisine in general, oyster mushrooms, onions (esp red and white), polenta, pork, spinach, chicken stock, balsamic vinegar, dry white wine. (I like fresh ginger too, they didn't list it but it works)

Since Lions Mane has a shellfish flavor, I decided to make a mock "surf and turf". One thing I had read was that to get the most out of the flavor enhancers and enzymes, it was best to cook mushrooms slowly (McGee 9498). Hmmmm slow cooked "lobster".......I got it! I was going to butter poach the mushrooms and pair them with slow roasted beef.

Butter Poached Lions Mane Mushrooms
serves: 4

Ingredients

1 Lions Mane mushroom*, cut into 1/4" slices
1/2 cup clarified butter
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup chicken stock
1 large clove garlic, coarsely chopped
1/8th tsp kosher salt
1/8th tsp black pepper
1 tsp fresh parsley, finely minced

Instructions

Place all of the poaching ingredients except the mushroom and parsley in a small pot and bring temperature to 160 f over med-low to low heat.
Add the mushroom and allow to poach for 30 minutes. Add the parsley and poach another five minutes.
Serve over grilled steaks.

Notes

I'm not sure how this would work with any mushroom other than lions mane since it has a unique shellfish flavor.
The mushrooms should poach for at least 30 minutes to get tender but will hold just fine over low temps longer than that. Our older son didn't get home until an hour after dinner and they were still great then.

Alexis declared that these were the best mushrooms she had ever eaten and the boys scraped the last leftover bits out of the pot. The butter poaching does give them a luxurious texture that I have to admit, does have a shellfish taste and feel. The best part was when you would get a chunk of buttery sweet garlic and mushroom together in one bite. Delicious! I served them with a slow roasted top sirloin but I think the mushrooms would be even better served with a nice grilled strip steak or ribeye.

Lions Mane on the grow kit. Odd looking things, right?

The flesh is thick, white, and meaty.

Flat Iron Steak with Fun Guy Stir Fry

2012-01-16T00:01:00.000-05:00

You know how Discovery Channel does "Shark Week" each year?

I'm doing something similar. Everything this week will be about fungi...you know, mushrooms. Don't worry, these mushrooms won't attack you but you might attack them!

Brief Culinary History of Mushrooms

Humans have been eating mushrooms ever since pizza was invented. Okay, that might not be factual.

But we have been cultivating them since the Chinese were growing them in oak logs in the 13th century (McGee 9440). If we were growing them then, we were probably eating them long before that. Maybe lightning struck a dinosaur and while the cavemen were enjoying the overgrown lizard's unfortunate demise, they noticed some nearby fungi smoldering in the embers and how great they tasted together. The white mushrooms that you find in almost any grocery store produce department began to be cultivated in the 17th century in rock quarry tunnels near Paris (McGee 9440).

To me, what is more important is the recent history. When I first worked in a stupidmarket produce department in high school (circa paleolithic era aka "1985"), we had two kinds of mushrooms for sale.

The white ones shrink wrapped in an 8 oz, blue styrofoam package and
the reduced price ones that were the same packages but almost out of date and turning brown.

These days most grocery stores stock fresh white, portobello, and shiitake mushrooms and other dried varieties. With the farm to plate movement, many areas local purveyors of specialty mushrooms with unique textures and flavors.

Many folks like Larry of Big Dude's Eclectic Ramblings have bought kits and are growing their own. Places like local Brewer's Mushrooms will set you up and educate you to grow your own specialty mushrooms easily, at home and using no chemicals other than H2O.

I stumbled on Brewer's Mushrooms at a local market last year. When they were making deliveries in town this week, Hugh dropped by an unexpected surprise of a variety of fresh mushrooms AND a lions mane grow kit! That inspired Fungus Among Us Week.

I won the custom cutting board & a year of coal from a cooking contest with McCormick's last year.

This grilled steak combines the "fifth taste" of umami from the oyster mushrooms* with layers of ginger, garlic, basil and red chilies to create an Asian flavor profile that hits all notes of the taste buds. The stir fry cooks during the steak's resting time, making it convenient for a quick but delicious dinner.

Flat Iron Steak with Fun Guy Stir Fry

Serves 4

Ingredients

1.5 lb flat iron steak

For the dry rub

1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp basil, fresh minced
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp McCormick's Roasted Ground Ginger
1/4 tsp dried minced garlic

For the stir fry

1 tsp sesame oil
2 Tbsp peanut oil
8 oz oyster mushrooms, fresh
2 cloves garlic, sliced thin
1 1/2 tsp ginger, peeled and diced
2 Tbsp roasted red bell pepper, sliced lengthwise
1 Tbsp basil, fresh and cut chiffonade style
1/4 cup beef stock
2 Tbsp mirin
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp red pepper flake
slurry (1 Tbsp cornstarch and 1 Tbsp cold water mixed together)

Instructions

Preheat a charcoal grill to 450f set up for direct heat.
Mix the dry rub together and season both sides of the steak. (Alternatively, use a broiler)
Grill the steak 5 minutes per side, or until it reaches an internal temperature of 130f for medium rare*.
Remove steak and rest on a raised rack.
Reduce grill heat, place a wok or large saute pan on the grill and allow to preheat for a few minutes*. (Alternatively, do on stove top)
Drizzle the sesame and peanut oil into the hot wok. Stir fry the mushrooms for 3 minutes until starting to turn tender and releasing their moisture*.
Add the garlic and ginger, stir fry another minute.
Add the red bell pepper, stir fry another minute
Add the basil, beef stock, mirin, soy sauce, and red pepper flake. Stir fry another 1-2 minutes.
Add the slurry and cook another minute or until the sauce is thickened.
Slice the steak across the grain (short side) and serve family style with the mushroom stir fry over the top.

Notes

Oyster mushrooms have a natural umami flavor. If you can't find oyster mushrooms, use another kind and add 3/4 tsp fish sauce to the mirin/soy sauce mixture.
For the Big Green Egg, I had the top DMFT totally open and after preheating, the bottom vent was about half way closed.
For the Big Green Egg, I closed the bottom vent all the way. The fire was already going from the steak and stir frying requires you to have the Egg top open. The coals will get plenty of air from the open top.
I love the flavor of sesame oil but using it as the only oil is over powering. Using a little sesame oil with a neutral flavored oil like peanut oil gives a balanced flavor.

The combination of coarse rub ingredients like garlic, pepper flake and basil add texture.

Fresh mushrooms "stir fired" over hot coals seem to cook quicker than stir fried on a stove.

Saucy, rich, spicy, and mushroomy!

Served family style. Trick - stuff the rice into a mini loaf pan and invert it.

Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Easy Blackberry BBQ Sauce

2012-01-14T00:07:00.000-05:00

One of the great things about pork tenderloins is that they usually come in packs of two. This gives you the freedom to try them two different ways, either side by side or on two different nights.

Cook two at the same time but use two different seasoning rubs.
Roast one and grill one.
Slice one up for stir fry strips and cut the other into pork medallions.
Use one for kabobs and use the other for pork pinwheels.

I used one the other night for grilled pork tenderloin with cheese grits. That one took a long time, mostly because of the time required for slow cooking real grits.

But the night I did this one I was short on time and took a lot of short cuts but the end result was still tender and rocked the taste buds.

Served with honey baked beans and brown rice.

Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Easy Blackberry BBQ Sauce

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 ea pork tenderloin, silver skin removed
2 1/2 tsp BBQ rub*

For the Easy Blackberry BBQ Sauce

1/2 cup blackberry preserves, SEEDLESS*
3 oz BBQ sauce*
1/4 cup chicken stock
1 Tbsp hot sauce
2 cloves roasted garlic*
1/4 tsp BBQ rub

Instructions

Preheat charcoal grill to 350f (medium) to 400f (medium hot) set up for direct heat.
Season tenderloin with the BBQ rub and place on grill. You are going to cook it until it hits an internal temp of about 140f. This will take about 20 minutes, rotating 1/4 turn every 5 minutes, but go by temps, not time.
Meanwhile, mix the BBQ sauce ingredients in a blender or small food processor and combine with several pulses until well blended.
Heat the BBQ sauce mixture in a small sauce pan and bring to a simmer for 5 minutes.
When the tenderloin hits an internal temp of 115-120 (about 15 minutes after you first put it on the grill), brush it with some of the bbq sauce on all sides.
Turn the pork every few minutes once you glaze it so the bbq sauce doesn't burn.
When the pork reaches an internal temp of 140f, pull from the grill and let rest for 10 minutes.
Slice and serve drizzled with additional bbq sauce.

Notes

I used Draper's All Purpose Rub, one I really like for it's general purpose use. If you don't have a commercial bbq rub on hand, you could do a quick mix of 1/2 tsp salt, 3/4 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 1/4 tsp season salt, 1/4 garlic powder, and 1/4 tsp brown sugar.
Trust me on the seedless blackberry preserves or jam. The seeds will be gritty and ruin the texture of the sauce.
I used Draper's Smokin' Sauce. You can use any bottled sauce but go for one that isn't so sweet because you are adding the sweet blackberry preserves to it. You don't want candy, you want savory and sweet.
We usually have roasted garlic on hand. If you don't, you could chop two cloves and saute 2 minutes in 1 Tbsp butter.

Perhaps the one downside to pork tenderloin is it's odd shape. It has a rather round end, a middle that can be flat, and a tail end that tapers off to nothingness. That's an equation for uneven cooking when cooked whole.

Who are you calling "irregularly shaped"?!?! Have you seen a mirror lately, Pear Butt?

A quick remedy for that is tucking the tail under the thin end and tying the tenderloin like a roast. That evens the flat part out by pulling in the sides and makes the skinny end as thick as the "thick" end.

I feel all tied up in knots.

Short cuts aren't so bad when you use quality brands.

It's been said a million times, but don't sauce your meat until the last few minutes.

This was good with the sauce cooked onto it without any extra sauce.

But a little extra never hurt anyone.

[Standard Disclaimer] In the strictest terms of the FTC disclosure requirements, I should tell you that I got those two tiny jars of Loveless Cafe's Blackberry Preserves at the Food Blog Forum conference in October. They were in a goodie bag so they had no clue who was getting them. I could have been a vagrant for all they know. And Shane Draper did give me a Christmas present gift pack of his rubs/sauces but if I have to disclose that then I will also disclose that his rubs (#3) and sauces (#2) both got top 3 finishes for the best of 2011 from Scott Roberts during the BBQ Central Radio Show last week. While I'm mentioning all the free stuff or compensation I've received, I once opened a box of cereal and got one of those toy scuba divers that swam when you put baking powder in it. No, that didn't have anything to do with this post but I thought I would add it and see if I could get the Guiness World Record for the longest FTC required disclaimer ever. I wonder if the award is one of those toy scuba divers that swim when you put baking powder in it. I have to go....it's bath time.

Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Cheese Grits

2012-01-10T13:05:00.000-05:00

The other day someone asked me what I meant by "real grits".

I think the problem that people who hate grits have is they haven't had "real grits". They have had soupy, bland, quick cooking grits. I don't blame them. I hate those grits too. I think the only person that would like "those grits" is that kid that ate glue back in first grade. Whatever happened to that kid anyway?

Here are a few signs you are making "real grits"

They aren't "instant" or "quick cooking"
They come in a bag, probably not a box.
The package might even have no instructions. (I think they assume if you have any business making grits, you have a mother or grandmother that taught you how somewhere along the way.)
You have to sift out the bran before cooking
They take at least 30-45 minutes to cook.

Anyway here is how I did mine tonight.

Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Cheese Grits
serves: 4

Ingredients

For the grits

1 cup stone ground grits, rinsed and bran flakes skimmed off
4 cups water
1 cup shredded cheese (I used more of that Spinach, Artichoke & Pepper Jack cheese)
Salt & pepper to taste
1-2 Tbsp unsalted butter

For the pork

1 pork tenderloin, silver skin trimmed off
1 tsp smoked salt
3/4 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 cup BBQ sauce

Instructions

Bring water and a "healthy pinch of salt" to a boil in a medium pot.
Stir in the grits, reduce to a simmer and cook uncovered. You will need to stir them every few minutes throughout the process.
Preheat a charcoal grill to 350f set up for direct heat.
Mix the dry seasonings together and season the pork tenderloin.
After the grits have been simmering (and stirred. You're still stirring them, right?) for about 30 minutes, place the tenderloin on your grill and cook with the lid closed.
Turn the tenderloin every 5 minutes. When the tenderloin reaches an internal temp of 120f (about 15 minutes), brush with the BBQ sauce and continue grilling.
When the tenderloin reaches in internal temp of 140f, remove from the grill and let rest for 10 minutes.
Your grits should almost be thickened. Stir in the cheese and butter until it melts.
Taste grits for seasoning and add salt and pepper. I added another pinch of salt and maybe a 1/4 tsp of pepper.
Slice the tenderloin into 3/4" slices, drizzle with extra sauce, and serve with the grits.

Notes

I used grits from Bear Creek Milling that we bought at Mast General Store . They are ground on a 100+ year old mill stone. When I say "they", I guess I should say Bobby. I googled the company and came up with this link for their sister company. I thought it was cool getting to see the people that actually make the products.
I used Tennessee's Best Apple Butter BBQ Sauce that we picked up at a local market last summer. We bought it for the boys who love apple butter but I expected it to taste weird. Turned out it was a good BBQ sauce, tangy and sweet.

Ok, I painted on the "drip"...sue me.

Only thing missing is a big ol' biscuit.

Baked Pasta E Fagioli - Quickie Leftover

2012-01-07T21:22:00.000-05:00

We had a little of the Pasta E Fagioli leftover from last night. I put it in some ceramic boats and topped it with some shredded Spinach, Artichoke & Pepper Jack Cheese. Any cheese would work but that is what we had. I sprinkled some "Italian Seasoning" on them and baked them for 20 minutes. Then I broiled them for 4 minutes to get a golden brown crust.

Yeah, that wasn't half bad for leftovers.

Pasta e Fagioli (a non grilling post)

2012-01-07T11:52:00.000-05:00

I was having one of those nights last night when I had no idea of what to make for dinner. Usually I know the night before but the first full work week after the holidays was tiring and I just wasn't feeling inspired.

Alexis came home from work and said, "[Anonymous coworker] had Pasta Fagioli from Olive Garden for lunch today, it was pretty good. I wish you would make that for dinner."

