Building a grill

Earlier this month I got motivated to build a huge grill out of a steel drum. To be honest it was just an excuse to use my welder building something instead of practicing on scraps. I had a blast building it and learned all kinds of things. Like the way I split the drum and framed it out with angle iron leaves gaps all the way around the grill, not good for temperature control. It cooks great as an open grill, but not so great for keeping lower temps. I am looking for another barrel to cut the door out of the side and re use all the metal from this one. In the mean time I will make to burn barrels from the two halves, one for the backyard and one for my dad to use with his camper.

Grilled Veggies and Sausage!

Summer is here and I thought I would share some of our grill favorites. This one comes directly from the fire house, but I have lightened it up a bit to make it a little easier on the waist line for those who care how they look in a swim suite.  The recipe will fill up a 9"x12" pie pan and three of us finished it off with no left overs, it was that good. I have found this is a great way to get my three year old to eat veggies, she absolutely tore up the squash, onions, and peppers.

Recipe
2 yellow squash
2 zucchini
2 medium onions, what ever kind you like
2 bell peppers, I use red and green because I like their flavor a little better
1 Smoked Turkey Kielbasa
1/4 cup of butter
Favorite seasoning, I used my BBQ rub but you could use some creole seasoning or even seasoned salt, be creative its a great way to mix up the flavor.

Preheat grill to around 400º-450º F. Slice all veggies and the sausage, make sure the slices are sort of thick , about 1/4". Place in a 9"x12" foil pan, slice up a 1/4 cup butter and lay over the top of the veggies, season with your favorite seasoning and place on the grill to cook. Cook tell all veggies are tender, don't be afraid to give them a stir and reason if you like.  Cook time should be around 25-30 minutes depending on how thick the veggies were sliced.

Grilled Asparagus with Balsamic Syrup

I have tried a few grilled veggies before, but mostly peppers, onions and green beans. But when I received a copy of Weber's Charcoal Grilling The Art of Cooking with Live Fire and saw this recipe for grilled asparagus, I figured I should give it a try. My wife and I have been wanting to try asparagus for some time and since BBQ does make everything better why not try cooking it on the grill? I'm glad we did, because it was delicious and the whole family loved it. The end result is a very delicious complex flavor of sweet and sour that really had my  tongue hungry for more.  I will be repeating this one and will likely be making a double batch since the little bundle of asparagus we bought was not enough for three people.

Prep time: 5 minutes
Grilling time: 4 to 6 minutes

1/2 cup inexpensive balsamic vinegar
2 pounds medium asparagus (40-50 spears), each about 1/2 inch thick at the stem end
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1. Prepare a two-zone fire for medium heat.
2. If you plan to do this next step on an indoor stove, turn on the fan in the stove's hod. The simmering vinegar creates a pungent aroma. In a small saucepan bring the vinegar to a simmer over medium heat, then reduce the heat until a few bubbles are just  breaking through the surface. Cook at a slow simmer until about 1/4 cup of vinegar remains. As you get close to 1/4 cup, the vinegar will cling to the back of a spoon and it will coat the bottom of the sauce pan when you rock it back and fourth. The total cooking time will be roughly 10 minutes, but keep an eye on the vinegar. If it cooks to quickly or it reduces to much, it will turn bitter rather than sweet. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let cool to room temperature (the syrup will continue to thicken as it cools).
3. Remove and discard any tough, woody ends from the asparagus spears. Peel the ends of the asparagus, if desired. Lightly coat the asparagus with the oil. Season evenly with the salt and pepper. Brush the cooking grate clean. Lay the asparagus perpendicular to the bars on the cooking grate. Grill over direct medium heat, with the lid closed as much as possible, until lightly charred and crisp-tender, 4 to 6 minutes, rolling the spears a couple times and swapping their positions as needed for even cooking.
4. Arrange the asparagus on a platter or individual plates. If the syrup is stiff, wam it briefly over medium heat. Drizzle some of the syrup over the spears (you may not need all of it). Season with more salt, if desired. Server warm or at room temperature.

