Grilled Chicken Gyro

Last week we had what may be the last of some truly beautiful weather and I decided to take the opportunity and fire up the grill for some grilled chicken gyro. It was delicious and every one loved the chicken, but the Tzatziki was just ok, which could be to the type of greek yogurt I used.

Ingredients
Sauce
1 cup Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1-1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup finely chopped ripe tomato
1/2 cup finely diced English cucumber

Marinade
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon dired oregano
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1-1/2 pounds chicken tenders
1 small red onion, cut crosswise into 1/2 inch slices
Extra-virgin olive oil
6 flat breads or pitas

Directions
1. In a medium bowl whisk the yogurt, mint, oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Add the tomato and cucumber and stir to combine.
2. In a large bowl whisk the marinade ingredients. Add the chicken to the bowl and toss to coat evenly. Marinate at room temperature.
3. Prepare the grill for direct cooking over medium heat (350º-450ºF)
4. Lightly brush the onion slices on both sides with oil. Remove the chicken from the bowl, letting the herbs cling to the chickn. Discard the marinade. Brush the cooking grates clean. Grill the chicken and onion slices over direct medium heat, with the lid closed as much as possible, until the meat is firm to the touch and the juices run clear, and the onion is tender, 6 to 8 minutes, turning once. Remove from grill.
5. Warm the pitas on the grill over direct medium heat until lightly charred, about 2 minutes, turning once or twice.
6. Layer some chicken, sauce, and onion inside the flat breads and serve warm or at room temperature.

Pulled Pork

So I finally got around to getting to do some true BBQ this last weekend! I chose to do pulled pork for our Luau, and I would have enjoyed staying traditional and doing the way they do it in Hawaii, but I did not have time or the resources for that. So when I researched recipes for Hawaiian style pulled pork, I got recipe after recipe calling for a crock pot and liquid smoke, I don't think so. I've done a few pork shoulders on a smoker, so I knew I could do better then a crock pot and liquid smoke. It was time to get some charcoal and get the cooker out of the shed and ready to do a long eight hour cook. The meat of choice was a Boston Butt, why they call it a butt shoulder I don't know. The previous night I cut off most of the fat cap and rubbed it down with my wife's favorite BBQ Rub from Plowboys, it was then wrapped in plastic wrap and placed in the fridge over night. I used apple wood chips for smoke and Kingsford Competition Charcoal, I may do a review of the charcoal later since it was my first time getting to use it. Now my cooker of choice was my 22-1/2 Weber kettle, because it's easy to add more charcoal to, very fuel efficient, and offers relatively good temperature control. If you are looking to get into a very versatile charcoal grill and want to buy just one, this is the grill for you. So enough of with free shout out, on to the grill set up. I chose to go with the two charcoal basket set up; which involves a basket on either side of the grill and an open space in the center, that's where you do you indirect cooking at. Overall the cook went very smooth, but I did have a tough time keeping the temperature below 300 degrees. When cooking low and slow you want to try and keep you temperatures under 275, but in the 225-250 degree range will give the best results. With the hotter cook temperatures the shoulder actually finished quicker then I would have liked, but no biggie. I took the shoulder off the cooker, wrapped it up in aluminum foil, then wrapped it with a bath towel, and placed in the microwave to rest until it was about time for every one to arrive. This rest time is very important, it allows the meat to absorb the juices from cooking, and in this case it sort of steams itself in it's own juices. The final product was delicious, it was tender, juicy, and just a touch of smoke flavor.