That was easy, her wish is my command. I had no clue what Olive Garden's dish was like other than Alexis' description. I found this recipe on BigOven, made a few changes, and came up with this.

Speaking of BigOven, I've used their desktop software for years. It's so easy to copy and past a recipe from the blogs I read and save them in my infinitely growing "try soon" folder by using the screen import feature. I paid $25 for the BigOven desktop software years and years ago but IT IS NOW FREE. I highly recommend it for organizing recipes, planning shopping, and creating meal plans. They also have free apps for smart phones and tablets. I find the apps very handy for quick reference when cooking since my laptop doesn't fit on the counter.

Pasta e Fagioli

Adapted from Olive Garden's Pasta e Fagioli

Serves: 8

Ingredients

1.25 lbs Italian sausage*
1 cup carrots, peeled and julienned (about 2 carrots)
1 cup celery, diced (about 3 stalks, leaves reserved)
1 cup sweet onion, diced
12 oz V-8 fruit juice
15 oz tomato sauce
3 cloves roasted garlic*
2 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes, not drained
14.5 oz Bush's Best dark red kidney beans, not drained
14.5 oz Bush's Best cannellini beans, not drained
1 Tbsp white vinegar
3/4 tsp Kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper, ground
1 1/2 McCormick's Mediterranean Sea Salt
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp oregano, dried
1/2 tsp thyme, dried
1 1/2 Tbsp basil, fresh chopped
1 1/2 Tbsp celery leaves, fresh chopped
1-2 cups water
1/2 lb ditalini
1/2 cup pecorino-romano cheese, fresh grated for garnish

Instructions

Preheat a large pot over medium high heat. Brown sausage and remove to colander to drain. (See note)
Saute the carrots, onion, and celery for the mirepoix until softened, 5-8 minutes.
Return sausage to the pot and add remaining ingredients except the water and pasta. Add as much of the water as needed to get the mix a little soupier than you want for your final texture. We used about one cup, but that will be dependent on how much juices you get from your canned goods.
Bring to a simmer and then simmer uncovered for an hour, stirring occasionally.
Make the pasta according to directions.
Drain the pasta and stir into the pot. Simmer 10 more minutes.
Serve with grated pecorino romano cheese.

Notes

Alexis mentioned that the Fagioli she had from Olive Garden had sliced sausage in it. I thought there needed to be some broken up sausage too. So I sliced two of the links and browned them. The other three I removed from their casings and browned them as bulk sausage, breaking them up into fine pieces. You can just brown all of the sausage in fine pieces but we found using two different textures made a significant impact on the final dish. Every spoonful had a little sausage in it but every now and then you get a nice big chuck of it.
We usually have roasted garlic on hand because we roast a batch about every other weekend. If you only have raw garlic, just chop it and throw it in with the mirepoix.

All of the pottery in the photos is from Stony Claystation, our favorite local artists. They aren't selling online (yet) but check their studio if you're ever in Lenoir City, TN or see them at various local markets. All of their stuff is unique and fully functional in the kitchen. Here is some more of their stuff (but by no means, all that we have).

[Standard Disclaimer] I received no compensation for this post and all opinions are my own. I am a paying customer of all brands mentioned. I do have engagements with Bush Beans; however, this post is outside of any paid projects. Ben and Melissa from Stony Claystation have thrown in a freebie here and there over the past few years but that is because we are such frequent customers.

Erica's Pork Loin with Caramel Sauce

2012-01-02T13:18:00.000-05:00

I'm a recipe hoarder.

I see so many "Oh yeah, I have GOT to try that!" recipes online at my favorite blogs and sites. I save them to my BigOven files "to try soon". But then I almost never get around to making them because I am busy playing around with my own recipes. I might actually make one of them for every 100 that I save.

This is recipe is one of the few to escape the purgatory of my "to try soon" list. Last March Erica of My Columbian Recipes blogged about Cerdo al Caramelo, a dish her mother made in her home town of Antioquia. It's roasted pork bathed in a luxurious caramel sauce.

Photo Credit: My Columbian Recipes

Of course I took Erica's kitchen based version of Cerdo al Caramelo and converted it for the grill. Her version is less complicated, faster, and done in the kitchen so click on that link if you don't want to fire roast it.

I chose to slow roast my loin at 250f for as long as possible before raising the heat to make the caramel sauce. That is because the two enzymes (calpains and cathepsins) that break connective tissue in meat are more active at internal temps under 105-122f (McGee 3954*). So the time the meat lingers under 120f acts as a sort of "accelerated aging" process, resulting in a tender, juicy roast (McGee 4494).

Pork Loin with Caramel Sauce

Adapted from My Columbian Cooking

Serves: 6

4 lb crown pork roast, tied

For the brine

1.5 quarts water
2 cups apple juice
1/4 cup kosher salt
2 Tbsp cracked black pepper
1 tsp fennel seeds (optional but preferred)

For the paste

1/2 onion, peeled and coarse chopped
1 green onion, coarse chopped
1 dried red cayenne chili
1 tsp kosher salt
3/4 tsp ground black pepper

For the sauce

2 cups piloncillo grated or brown sugar
1 1/2 cup pork broth
1/4 lb butter, unsalted, melted
2 sticks cinnamon
pinch of clove (optional)

Instructions

Brine the roast for 4-6 hours, refrigerated.
Pulse the paste ingredients in a blender or food processor until they form a...you guessed it, paste.
Remove roast from the brine. Rinse and dry thoroughly. Leave at room temperature for 1 hour.
Set up your grill for indirect heat and preheat to 250f. (see notes)
Slather the paste all over your roast and place it bone side down over indirect heat on the grill. Slow roast until it hits an internal temperature of 105-110f. (See time/temp chart)
Stir sauce ingredients in a grill proof roasting pan that will hold the pork roast. Place the pork roast in the pan and return to the grill, still on indirect heat. Adjust your vents (or gas) to bring the grill temp up to 350f. Roast until the roast reaches an internal temp of 135f.
Remove roast and allow to rest, bone side down, for at least 15 minutes.
Stir the sauce to make sure the sugar thoroughly combined into the sauce. If not, put it back on the grill while the roast rests, stirring occasionally.
Slice and serve with sauce.

Notes

Substitute 2 tsp of red pepper flake if you don't have dried red chili.
Do NOT substitute turbinado sugar for the piloncillo or brown sugar. I used a cup of piloncillo and a cup of turbinado. Seemed reasonable. It took the turbinado forever to melt.
Big Green Egg set up was: lump coal to top of fire ring, 2 chunks cherry wood, plate setter legs up, drip pan, cast iron grate.
The slow roast took about 2 hours and 15 minutes. A similar bone in pork loin last year done at 350f the whole time only took 1 hour and 30 minutes. I'd say the difference in texture was worth the extra 45 minutes.
The "carryover cooking" during the rise maxed out at 151f about 20 minutes after coming off the grill.

The pork roast was very juicy, extra tender, and flavorful. The sauce was rich and sweet, but not too sweet. Very worthy of a holiday meal.

Time	Target Grill Temp	Actual Grill Temp	Meat Internal Temp	Notes
0 hr 0 m	250	250	41
0 hr 30 m	250	250	50
1 hr 0 m	250	300	78	Very windy, temps got away from me. Nudged vent shut by 1/4”
1 hr 30 m	250	300	105	Put roast in the roast pan. Opened bottom vent back by 1/4”
2 hr 0 m	350	350	127
2 hr 30 m	350	350	150	Pulled the roast at 137f at 2 hr 15 min
3 hr 0 m	N/a	N/a	144

Pork roast getting its "beauty treatment".

Piloncillo must be Spanish for "Grates as easy as hardened cement" but it's a mild tasting sugar.

I cooked it right on the grate during the low temp roasting portion so all sides were exposed.

I used stoneware for my roasting pan. Was just about to add the liquids here.

Resting on a raised rack helps retain the juices inside the roast.

Plan for 1 rib or 3/4 lbs per person.

*Citations list the Kindle page number

Grilled Pork Chops with Two Chili Sweet Sauce

2011-12-30T21:11:00.000-05:00

Wow, it's hard to believe that the holiday season is almost behind us. There are so many great memories to cherish and you kind of hate to see the season pass by. But to be honest, I think many of us are thinking the same thing....."GREAT! I don't have to watch that stupid [ENTER YOUR MOST HATED HOLIDAY TV COMMERCIAL HERE] spot again!"

Speaking of holidays, I had this big hunk of pork crown roast for New Year's and realized there was no way my little family of four could eat it all.

So I cut it down into 4 kick butt, nice and thick, bone in rib chops and a smaller roast that we're saving for New Year's Day.

Here's what I did with the pork chops after a quick 1 1/2 hour brine in apple juice, water, salt, fennel and pepper. A brine does many great things for lean pork...but in this case the best thing was it gave me 90 minutes to figure out how I was going to cook it! Here's what I came up with.

Served with cilantro quinoa (ick) and Black Bean Fiesta (yum).

The Two Chili Sweet Sauce really surprised me because I thought it might be a little too spicy hot and I have the higher heat tolerances in the family. But Brett didn't think it was and Alexis loved it, using more on her quinoa to cover up the blech factor of that dish.

Grilled Pork Chops with Two Chili Sweet Sauce

Serves: 4 hungry people

Ingredients

4 ea pork chops, bone in, 1" thick
2 tsp Kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp garlic powder

For the sauce

2 Tbsp butter, unsalted
1 ea shallot, finely diced
1 clove garlic, coarsely chopped
1 Tbsp habanero chili, seeded and finely diced
2 Tbsp roasted sweet red pepper, diced
1/4 cup dry sherry
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup red pepper jelly
slurry (2 Tbsp cold water, 1 Tbsp corn starch whisked together)
salt and pepper for seasoning

Instructions

Preheat charcoal grill to 450f set up for both direct and indirect cooking. Have your hot coals on one side (direct) and nothing on the other side (indirect). I was using my Smoke Hollow Smoker/Grill combo and used about 3 quarts of Kingsford briquettes with hickory for a little smoke flavor.
Pat pork chops dry and season all sides with the salt, pepper, and garlic powder. (Not "both" sides, ALL sides)
Grill chops over the direct heat for 4 minutes per side.
Reduce heat (shut down your grill's air intake vents) and move chops to indirect heat. Roast until the chops reach an internal temperature of 135-137f degrees. This took ours roughly 15 minutes but go by temps, not times.
Remove pork chops from grill and rest on a rack raised over a plate.
Preheat a skillet over medium high heat. Add butter.
Saute shallot and garlic for two minutes.
Add the habanero and red pepper and saute another minute.
Deglaze the pan with sherry and let almost evaporate away (1-2 minutes)
Add the chicken broth and simmer until reduced in volume by half. Taste for seasoning and add salt/pepper as needed. I did a pinch of salt and about 6 twists with a pepper grinder.
Whisk in the jelly and the slurry. Simmer until the sauce is thick enough to cover the back of a spoon when dragged through the sauce.
Plate the chops and drizzle the Two Chili Sweet Sauce over them.

Notes

I had some scraps from trimming the pork roast into chops and seared the scraps in the saute pan first to get some sucs (French for "brown stuff stuck on the pan") before sauteing the veggies.
The final target internal temp AFTER resting is 145f.
If you like more heat, double the habanero. If you don't like heat, drop the habanero and use something milder like jalapeno, chipotle, or poblano.

Don't forget to season the sides too.

Tomahawk pork chops!

I like the habanero not only for it's heat but it also brings a zesty citrus flavor.

I know I probably shouldn't ask this because your answer will remind me of how bad that commercial is, but what is the holiday commercial you'll be so glad to see disappear?

Reverse Seared Prime Rib Roast

2011-12-27T17:53:00.000-05:00

Prime rib is one of my favorite holiday meals. It is buttery tender, rich in taste, and so....so....beefy.

I've mentioned this before but the "prime" in "prime rib" is just a common term, it is not referring to the USDA grade of prime. It's also called a standing rib roast or beef rib roast. [Click here for my 20 Tips for Beef Rib Roasts]

This year I cooked a USDA choice boneless rib roast for Christmas and I used the reverse sear method on my Big Green Egg. I have cooked rib roasts a variety of ways (high temp roast, low temp roast, sear/roast) and in my opinion, a reverse sear gives the most tender and evenly cooked rib roast. If you cook it at 350f straight, you'll end up with the outer edges (the "lip" or "cap") a dull grey medium while only the center is medium rare. Reverse searing a roast creates the same degree of doneness all the way through, edge to edge.

Perfect medium rare, all the way through. Even the spinalis dorsi is pink.

You can do this on any grill that you are comfortable with holding low temps for several hours. Heck, you could also do this method in your oven and broiler, but I promise it would be better on a grill or smoker.

Reverse Seared Beef Rib Roast

serves: 8-10

Ingredients

5 lb boneless beef roast, left off refrigeration to temper for up to one hour
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper, coarse ground
1 tsp dried minced garlic
1 tsp red pepper flakes
2 cups beef stock
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed but left whole
1 sprig rosemary

Instructions

Set up your grill for indirect heat and preheat to 225f as measured at the grate (250f dome temp on a Big Green Egg).
Tie your roast and season on all sides with a dry rub made of the salt, pepper, garlic and red pepper flakes.
Place the roast on a roasting rack above a roasting pan filled with the stock, garlic, and rosemary.
Place the roasting rack/pan on the grill over the indirect (no coals or heat) area. Roast until the internal temp reaches 10 degrees less than your desired final temperature (see chart).
Rest the roast while you raise the grill temp to 500-550f and change to a direct heat set up.
Remove the garlic and rosemary from the au jus that has formed in the roasting pan and discard. Season au jus with salt and pepper as needed.
Sear the roast directly over the coals for 1 minute per side on all sides.
Allow roast to rest another 10-15 minutes after the sear. Slice and serve.

Notes

For your guests that want more than medium rare, a quick "bath" in beef broth in a heated skillet will quickly make the pink disappear and get the slice of roast to their liking.
Big Green Egg set up details: lump coal, no wood, platesetter in "legs up", V-rack set on top of platesetter and stoneware drip pan.

Here is the roast rack set up. Rendered fats will drip into the beef stock below, giving flavor.

Resting on a raised rack avoids steaming the surface of the meat, which loses juices.

Contrary to popular believe, searing does NOT seal in juices but it does create color and flavor.