Makes 6 servings

As seen in Weber's Charcoal Grilling The Art of Cooking with Live Fire

Grilled Pizza

I have been bouncing around the idea in my head for a while and I finally got around to cooking a pizza on my Ugly Drum Smoker. My first attempt was not with out incident, I managed to burn my hand pretty good while trying to get a good fire going in the fire basket. I believe I will go ahead and do some more work to the basket so i don't do that again. Anyways back to the pizza, it was delicious! It had a wonderful touch of smoke and a very nice crispy crust, the three of us devoured this pizza. I do believe I will be buying a pizza stone specifically for the grill so I can get even more of that wood stove flavor. 

I did also learn that you will either want to let your wood chunks burn down or simply use plain lump  charcoal, the smoke coming from even one small piece of wood could be to much when baking breads this way.

Pizza dough

1 package active dry yeast

1 cup warm water

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons olive oil

2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon cornmeal

Directions

Dissolve yeast in warm water in warmed mixer bowl. Add salt, olive oil, and 2 1/2 cups flour. Attach bowl and dough hook to mixer. Turn to Speed 2 and mix about 1 minute.

Continuing on Speed 2, add remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, and mix until dough clings to hook and cleans sides of bowl, about 2 minutes. Knead on Speed 2 about 2 minutes longer.

Place dough in greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover. Let rise in warm place, free from draft, about 1 hour until doubled in bulk. Punch dough down.

Brush 14-inch pizza pan with oil. Sprinkle with cornmeal. Press dough across bottom of pan, forming a collar around edge to hold toppings. Add toppings as desired. Bake at 450ºF for 15 to 20 minutes. 

As seen in the Kitchenaid Instructions and Recipes book.

Gameday Wings!

  I hope you have enjoyed the few recipes I've shared with you. Their nothing new but I'm sure I'll come up with some new one's and I'll be sure to pass them along. But in the mean time how about some grilled chicken wings? No Tailgating party is complete with out some hot wings and beer, so to satisfy your need for some great grilled wings this is the recipe for you.

  The only downside to this recipe is that it's very mild in regards to spice, I believe I will be doubling or tripling the amount of hot sauce the next time around. Also I chose not follow the recipe on cooking them on a skewer, which involves threading the skewer through the wing as if it was in flight. I instead chose to cut the wings into pieces at the joints and discarding the wing tips. It made for a little more excitement and work during the direct grilling as I was  doing a lot of shuffling during the flare ups, but if your cooking in front of your friends this can make for a great show.

Marinade
6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

2 pounds chicken wings
1/2 cup honey
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce

1. In a large bowl combine 3 tablespoons of the lemon juice, the garlic, salt and pepper. Add the wings and turn to coat them evenly. Cover and refrigerate for up to  4 hours.
2. In a small bowl combine the remaining 3 tablespoons of lemon juice, the honey, and hot sauce. ( Be sure to add more hot sauce as you like)
3. Prepare teh grill for direct and indirect cooking over medium heat.
4. Brush the cooking grates clean. Brown the wings over direct medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes, turning once. then move the wings over indirect medium heat and cook until the meat is no longer pink at the bone, 15 to 20 minutes, basting with the honey mixture once or twice during the last 10 minutes of grilling time. Keep the lid closed as much as possible during grilling. Remove the wings from the grill, brush once more with the glaze, and serve.

Inside out burger

  A few years ago I was watching an episode of Steven Raichlen's grilling show, I don't recall which one it was, when he fixed an inside out burger and I've wanted to try it ever since. Well I finally got around to fixing it and my first attempt was a bit of a flop. The problem was that I put to much cheese into to little meat, which led to all the cheese to melt and then drain out leaving an empty cavity in it's place. I will be attempting this again at some point and will be sure to try and correct my earlier mistakes.

