Monthly Archives: February 2014

Beef...Its what the Chicken recommends for dinner.

“SIMPLE CHUCK RIBS”

“SIMPLE CHUCK RIBS”

 

Yes-yes; its a small little feast, but its about the…BEEF!

 

The Day

The day was perfect. With the temperature hovering at around 64 degrees or so…it was perfect for a late afternoon barbecue. Then again, most days are perfect for grilling; except those days. You know the ones in which the wind is just howling at everything you do. Thank God those days are rare!

 

 

Keeping it Simple

Today’s menu called for some chicken wings, drummettes, mixed veggies, and cross cut chuck ribs; and that is what we are after in this post. The simplicity of things is in the preparation; coated with a very light olive oil, coarse salt and freshly grounded pepper. That’s it. As usual, start the grill in advance, clean the grill, and bring the stuff you gonna need closer to the grilling area. While this is not the chicken section, I will say this about the subject…”I’m no chicken.” In a bowl mix about 3 tablespoons of light olive oil and toss around the chicken to coat. Shift over to a plate large enough to set the chicken flat and add a tablespoon each of freshly ground pepper and coarse salt evenly to the chicken making sure to get the seasoning all around. Cover until ready for the grill. For the veggies, all you do is lightly coat grilling plate so that the veggies won’t stick to the grilling surface. Lightly sprinkle fresh ground pepper and coarse salt to taste. I like to do the same to the beef going on the grill as I did the chicken, so that the beef doesn’t stick to the grill.

 

The Grill

At the grill I always put the chicken a couple minutes earlier then the rest of the meal; it takes longer to cook. Then I add the beef ribs and cook both of them for 10-12 minutes adding the veggies before the half mark of the cooking time. Remember to flip over everything in the halfway mark (5-6 minutes) in this case.  Serve hot with your favorite beverage.

 

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“SIMPLE CHUCK RIBS”

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Yield: 1 rib

Serving Size: 1

Calories per serving: 260 calories

Fat per serving: 8 grams

“SIMPLE CHUCK RIBS”

Simple and fast beef ribs that will impress anyone!

Ingredients

  • cross cut chuck ribs
  • 1 tablespoon light olive oil per rib
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Lightly coat ribs with the olive oil.
  2. Add salt and pepper to taste.
  3. Grill for 8-10 minutes turning over at the halfway mark or until desired.
  4. Serve warm with your favorite side dish...or alone. Tastes delicious regardless!

Notes

As always, start the grill in advance. Charcoal normally takes 30 minutes to ash over but is worth the waiting.

http://www.smokefirespice.com/simple-chuck-ribs/

 

 

Beef...Its what the Chicken recommends for dinner.

“Holy Steaks Batman!”

“Holy Steaks Batman!”

HOLY-STEAKS-BATMAN!

 

Steaks at work! Yeah baby! That’s what I’m talking about! We had won a contest and now we were celebrating with grilled sirloin steaks for lunch.

 

The barbecue pit belongs to one of my friends at work and that is what we normally use because of its size and because it holds heat pretty well. On the menu were just steaks and …more steaks!

 

As usual, start the fire in advance, we were using Cowboy Mesquite Charcoal which gave off that rich smoky flavor we all have come to enjoy here to my parts.

Friends BBQ Pit; ready for the beef!

 

The sirloin steaks in the above photo came seasoned from the butcher at a local meat market, so all we had to do is prepare the grill and that was it. A quick marinade for something like this is to mix together 2 tablespoons light olive oil, 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, 1 crushed garlic, 1 tablespoon paprika, 1 tablespoon fresh black pepper, 1 tablespoon coarse salt, and 3-4 tablespoons juice (orange or pineapple) and mix together. Add steaks for 20-30 minutes or if you have time an hour or 2 will be great. For the grilling times, we cooked them for 15-20 minutes turning over halfway through the grilling time. Keep in mind…the size of that BBQ pit verses what you may own. You may want to move over some of the coals ever so slightly to prevent charring the beef and not allowing the center to cook to your desired tastes. Serve and enjoy!

 

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“Holy Steaks Batman!”

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Yield: 1 steak

Serving Size: 1

Calories per serving: 728 calories

Fat per serving: 20 grams fat

“Holy Steaks Batman!”

This sirloin steak with its marinade is sure to satisfy any hungry person in your home!

Ingredients

  • 1 sirloin steak
  • 2 tablespoons light olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon crushed garlic
  • 1 tablespoon paprika
  • 1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon coarse salt
  • 3 tablespoons orange or pineapple juice

Instructions

  1. Mix ingredients in a large bowl and add steak to marinate for at least 20-30 minutes.
  2. Discard marinate and grill steak for 15-20 minutes turning halfway through the cooking time over direct medium heat or until done to your desired tastes.
  3. Serve and enjoy.