Don't forget to remove the twine before slicing. If you do forget, just tell guests that it's floss.

Here is the cooking log for this cook. Click on the picture to make it larger so you can read it.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T00:01:00.000-05:00

Baked Eggs Napoleon

2011-12-24T14:08:00.000-05:00

I made this up yesterday morning when I had some leftover tater tots.

Yes, leftover tater tots, as in, "Napoleon, give me some of your tots.". Except I didn't keep my leftover tots in my pockets, I used the fridge.

This isn't anything ground breaking but it was simple and quite a tasty breakfast. Alexis and I both liked them. If you don't have leftover tater tots, you could use leftover hash browns or home fries.

Baked Eggs Napoleon

servings: 2

Ingredients

12 ea tater tots, cooked and crumbled
1 tsp butter
1 Tbsp jalapeno, seeded and finely diced
1/4 cup sweet onion, diced
1 clove garlic, diced
1/4 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 eggs
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350f. Preheat a small skillet over medium high heat.
Melt butter in the skillet and add the onion and jalapeno. Cook 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until starting to soften.
Add the garlic and cook another minute, stirring occasionally.
Spray two small ramekin dishes with non-stick spray. Divide the crumbled tots between the two dishes.
Stir the onion, chile, garlic mixture into the dishes.
Top with the mozzarella.
Crack an egg into each ramekin. Season with salt and pepper.
Bake in the oven on the middle rack for 5 minutes.
Broil on high for 5-6 minutes or until the eggs are set.
Rest for 5 minutes before serving and warn diners that the ramekin is still hot. (see pictures for alternate serving idea)

Notes

For extra crispy potatoes, put the ramekins in the oven for 3 minutes after step 5 and then proceed as written.

Break the tater tots up coarsely, not too fine.

The egg will stay mostly centered if you make a divot or dip in the center.

You can serve right in the ramekins like this, but be careful - very hot.

But I like to slide it out onto a plate, it's easier to eat this way.

Asian Chicken Wings

2011-12-23T14:04:00.000-05:00

Recently, fellow blogger, Stephen Crout published his book A Cook's Book For Cooks.

You'll notice it doesn't say "cookbook". That's because while it does have recipes, it's not your same ol' same ol' cook book. It's more conversational than instructional. Some of the recipes are structured in recipe format while others may just be narrative and both work.

You see, Stephen is less about getting you to follow a set of instructions. He's more about motivating and inspiring you to get in the kitchen and maybe stretch your cooking comfort zone a bit. It's kind of like having him in the kitchen with you just kicking around possibilities. In the process, he entertains with sharp wit and irreverent humor. Here's an example from his bit on St. Louis-style Spare Ribs:

There is a membrane on the back side which some people* insist needs to be removed. It's a little difficult to do and after a brief try I just said screw it. It won't hurt if you are a bit more persistent than I was (56).

He kids around a lot, gets on his soap box a few times, and encourages you to experiment on your own. Here's a recipe I made from A Cook's Book For Cooks and in true Crout fashion, I didn't follow the directions exactly. I knew he would want it that way....

Asian Chicken Wings

adapted from Stephen Crout's A Cooks Book For Cooks

Servings: 2

Ingredients

8 chicken wings, cut into wingettes and drummettes, tips reserved for stock
1/2 cup mirin cooking wine
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 Tbsp sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 green onions, sliced on a bias, divided between marinade and garnish
1/4 cup roasted red pepper, diced
1 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup sweet Asian chili sauce

Instructions

Mix the mirin, soy sauce, sesame oil, half the onion, roasted red pepper and black pepper together.
"Marinate the wings in this for one day. Don't have a day? Fine, go for an hour (Crout 75)."
Set up your grill for indirect heat and preheat it to 375f. This will be fire roasting instead of direct grilling.
Remove wings from marinade (reserve marinade) and fire roast them for 30 minutes.
Flip wings and roast another 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, put marinade in a preheated saute pan over medium high heat. Rapidly simmer for at least 5 minutes. Stir in sweet Asian chili sauce.
Toss wings in the sauce and return to the grill for 10 minutes.
Remove, garnish with remaining green onion, and serve.

Notes

The book gives bake/broil method for doing this inside. I'd tell you what it is but then I'd have to pay Stephen royalties. Go buy the book, it's only $10.99.
Wing tip: When placing wings on a grill, place their cut/open side down first. This will help the rendered fat drip off/out easier. Can't remember who I got that tip from but it works.

*Present company included.

[Standard Disclaimer] Stephen Crout Industries, Inc paid me one kajillion dollars to write this review. Just kidding I paid full price and received no compensation. There, happy FTC?

DivaQ's Chocolate Pig Candy Pretzels

2011-12-18T16:05:00.000-05:00

This is as close to a "cookie post" that you will ever see on Nibble Me This. I made DivaQ's Chocolate Pig Candy Pretzels (click for full recipe). It's made of pretzels, chocolate and crumbled candied bacon. Yeah, I know....right?

Sweet, salty, and a bit smoky too.

Danielle Dimovski aka DivaQ has been one of my top favorite BBQ bloggers since I started my blog. She's got a hilarious sense of humor, has great content & tips, and is one heck of a BBQ competition cook, as proven by her top finish in pork shoulder at the 2011 Jack Daniels. If you don't already follow her, check out www.divaq.ca .

Made my pig candy on my Green Egg.

Improvised double broiler.

Dipped in chocolate, sprinkled with crumbled pig candy, chilled in fridge, dusted with powdered sugar.

We packaged these in foil cups and red straw inside of a clear plastic goody bag to give as gifts to co-workers, neighbors, etc.

Pin It

Blue Cheese Biscuits

2011-12-16T18:15:00.000-05:00

Knoxville has been under a wet blanket of steady drizzling rain for the past two cool days and I was in the mood for comfort food last night. Alexis had to work late so I made beef stew on my Big Green Egg while I baked blue cheese biscuits on her Egg.

Beef stew ladled over a split biscuit - extreme comfort food.

Speaking of our Eggs, my new next door neighbors also have an Egg and already knew this blog. Their Egg is set up near our grilling area so John and I talk BBQ and grilling as we are cooking during the week. He was cooking ribs on Sunday and I jokingly told him that I was going to sneak pictures of his food when he wasn't looking and post them on Nibble Me This for extra content.

Back to beef stew and biscuits. The beef stew was very similar to For The Love of Cooking's Beef and Barley Stew except I cooked it on my Egg in a dutch oven.

325f direct - was covered during the cook except when browning the beef.

The biscuits were supposed to be a sour cream based biscuit but I was out, so I used thick homemade blue cheese dressing instead. This should also work with chunky commercial brands but not thin, watery blue cheese dressings.

Blue Cheese Biscuits

Adapted from White Lily's Peppered Sour Cream Biscuits

servings: 12 biscuits

Ingredients

3 cups self rising flour, sifted
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp black pepper, coarsely ground
1/2 tsp chives, diced
1 cup blue cheese dressing, thick chunky style
2/3 cup half and half
6 Tbsp butter, melted (divided 4T and 2T)

Instructions

Preheat your Big Green Egg (or oven) to 450f with the plate setter in "legs down".
Mix the dry ingredients together. Mix the dressing, half & half, and 4 Tbsp of melted butter together. Stir together until it becomes a coarse dough.
On a floured surface, knead about 5 times.
Roll out to about 1/2 inch thick. Cut out biscuits with a biscuit cutter. Roll scraps back up and cut out more until gone.
Place biscuits on a floured pizza stone and bake 15-18 minutes. Brush with the 2 Tbsp of melted butter during the last 5 minutes.

A little flour on the pizza stone keeps biscuits from sticking.

The pizza stone was not preheated.

There's a lot of flavor in these fire baked biscuits.

Comfort food that will put your butt in the bed...or at least plant it on a couch!

Grilled Pork Medallions with Apple Maple Glaze

2011-12-13T23:06:00.000-05:00

Laws that prohibit sales of alcohol on Sundays make me blue (pun intended). It never fails - I decide to make a recipe that will require wine or liquor and then realize it is Sunday and I can't buy it. It looks bad going to a neighbor's house and asking, "I'm not trying to get my buzz on or anything, but could you spare a cup of brandy?"

I had this idea that I wanted to make this past Sunday and THOUGHT I had brandy when I came up with it. Nope. So I improvised and used Apple Pie moonshine.

Grilled Pork Medallions with Apple Maple Glaze
Serves 4

Ingredients

1 pork tenderloin, sliced into 8 medallions
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder

For the Apple Maple Glaze

2 tsp butter
1/4 cup almond slivers
1/4 cup shallot, finely diced
2 cup apple, cored, peeled, and diced
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp cinnamon, fresh grated
1/4 tsp nutmeg, fresh grated
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 cup alcohol (I used moonshine but brandy is preferred)
1/3 cup apple juice
1/4 cup maple syrup

Instructions

Preheat your grill for direct heat at 400f. (I used the Big Green Egg, lump coal, and Craycort cast iron grates.)
Season the pork medallions with the salt, paprika, pepper and powder.
Grill the medallions 4-5 minutes per side. Temp check them to see if they are 140f internal. If not switch to indirect heat and finish to 140f internal.
Preheat a skillet over medium high heat.
Add butter and almond slivers. Allow to cook for 1 minute.
Add the apple, shallot, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cayenne. Cook for 5 minutes, tossing or stirring frequently.
Flambe! Safe Version - Remove skillet from heat, add the alcohol and immediately light with a long grill lighter. (I just add alcohol and slightly tip the pan towards the flame - POOF!) Let burn until the flame burns out, cooking off most of the alcohol.
Add the apple juice and maple syrup. Simmer 5 minutes or until thickened into a syrup.
Place two medallions on a plate and top with some of the apple maple glaze. Repeat.

You should get about 8 medallions per tenderloin.

The thin cuts of pork cook quickly, keep your eye on the temps.

Tried to get shot of the flambe, came out too blurry. You can see the last of the flame in this shot.

The sweet syrupy topping with just a hint of heat from the cayenne & cinnamon was ideal for the rest of the family. Personally, I would have liked to add some red pepper flake too for more kick to offset the sweet. While this was a work in progress, we will definitely be making this frequently. Can't wait to try it with brandy.

Does your area have blue laws and if so, has it ever messed up your recipe plans?

Flank Steak with Blue Angel Hair Pasta

2011-12-08T22:40:00.001-05:00

Wow, time flies.

A week ago, Trevor and I were in Florida for our fishing trip with my father in law and waking up to this...

Sunrise at 6:something in the morning at Perdido Key.

Trevor piloting the boat until the no-wake zone ends.

It was windy with the marker buoy bells clanging and the fishing lines whistling.

Dolphins played all around us.

Look at the smile on Trev's face landing his first fish of the trip. 20 minute fight.

16.75 lb 33" black drum, caught on blue crab and released alive.


13.5 lb, 31" black drum caught on menhaden and released alive.

Fishing next to the Naval Air Station at Pensacola, we saw prop training planes...

Chinook helicopters....

Jets practicing touch and go landings......

and even the Blue Angels practicing overhead.

All of that fun trip was the inspiration for last night's dinner. A fish dinner? Heck no, you know I don't care for fish. I grilled a flank steak and served it with "Blue Angel" hair pasta.

Grilled Flank Steak with Blue Angel Hair Pasta
Servings: 4

Ingredients
For the steak

1 flank steak, scored 1/4" on both sides and left out at room temp for about 1 hour
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper, coarse ground
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp corriander
1/4 tsp chipotle chile pepper, ground

For the pasta

8 oz angel hair pasta, cooked
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 Tbsp diced shallot
2 Tbsp all purpose flour
2 cups half and half
1/4 cup blue cheese
1/4 tsp celery seed
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 tsp kosher salt

Instructions

Preheat your grill to 450f set up for direct heat. Tonight I was using a large Big Green Egg with lump coal filled to the top of the fire bowl and a Craycort cast iron grate system. But whatever you are using, make sure to allow enough time to get the grates fully preheated.
Mix the dry ingredients and season the steak, getting the seasoning into the scored cuts as well.
Grill the steak approximately 4 minutes per side or until it registers an internal temperature of 130f for medium rare.
Remove and rest on a raised rack for at least 10 minutes before slicing.
While the steak is resting, melt butter in a medium sauce pan over medium high heat and saute shallot for 1 minute.
Add the flour and whisk continuously for 2-3 minutes to form a blond roux.
Reduce heat to medium, add the half and half and bring to a simmer for 5 minutes, whisking occasionally until thickened.
Add the blue cheese, celery seed, pepper, and salt. Stir until blended.
Taste for seasoning and add more salt/pepper if needed. Toss with pasta to coat.
Slice steak thinly (1/4" strips at most) across the grain. Serve with the pasta. Garnish with extra blue cheese

Notes

Scoring the flank steak with knife cuts maximizes surface area for seasoning and adds texture.
The internal temp of flank steak won't rise as much during the rest period as a roast or a super thick strip steak will. Count on about 5-7 degrees (f).
Resting your steak on a flat surface creates a steam effect that relaxes cell structure and releases more juices out of the steak. The raised rack eliminates that effect and helps retain moisture.

The score marks open up once it starts cooking on the grill.

Served with grilled romaine salad and a garlic/herb yeast roll.

How cool.....they have special docking for grills!

We finished the weekend with a boatside dinner at the Sunset Grille just as the sun was setting. Hard to beat the view.

Grilled Turkey Breast

2011-12-05T20:13:00.001-05:00

I know. You just got over your turkey overdose. Why in the world would I be making turkey now? Because I didn't get to at Thanksgiving.

Normally I like to brine my poultry but this breast was one of those "packaged with up to X% with a solution" so it was already pre-brined so brining it was not an option. Instead I came up with an injection to build flavor.

This turned out to be my favorite injection I have come up with for turkey and the family readily agreed. The clarified butter has a cleaner texture, the infused herbs bring the flavor, and the sweet agave comes through in the final product.

Turkey Injection
servings: 1 cup, enough for 1 turkey breast

Ingredients

3/4 cup clarified butter
2 cloves garlic
3 sage leaves
3 sprigs thyme
6 black peppercorns
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup Agave Amber Nectar

Instructions

Heat clarified butter to simmering.
Add the garlic cloves, sage leaves, thyme, and peppercorns and poach for 5 minutes.
Remove and reserve the sage and thyme. Discard the garlic and pepper corns.
Add the wine, Agave nectar, and salt. Stir to mix. Remove from heat and allow to cool before using.