  The recipe is from allrecipes.com and is for a burger by the name of Jucy Lucy or Juicy Lucy. Now I will be honest I have no idea the history of the name or the idea, but it definitely makes for a great burger.

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
3/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
4 slices American cheese (such as Kraft®)
4 hamburger buns, split

Directions

1.Combine ground beef, Worcestershire sauce, garlic salt, and pepper in a large bowl; mix well. Form 8, thin patties from the beef. Each patty should be slightly larger than a slice of cheese.
2. Cut each slice of American cheese into 4 equal pieces; stack the pieces. Sandwich one stack of cheese between 2 ground beef patties. Tightly pinch edges together tightly seal the cheese within the meat. Repeat with the remaining cheese and patties.
3. Preheat a cast-iron or other heavy bottomed skillet over medium heat. Cook burgers until well browned, about 4 minutes. It is common for burgers to puff up due to steam from the melting cheese. Turn burgers and prick the top of each to allow steam to escape; cook until browned on the outside and no longer pink on the inside; about 4 minutes. Serve on hamburger buns.

Grilled Peach Salad!

The cooler weather has finally arrived and I was able to get in some much needed grill time. I chose to do something new, something I honestly don't do enough of and that involves grilling fruit. The intense heat and smoke makes for such an intense flavor it's unreal, I highly suggest you try it. I'm sure this recipe will be a repeat as it is incredibly healthy and loaded with flavor. My little girl loved the grilled peaches and I served it with a little chicken breast, for protein, and some diced tomatoes. Also I grilled the romaine lettuce which is really quick and adds even more flavor. To grill the lettuce place the lettuce on the grill just long enough to get grill marks, were not looking to wilt the lettuce just a quick grill for looks and flavor.

From Kraft's Food & Family 2011 Summer edition
Prep 15 min. Total 23 min. Makes 10 servings.
what you need
3 fresh peaches pitted, quartered
2 Tbsp. oil
8 cups torn romaine lettuce
1/2 cup coarsely chopped Planters deluxe Whole Cashews(I omitted these as there is always a possibility of cross contamination of tree nuts and peanuts.)
6 slices Oscar Mayer Bacon, cooked, coarsely crumbled(I used turkey bacon which is a great healthy alternative)
1/2 cup Kraft Roka Blue Cheese Dressing; I used Ranch since no one in the house is big on blue cheese dressing

Make it
Heat grill to medium-high heat.
Brush peaches with oil. Grill 3 to 4 min. on each side or just until tender and heated through. Cool slightly.
Cut each peach piece in half. cover platter with lettuce; top with peaches, nuts and bacon.
Drizzle with dressing.

Grilling Classics!

While this dish is nothing new or fancy, is how ever just some plain old grilling classics or staples if you will. As a kid hotdogs were like a mandatory summer food, so it's no surprise that my little toddler loves them. While I will occasionally munch down on a hotdog I have come to prefer the more grown up version, Beer Brats! Those two combined are a must for summer time grilling. The chicken was thrown in to for the simple reason the grill was going and I needed them cooked for lunches through the week, they were simply seasoned with my BBQ rub. I always like seeing meals like this because not every meal I cook is big, fancy, or a new recipe. Not to mention the fact that even a good cook likes to settle up to plate of a meal that was quick, easy, and good.

Grilled Tot's and Corn on the Cob!

I've been wanting to expand just what I'm cooking on the grill this year and I came up with the idea of trying tator tot's on the grill. Now I know this is probably taking things a bit far, but they were absolutely delicious! They were a huge hit at dinner and added a wonderful flavor that baking in the oven just doesn't have. I cooked them on a grill sheet that is stainless steel and has a bunch of the wholes to allow the heat and smoke to come through and into the food. I also sprayed them down with some Pam and used a large flipper to continually turn them to help prevent them from burning. This is one of those dishes that can not be left unattended as they can burn quite quickly and need to be turned a lot to keep them cooking even. I hope you give it a try because it's so worth trying.

