Bronze Behemoth Game On! 2

[swalatee79]

We touched on this before, but be careful with veggies and too much smoke. I shut the lid on these squash and zucchini slices to keep the fire from raging out of control. Oh boy, they were WAY too smoky. I think the trick would be to cook them only a few minutes directly exposed to the fire to pick up a little grill flavor; and then pull them off, put them in foil, and throw them back on to finish cooking. That should do it. Or put them on the fire on a piece of foil, cook a few minutes exposed to smoke, and then close up the foil. I put a little EVOO, kosher salt, and pepper on these and that was good, but cooked them all the way to the end in the smoke. Not good.

This is why I always do my grilled vegetables on the Gas Grill, and the meats on the KK.

[mguerra]

heretic

Gas?! Not a chance in hell in this house. Even if it's only a little nuance, I want a trace of wood smoke. But hey, it works for you, so enjoy.

[DennisLinkletter]

At high temps all the volatiles have been burned off

Remember that once a bowl has been raging at high temps all the volatiles have been burned off and there is no longer any smoke or smokey flavor.

Great time for bread, pizza or vegetables..

Also a good way to use lousy charcoal.. Crank it up and shut it down.

[mguerra]

My wife has only been out of town two days but I've already gone feral. Sitting around the house naked eating salami and a block of cheese the size of a car battery, watching fishing shows and smoking cigars in the house. I decided to have a nice meal:

[mguerra]

One mustn't neglect the proper pairing; and presentation for such delectable fare:

[T Rex]

Good save...............

Good save Doc....................

T Rex

[Conodo12]

Classic "surf and turf" as best as I can tell!! How was the wine? I have read mixed reviews.

[mguerra]

From a couple of tasters:

95 points from the Wine Spectator: "A classy and impressive young Bordeaux from an appellation that stepped up in '96. Dark-colored, with plenty of currant and spice aromas, the wine is full-bodied, with very velvety tannins and allspice, berry and currant flavors. Long, long finish. One of the wines of the vintage, it's a beauty. Best after 2005." (01/99) 93 points Robert Parker: "Made from 65% Cabernet Sauvignon and 35% Merlot, this is a huge, backward wine. The 1996 possesses an opaque purple color, as well as pure aromatics consisting of cassis, grilled herbs, coffee, and toasty new oak. Massive in the mouth, and one of the most structured and concentrated young Cos d'Estournels I have ever tasted, this thick, structured, tannic wine has closed down significantly since bottling. It requires 7-8 years of cellaring, and should last for 30-35 years. It is a fabulous Cos, but patience is required. Anticipated maturity: 2006-2030." (04/99)

My opinion: It smelled fabulous and tasted great. That is as nuanced as I get when tasting wine! I either like it, or I don't. This I like!!! And I just poured another glass, mmm, mmm. And that habanero was scorching, baby.

[mguerra]

not that bad

Well, I actually cooked the Gorton's fish cakes purely as a joke to post here, for laughs. But they were fairly tasty cooked on charcoal in the KK! Not really disgusting. So, if you are ever really pressed and don't have time for even a simple prep, throw a pre-prepared frozen something or other on the KK and see how it comes out. I have a sack of frozen chicken tenders or some such thing which I will try. You can make the case that there are plenty of fresh items you can toss on the KK with almost no prep time. Especially chicken and fish. So there is no need to use some of these processed, frozen entrees. But I'm just playing. And the wife isn't here to object. Hmm, Tony's Pizza Rolls might be good tonight. And I DO have that bottle of 2000 Chateau LaTour...

[mguerra]

The last feral cook before Penny gets home:

I am adding a cantaloupe to start easing myself back in to "normal' food. And I put on some pants, too! Trying to get the cigar smoke out of the house also.

[LarryR]

I think it's a good thing she's coming home

Here's a trick that I've done on the cigar smoke; burn something on the stove in the kitchen and then whenever she says, "I think I smell smoke in here" (whatever room she happens to be in) you say, "ah, that ______ I burned, the smell must have made it's way in there as I had the windows open trying to air it out."

[T Rex]

I think it's a good thing she's coming home

Here's a trick that I've done on the cigar smoke; burn something on the stove in the kitchen and then whenever she says, "I think I smell smoke in here" (whatever room she happens to be in) you say, "ah, that ______ I burned, the smell must have made it's way in there as I had the windows open trying to air it out."

Hey Doc, time to put the pantaloonies, back on!.......

T Rex

[mguerra]

better half returns

Yep, I'm fully clothed, took out the trash, cleaned the bathrooms and the kitchen, vacuumed and swept, most importantly got Penny's favorite KK grub going, a Boston Butt pork shoulder roast! She'll have a nice welcome home meal. Even found a ridiculously cheap but tasty Chardonnay to go with. We usually drink French reds, but it's so freaking hot a nice cold white is in order for a Texas summer's eve.

[mguerra]

Penny brined some pork chops, I rubbed them with rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper, then we cooked them with a Chardonnay/ Apricot glaze:

On the upper tier are some brussel sprouts, foiled in a pan to keep them from getting too smokey. They were roasted in olive oil, salt, pepper and rosemary:

Pretty tasty!

[Conodo12]

Now THAT looks a touch tastier than the fish sticks! My sense is, they tasted a whole lot better too! Best to stick with that Pineapple Salmon moving forward, eh?

[mguerra]

Probably a good idea. I'll have to be really creative with my next "feral" cook, if Penny ever leaves me alone again. Maybe pecan smoked peanut butter and banana english muffins or something.

[mguerra]

blowout

Tomorrow we're having a big birthday bash for myself, one of my sisters, one of my nieces and my twin nephews. I'm smoking a ten pound beef tenderloin on mesquite; while that rests I will grill up a big batch of shrimp. Some of you remember my shrimp technique, for those who don't, here it is. Soak the shrimp in a big pot of ice water and a good concentrated dose of shrimp and crab boil. Liquid or powder, it doesn't matter. Let that soak for at least half an hour. Then throw the shrimp in a grilling wok and put them on a good hot fire indirect. Shut the lid. Toss them a bit at about the five or six minute point, and look at them and estimate about when you think they might be done. I like to cook them for at least 15 minutes. They take a little longer to cook this way and so pick up a fair bit of smoke flavor. The combo of the boil flavor and the grilling flavor is out of this world! And I get to try out my new G-3 knife.

[DennisLinkletter]

Happy Bday..

Tomorrow we're having a big birthday bash for myself' date='[/quote']

Happy Bday..

My lil'girl Isla is turning 5 on Sunday.. 10/10/10

I'm having 8 - 5 year old lil girls over for baby back ribs, wings and corn on the cob.

Have a great day..

[mguerra]

Thanks! Eight 5 yr olds.! Yikes. You'll have fun for sure. Cooking on the KK, and feeding everyone else, is actually a nice present to myself. It's like Dennis Tom Sawyered me. Except this is better than whitewashing a fence.

[mguerra]

G-3 Slicer

The Global knife is super! I can't compare it to lots of others since I can't buy a lot of different brands, but I'll just say it cuts like a dream, looks great and feels wonderful in hand. I liked my Cutco slicer, but this far surpasses it. Yes, I got suckered by my neighbor's kid in to buying Cutco. They are not as bad as the internet flamers suggest, we still use them daily.