Note: Our local grocery store carries Agave Nectar. If you can't find it, you could substitute honey and a little brown sugar. But agave has much better flavor, in my opinion.

Grilled Turkey Breast
Servings: 6-8

Ingredients

bone in, skin on turkey breast
1 cup turkey injection
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp black pepper
Sage and thyme reserved from cooking the injection.

Instructions

Preheat your grill to 325 - 350f set up for indirect heat. I was using a Smoke Hollow combo grill with 40 lit briquettes divided to each side with drip pans in the middle. See pictures below for example.
Inject the turkey in several areas with the injection from inside the rib cage (the back side of the breast). [For tips on injecting, see Five Tips: Injecting Meat]
Make a rub with the salt, paprika, pepper, thyme and sage. The thyme and sage should crumble easily.
Rub the breasts over and under the skin.
Place the breast on the grill over the drip pan, skin side facing up. Grill for 2 to 2 1/2 hours or until the breast reaches an internal temperature of 155 to 160f. Add a half dozen or so briquettes to each side occasionally as needed to maintain the grill temperature at 325 to 350f.
Allow to rest 15 minutes before slicing.

Notes

I used Kingsford Briquettes with Hickory (green bag) to get a little smoke flavor.
Here's my time/temps chart. [Update] The grill temps listed were actual temps, not my target temperatures. I was trying to hold a temp of 325f, which is much easier in my Eggs.

Time	Internal Temp	Grill Temp	Notes
0	46f	325f	Started with 20 lit coals on each side of a dripping pan
15 min	48f	300f	Added 8 unlit coals per side
30 min	61f	340f
45 min	84f	320f	Added 8 coals left side, 4 coals right side
1 hr	97f	320f
1 hr 15 m	120f	300f	Added 12 coals left side, 8 coals right side
1 hr 30 m	134f	325f
1 hr 45 m	145f	350f
2 hr	156f	315f	Removed turkey from grill

Poaching the garlic and herbs in butter draws out their flavor.

Kingsford with Hickory adds a kiss of smoke.

Injecting from the rib side (inside) avoids tearing and poking holes in the skin.

Indirect set up, coals pushed to the side to create a void, above which rests the meat.

Look how juicy! I carve off half the breast and then slice that on a cutting board.

This disappeared quickly but I did manage to save some scraps for KY Hot Browns today.

Don't forget to entry the Drapers BBQ Gift Pack giveaway HERE.

[Standard Disclaimer] I receive no compensation for this post from any of the brand names listed.

December Giveaway - Drapers BBQ Gift Box

2011-12-05T16:24:00.001-05:00

Need a gift for the BBQ addict in your life? Well you're in luck.

Drapers BBQ is giving away four of their 2011 Limited Edition BBQ Gift Boxes this week in a joint contest with Robyn, Wayne, and myself.

This gift box contains the following all neatly packed in a holiday box ready to go under the Christmas tree:

1 18-oz bottle of Draper’s BBQ Smokin’ Sauce
1 1-lb. package of Draper’s BBQ A.P. Rub
1 stainless steel rub shaker
Recipes hand-picked by Shane Draper himself that work well not only during the holiday season, but all year round.

To enter, leave a comment below and tell me to whom you would give this gift box. Then leave comments on the blog entries at GrillGrrrl and Big Wayner's BBQ Blog. Let us know that you did all that in the Rafflecopter widget below, and you then have 4 chances to win!

The contest ends at 11:59pm EST on Sunday, December 11. Good luck everyone!

If you don't want to take any chances on not winning, you can also buy this or one of Shane's other gift packages at Drapers BBQ.

Steakhouse Burger

2011-11-27T18:55:00.001-05:00

I'm heading out tomorrow for the weekend to take Trevor to Florida for a fishing trip with my father-in-law. We're after the big bruising redfish that cruise the chilly Gulf waters this time of year.

This past weekend, we had some friends over to watch some of the big in-state rivalry football games like Auburn/Alabama (sorry, Steph), Florida/Florida State, Georgia/Georgia Tech, and Clemson/South Carolina.

On the tailgating menu was Grilled Chipotle and Honey Wings [click for recipe] (a recipe I developed to go with Bush's Baked Beans Honey variety) and a Steakhouse Burger. This is a "non-recipe" type post since it's nothing very original, but you'll get the general idea.

The beef - ground chuck roast seasoned with black pepper and garlic, formed into 3 ounce patties. Sealed the stuffing between two patties.
The stuffing - I like the sharp bite of blue cheese. A lot of my guests don't so I compromised. I used blue cheese with a quarter slice of American cheese for the "I don't like blue cheese" people and they loved it. I "forgot" to tell them there was blue cheese in it until they were saying how good it was.
The onions - caramelized sliced onions and hit with a splash of white wine in the last 10 minutes.
The mushrooms - sliced and sauteed in butter 5 minutes. Added some diced garlic and parsley, sauteed another 2 minutes.
The sauce - 2 parts mayo, 1 part your favorite steak sauce and then seasoned to taste with salt, pepper, and turbinado sugar.
The buns - grilled.

Grilled stuffed "jucy lucy" burgers are always a hit.

Alexis said this was one of the year's best burgers. Close, but I have to agree.

Paper towels - mandatory equipment for dealing with Grilled Chipotle & Honey Wings.

Like the cool football themed paper plates and cups? Solo Cup Company has this line out in stores right now just in time for the bowl-game season and the NFL playoffs. They have all the benefits of their normal plates (cut resistant, grease proof, etc) and are "cute to boot" (Alexis said that.....not me).

If you are planning bowl game or playoff get together, keep an eye out for the Solo Cup football line in your store. I say "if" because the local Tennessee Vols are not bowl eligible and my hometown Jacksonville Jaguars have been mathematically eliminated from play off contention. Mathematically eliminated? How bad do you have to be at sports to even have "math" beat you?

[Standard Disclaimer] I received compensation from Bush Beans to develop the wing recipe and compensation from Solo Cup Company. I already used both products anyway.

Silo Brick Grilled Cornish Hens

2011-11-25T20:05:00.001-05:00

I created and cooked a special recipe for yesterday's Thanksgiving feast. It's called "Not a damn thing". It didn't have much taste but it was low on calories!

Nah, the kitchens of Nibble Me This were shut down as we headed over the mountains to Franklin, NC to spend the day with my side of the family. My mom cooked our traditional Thanksgiving feast which somehow manages every year to outstrip "nostalgia inflation" (where things tasted better in your memory) and be as fantastic as ever.

Late in the afternoon, I decided to walk off the carbs and headed down the mountain road...

Yes, the actual road, not stock photo.

beyond the cow pastures....

The cabin property is on the extreme right of this picture.

to the sheep farm....

Holy crap, my mom wasn't kidding, there IS a red sheep in the herd.

and took this picture of the barn...

I'm a sucker for old barns.

The red brick silo in the picture was the inspiration for today's recipe and my 500th post - Silo Brick Grilled Cornish Hens.

Silo Brick Grilled Cornish Hens

Servings: 4 (1/2 hen per person)

Ingredients

2 ea cornish hens, thawed
2 heat resistant bricks, double wrapped in foil

For the brine

1/2 cup kosher salt
1/4 cup sugar
enough water to cover the two hens

For the compound butter

3 Tbsp butter (unsalted), softened
1/2 tsp rosemary, fresh chopped
1/2 tsp Hickory smoked salt (use regular Kosher if you don't have smoked)
1/4 tsp black pepper

For the finishing oil

1/2 cup olive oil
4 sage leaves
2-4 cloves garlic, whole
1/4 tsp black pepper

Instructions

Mix the brine ingredients thoroughly together and brine the hens for 4 hours.
Mix the compound ingredients together with a fork, refrigerate, and take off refrigeration 1 hour before using.
Heat oil in a small sauce pan to 350f.
Fry sage leaves about 1 minute and remove.
Fry garlic cloves until done, about 2-3 minutes, and remove.
Let oil cool. Place sage, garlic, pepper and oil in a blender or food processor and blend together.
Preheat your grill and two foil wrapped bricks to 400f. On the Big Green Egg, I used a raised grid set up where the meat is 8" from the coals. If your grill can't adjust the height from the coals, drop the temp to about 350f and carefully monitor the internal temps.
Spatchcock or butterfly the hens by cutting out the backbone with kitchen/poultry sheers.
Work your finger under the skin and spread the softened compound butter over the breast, thighs, and legs.
Place birds bone side down, weigh down with bricks and cook 6 minutes.
Rotate birds 90 degrees and weigh down again for another 6 minutes.
Remove birds from grill (to prevent flare ups) and drizzle some of the sage oil over the skin side. Flip and drizzle sage oil over the back. Return to grill skin side down, top with bricks, and cook for 3 minutes.
Rotate 90 degrees and cook another 3 minutes.
Temp check thighs (175f) and breasts (160). If not done, slip bone side down and finish to those temps (shouldn't be another few minutes).
Let rest 10 minutes before serving

With the weather getting cold, sage is one of the last herbs surviving in our garden.

You won't use all the oil, save the rest for other dishes.

If you can't get "all natural", reduce the salt content of the brine to 1/4 cup.

Getting the butter/herbs under the skin seasons the meat better.

A glimpse into how I come up with recipes. I started with the word Franklin and brainstormed.

The brick helps flatten the birds for more even cooking.

Finishing bone side down to get the desired final internal temps.

The wild rice was a certain Uncle's box mix with frozen peas and crisped bacon added.

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving, spent time with family and arrived home safely!

Enfrijoladas

2011-11-21T21:32:00.001-05:00

Last week when I smoked the two pork butts, you might have noticed one had the typical reddish BBQ rub on it but the other was looking a little "green".

No, it wasn't a moldy, "special buy because it went out of date two days ago" piece of pork. I was trying out Albukirky Seasonings new Green Chile Rub.

Kirk is a fellow Egghead and food blogger who, about a year ago, started his own line of seasonings and rubs that boast the flavor of New Mexico.

This green chile rub is a blend of the famous Hatch chiles, sea salt, garlic, black pepper and other seasonings. Don't worry about the word chile, it is not spicy as much as it is flavorful. The rub has an even blend of fine and medium grinds so it has texture to it. Don't think of it as a BBQ rub per se, it is more of a multipurpose seasoning. The aroma smells strongly of garlic and black pepper but the taste is well balanced once cooked onto food.

So far I have used it on grilled chicken and on a smoked pork butt, both were very good. The pork still had the smoked flavor and nice bark but it had a unique Southwestern flair to it. I have used it this week to make tamales, the fried tamale bites, "green eggs & pork", pork tacos, and tonight, I made enfrijoladas.

What the heck are enfrijoladas? A week ago I would have had no clue either. Honestly, I would have thought it was a made up word from Taco Bell's marketing department.

But I saw them TWICE in one weekend at Girlichef (who has never let me down) and Mexico in my Kitchen and knew I HAD to try them. Click the links for their recipes as I am not posting one, but they are fried corn toritillas dipped in a spicy bean sauce and stuffed with kickin' meat (chicken, pork, or beef, doesn't matter).

I used black beans, garlic, dried cayenne, and cilantro for my seasonings.

The fried tortillas start to get crispy...

But dipping them into the bean sauce kind of softens them up, resulting in a nice combination of textures. I should have garnished more but was hungry so I just sprinkled them with cotija cheese.

Proof that most comfort food isn't photogenic....but it has a nice personality and rocks.

They might not look pretty and that is one of the worst plating/food styling/food photography shots I have done in a while.....but guess what....I don't care. They were freaking excellent. All 4 of us were moaning grunts of approval as we devoured them. I can't believe I've never heard of these things before.

Oh yeah, back to the rub. Albukirky Seasonings Green Chile Rub definitely works for me and I'll be buying some more. Speaking of that, you can get it cheaper than I did because it's now on sale. Kirk has marked it down from $7.99 to $5 a bottle (his other rubs and sauces are on sale too). Link to Albukirky Seasonings

[Standard Disclaimer] I pay full price for my Albukirky Seasonings and receive no compensation from them. Kirk is an online acquaintance and fellow Egghead but that is it. Based on legal counsel's advice, I cannot comment on rumors that Kirk has compromising photos of me at last year's Eggfest.

Fried Tamale Bites

2011-11-20T07:26:00.001-05:00

Yesterday we wanted some appetizer-snacky-game type food to munch on while we watched UFC-139. I came up with two things - tamale bites and fried stuffed black olives.

I wasn't sure how either would work since

A) I didn't know if the tamale dough would all cook solid into an impenetrable ball of concrete and

B) I had no recipe for either of these, I was just winging it.

When I first bit through the warm, crunchy crust and it gave way to the soft tamale and savory pork inside I knew I was on to something. And the olives were down right addicting.

The olives were just large pitted black olive stuffed with a thin sliver of garlic, a small piece of pepper jack cheese, and half a leaf of cilantro.

To get the breading to stick, we found you had to dip them in egg wash first, then flour, back to egg wash, and then in panko crumbs. Then just a quick 30 second swim in a 350f deep fryer. Season lightly with salt just as they come out and they are done.

Typical 3 station breading set up - flour, egg, crumbs.

For the tamale bites, I simply took leftover cooked tamales and cut each into 4 pieces. I rolled each in flour (masa harina), egg wash, and then panko bread crumbs before deep frying them at 350f until golden, about 1 minute.

Pin It

Southwestern Chicken Chili Soup

2011-11-17T21:51:00.001-05:00

The high temperature in Knoxville today was at 1:30am.

With temps dropping all day, that meant it was a day for soup. Or chili. Or maybe both, because I wasn't sure which to call this dish I threw together for dinner tonight. I wasn't even going to blog about this but Alexis liked it so much I changed my mind.

Southwestern Chicken Chili Soup

Ingredients

2 boneless skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 1/4 inch wide strips
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp oil
1 Tbsp butter, unsalted
1 cup onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 can diced tomatoes and green chile
1 can corn kernals, drained
1 can light red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
4 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 Tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp roasted cumin
1/4 tsp dried lemon peel

Instructions

Preheat a large stock pot over medium high heat.
Season chicken with salt and pepper.
Add butter and oil to pot and brown chicken for 4-5 minutes. Remove to a plate.
Add the diced onion and saute for 3 minutes.
Add the garlic and saute for 2 more minutes, stirring occasionally.
Deglaze the pot with balsamic vinegar.
Return chicken and any juices to the pot.
Add remaining ingredients, bring to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes.