I also cooked some corn on the grill that night and it was the first time that our little girl had corn on the cob, she was thrilled to get the chance to try it. When I told her that she was going to get to try corn on the cob for dinner she began dancing and jumping around the room yelling "Yea! Corn on the Cob!!!". It was so much fun to see her so excited to get to try something new and she loved it. I cut the ear of corn into thirds and she cleaned off her one serving with a grin and butter from ear to ear.

This is how I fix my corn on the cob and my wife loves it, mainly because she LOVES garlic.Tear enough foil to cover one ear of corn, coat the corn with a thin layer of butter, season with garlic salt and wrap in foil. It's that easy! Now just place the corn on the grill for about 25-30 minutes at medium-high heat and your done. I found that placing the corn on the warming rack of my gas grill before I put anything else on or even have anything else ready to go is the best way to do it. The corn comes out tasty, not over cooked, but cooked through and perfect every time.

Jerk Pork Chops with Grilled Pineapple Salsa

I've had this recipe marked for a long time and man was I missing out. This recipe is packed with flavor and the grill always adds a dimension of flavor to food that in my opinion is hard to beat. When you grill pineapple it practically turns to candy, throw in a little brown sugar on it and I'm pretty sure it now qualifies as candy. Now add in grilled bell peppers, candied ginger, and lime juice and you have a wonderful mix.

For the pork I took the easy way since I put so much time into the salsa. I used a bottle of Jerk Marinade off the store shelf and put it to work an hour before it was time to grill. I have to say it was very delicious with only a very small hint of some heat. The wonderful thing about grilling now is that most grocery store shelves are loaded with all kinds of commercial products for grilling, and many of them have been created by award winning BBQ teams. So I see no shame in using their products if it will save me some time on a weeknight and get the food to the table sooner, which simply means you will have a lot happier home.

Pork Chops
4 pork chops
1 bottle of Jerk Marinade with Papaya

Place pork chops in a seal-able zip-lock bag and pour in enough marinade to cover, seal the bag and place it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes until ready to grill.

To grill heat the grill to high and cook for 4-5 minutes each side or until done.

Salsa
1 ripe pineapple
1 medium-size red bell pepper
1 medium-size yellow bell pepper
1 tablespoon minced candied ginger
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice, or more to taste
1 tablespoon light brown sugar, or more as needed

1. peel the pineapple, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the core. Cut each pineapple half lengthwise into quarters. Yous should have 8 pieces.
2. Set up the grill for direct grilling and preheat to high.
3. When ready to cook, brush and oil the grill grate. Arrange the pineapple pieces and bell peppers on the hot grate and gill, turning with tongs, until nicely charred on all sides, 8 to 12 minutes. Transfer the pineapple and bell peppers to a bowl and let cool.
4. Cut the cooled pineapple into 1-inch chunks. Core and seed the bell peppers and cut them into 1 inch dice. Combine the pineapple, bell peppers, candied ginger, cilantro, lime juice, and brown sugar in a serving bowl and toss gently to mix. Taste fore seasoning, adding more lime juice and/or brown sugar as necessary; the pineapple salsa should be highly seasoned. Serve the salsa within 3 hours.

If you like a little heat with your salsa you can always add a Scotch bonnet chile or other hot chile of your liking.

Honey-Garlic Chicken Wings

I know it's been well over a week since the Super Bowl and the rest of the world had moved on, but I really wanted to share what I fixed at our house for dinner.

I've been setting on this recipe for a while, but just never got around to actually fixing it. The only downside to this recipe is that it's very mild in regards to spice, I believe I will be doubling or tripling the amount of hot sauce the next time around. Also I chose not follow the recipe on cooking them on a skewer, which involves threading the skewer through the wing as if it was in flight. I instead chose to cut the wings into pieces at the joints and discarding the wing tips. It made for a little more excitement and work during the direct grilling as I was  doing a lot of shuffling during the flare ups, but that made for a great show.

