Archive for: November 2007

1 sm Onion; chopped
1 tb Brown sugar
1/4 c Cider vinegar
2 tb Catsup
2 tb Dry mustard
1 ts Worcestershire sauce
1/4 ts Ground cloves
1 ts Chili powder
1/4 ts Cayenne pepper
1 1/2 lb Firm, whitefish fillets( such as Red Snapper or Halibut)

Combine sauce ingredients in a pot and place over medium heat, boiling until the mixture is reduced to a thin syrup. Pour the syrup through a strainer and discard the cooked ingredients in the strainer and chill the syrup.

Place fish steaks or fillets in a baking dish and spoon some syrup over. Marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Cook the fish on a hot grill, basting with a teaspoon of barbecue syrup on each side.

1 1/2 pounds ground beef
Vegetable oil 4 slices sweet onion — 1/2 inch thick
4 crusty rolls — split, toasted
4 romaine lettuce leaves
4 tomato slices — 1/2 inch thick
8 slices Swiss cheese
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

In small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients (mayonnaise and Dijon mustard); set aside.

Shape ground beef into four 3/4″ thick patties. Lightly brush oil onto cut sides of onion. Place patties and onions on the grill with the setting at medium. Grill, uncovered, 13 to 15 minutes or until centers are no longer pink and onions are tender.

Season burgers with salt and pepper. Approximately 1 minute before burgers are done, top each burger with 2 slices of cheese.

Spread equal parts of sauce mixture on top half of each roll and line the bottom half of each roll with lettuce and tomato and top with cheeseburger and onion.

I like to butter the buns and place them on the warming rack until they start to turn brown. This adds to the flavor of the burgers.

Believe it or not, grilling a whole turkey is becoming somewhat popular. Personally, I’m not doing it and the biggest reason is you should not stuff your turkey when you grill it. I prefer the stuffing to the turkey.

OK - So the first rule is do not stuff the turkey.

The second rule is to not grill a turkey that weighs over 16 pounds. It takes too long to grill and remains at a low temperature for too long a period.

You want to cook your turkey over indirect heat. The turkey needs to be on the barbecue for a long period, so indirect heat is a must to keep from burning it. It’s a very good idea to have a 2nd tank on hand in case your first one runs out. Figure approximately 15 to 18 minutes per pound. The internal temperature must be a minimum of 165 degrees - I recommend a final temperature of 175 degrees but the turkey will continue to cook once you remove it.

You want turkey gravy - I know you do. A pan of water under the turkey will catch the drippings. Here’s a neat little barbecue technique. Get one of the aluminum throwaway pans and add some wire to the corners and maybe each center and tie that to the grill, hanging it a few inches below the turkey. This will catch the drippings.

I put this out a week before the big day so if anyone has any suggestions or tips, you have time to add them.

Placing wood into the barbecue can enhance the taste of your food. The combination of woods burned will result in different flavors blended into the meat. Some wood most often selected for their flavor include mesquite, hickory, maple, pecan, apple and oak.

Avoid wood such as conifers. These contain tar, which gives off undesirable resinous and chemical flavors.

Different types of wood burns at different rates. The heat also varies according to the amount of wood you use and your ventilization. Wood and charcoal are oftens combined to optimize smoke flavor and consistent burning.

Adding wood smoke flavor when using gas grills can be accomplished by using water-soaked wood chips placed in an inexpensive “smoker box” (simply a perforated metal box), or using a perforated foil pouch. Place the pouch under the grilling grate and over the heat. Some high-end gas grills include a built-in smoker box with a dedicated burner to make this barbecue technique a lot easier.