Notes

Avoid crowding the pot when browning chicken. If you can get all the chicken in with one layer, do it in two batches.
Garnish with crispy fried tortilla strips or masa dumplings

Then I Saw The Light

The onset of darker nights and colder temps cause some folks to suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). I have to admit I am not as enthusiastic about getting out to cook when it's already dark when I get home from work. According to the Mayo Clinic, light therapy is a common treatment for combating the effects of SAD.

Light therapy....grillin' style.

Ahhhh I feel better already!!!!!

Pig Candy BBQ Cheeseburger

2011-11-15T18:38:00.001-05:00

The French have the mirepoix. Cajuns have "the trinity". What do tailgaters have? Bacon, cheese, and bbq sauce!

Seriously, try to name one tailgate food that can't be improved with the addition of one or more of these. So when Bush Beans sponsored a tailgate for us recently, I went "all in" and used all three for a great burger. Since our tailgate had limited cooking set ups, I wanted a burger that could be made at home, transported and then quickly put together onsite.

Instead of cramming a bunch of toppings into a cooler and carrying them with us, I crammed a bunch of toppings into a BBQ Cheese sauce and cooked some bacon. They were really good the first time at the tailgate and they went great with the Maple Cured Bacon flavor of Bush's Baked Beans.

But the beans tastes of cured bacon and real maple syrup,slow-simmered with a secret blend of seasonings, were whispering to me. They kept saying "sweet" and "bacon". I finally realized what they were telling me this burger really wanted....PIG CANDY!!!!!

Bacon + Sugar + Spicy = Pig Candy

Pig Candy BBQ Cheeseburger

serves: 6

Ingredients

For The Burgers

3 lbs ground beef
1 Tbsp Kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp black pepper, ground
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
6 hamburger buns

For the Pig candy

1 lb smoked bacon
1/2 cup turbinado sugar (you can substitute brown sugar)
1 tsp BBQ rub (or 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper)

For the BBQ Cheese Sauce

1 Tbsp butter, unsalted
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
1 Tbsp all purpose flour
1 cup half and half
1 cup shredded cheese (we used colby jack this time but medium cheddar works great)
1 tsp red pepper flake
1/4 cup BBQ sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Mix together the bacon, sugar, and bbq rub, thoroughly coating the bacon with the seasoning.
Cook the bacon at 375f according to package directions for "baking". Instead, I cooked mine at 375f indirect with coal and cherry wood on my grill.
Preheat a sauce pan over medium high heat. Melt butter and saute the jalapeno for 2 minutes.
Stir in the flour and stir constantly for another 3-4 minutes until a blonde roux forms.
Reduce heat to medium and whisk in the half and half.
Whisk in the red pepper flake and cheese in small batches, allowing the cheese to melt before adding more.
Add the BBQ sauce, taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed. We just added a pinch of each.
Store BBQ Cheese sauce in a thermos and it will stay warm for several hours.
Mix the burgers together and divide into a dozen 4-ounce patties.
Grill the patties on a 450f charcoal grill for 4 minutes per side.
Assemble each burger from the bottom up: bun - burger - 2 slices pig candy - burger - 2 or 3 Tbsp BBQ cheese sauce - bun.

Notes

The pig candy amounts will give you 4 extra pieces. Tell no one. They are yours to cherish and devour.
Wash your hands with really cold water before making the patties and keep your beef well chilled while forming the patties.

They were very good at the tailgate with regular bacon. But Pig Candy wins every time.

Notice the "custom cherry wood rack divider"...it is very expensive equipment ;)

The BBQ cheese sauce brings a ton of flavor but makes it portable.

Pig Candy BBQ Cheeseburger with Bush's Baked Beans - Maple Cured Bacon

Bush Beans Gameday Giveaway
And now for the lucky winner of the tailgating package sponsored by Bush's Beans......

#12 - Big Dude said...I mentioned the give away on my blog - http://bigdudesramblings.blogspot.com/2011/11/grilled-cheese-for-breakfast.html

WOW! Not only was Larry also #1 to enter this contest (as well as #12), Bev and Larry have hosted the East TN food blogger get together for the past two years. I almost wanted to re-draw because it looks "funny" with another Knoxville blog winning from my Knoxville blog sponsored by a Knoxville company but Alexis said, "No way, he won it fair and square!".

Congratulations, Larry! Email me your address.

Thanks everyone and get ready for my December giveaway - a nice boxed set gift package for the BBQ lover.

How I Smoke Pork Butts for Pulled Pork

2011-11-12T19:43:00.000-05:00

I smoked two pork butts yesterday and Matt asked via Twitter: "Do you have a link to your pork method on the Egg? "

I didn't. I have a few posts about pulled pork but I've never fully outlined the steps I go through for smoking pork butts on the Big Green Egg. Here is what I do from start to finish. It's not the only way or "right" way, it's just works for what we like to eat at home.

Preparing the Big Green Egg

Remove all used coal from the Egg and reserve.. Thoroughly clean out the ashes. Make sure all fire grate and fire bowl air holes are free of ash and coal.
Wood: I do NOT soak my wood chunks. I use 4" x 1.5" x 1.5" chunks of seasoned hickory and cherry.
I place the largest chunk of wood in the middle and a layer of the larger pieces of lump coal on the fire grate. Place three chunks of wood on top of that layer near the edges in three different places. Pour another layer of coal to cover that wood. Repeat until my wood and coal top the fire ring. I use the reserved used lump coal for the final layer since it's easier to start and pops less. My goal it to have wood distributed evenly from top to bottom and side to side so I get smoke through the whole cook.
Open bottom vent and DFMT vent all the way. I light the coal with a MAPpro torch in 3 places. When temp reaches 200f, I cut the bottom vent to about 1" open. When it hits 220f, I shut the bottom vent to about 1/4" and close the DFMT vent but open the daisy wheel so the 6 holes are open.
When the Egg reaches 250f, I place the plate setter in "legs up" and place my drip pan onto of that. My drip pan is a large deep dish pie pan that I bought from a restaurant supply store. I cover it with foil for easy clean up.
I let the Egg hold at 250f until the smoke turns from white to clear or "sweet blue". It takes 15 to 45 minutes for the heavy white smoke to change over.

Foil covered deep dish pizza pans make great drip pans.

Wood distributed up and down and all around. More coal will top this.

Meat Prep

I like to use 7-8lb pork butts (aka pork shoulder, Boston butts) that have a nice white fat cap and deep red meat. If I'm buying a twin pack, I try to make sure the two butts are close to the same size.
Brine - I do not brine pork butts.
Injection - I inject about half the time. I don't see a huge difference but I do think it helps me have more consistent results. I use Chris Lilly's world champion injection (recipe) and inject in 12-15 spots on the bottom and again on top.
Rub - I take my butts out of the refrigerator 1 hour before start time and apply the rub heavily on all sides. If making my own rub, I like to use a variation of Southern Succor Rub (recipe) but more and more I just use commercial rubs. Ones I like are Billy Bones Competition or Draper's AP rub.

Pork - seasoned with Drapers A.P. Rub and wood.

Smoking

Once the Egg is stabilized at 250f (dome temperature) and the smoke is either clear or thin blue, I put my pork butts on, fat cap facing up. There's two schools of thought on the fat cap and both have their "scientific arguments". I've tried it both ways and just prefer fat cap up.
I check the Egg and meat internal temps every hour just to make sure the Egg temp is still stable at 250f and the butt temps are progressing as expected (see chart below for an example).
Temp Adjustments - The Egg is pretty stable. I don't make any changes if it is within 10 degrees of my target temp. If it gets more than that, I adjust gradually. Guiding temps on an Egg is more like operating a boat instead of driving a car, you can't just start slamming on the brakes or stomping on the gas. If the temps start to drop about 8 hours in, I check for smaller pieces of coal blocking fire grate holes and use a wiggle rod (metal skewer with the tip bent 90 degrees) to clear them.
Guru and other electronic controls - I don't use any electronic controls, blowers, etc. I don't have a problem with people that do. For me, it just seems like they just add more complications that can go wrong. I do pretty good just minding my two vents.
I plan on 1.5 hours per pound but allow for as short as 1 hour/lb or up to 2 hours/lb. Mine are pretty consistent at 1.5 hours.
If I'm cooking more than one butt, I like to rotate the cooking grate 1/2 turn when the butts hit 160f (about the halfway point usually) for more even cooking.
I remove the butts from the Egg when their internal temp hits between 195f and 200f. I double wrap them in high density aluminum foil and place them in an empty cooler to rest for at least 1 hour but up to 4 hours.

2-3 butts fit easily on a Large BGE. An adjustable rig can double that.

Rotate your thermometer dial so that your target temp is at 12 o'clock. Then you can

see if you are on the right temp with a quick glance and from several feet away.

Data from an actual cook. Yellow line is the meat temp. Notice the typical "stall"

Finishing

After the rest, I take the pork butt out of the foil, reserving any juices. I shred or "pull" the pork using two large forks. The bone and any remaining sections of fat are "discarded" (give to the dog).
Seasoning - Once the pork is pulled, I drizzle the reserved juices over the pork. I sprinkle about 2 Tbsp over the meat. I also pour a little of "finishing sauce" over the pork, just enough to lightly mix in. An 8 lb butt will yield about 4lbs of meat and I only use about 1/2 cup of finishing sauce on it.

I get so full during the "pulling" part, I don't know why....

Storing and Reheating

We vacuum seal pulled pork in 1 lb batches (4 servings) and freeze it for up to six months (date the bag).
To reheat, put the sealed bag straight from the freezer into a simmering pot of water for 5 minutes. When it's warm it's ready to eat.

Pulled pork sandwich with Bush's Grillin' Beans - Smokehouse Tradition

The Bulldawg, a tailgate, and a giveaway

2011-11-07T12:00:00.000-05:00

Tailgating.

It seems to be all about football, NASCAR, full contact curling, or whatever sporting event is currently in season right? That is a misconception.

We don't really CARE about whatever team is about to take the field/track/court/ice rink. What we really CARE about is spending time and sharing food with family and friends. I think that's really what "game day" is all about.

So when Bush's Beans offered to sponsor a tailgate event, instead of choosing a professional or college sporting event, I chose one of Trevor's football games. Just three seasons ago he was this little boy (#38 in the picture)...

Now he is in his first year at middle school, plays for the Bearden Bulldogs league (#50 in the picture) and hopes to play for Bearden High School in 3 years.

Weather is a key factor in tailgating and our first two attempts were rained out. Fortunately, the third time was the charm and we had a perfect Autumn fall afternoon.

We had issues with space onsite so we tailgated nearby the park. There was plenty of room and the boys threw the football while Alexis and I set up everything. I say "boys" but they are all college age now. Three of them have been best friends since we moved to Knoxville 11 years ago.

We cooked everything except the hot dogs at home and then transported it in covered steam pans. All we had to cook on site was the hot dogs and then warm up the Bush's Baked Beans on a small grill. I like it easy like that.

Since Bearden's teams are the Bulldogs, one of the menu items was "The Bulldawg". The Bulldawg is an all beef hotdog topped with cheese, chili and onions and we served it with Bush's Homestyle Baked Beans which have a tangier sauce, special cured bacon, and a hint of brown sugar. The thing about most hot dog chili sauces is that most are "too saucy" for me and end up soaking the bun. Bulldawg sauce is a little "less saucy". It is still moist and tangy, just not oozing with sauce.

Bulldawgs with Bush's Homestyle Baked Beans

The Bulldawg

Ingredients

8 all beef hotdogs
8 hotdog buns
1 sweet onion, diced
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese

For the Bulldawg sauce

1.25 lb ground chuck
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup jalapeno, finely chopped, seeds removed
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup ketchup
1/2 cup water
1 Tbsp sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp chili powder
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp celery salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp chipotle hot sauce

Instructions

Preheat a wide pan over medium high heat. It's important to use the wide pan so the meat is not crowded when you brown it.
Brown the ground beef, breaking it up into fine pieces with a spatula while it cooks (about 10 minutes). Remove and drain.
In the same pan, saute the onion and pepper until the onion is softened and translucent (about 5 minutes).
Return the cooked beef to the pan with the onion mix. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Bring to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes or until sauce is reduced and thickened.
Preheat your grill over medium heat and grill the hot dogs for 5 minutes, rotating frequently.
Serve hot dogs topped with cheese, then chili, and onion.

Notes

If you like "saucier" chili, just increase the water to 3/4 cup. But don't keep asking me for napkins (ha ha)!
Make ahead and then just warm up on the grill.

Hot dogs taste SOOO much better on the grill than boiled or microwaved.

For hot dog chili, the fine size of the meat makes it easier to spoon into a bun.

I found plates, plasticware, cups and napkins in Bearden colors at the party store.

Bush Beans Tailgating Package Giveaway
Bush Beans is giving away this tailgate package to one of my lucky readers. As you can see from the pictures above, I received a similar package and have enjoyed using it. The "stereo cooler" rocks, literally. You connect your MP3 player or phone (not included) to the powered speaker system and you can listen to tunes or play the radio pre-game show if your MP3 player has a receiver.

The package includes

Two Bush Beans folding chairs with carry bags
Bush Beans cooler with powered speaker system (for MP3 player, not included).
Enough Bush's Baked Beans for 20 guests.
Twin burger press
Hot dog grill tray and handle

How To Enter
Each person can receive up to a total of 3 entries as follows:

leave a comment below telling me your favorite tailgating dish and which Bush's Baked Beans flavor you would make to accompany it. The flavors include Original, Homestyle, Maple Cured Bacon, Boston, Country Style, Honey, Onion, Vegetarian, and Bold & Spicy. (NOTE: If you use the "anonymous comment" option, be sure to leave an email or your screen name in the comment so I can contact you if you are the winner. Something like "EggerinFL from the Egg Forum" or "swibirun from the BBQ Brethren forum" is enough.)
Mention the giveaway with a link in Twitter and use the hashtag #BushBeansGameday
Mention this giveaway and link to it in a post on your blog. (Include your URL in a comment so I'll know you did it.)

