The BBQ, Grilling and Cooking Thread

[mophead]

I'm gonna have to say Hak's "cooler tater salad" is some of the best hot tater salad I've ever had.... Bar none.

Care to share that, Len? (yeah, i remember it, but it's your creation)

[Displaser]

I'm gonna have to say Hak's "cooler tater salad" is some of the best hot tater salad I've ever had.... Bar none.

Care to share that, Len? (yeah, i remember it, but it's your creation)

His BBQ brisket and fried rice creation at TEXLEM was delicious as well...

[hakzaw1]

you bet!!

"iCE CHEST POTATOES"

The whole idea of using an ice chest cooler is to keep them nice and hot for hours if the lid is only open quickly to serve-``
When serving I get asked what is the deal ?/ I tell them if you like a baked potatoes 'loaded' you will love our ice chest taters.

First we wash and cut away any bad spots but otherwise leave the skin on.
I like to cut them into golf ball size chunks for even and faster cooking but, some just dump them whole into the pot.

once the biggest chunks are done inside or very very nearly so, we have all the other ingredients measured and ready to add as if this is not done fast you lose some of the heat.
What you add is opional.--:-]

I like real butter (allowed to soften to room temp,)

Real smoked bacon cooled well done and chopped

fresh scallions (green onions) pre -chopped

Sour cream lid off and ready to add.

and last shredded real cheddar chez. hand grated

(the pre shredded stuff is laden with corn starch to avoid clumping and its not bad but..)


salt and course ground pepper to season.


you can use most any potaoes- we buy two or three 50 pound sacks and make about 3 or 4 large batches friday nite and just two on Sat. use use a 40 quart chests.


At SELEM I tried using small red potatoes and although it turned out just OK I failed to cook them long enough so some of the bigger ones were not quite completely done(MY BAD!)

we have one 'dumper' and two smashers ready when these are done and ready to go into the ice chest.


we use our biggest 'shrimp boil' pot that has a basket so we lift and allow to drain (keeping the hot water for the next batch)

then the potatoes get quickly dumped while the two smashers quickly use long handled restaurant size
potatoes mashers and we smash as fast as we can while all the ingredients are added- the idea is to leave the potatoes still with small chunks NOT like mashed potatoes we are familair with. When folks see us make these for the first time they tend to step back a bit least they get injuried lol

we go from boiling water to serving these in less than two minutes-as we are serving many hundreds we now put a server on these to answer Qs and serve them without out allowing the lid to be open very long,

That is important if you want them to stay at least warm until they are all gone- use the smallest ice cheat that will hold all the ingredients- and use an ice cream scooper to get them onto the plates as they are very sticky. not easy to serve with just a big spoon. I can usually tell by their response how much to put on their plates-

when un-sure i just give them one scoop and tell them to please come back for more if they like.

most come back for moar!!

I have had them > two hours after making and they if handled right are still warm.

they do not freeze well- as the sour cream will break when you reheat them-

First time we served them we knew we had a winner and make them now every year.

when I make a small batch at home i like to put french fried onions of top-- and even moar bacon hmmmm BACON!!
we also usually have many other bacon wrapped items from shrimp to oysters- chicken breast always jalapinos
but may fav is.... bacon wrapped bacon!!!

do a search for 'Bacon Explosion' and 'Bacon Crack'- both a treat for all bacon lovers!!

hakmeister

[hakzaw1]

Greg Thanks for the kind words'
You came to our booth last year and can testify that we do it right-

generator powered walk in cooler- DJ ($5K in gear) dance floor- beer garden and a huge 'kitchen the entire 80 foot space has a cover over it-two camper trailers we have a fence out front and a pair= of 15 foot tall flaming torches the are on each side of our 'entrance' makes us REAL easy to find!! We have no trouble at all going thru >$10K each year. we have 40+ sponsors that fund the entire event .WE have a freezer with 500$ worth of ice cream and frozen treats to pass out too kids of all ages.

some friends come from far away & its often the only time we get to see them

[TechJunkie]

I'll share a few of the rubs I use. Yes, I like dry rubs more than wet BBQ, personal preference. Nothing wrong with sauce on the side, or a small mopping in the last hour of cooking, but me, Memphis dry all the way.

Thanks mop. Here is one I use for tenderloin. its a lighter flavor, and doesnt overpower the tenderloin.

2 teaspoon Salt
2 teaspoon Paprika
1 teaspoon Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon Onion powder
1/2 teaspoon Garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground Coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground Turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground Cumin
1/8 teaspoon ground Cayenne pepper

[dsli_jon]

What'cha got?

My fav 'quickie' pork-prep 'receta' -

Deep slice yer shoulder (or whatever cut you prefer..) and pepper-inside with, heh - ground back pepper course salt, and about 5-6 cloves of coarse-chunked garlic and onions.

..w/ the spiced-up Meat in yer fav stock-pot, add a can of Condensed-milk, 1-2 whole cinnamon sticks - not powdered and 2-3 bottles of genuine Coca-Cola - (20 oz, at least; and Coke in glass is way-better than in-plastic..) ..not 'diet', either, as that is the recipe for dog-barf You can also-add, if-desired, chili-paste, liquid-smoke and/or other 'seeping' flavorers.. ie: Add a couple bay leaves for a nice 'cuban-slant'..