Marinade
6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

2 pounds chicken wings
1/2 cup honey
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce

1. In a large bowl combine 3 tablespoons of the lemon juice, the garlic, salt and pepper. Add the wings and turn to coat them evenly. Cover and refrigerate for up to  4 hours.
2. In a small bowl combine the remaining 3 tablespoons of lemon juice, the honey, and hot sauce. ( Be sure to add more hot sauce as you like)
3. Prepare teh grill for direct and indirect cooking over medium heat.
4. Brush the cooking grates clean. Brown the wings over direct medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes, turning once. then move the wings over indirect medium heat and cook until the meat is no longer pink at the bone, 15 to 20 minutes, basting with the honey mixture once or twice during the last 10 minutes of grilling time. Keep the lid closed as much as possible during grilling. Remove the wings from the grill, brush once more with the glaze, and serve.

Bananas Foster

We celebrated our New Year's at home with just a couple of family member's and various finger foods. I decided I wanted to fix something that would be fun and entertaining. Now any one who has ever had this dessert prepared at a restaurant knows just how exciting it can be, as it involves setting the sauce on fire. It was as much fun preparing as it was eating this dish and in all the excitement that night I forgot to get a picture, but a picture alone will not do justice to the reaction you get by setting the sauce on fire.

4 medium bananas, firm but ripe
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Sauce
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup dark rum
1/4 cup banana liquer

Vanilla Ice cream

1. Prepare the grill for direct cooking over medium heat (350º to 450º)
2. Cut each banana in hal lengthwise and leave the skins attached (the will help the bananas hold their shape on the grill). Brush the cut sides with the 2 tablespoons of melted butter.
3. Brush the cooking grates clean. Grill the bananas over direct medium heat, with the lid open, until warmed and well marked but not to soft, 2 to 3 minutes, without turning. Remove from the grill. Peel the banana halves, cut them into quarters, and set aside.
4. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, melt the 1/2 cup of butter. Add the brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg, and cook, stirring constantly, until it bubbles, about 2 minutes. Stir in the rum and banana liqueur. Allow the liquid to warm for a few seconds and then carefully ignite the rum with a long match or multipurpose lighter. Let the flames die down. Add the banana pieces and cook over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes or until the bananas curl slightly. Spoon the banana mixture over ice cream and serve immediately.

Serves 6-8

Mexican Grilled Beef (Carne Asada)

A while back we celebrated my Father-in-law's Birthday party and I was given the request for Mexican Food. Now it was time for something different then the traditional taco bar that my wife would prefer, so I began to scour grilling cook books for a good recipe. This one I found in Steven Raichlen's Planet Barbecue! I was so happy to finally get the chance at making another of his recipe's that he has graciously scoured the globe to collect.

In the process of making this meal I learned the draw back of grilling with propane, the fire blows out with a strong enough wind and it's difficult to tell just how much cook time you have left in a bottle. I have also learned to keep a bag of charcoal on hand just in case the propane decides to run dry before your done grilling. But none the less I was able to finish cooking and we had a great time too.

For Grilling
2 poblano peppers, or 4 banana peppers, or other large, moderately hot chile's
1 bunch scallions, trimmed
1 sweet onion, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch thick slices
1 1/2 pounds beef flap meat, skirt steak, hanger steak, or another thin cut of beef (I used flank steak)
Coarse Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
20-24 corn tortillas, preferably freshly made at a Mexican tortilla shop or market, or 12 small flour tortillas

Meat drippings or vegetable oil

For Serving
One or more of these accompaniments:
1 small head green cabbage (about 1 pound), cored and sliced paper-thin
1 large or 2 small cucumbers, thinly sliced
1 bunch radishes, stemmed and thinly sliced
2 ripe avocados, pitted, peeled, cut into wedges or diced, and sprinkled with fresh lime juice to keep it from discoloring
1 cup sour cream
1 cup coarsely grated queso blanco or cotija or jack cheese

3 limes, quartered

1. Set up the grill for direct grilling and preheat it to high. Ideally, you'll grill over wood fire, but you can achieve a similar effect by using dry wood chips on a charcoal or gas grill.