The Rules

Giveaway entry period begins Monday, 12:01pm November 7, 2011 and ends November 14, 2011 11:59pm. Winner will be announced November 15, 2011.
Comments will be numbered by order received and random.org will generate a random number for the winner.
Limited to residents of the continental US unless you wish to pay the extra shipping charges.
I am the final judge regarding any discrepancies, interpretations, grievances, etc about this drawing.
Bush Beans is sponsoring the prize. They are not responsible for the drawing or the giveaway.
Winner must respond and claim the prize within one week of the winning announcement. If a winner does not claim the prize during the specified time, a reserve winner will be drawn from the original entries.
Employees, Board Members, pets, indentured servants, and family of Nibble Me This are not eligible to enter.

This post and giveaway are sponsored in partnership with Bush Beans. [Standard Disclaimer]

Southwestern Chicken Fricassee

2011-11-03T22:42:00.000-04:00

You know how I am always cooking on my grills but often say, "You could also cook this inside..." ?

Well tonight I actually cooked this inside, but you could cook this on your grill. I had intended to cook most of this on the grill but a soaking shiver inducing rain invaded East Tennessee. Being a big wimp, I cooked inside instead.

My parents gave me this great bowl set for my birthday over a month ago but I was waiting to come up with something suitable for them. I wanted something Southwestern to match the festive colors but also something that reminded me of my childhood. One of my favorite dishes that my mom made when I was a kid was chicken fricassee. So I took a Southwestern spin on chicken fricassee.

Southwestern Chicken Fricassee

Servings: 6

Ingredients

2 Tbsp oil
6 chicken thighs
1 1/2 tsp Kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 1/2 cup chicken broth
4 cups cream of garlic soup

For the Cream of Garlic Soup

2 Tbsp oil
1/4 cup coarse chopped garlic
1/4 cup red bell pepper, diced
1 shallot, coarsely chopped
3 slices bread, crusts removed and cubed
4 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp red pepper flake
1 egg
1/4 cup half and half or cream

Instructions

Preheat a wide bottomed pan and a large skillet over medium heat.
Add 2 Tbsp oil to the pan and saute the garlic, bell pepper, and shallot for 2 minutes.
Add the bread, toss to coat in the oil and continue cooking another 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the broth, pepper, oregano and pepper flake. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile work on the chicken - season the chicken thighs with the salt, pepper, oregano, and garlic.
Add 2 Tbsp oil to the skillet and brown the chicken thighs skin side down. This took about 5 minutes for me to get a nice golden color.
Flip and sear the other side for 2 minutes.
Add the 1 1/2 cups broth, bring to a gentle simmer, cover and braise for 25 minutes or until the thighs reach an internal temperature of 175f (I like my thighs done well).
Back to the soup - after 15 minutes, whisk the soup mixture rapidly for 1 minute to break up all of the bread into a smooth consistency. Simmer for another 5 minutes.
Slightly beat the egg in a large bowl. Whisk 1 1/2 cups of the hot soup into the egg. Now whisk this mixture back into the rest of the soup.
Stir in the cream, taste for seasoning, and remove from heat.
Put it all together - Drain all but 1/2 cup of the juice from the chicken pan. Add in enough of the cream of garlic soup to come up to the edges of the thighs. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 more minutes.
Serve in bowls with plenty of the flavorful soup mixture.

Notes
For a full meal and nice presentation, serve with a timbale of yellow rice and peas.
The cream of garlic soup is great on its own too!
If you like a spicier soup base, double the red pepper flake, add chipotle pepper, or use red serrano or jalapeno instead of red bell pepper.

When browning the thighs, a lot of fat will render out, don't be alarmed.

You could also finish the braise in a 400f oven. Stove top was just easier.

This recipe was actually inspired by and created for this bowl. Thanks Mom and Dad!

It was just the four of us eating but all 6 thighs, the extra soup and all the rice disappeared amongst grunts of satisfaction. The recipe was a little more involved than most that I do but the results were well worth it. One thing I wanted to add but ran out of time was some masa harina dumplings. Maybe next time but it really didn't need it. I can't wait to try this one on my Big Green Egg using a Dutch oven.

Pin It

Grilled Chicken Sliders

2011-11-01T07:00:00.000-04:00

Sliders are easy to make and even better to eat, but sometimes sourcing buns for them can be a problem. If Alexis doesn't have time to bake a batch from scratch, I usually just use Kings Hawaiian Sweet Rolls. But yesterday, she found a 16 pack of slider buns from Pepperidge Farm at Wallyworld. It might not be a new product but it's new to us so I thought I'd share.

Anyway, here are some grilled chicken sliders that I made last night. The first time I made them, I didn't add the beer to the glaze and it burned almost instantly because of the sugars. The second time, the additional liquid made it work perfectly. If you don't want to use beer, you could just use chicken stock but I like the nutty flavor a dark beer adds to the sweet glaze.

Grilled Chicken Sliders
Makes: 8 sliders

Ingredients

2 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
2 tsp poultry rub (see notes)
8 slider buns
toppings of your choice such as lettuce, tomato, onion, or pickles

For the glaze

2 Tbsp Maple agave nectar (see notes)
2 Tbsp amber style beer
1 Tbsp lime juice
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar

For the spicy mayo

1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 Tbsp Cholula chipotle hot sauce
1/2 tsp smoked paprika

Instructions

Preheat your charcoal grill set up for direct heat to 350f (medium).
Mix the spicy mayo together and refrigerate. In another bowl, mix the glaze together and set aside.
Using a very sharp knife, slice each breast in half lengthwise to make cutlets. Cut each cutlet in half.
Season your cutlets on both sides with poultry rub.
Grill cutlets 2-3 minutes, just until the edges start to turn white. Flip and grill another 2 minutes.
Brush with the glaze on both sides and cook another minute. Check with a thermometer to make sure they are properly cooked to an internal temperature of 165f.
Toast slider rolls on the grill, if you prefer.
Serve on rolls with the spicy mayo.

Notes

For poultry rub, I used Albukirky Seasonings new Green Chile Rub. You can make a quick poultry rub of 1 tsp Kosher salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper, and 1/2 tsp of garlic powder.
If you don't have maple agave nectar, you could substitute honey or maple syrup.

Split in half lengthwise and then halved again makes the right size for sliders.

These grill quick because they are so thin. Don't leave unattended.

Two sliders and fries left me stuffed!

Food Network Opportunity
Are you a budding food entrepreneur? If so, you might be right for a new Food Network project currently being developed by Bobby Flay's production company.

A new Food Network series is looking for FOOD ENTREPRENEURS. Specifically, people who have left their previous career and have little-to-no prior professional food experience, but are taking a risk to pursue their passion of launching their own food business. They must be planning to open a brick-and-mortar space (restaurant or singular food ideas welcome) before the end of 2011 (for our pilot) or Spring of 2012 (for our series). Those chosen will receive culinary & business coaching from a major celebrity chef and restaurateur, as well as invaluable national publicity. If interested, contact Heather Briggs at hrb@embassyrow.com. Serious inquiries only.

Pin It

Roasted Red Potato Fries With Po'dunk Sauce

2011-10-25T23:48:00.000-04:00

Podunk.

It's usually used as a term for a small, backwoods, in the middle of nowhere place. So when Alexis suggested I name the dipping sauce for these oven roasted fries "Podunk Sauce" I looked at her like she was crazy.

But she clarified, "You know, you 'dunk' your 'po'-tatoes in the sauce."

Okay, she was right, cute name. But don't tell her that, she'll be impossible to live with.

As far as the potatoes, this is a basic way we do our roasted potatoes. Sometime we quarter them, sometimes we do them as fries like this. The herb mix I used tonight was half fresh thyme and half fresh oregano.

Roasted Red Potato Fries with Po'dunk Sauce
Servings: 4

Ingredients

2 lbs red bliss potatoes cut into sixths
1 Tbsp fresh herbs, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp kosher salt
2 Tbsp oil

For the sauce

1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tsp white wine vinegar
2 tsp Cholula Chipotle Hot Sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp butter, melted
1/2 tsp seasoned salt (I used Drapers A.P. Rub)
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp red pepper flake

Instructions

Mix the sauce ingredients together and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 450f.
Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the potatoes and then when it returns to a boil, cook for 1 minute. (This step may seem unnecessary but it gets you the tender inside and crispy outside.)
Place the potatoes on a baking sheet flesh side down or use a preheated cast iron pan for extra crispy crusts. Roast for 12 minutes.
Flip the potatoes and roast another 12 minutes.
Turn onto the skin side and roast 5 more minutes.
Remove and serve with the Po'dunk sauce

Cut your potatoes in half, then each half into three wedges.

[Standard Disclaimer] I received a variety 4 pack of hot sauces from Cholula for free.

Boneless Top Sirloin Petite Roast

2011-10-21T12:02:00.000-04:00

I found a new favorite cut of beef today - the boneless top sirloin petite roast.

Barely medium rare at 132f, perfect for us!

And get this....it is extra lean. Yeah, I know, that "extra lean" would normally make me assume it is "dry and tasteless" too but nothing could be further from the truth. Earlier this year, the American Heart Association certified three cuts of beef as "extra lean", meaning they have met the AHA's criteria for low cholesterol and saturated fats.

Boneless top sirloin petite roast
Top sirloin fillet
Top sirloin kabobs

I was checking out a "boneless top sirloin petite roast" at Food City when a nicely dressed woman asked if she could ask me a few questions. At first I thought she was hitting on me because that happens all the time (ha ha!). She was conducting an in-store survey about consumer views on lean beef and related marketing.

She and I talked some after the questionnaire and I learned a lot more about the nutritional value of these cuts. I was going to buy the boneless top sirloin petite roast anyway because I thought it looked fresh and perfect for the grill. Knowing they were lower in saturated fat AND cholesterol than a boneless skinless chicken thigh made that decision even easier.

I was wary of the "extra lean" factor but wanted to avoid covering it with a lot of sauces that would just add fat back in. Instead I threw together a "Cajun-ish" flavorful wet rub and fire roasted it.

Fire Roasted "Cajun-ish" Top Sirloin Petite Roast
Serves 4

Ingredients

1 1/2 to 2 lb boneless top sirloin petite roast
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp fresh thyme
3/4 tsp Kosher salt
1/2 tsp dried minced garlic
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp white pepper

For the au jus

1 1/2 cups beef stock
1 clove garlic, peeled but left whole
1/4 tsp black pepper
sprig of fresh thyme (optional)

Instructions

Preheat your grill to 350f. Have the grill set up for a two zone fire so you can switch from indirect to direct heat.
Whisk the oil and seasonings together into a "wet rub" and slather this rub all over the roast.
Combine the au jus ingredients in a pan.
Roast the beef over indirect heat on a rack directly over the au jus pan until it reaches your desired degree of doneness. We prefer rare/medium rare so I cooked mine for about 50 minutes until it reached an internal temperature of 130f. I also like to flip my roast about half way through the estimated cooking time for even cooking.
Sear roast over direct flame for about 1 minute per side to crisp and darken the outer crust. Whisk and strain the au jus into a warm bowl.
Remove from heat and let rest 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with the au jus

Notes
You could cook this in an oven and then pan sear it at the end or just crank the oven temp up to 500 for the last 5 minutes.

When I sampled the first slice off of the cutting board I was immediately impressed. It is melt in your mouth tender like beef tenderloin but has the rich flavor of a strip loin steak. The flavor of the beef really shines and the little spicy kick of the rub didn't overpower the tastes but added to it. The family readily agreed. We will definitely be adding this rich yet healthy cut o' beef to our shopping list regularly.

Did I mention...it is steak and has less saturated fats than a boneless skinless chicken thigh!?! (Learn more at www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com)

See why I was going to buy it anyway before I knew the health benefits?


Look for the "Heart Check" symbol on your meat aisle.

A loaf pan sized foil pan fits perfectly to add the drippings to the au jus.

Searing direct at the end helps form a flavorful crust.

Make it a meal - Fresh green beans, garlic/rosemary roasted potatoes, and the au jus.

[Standard Disclaimer] I received no compensation for this post although I did receive a $20 Food City gift card for participating in their questionnaire at the store.

Pin It

Stracciatella

2011-10-19T23:59:00.000-04:00

A cold steady rain arrived in East Tennessee today and 3/4ths of our clan are also figuratively "under the weather".

It is one of those days that you just want to crawl up under a blanket with a good person, a captivating book, or hell, even something good on TV. You just don't want to be spending hours in the kitchen after working all day.

Those circumstances call for soup. It's easy to make and it heals & warms from within. I decided to go with an egg drop soup from Rome called Stracciatella. Several recipes I saw said that it is named after an Italian word for "little rags" for the pieces of egg but others said it simply means "torn". Alexis had some left over yeast roll dough in the freezer so we baked them in small balls and tossed these mini rolls in some garlic butter.

The bowls are hand made by Benji and Melissa at Stony Clay Station in Lenoir City

Stracciatella

adapted from Joy of Cooking (1997)

Ingredients

1 Tbsp butter
1 small shallot, finely diced
6 cups chicken stock
2 large eggs
1/4 cup pecorino romano cheese
2 Tbsp dry unseasoned breadcrumbs
2 Tbsp parsley, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Preheat a large sauce pan over medium high heat. Add butter and saute the shallot until tender, about 3-4 minutes.
Add the chicken stock and bring to a simmer.
Mix the eggs, cheese, bread crumbs, parsley, and garlic together.
Steadily pour the egg mixture into the simmering chicken stock, stirring rapidly for 30 to 60 seconds. Don't worry if it looks like someone boiled a paper towel to shreds at this point. Remember the name?
Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper. I used 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp black pepper

It was just what the doctor ordered! Alexis said it reminded her of the Sopa de Ajo we often make when feeling under the weather.

[Standard Disclaimer] We pay full price for the Stony Clay Station products that we use and receive no compensation.

Upcoming Gameday Giveaway

2011-10-16T12:29:00.000-04:00

I saw something cool on the NatGeo channel this morning on a show called "Brain Games" that explained why humans enjoy being spectators so much. They looked at a key reason behind things like:

why we get so worked up over a football game,
why we subject ourselves to scary movies, or
why we tease ourselves, drooling over someone's food blog (I added this one).

The show attributed our voyeuristic enjoyment on mirror neurons. When we watch one of these activities, inside our brain our neurons are firing similarly ("mirroring") to as if we were participating in the activity ourselves.

So when you are reading a food blog and see a picture like this for example.... (click for recipe)

In your brain, some neurons are firing just like mine did in real life when I was tasting the sweet, smoky wings and mouth watering beans.