Notes

The cooking times always varies depending on the size of grill and how hot it is. Keep a sharp eye on the food on the grill and don't be hesitant to actually poke a steak while on the grill to check the color of the juices.

http://www.smokefirespice.com/holy-steaks-batman/

 

Beef...Its what the Chicken recommends for dinner.

Poor Man’s Cheese Burger…with a Spear of a Pickle.

“Poor Man’s Cheese Burger…with a Spear of a Pickle.”

“Where’s the beef?!”, the old lady yelled…”Well… its at my place in my buns.”  That doesn’t sound too good…does it? Nope! “Okay okay… Poor Man’s Cheese Burger…with a Spear of a Pickle” it is.

 

Memiors

When I a teenager back in the day, I would get tickled to death by that Wendy’s commercial and that old lady who would pull apart her hamburger buns and shout out loud; “Where’s the beef?!” Hmm, come to think of it…I don’t think I was even in my teens yet? Oh well, in a hundred years who is gonna care anyway.

 

Why?

“Why call this burger a poor man’s burger?” Well, we all make due with what we have don’t we? At the time of grilling these burgers I only had a pair of hamburger buns, and no tomatoes or lettuce. Not having all the ingredients should not stop us form grilling, in fact; if we were lacking the beef in our burgers…we could have cooked grilled cheese sandwiches. That sounds pretty good to me.

 

To the Firing Pit…or Grilling Pit.

Remember to start you barbecue pit at least 30 minutes in advance so that the coals ash over before you throw on the beef on the grill. Meanwhile prepare the hamburger beef to make patties. I use the 80/20 hamburger beef; it is tasty and doesn’t shrink as much. So…I have grated about 1 tablespoon of onion “sniff-sniff”, 1 tablespoon of garlic, (keeps vampires at bay…by the way; plus has many benefits), 1/2 teaspoons of the following; paprika, Cheyenne pepper, freshly grounded black pepper, Sweet Baby Ray’s barbecue sauce, and lastly; a dash of coarse salt. You can use any type of barbecue sauce or even omit it all together. That is why it totally rocks to be your own cook! You chose what to add or omit in the recipes.

 

Baseball-size-patties.

 

Work it baby

Press the burgers just a little bit bigger then the size of the buns so that when cooked they end up at just the right size as the buns. Mine burgers usually end up being 3/4 to 1 inch thick when cooked. I like pressing them into shape, but you can use a hamburger press if you like.

 

Off to the grill we go…

These burgers are going to be GOOD!

Cook on a medium to high heat grill for 8 to 10 minutes for medium turning over once past the 5-6 minute mark. Leave a little longer if you don’t want to see any pink juices; about 2-3 minutes longer. Go ahead and toast the buns as well, they taste so much better that way. I finished the hamburger with a 1/2 – 1 tablespoon Miracle Whip and a spear of a pickle.

To Health!…Well I guess that old Wendy’s lady can come back and say…”Where’s the lettuce?!”

 

Print
Poor Man’s Cheese Burger…with a Spear of a Pickle.

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Yield: 1

Serving Size: 1 cheese burger

Calories per serving: 750 calories

Fat per serving: 52 grams

Poor Man’s Cheese Burger…with a Spear of a Pickle.

This cheese burgers are really not poor at all...they are rich...rich in flavor that will make beggars of the people who eat them. "I want more please!"

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon of grated onion
  • 1 tablespoon of grated or chopped garlic
  • 1/2 tablespoon Cheyenne pepper
  • 1/2 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 tablespoon paprika
  • 1/2 tablespoon of Sweet Ray's barbecue sauce or other
  • 1/2 tablespoon coarse salt
  • 1/2 pound of 80% ground beef
  • 1 slice of your favorite cheese
  • 1 pickle spear

Instructions

  1. Combine all ingredients into a large bowl and mix together forming into a ball shape and press flat to a size a little bit bigger then the hamburger buns.
  2. Cook over direct heat for 8-10 minutes for medium turning once past the 5-6 minute mark.
  3. Place hamburger buns on grill and the slice of cheese on top of the patty in the last minute of grilling to lightly toast and melt the cheese.
  4. Remove patties and buns from grill and prepare buns by lightly applying Miracle whip or other chosen dressing.
  5. Garnish with A pickle and enjoy!

Notes

The prep time is the waiting time for the coals to ash over, so start that process first. I have clocked myself in the prepping time for the patties at around 10 minutes and 20 minutes taking my sweet time.

http://www.smokefirespice.com/poor-mans-cheese-burger-with-a-spear-of-a-pickle/