2. When ready to cook, brush and oil the grate. If you are using a charcoal grill, toss the wood chips or chunks on the coals, if using. If you are using a gas grill, add 2 cups of wood chips, if using, or chunks to the smoker box or place them in a smoker pouch under the grate. If you are using poblano peppers or banana peppers, arrange them on the hot grate and grill them until the skins are darkly browned, 3 to 4 minutes per side, 12 to 16 minutes in all (banana peppers will take a little less time than poblanos). Arrange the scallions and onion on the grate and grill them until golden brown on both sides, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Place the scallions or onion on the grate for about 6 minutes after the peppers have grilled.

3. Transfer the grilled vegetables to a chopping block or cutting board. Leave the fire burning. Cut the poblanos into strips, discarding the seeds. Cut the scallions and onion into 2-inch pieces. Arrange the grilled vegetables on a serving platter.

4. Generously season the beef on both sides with salt and garlic powder and pepper, if using. Add the remaining wood chips, if using. Arrange the meat on the hot grate and grill until cooked to taste, 3 to 4 minutes per side for medium. (Mexicans prefer their carne asada medium to medium-well done.) Transfer the grilled beef to a chopping block or cutting board, reserving any of the meat drippings, if desired. Leave the fire burning. (Meat drippings will come from the plate or tray that you place the cooked meat on after cooking.)

5. Lightly brush the tortillas with meat drippings or oil, if desired (this is not necessary but does make the tortillas a little richer and moister). Arrange the tortillas on the hot grate and grill them just long enough to warm them, about 15 seconds per side.

6. Chop or thinly slice the beef across the gran. To eat the carne asada, place a few slices of beef on a warm tortilla, then pile on the grilled vegetables, raw vegetables, sour cream, cheese and salsa(s) of your choice and add a squeeze of lime, if desired.

I found that slicing them across the grain and on the diagonal made it possible to make thin slices that are easier to chew. Also I prepared chicken and seasoned it the same as the steak, since not everyone in my family is big on steak.

Coconut-Grilled Corn

I am a huge fan of Steven Raichlen and more than a little envious that he gets to travel the globe in search of good BBQ. I DVR his new show Primal Grill as well as his older show, Barbecue University, not to mention I have two of his cook books. But this recipe was featured in his latest season, which the wife and I were watching one day and she asked me to fix it some time with dinner. Now anyone who knows my wife, knows she's a pretty picky eater, thankfully though she has become more willing to try new things the longer were married; and watching cooking shows with her seems to help. Anyways a little about the dish, it will make a great side to just about any meal and it was a huge hit with my wife and little girl. The only downside is that you will want to have tooth picks handy as the sauce makes them stick to your teeth more than normal.

3/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
2 tbsp, palm sugar or light brown sugar, or more to taste
1 piece (2 inches) pandanus leaf, or 1 to 2 bay leaves
1/4 tsp salt
4 ears sweet corn, husked or husk stripped back and tied together

1. Combine the coconut milk, palm sugar, pandanus leaf or bay leaf, and salt in a small saucepan over medium heat and let simmer gently until the sugar dissolves, 3 to 5 minutes. Taste for sweetness, adding more sugar if necessary. Remove the pan from the heat and let the basting mixture cool to room temperature.
2. Set up the grill for direct grilling and preheat it to high.
3. When ready to cook, brush and oil the grill grate. Place the corn on the hot grate and grill it until nicely browned on all sides, 2 to 3 minutes per side, 8 to 12 minutes in all, turning with tongs. Start basting the corn with some of the coconut milk mixture after a few minutes and baste it again several times as it grills.
4. Baste the corn one final time, transfer it to a platter or plates, and serve.