Relax, there is no such thing as "mirror calories".

October is a big month for spectator sports. Baseball championships are underway, football is in full swing, and NASCAR is in the chase for the points. To help you enjoy your mirror neurons, the fine folks at Bush's Baked Beans are sponsoring my October "Gameday Giveaway" with this prize package!

It includes 2 Bush's Beans chairs, enough beans for 20 tailgaters, hotdog/brat griller, hamburger press and a fun cooler with built in powered speaker system to play your MP3 tunes or listen to the pregame show (MP3 player not included).

Bush's also sponsored a tailgate party for my friends and family this week at one of my son's football games. We had "bulldawgs", stacked burgers, Bush's Baked Beans and more. I'll post about that AND the giveaway details next weekend.

In the mean time, here are a few quick & fun tailgating tips that I use:

Small bites = quick cooking and convenience. Sure ribs & roasts are great but burgers, hot dogs, wings and brats cut down on prep time, cook a lot faster, and let you spend more time socializing.
"Smoke the competition" with game themed food names. Have fun with your menu and eat your competition. For example, if you are playing against the Falcons, serve hot wings and call them "grilled Falcon wings". (or Blue Jay, Orioles, Eagles, etc)
House Rules: If you are tailgating onsite, find out the stadium rules BEFORE you go. Many places are now enforcing strict rules for tailgating including WHEN you can start and whether open flames can be used.

I have to run. The Jaguars game starts in 30 minutes. We may stink this year but I still like to watch the games and get my "mirror neurons" fired up.

[Standard Disclaimer] I received compensation from Bush's Beans for this post but any opinions are my own. I have used and posted about Bush's Beans long before ever entering a sponsorship with them.

Mini Chimichangas

2011-10-11T00:29:00.000-04:00

These little guys are perfect for appetizers ortailgating.

When yousmoke a lot of BBQ like we do, you often find yourself blessed withleftover pulled pork. It is easy to vacuum seal, freeze and reheat. It is hard to top a great pulled pork sandwich but sometimes I lookfor other creative ways to use that smoked pork. Tonight was one ofthose times and I came up with these mini-chimichangas, or“mini-changas” as my 12 y/o coined them.

The greatthing about these is if you don't have leftover pulled pork (stay OUTof my freezer, smoke your own) you can use leftover grilled chicken or just about anycooked meat. I couldn't believe how the drizzle sauce had so muchsmokiness and flavor for just two ingredients.

Nibble MeThis Mini-Changas

Servings: 6(24 mini-changas)

1 Tbspvegetable oil

1/2 cuponion, finely diced

½ cup redbell pepper, finely diced

½ cuppoblano chile, roasted, peeled, seeded and diced

2 clovesgarlic, minced

¼ cupcilantro, finely chopped

¼ cup greenonion, chopped

½ cuppulled pork, chopped

½ cupshredded cheese

2 teaspoonssouthwestern rub (I used Albukirky's Green Chile Rub)

24 wontonwrappers

¼ cup agavenectar or honey

1 ozchipotle hot sauce (I used Cholula's Chipotle hot sauce)

Preheat askillet over medium high heat. Preheat a deep fryer to 350f (or youcould do stove top).

When the skillet is hot,add the oil.

Add theonion and saute for 3-4 minutes. You aren't trying to fully cookthem since they will go in a deep fryer. Add the red bell pepper andcook another minute.

Add thepoblano and garlic, cooking for one more minute. Turn off the heatand stir in the green onion and cilantro so they will wilt from theresidual heat.

Place thepork, cheese and southwestern rub in a bowl. Top with the hot veggiemixture and toss together.

Top eachwonton at one end with some of the mix. I use a melon baller to geta good scoop but you could use a little less than a tablespoon.

Wet theopposite end with water. Roll the wonton up and seal the joint. Pinch the ends.

Deep fry themini-changas for 1 minute until crispy and golden. For most homedeep fryers, you will need to do this in batches of 4 to 6mini-changas.

Mix togetherthe agave nectar and hot sauce.

Serve themini-changas with the agave sauce drizzled over them.

The crispy crunchy shell, savory filling, and the spicy sweet sauce rocked!

Food Blogger Forum Nashville

2011-10-09T09:49:00.000-04:00

We are backat home and my head is still spinning from all of the informationthat got crammed in there at the Food Blogger Forum in Nashvilleyesterday. I left there with 9 pages of notes and a full brain, nowI just have to sort it out and apply it.

It wasn'tjust learning valuable insider information from a combination ofsuccessful bloggers, public relations firms, and food companies. Theseminar and sessions were also inspirational, which is something I didn't expect.

Jaden of Steamy Kitchen and Diane and Todd of White on Rice Couple opening the conference. These people aren't top notch food bloggers by accident, they are dynamic and motivated.

First was a panel discussion of Public Relations 101 with Steamy Kitchen (blogger), The Andrews Agency (PR firm), and OXO (food tool company). Very insightful.

I got some great tips and tools for cleaning up my recipe writing from "the published" and a publisher.

There were giveaways about every 30 seconds throughout the day....or so it seems. They were serious prizes too, KitchenAid, Calphalon and more. Jaden said, "I feel like Oprah! You get a blender! You get a toaster!"

Lunch was provided by three Nashville food trucks. It was my first time eating at a food truck and I loved my lunch from the @Happy_Eating truck. Knoxville so needs food trucks. We're years behind every trend here.

After lunch, Todd and Diane delivered a hilarious and informative presentation and demo on food photography and styling. See my crappy picture of my mongolian taco below. They did the same ingredients and came away with a magazine quality shot of the same product.

There was the ubiquitous socializing and networking between breaks.

The day ended with your 4 choices of 10 available mini-sessions with topic experts. These were nice because the small size let you have more direct discussions with the expert. Jaden took her "Blogging As A Business" session outside because it was so gorgeous (and not freezing) outside.

I also opted for

Food Styling - Diane Cu

Working With Brands - Arianna Bastianini of OXO

SEO for Food Blogging - Geoff Allen of ZipList

It was an exceptional event but I am glad to be home this morning. I haven't cooked in two days and I'm ready to fire up the grills.

Food Blogger Forum Nashville: Pre-Party

2011-10-08T01:33:00.000-04:00

I'm sitting in downtown Nashville on anunseasonably warm October Friday evening overlooking a tranquil pool.

The pool is tranquil but nothing elseis. Six floors down the sidewalks and streets are alive withboisterous folks, bustling cars, and the occasional siren.

Funny but true fact....we are stayingin room #666. They changed the outdoor room # to 668 but it is rightnext door to room 664 and the interior sign on the door clearlyshows.....

I told Alexis, quit worrying, it's notlike it's room 237 at the Overlook Hotel.

Excuse the lack of photos in this post but I left my SD card AND my back up SD cards in the hotel room. I blame that on room 666.

So yeah, I'm at the Nashville Food BlogForum. A bunch of my BBQ buds might laugh and picture me at aseminar about how to take the best picture of a cupcake with frillsand ribbons and stuff.

I could understand why someone whofocuses on grilling and BBQ like I do might seem out of place here. But I actually found a lot of smoke here on the first night. So allyou smokers out there, quit knocking cupcakes, truffles, and latestfood trend....because you are becoming a food trend. Smoke is thenew black.

A Beer Named Sue

Local Yazoo Brewery has added a kickbutt brew to their line up. Meet Sue, a dark deep bodied beer thatuses malt smoked with cherry wood. Any bbqr that reads my blog knowsmy love for cherry wood. It brings a nice color to smoked meatswhile giving a light smoke flavor. The flavor of this beer deliversand I can't wait for it to arrive here in Knoxville shortly. I haveseveral ideas in mind for using it as an ingredient.

Are You Kidding Me Smoked Chocolate?

Southern artisan chocolate magiciansOlive and Sinclair Chocolate Company sampled their products including a smoked chocolatebrittle that was specfreakingtacular. This company already grindstheir own cocoa for their chocolates but for this one, they haveBenton....YES the famous East TN bacon folks....smoke the “nibs”first. I don't like sweets and was skeptical but dayum, this stuffwas off the charts good. I won't tell you how many times Alexis wentback to their table.

Triple Smoked Whiskey

Corsair Artisan was on site with theirmicro brewed spirits and I sampled the Triple Smoked Whiskey. Themellow charcoal flavor comes through and I asked if they sold theirused barrels for smoking wood. Not yet but you can buy the wholebarrel (a mini costs $70). I am going to buy one to convert to be mycold smoker.

Hickory Salt

Top Chef contestant Arnold Myint gave acooking demo for us tonight and we bought a jar of hickory smoked saltfrom him. Yeah, I smoke my own during the winter but I'm out rightnow.

Bathtub Gin TN Whiskey & Tomato Jam

This specialty jam maker makes“prohibition era jams” and this was one she incorporated into amini tart with caramelized onion, roasted tomato, the jam, and someartisan cheese that was very good. But my immediate thought was howgreat this would be used in a BBQ sauce for pork.

Tomorrow the actual forum begins and Ihave a lot to learn from some incredibly successful and wicked smartpeople.

I might leave a light on in room666......just in case :)

Appetizer: Steak Panzanella Kabobs

2011-10-03T17:59:00.000-04:00

My parents hopped acrossthe Great Smoky Mountains for a visit two weekends ago. I didn't blogabout any of the food because I wanted to relax and just enjoy thevisit. It was fun improvising dishes and not worrying about writingdown what I did. We just talked in the kitchen while I threw thingstogether.

One of the things I madeup was a beef appetizer that we thought was rather good. Itreminded me of panzanella (bread salad)....with steak....on astick.

I made a few tweaks to itthis weekend. The beefy taste, the acidic bite from the tomato, thecrunch of the bread and the sweet sauce combine for a greatappetizer. Alexis declared them to be the perfect “one bite”.

Note: I am basing thecounts marked with an asterisk* on that I got 24 cubes from one largeribeye. You might get a little more or less depending on the size ofyour steak.

Steak Panzanella Kabobs

www.nibblemethis.com

1 ribeye steak, cut intobite sized pieces (about 3/4” cubes)

12* cherry or grapetomatoes, halved

¼ cup Girard's ItalianVinaigrette

24* cocktail skewers

½ loaf of French bread

1-2 Tbsp olive oil

pinch salt

Marinade

½ shallot, finelychopped

2 cloves garlic, finelychopped

1 dried red pepper,finely chopped and seeded (you could substitute 1 tsp of red pepperflake)

2 Tbsp fresh oregano,finely chopped

¼ cup red wine vinegar

½ cup olive oil

½ tsp black pepper

¾ tsp kosher salt

Sauce

2 Tbsp butter, unsalted

½ shallot, finelychopped

1 clove, finely chopped

¼ cup marsala wine

½ cup beef stock

2 Tbsp demi glace

1 Tbsp chives, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

1 Tbsp butter, cold

Mix the marinadeingredients together and marinate the steak cubes for 1 ½ to 2hours.

Marinate the tomatoes inthe vinaigrette.

Tear the bread into 24*bite sized chunks and place on a sheet pan.

Drizzle a little oliveoil (maybe 1 Tbsp) over the bread and toss to coat. Toast in a 425foven for 8 minutes or until crispy. Season with a pinch of salt. Set aside.

About 15 minutes beforeyou are ready to grill, make the sauce. In a pan over medium highheat, saute the shallot in butter for 2-3 minutes. Add the garlicand cook another minute, reducing the heat if necessary to keep fromburning the garlic.

Deglaze the pan with themarsala wine and let it simmer until it reduces it's volume by abouthalf. Add the beef stock and stir in the demi glace until it isdissolved. If you don't have demi glace you could try substitutingbeef base but I would start with 1 Tablespoon and add from there. Taste for seasoning. I added a pinch or two of salt and about 4twists from a pepper grinder. Set aside.

Place 1 piece of steak onthe end of each cocktail skewer.

Preheat your grill tomedium high heat. Use a kabob shield (you can make one by folding apiece of heavy duty foil over several times) to protect the exposedskewer. Grill for 5-6 minutes, turning every minute or so.

Remove from grill and add1 half tomato to the skewer. Return to grill for one more minute.

Remove from grill. Add 1piece of toast to each skewer.

Reheat the sauce overmedium low heat. Add the chives and stir in a cold tablespoon of butter untilit melts. (This will help re-emuslify the sauce and keep it fromsplitting when reheating.)

Serve the kabobs warm, topped with thesauce.

Don't sauce them until ready to serve, the bread needs to becrisp, not soggy. If serving for a crowd, plate them something like this and then let people sauce their own.

I am adding this to my short list of "signature dishes". You could make this with other cuts of beef. this would be perfect for using the trimmings from a beef tenderloin.

Tailgating, Grilling, and Prizes

If you need ideas for tailgating, don't forget to check out Grilling.com. Check them out every week and enter for a chance to win a $500 Carnivore Kit.

Pork Roast with Bootlegger Apple BBQ Sauce

2011-10-02T10:15:00.001-04:00

Brrr! This weekends early cold front was a slap in the face to summer. When life gives you lemons....so last night we loaded up the fire pit and enjoyed its radiant glow.

Crappy phone picture....

The cool beautiful weather yesterday had me craving pork and apples so I decided to make a version of Grilled Pork Loin with Apple Bourbon BBQ Sauce from Chris Lilly's book, Big Bob Gibson's Barbecue Book.

I went to the stupidmarket to buy a roast but just couldn't do it. I couldn't pay $3.99 a pound for a roast when I knew I could by a whole boneless pork loin for $1.99 a pound at Sam's Wholesale Club. Even if you have absolutely no butcher experience, this is the easiest subprimal cut to break down. You just cut straight across it at whatever size cuts you want. I cut mine into two 3 lb roasts and 6 1" thick pork chops. Alexis sealed and froze the chops and one roast.

I score the fat cap before tying the roasts.

The "rib end" will have more marbling and actually be two different shades of color. I save that end for roasts and if I am slicing pork chops, I start from the other end. There's nothing wrong with it, it would just give you chops that look odd.

The rib end - notice the line of fat cutting across the middle.

I won't divulge the bbq sauce recipe* but I'll show you what was in it.

I substituted Dr. Pepper for the cola and Apple Pie Moonshine for the bourbon. I also made my sauce thin instead of the rustic style Chris used. Chris gave a "cheater version" of this sauce in Food and Wine that is quick and easy to make: Apple Bourbon BBQ Sauce.