After the appropriate-period of 8-12 hrs, the meat will just fall-off, and you can shred and mix w/ yer fav BBQ-sauce, to-taste.. For a really-great 'Tacos al Pastor', you then fry-up w/ fresh-chopped onions, garlic, and, well.. 'pastor' spices ..but, in any-case, end of this receta, you've got an amazing base-meat that should please even the most distingushed pork-luvin' palletes.. Y.U.M.M.Y.

Also, another 'secret weapon' for grillin' chops: bathe in Olive oil and coat w/ 'Tones' Rosemary / Garlic... http://www.tones.com/product/?id=88 ...Best. Chops on the Grill. E v e r. ..And yeah, +1 on 'grillin' stuff, whenever.. All the big game-fish, salmon on a cedar-plank, chick'n, duck, pork, big-veggies, ie: zucchini-slices / portobellos, Oh, man.. All-mazing.. And, winter snowstorms thru summer hailstorms.. 'bout the only 'lousy' time to grill is during a duststorm..

Cheers for the Thrad..
j

PS -

...we also usually have many other bacon wrapped items...

Yes!, this... ie: Muscovy-duck nuggets, wrapped in bacon, pan-seared in olive-oil; served in honey-butter / pepper-flake sauce, ZOMG!

[TechJunkie]

And, winter snowstorms thru summer hailstorms.. 'bout the only 'lousy' time to grill is during a duststorm..

I grill all year, and all times too. The only problem is I'm a night owl, so my neighbors get a little cranky because they leave their windows open in the summer, and I'm cooking steak tips after 11PM.

[TechJunkie]

Boiled dinner. (Smoked shoulder)
This makes a great Sunday dinner because it can feed 4-8 people.

1 large pot, with lid. I use a lobster pot.
1 large fatty smoked shoulder. (Lean ones have less flavor, and texture. Picnic ham can be used if you cant find a shoulder.)
1 large turnip cut into 4 or 5 large pieces.
1 large whole onion.
1 large cabbage quartered.
1lb carrots, peeled, and cut into quarters.
5lbs medium potatoes cut in half.
Fresh ground black pepper, to taste.
Large cube of vegetable stock bullion.
1/8 stick of butter.
Usually the ham has enough salt for the whole dish. If yours needs more add to taste.

Add ham to pot, and fill with cold water just under the top of the ham. If your ham takes up half the pot, fill a few inches over the ham. Bring to a mid boil, cover, and cook for an hour. Flip, and repeat.

Add everything else except the carrots, and potatoes. Bring to a boil again, cover and set the heat to low for a simmer. Cook for 45 minutes. After that throw the carrots and potatoes in, bring to a boil, cut down the heat, and let simmer for another 45 minutes, or until you can easily split a potato with a fork.

Then CAREFULLY pull the ham out, and put it on a large platter. I use large, heavy weight stainless cooking spoons for this. If the ham drops back into the pot while you're pulling it out you'll get scalded, so be careful.

I then clean the fat and the bones from the ham, and arrange what's left in the center of the platter. The cook gets the best pickin's, so take the piece of meat with the darkest smoke color if you like. Pull the veggies and surround the ham on the platter with them. Put the juice in a couple of large gravy boats, or large measuring cups. Serve with hot restaurant rolls, or popovers.

If you have a good amount of juice left over throw any left over veggies (except cabbage), plus a bag of spit peas back into the pot. Cook until peas are soft, then use a hand mixer to blend smooth. Throw in some left over ham pieces, and you've got a tasty pea soup.

[Pockels]

Monkey Gland sauce. This was originally an South African recipe and is is truly awesome on BBQ'd steak or chicken

1 onion finely chopped
1 tsp crushed garlic
125ml water
1 tin (400g) chopped tomatoes
250ml tomato sauce
125ml worcester sauce
200ml Mrs Balls hot chutney
6 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp vinegar
1 tsp tabasco sauce
oil for frying

1.In a pot over a medium heat with some oil, cook the onions & garlic until soft.
2.Add all the rest of the ingredients,stir thoroughly to combine and heat through.
3.Reduce heat to low and simmer 30-40 minutes

If you can't get the chutney state side, then you can replace it with any fruit based sauce with peach/apricot. Keep basting the steak/chicken whilst barbecueing.

I wound a guy up at work for a whole day about this sauce and how difficult it was to get the extract from the Marmoset enclosure at my local zoo

[mophead]

Good job guys, keep 'em coming.

Pork loin marinade

1/2 cup peanut oil
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup good balsamic vinegar
1/8 cup worcestershire
few cloves fresh chopped garlic
fresh ground black pepper
generous handful fresh chopped flat parsley (dry works too, but I like fresh)

Cut the pork loin really thick, then butterfly. You don't have to, I just like it that way. Put the chops in a big ziplock with the marinade and let sit a few hours, shaking ever so often. Grill over blazing hot coals to get good marks and slight charring then move away from the hottest part of the fire to finish cooking. Normally I use a meat thermometer on these; I like my beef just about raw... not so much with pork. Proper temps.

This marinade is super good with large portobella caps for a wonderful veggie burger. Don't marinade mushrooms too long though, it will be way too strong, killing the mushroom flavor.

Bon Appitite