Some Kebabs
Monday, April 28, 2008
A few weeks ago, I almost overdosed on meat. I made some pulled pork for my family - along with some tasty appetizers that contained bacon, and Lil Smokies - and I just ate too much meat.
I know, I can't believe I'm saying that either.
Last night I decided to make some kebabs (or kabobs).
Before I get into last night's meal, let me tell you something I have learned about kebabs. You can't cook everything together. Most people will get their skewer and put a piece of meat, then a slice of onion then a slice of pepper then a mushroom then another piece of meat, etc.
While that is a good concept, the fact of the matter is, all of those things cook at different rates. By the time your meat is cooked, the onions and peppers will be burned and the mushrooms will be inedible.
This is why you put all your peppers and onions (they cook at about the same rate) on one skewer, mushrooms on another and the meat on their own.
Start cooking the meat first because it will take the longest. Once you have turned them, put on the other skewers and they should finish at about the same time.
Here is my list of kebabs that I made last night:
Pineapple in coconut milk - If you've never had grilled pineapple, you are missing out on one of the greatest flavors you could ever experience. I buy a can of pineapple chunks, drain the juice out (I saved it for the meat, which I will tell you about in a minute) and then I poured about half a can of coconut milk into the pineapple can, covering all of the pineapple. I let it "marinate" for a few hours and then thread them onto the skewers. Most of the coconut milk evaporates during the grilling, but it does leave a nice hint of coconut with the pineapple. It's like a grilled Piña Colada
Onions & Green Peppers - I cut these into small pieces and then I baste them with a lemon butter. (1 stick of butter, juice of one lemon, 2 tablespoons parsley)
Mushrooms - Button mushrooms with lemon butter baste.
Squash - I hate squash, but my wife wanted some so I made it for her. I used the same lemon butter on this.
Potatoes - I took a bunch of potatoes, cut them into small pieces and boiled them for about five minutes. Put them on the skewer and basted them with the lemon butter and grilled them until they were crispy brown on the outside. (About 5 minutes per side)
Smoked Sausage - I bought a package of John Morrell smoked sausage. (You can also use polish sausage). Cut however many sausages you need into small pieces and drop them in the bowl with the reserve pineapple juice. Let them marinate in there for at least an hour. Put them on the skewers and grill until golden. The pineapple juice not only adds a nice flavor to the meat, it puts a nice glaze on it that makes the outside crispy.
I didn't take any pictures, but I promise that I will be better at taking pictures for this blog from now on.
And I promise that I will post more here also.
Posted by Tayster 8:21 AM 3 comments
Labels: Kebabs
Perfect Steak Marinade
Monday, March 26, 2007
I used this simple steak marinade last night and it was awesome.
1 stick butter
1 cup beef broth
1 cup mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 Tablespoons parsley
Melt the butter in a pan over medium heat. Mix in the broth, mushrooms & parsley and cook until mushrooms are soft. (About 3 minutes)
Place steaks in ceramic or glass casserole dish. Pour mixture on top. Cover with plastic wrap and put in refrigerator for about four hours.
When ready to cook the steaks, remove from butter sauce, wipe off excess butter and grill steaks to your liking.
While steaks are cooking, put butter sauce back into pan. Add one more cup of broth and three or four mushrooms, thinly sliced. Let cook on low until steak are ready. Pour over the top of steaks.
Eat.
Posted by Tayster 4:15 PM 0 comments
Labels: Beef, Marinade, Mushrooms
Poblano Relish
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
I'm a big fan of chile peppers. This relish uses poblano chiles - also called pasilla. The dried version is called ancho.
It's not out of this world hot, but it adds a nice kick to hot dogs and even hamburgers.
2 Poblano chiles, grilled, peeled, seeded & finely chopped
1 large dill pickle, finely chopped
1 small red onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh lime juice (or Nelly & Joe's)
1 teaspoon honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons cilantro
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl. Cover and let sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes and up to four hours before serving.
Posted by Tayster 2:42 PM 1 comments
Labels: Condiments
List of Things You Need to BBQ
Grill - Matter of preference, but I use charcoal.
Fuel - You need to make sure you have enough charcoal - or gas. It would suck to be cooking pulled pork - which takes about six hours - only to run out of fuel in the third hour.
Chimney Starter - This is one of the greatest inventions for charcoal users. You put newspaper in the bottom, pour charcoal in the top, light the paper and you have ready characoals in about 15 minutes, without the lighter fluid flavor.
Grill Brush - Used for cleaning off the grill. You can get one under a buck at stores like Wal-Mart or Shopko.
Mitts - Get a couple of BBQ mitts. They cover your arms also, so you don't get that nice singed hair odor.
Spatula - This is one of two utensils that you will need. Use this to turn burgers. (You can buy an entire BBQ set, complete with spatula, tongs, fork, skewers and basting brush for less than ten bucks at your local Wal-Mart.)
Tongs - Use this to turn almost every other type of meat.
Basting Brush &/or Mop - I use a mop more than I use a brush. I think it spreads out the sauce a lot better. Get a few for different sauces.
Meat Thermometer - This is almost as important as a grill. You don't want to serve undercooked - or overcooked - meat.
Apron - You don't want to get grease and charcoal all over your "I'm With Stupid" T-Shirt.
Other Things That Are Not Necessary But Help the Whole Process
Syringe - Use this to inject flavor into the meat before grilling.
ChickCan Rack - For making the most tender chicken you could ever grill, using a can of your favorite beverage. (Recipes coming for this)
Posted by Tayster 2:38 PM 0 comments
BBQ FAQ
Q: Gas or Charcoal?
A: There are people more fluent than myself in the language of BBQ that can tell you the reason why charcoal is better than gas, but in the end, it's all a matter of preference.
The one thing - and as far as I'm concerned, the only thing - that gas grills have going for them is the convenience of having a hamburger or hot dog within a matter of minutes.
In every other aspect of grilling, I think charcoal grills lead the way.
Q: What kind of grill do you use?
A: Currently, I use a Weber grill that my father gave me a few years back. It's very old, but it does the job beautifully. My ultimate goal is to own a Big Green Egg one day, but that's a lot of money to spend on a grill.
Q: What kind of wood do you use?
A: It all depends on the meat. I like mesquite quite a bit for chicken, beef and even pork. I also like a nice fruit wood - apple or cherry - when I'm cooking pork. I think like grills, wood is all a matter of taste. Try different woods and choose for yourself.
Q: With all the BBQ websites and books out there, what makes you qualified to have one?
A: I am far from qualified to tell anyone how to grill. I'm just a guy that likes to spend his weekends cooking meat and shooting the bull with friends. I still have a lot to learn about grilling, but I figure I could share the limited knowledge that I do have with people that enjoy grilling. It doesn't hurt to share ideas, does it?
Q: What is your favorite thing to grill?
A: I think my two favorite things to cook are brats (I love Johnsonville cheddar brats) and pulled pork.
Posted by Tayster 2:35 PM 0 comments
Labels: FAQ
Let's Get Grilling
Another blog by me. I don't even keep up with the other blogs that I have, but this one I think will work in my time frame.
Every weekend, hopefully starting this weekend, I will be grilling delicious meat and sometimes vegetables. Every Monday, I hope to put the recipe of my weekend adventure on this blog.
Posted by Tayster 2:31 PM 20 comments