I took one of the 3lb roasts and rubbed it with
1 t turbinado sugar
1 t smoked paprika
1/2 t salt
1/2 t onion powder
3/4 t dried minced garlic
1/2 t black pepper
1/4 t chili powder
1/4 t cumin
1/4 t corriander

Tying the roast makes it cook more evenly. Plus it looks cool.

I added a few chunks of cherry wood to the lump coal in my Big Green Egg and preheated it to 450f. I cooked the roast with direct heat for 5 minutes per side, just long enough to get good color on in.

Then I switched to indirect heat and lowered the temp to 400f (was trying for 350f but it's hard to cool a hot Egg down). I wanted to finish with an internal temp of 150f after resting and wanted to apply the sauce in the last 10 minutes of cooking so my plan was to sauce it at 130f and pull it when it hit 140f.

Something must have gone wrong because it went almost exactly as planned :)

Time	Cooking temp	Internal Temp	Notes
0	375f	56
15	375f	81
30	400f	108
45	400f	132	sauced
53	400f	141	Removed from grill
60	N/a	146
63	N/a	147
66	N/a	148
75	N/a	149

I posted the data because it shows how really important the rest period is. After I sliced the roast, I poured the juices from the resting plate and served it with extra Bootlegger Apple BBQ Sauce on the side.

The hole in the roast is from the temperature probe.

You could probably replicate this in the oven by starting with a high temp like 450f-500f for the first 10 minutes (just to start the malliard reaction to get color) and then drop to a roast temp of around 375f.

The roast was perfectly done and the BBQ sauce was exceptionally good, a taste of fall. The apple flavor was subtle. I'm glad I went with a smooth texture although I'm sure the chunky style is just as good. It's a good thing the whole family liked the sauce so much because I have 3 cups of it left!

Technical Aspects of The Stall (for BBQ freaks only)
Amazing Ribs is a leading authoritative BBQ website and Meathead has done it again. If you are a BBQ techno geek like me, you will enjoy his latest article. He works with Dr. Blonder to explain the technical aspects of the stall. If you think you already know the reasons behind it, think again. CLICK TO READ

*c'mon, just go buy the book! Chris Lilly has graciously given me permission to reprint several of his recipes and I have sworn by this book for two years now.

Broccoli and Carrot Stir Fry

2011-10-01T11:05:00.000-04:00

It is one of those falldays that makes me just thrilled to be outside. The temps are cool,a light breeze is rolling across the valley and the sky is so blue italmost hurts my eyes. The only thing missing the the smell ofhickory smoke in the fall air but I plan to change that shortly.

I am going to enjoy theday on the deck, smoking. I really don't even know what I am goingto smoke this minute but I am going to spend this day outside. Oncethe sun goes down and the temps drop even more, we will light thefire pit for the first time this fall.

A couple of folks askedme about the carrot side dish that I made with the grilled honey soychicken the other day. It was just a simple stir fry but here it is. I like to use very fresh carrots for this. Even “fresh” baggedcarrots are tough to me.

Broccoli and Carrot StirFry

½ tsp sesame oil

2 ½ tsp peanut oil

2 cup broccoli florets

1 cup carrot, peeled andsliced on a bias (this was three carrots)

½ ea sweet onion, cutinto 1/2” wide wedges

½ cup beef stock

1 cup shitake mushrooms,sliced

1 clove garlic, sliced

1 tsp ginger, finelydiced

½ cup sweet stir frysauce

slurry (1 Tbsp potato orcorn starch and 1 Tbsp cold water)

Heat the oil in a wok. Add the broccoli, carrot and onion and stir fry for 1 minute, tossingoccasionally.

Add the beef stock, coverand let steam for 3 minutes.

Remove the cover and addthe mushrooms, garlic, and ginger. Stir fry for 1-2 minutes untilmushroom is cooked.

Add the sweet stir frysauce, slurry and toss to coat well. Remove from heat and serveimmediately.

Sweet Stir Fry Sauce

¼ cup Yoshida's Gourmetsauce (sub terriyaki if you don't have Yoshidas)

¼ cup rice wine vinegar

2 Tbsp soy sauce

2 Tbsp mirin

½ tsp sriracha sauce

pinch of salt

Mix all together. Makes¾ cup.

Grilled Honey Soy Glazed Chicken

2011-09-27T12:01:00.000-04:00

“When my food blog grows up it wantsto be just like _______________”

If you are a foodblogger, I know you can complete that sentence with 2-3 bloggers thatyou admire. Not that you want to replicate their voice or style butyou would like to be their peer in terms of an entertaining style,food knowledge, creativity, detail, and production quality.

For me, one of thoseblogs is Steamy Kitchen. Jaden is a food blogging rock star and sheis an example of how to engage your audience. Almost everything Iknow about food photography and styling, I learned either from SteamyKitchen, For The Love of Cooking, or SippitySup. [I hate todisparage their good names by associating them with myphoto/styling skills, ha ha.]

Earlier this week, I sawa recipe Jaden posted for Grilled Honey Soy Glazed Chicken and was making itwithin hours.

Grilled Honey Soy Glazed Chicken

Servings: serves 4, 2drumsticks each

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 30

Recipe adapted by Steamy Kitchen fromSeattle Kitchen, A Food Lover's Cookbook and Guide by TomDouglas. The chicken can be replaced with fish or even vegetables,such as eggplant depending on your preferences.

Make Ahead: The marinade/glaze can bemade up to one week ahead of time and kept, tightly covered, in therefrigerator.

Sub your favorite Gluten-Free tamarisauce for the soy sauce if needed.

Ingredients:

FOR THE GLAZE:
1/4 cup Honey
1/4cup vegetable or peanut oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cupsoy sauce
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon red pepperflakes

FOR THE CHICKEN:
12 ChickenDrumsticks
lemon wedges for serving

Directions:

1) To make the marinade/glaze, whisktogether the honey, oil, lemon juice, soy sauce, garlic and redpepper flakes.
2) In a baking dish, resealable bag or container,marinate the chicken in the glaze for 30 minutes.
3) Grill orbroil the chicken, medium heat, on both sides until the skin iscrispy and juices run clear or the internal temperature reaches 165degrees Fahrenheit, about 25-30 minutes. Be careful not to burn thethe chicken, the honey will char easily. Moving the chicken to acooler part of the grill, if grilling, or moving the chicken furtherfrom the broiler, may be necessary.
4) Serve chicken with asqueeze of lemon.

I added ¼ cup mirin, 1 tsp of mincedginger, 1 chopped green onion, and substituted lime juice becausethat's what I had. Also, I was using hefty bone in chicken breastsso I did a two stage cook.

The weather had been touch and go butwhen WBIR's Todd Howell said the last of the storms had pretty much moved through West Knox county, I pulled off the grill covers and lit ahalf chimney (about 3 quarts) of Kingsford. Of course that made itstart raining again.

I grilled the breasts skin side downover direct heat at 350f for 4-5 minutes just to get some initialbrowning and grate marks.

4-5 min is a guide, check them often so you don't burn them.

Then I moved them from over the coalsand skin side up. I topped them with the strained bits from themarinade and cooked them indirect until they reached 160f internal. TIP: When I cook breasts indirect, I like to make sure that theskinny, tapered end is facing away from the heat source so it doesn'tget all dried up.

Do the “indirect slide”

When grilling on a square grill likethis, I like to take out one of the grates so I can easily slide thefood closer to the coals as they start to die down near the end ofthe cooking time. For example:

Grate slid away from the coals when they are fresh and hot.

As the coals die and cool down some, slide the grate closer and closer to them.

It took just over an hour for thesebreasts to hit 160f. I could have gotten them done faster by stayingdirect heat but I was inside stir frying and didn't want to burn thechicken. I then cut the meat off of the bone, sliced intomedallions, and drizzled them with some extra sauce.

The sweet slightly smoky chicken wasdevoured by adults and kids, it's a real crowd pleaser.

NASHVILLE FOOD BLOG FORUM

Speaking of Jaden...the Food Blog Forumis bringing its show on the road to Nashville, TN on Saturday,October 8^th! I am looking forward to being a sponge andabsorbing everything I can at this seminar. Some of the biggestnames in the business will be sharing information on everything aboutfood blogging. There is still time to register (I should know, I'mjust registering tonight, ha ha).

Click HERE to see the event schedule,more about the topics and presenters, and to register.

If you are going, please let me know sowe can make sure to meet in person.

On Our Grills September

2011-09-26T11:00:00.000-04:00

I didn'tcatch the Weather Channel's forecast for Hades but I'm pretty surethe place has frozen over.

Why? Because I cooked tofu on the grill today.

Rememberthose “friends” of mine and their monthly “On Our Grills 4Ingredient Challenge”?

Yeah, I hate them. Okay, hate might be a strong word but I'm certainly not fond of whoever picked this month's ingredients. (I kid, we bust each other's chops a lot.)

Tofu

Peas

Potatoes

Cheese (ormelon, depending which e-mail you read)

Tofu? Seriously. My first thought was to just grill it and drench it inBBQ sauce. But when I was buying tofu at the store I found anItalian sausage style tofu and thought I could make a vegetarianlasagna.

I sliced thepotatoes thin on a mandolin and used that instead of lasagna noodles. I layered them on the bottom of a greased disposable pan and toppedwith some red pesto sauce. Next was sliced tofu, green pepper andonions. I topped it all with mozzarella and smoked cheddar cheesethen repeated.

Then one more layer of potatoes, pesto and cheese.

I coveredwith foil and cooked on my Big Green Egg at 325f for 45 minutes. Ihad it set up like a convection oven (plate setter, legs up).

Meanwhile, Iused the peas to make The Hungry Housewife's Jumping For Joy PhillyPeas which have bacon. You know if I'm having a vegetarian main course then I am having meat in my side dish, right?

After the 45minutes passed, I took the foil off of the lasagna and let it go 10more minutes.

I let itcool and then served it with garlic bread.

Results

First thepositives. The peas were creamy and every bit as delicious as Lesliesaid they would be. The lasagna LOOKED good and I thought it was acreative use of the ingredients.

But I didnot like the lasagna and it was easily my least favorite dish of2011. That's the ups and downs of this challenge. If you keeptrying things you've never had or done before, you're going to havesome bumps along the way.

Don't let myfailure deter you from checking out what the rest of the gang came upwith. This should be interesting.... (click the title to view their blog or website).

No Excuses BBQ:

Paul Haight started his blog inJanuary,2009 as a way to record the author’s goal of cookingoutdoors at least once a week throughout the year and showing theresults to the world. Somewhere along the way things got out ofcontrol.

Bob’s Brew & Que:

Bob Fukishima began his blog inAugust,2009 with the intent of sharing his views on food and drink.The blog was originally focused on BBQ and homebrew,but it wasinevitable that the influences of his upbringing in the San FranciscoBay Area and it’s wealth of ingredients,as well as his heritage asan American of Japanese ancestry would help focus his blog,as it hashis approach to food and drink.

GrillAdventures:

Started in March,2010 by MarcVan Der Wouw as a way to document his journey to better and healthiereating. The grill has a special place in Marc’s heart. Everythinghe makes is an adventure.

Cooking By The Seat Of My Pants:

Jerry Russell starting CookingBy The Seat Of My Pants as a way to document our culinarymisadventures. Since then it has become our way to encourage peopleto cook without boundaries or recipes. To just get in the kitchen andcook something from the heart.

TheBBQ Grail:

Larry Gaian started his blog in2007,initially to document the author’s quest to find the perfectbackyard BBQ experience. Since that time The BBQ Grail has become oneof the more popular BBQ blogs on the internet.

Livefire:

Livefirecooking is about taking ordinary cooking and adding the flavor offire to it, whether in high heat grilling, low heat smoking orindirect heat for baking. It’s about taking the primitive elementof fire and harnessing it to make great food.

TheDaily Dish

Kristinahas been writing "The Daily Dish" for www.BetterRecipes.comfor the past two years. The blog covers a wide variety of recipes,but firing up the grill truly lights up her passion for food! She wasnamed "America's Next Pork Personality" by Guy Fieri forone of her grilled pork dishes, won the outdoor grilling division ofthe National Beef Cook-Off, and her winning grilled lamb-burger tookher all the way to the land Down Under with Meat and LivestockAustralia. The "4-Ingredient Challenge" is a fun andexciting way to get creative on the grill!

Tailgate Heros: Bacon Wrapped Tater Tots

2011-09-21T17:23:00.000-04:00

Beforewarned. If you make these,they will disappear quickly!

"Hey Napoleon...give me some of your tots!"

But that'sokay. Tailgating is all about sharing food and good times, right?

BaconWrapped Tater Tots

Makes 4appetizer servings

16 frozentater tots

8 slices THIN bacon, cut in half sideways

2 Tbspturbinado sugar

1 tsp seasonsalt

¼ tspcayenne pepper

Mix thesugar, salt and cayenne pepper together thoroughly.

Sprinkleabout half of the rub on top of the bacon strips.

Top eachhalf strip with 1 tot and roll up. TIP: If you have a more fattyend, start on the leaner end so the fat will be on the outside andcan render easier.

Place seamside down on a raised rack or a tray. The raised rack works betterbecause it lets the hot air circulate around all edges. Also, itkeeps the tot from sitting in oil once the bacon fat starts to renderdown.

Sprinkle the rest of the seasoning mix over the assembled tots.

Preheat youroven or grill to 450f. The grill should be set up for indirect heatso the tray or rack is not over direct heat. I used my Big GreenEgg, plate setter legs up. (On a standard charcoal grill, push yourhot coals to one side, an aluminum drip pan next to them and cook thetots over the drip pan.)

Cook thebacon snuggled tots until the bacon turns crispy, about 20 minutes.

Sorry about the "naked" tots, I ran out of bacon.

Don't bealarmed if the bacon goes “boa constrictor” on a few of your totsand squeezes the heck out of them. Those still taste great.

Serve withyour favorite BBQ sauce, spicy ketchup, or other dipping sauce.

See how the bacon crushed one or two of them? Doesn't matter!

These alsogo great with a grilled steak burger.

Perfect fortailgating or “just because”.

[Warning] I'm not a nutritionist nor dietician but I am pretty sure these things aren't "health food" and should only be eaten in moderation. We eat them 2-3 times a year.