Chili Lime Rubbed Red Drum and the First Asparagus of the Year

Every year since he retired, our good friend Jerry heads down to the Florida Gulf Coast to go fishing. Jerry is like Captain Ahab, sitting in his boat, trolling in relentless pursuit of its plentiful bounty.  This year, we were lucky enough to score some care packages of sea trout and red drum.

At the same time, the asparagus in our garden was ready for its first trimming of the year.  I honestly thought it was still frozen after this past winter.  This is the latest our asparagus has ever peaked its head above ground. But, Hope happily trimmed our delicious green stalks to have with our ocean treat.  Off to the grill we go.

I am a minimalist when it comes to grilling fish.  A light rub, or perhaps some blackening spice, and some olive oil as usually all that a fresh fillet will see around here.  We chose the red drum for dinner on this evening.  Red drum is a nice, firm white fish with a mild flavor.  It will hold up to the grill nicely.  

I used to use Stubbs Chili Lime Rub, but our store no longer carries this product.  So, on short notice, I settled for Mrs. Dash Salt Free Chili Lime Rub.  Anyway, I put 2 Tbsp of the rub in a bowl with some salt and pepper, then added enough olive oil to make the rub mobile, and the juice of one lime.  Into a plastic bag and about one hour of marinade time.

For the asparagus, we whisked some granulated garlic, salt, and pepper with some olive oil and let everything mingle in a plastic bag.  Then, I lit my charcoal and prepared a nice, hot fire.

The asparagus went on first.  I placed the spears on direct heat, moved them around a bit, then moved after five minutes off to the side. 

Then, the drum fillets were placed on direct heat.  I flipped after about four minutes and let cook for about four more minutes, eight minutes of total cooking time.  The fish was starting to flake, a sure sign of doneness, when I removed the fillets from the fire.  

This grilled red drum was some of the best fish I have ever had.  Firm, meaty, with a nice blacked exterior and a juicy interior.  The chili lime flavor was nice, but I hope to find a better rub.  If anyone has a recipe for a good chili lime rub it would be appreciated!  The first asparagus of the year never disappoints.  Slightly caramelized on the outside, tender crisp on the inside and sugary sweet.  This is the gift that will keep on giving for a month.  

Thanks for stopping by,

Bill

Finally, Grilling Time!

It has been a cold and wet March around here.  Blowing and snowing.  March really didn't go out like a lamb.  It really dug its claws in and hung around.  But, last weekend, it was finally nice enough to do some grilling in shorts!

When I was at the butcher, he had some nice flank steaks in the case and the grocery store had some good looking fresh asparagus.  Some hardcore grilling was in order.

After looking around the pantry, I had 3 or 4 bottles of Stubbs Beef Marinade.  I was not impressed using this stuff on brisket.  It just added flavors I did not care for in my brisket.  But, I figured "why not" and used one of the bottles as a marinade on this flank steak.  I was pleasantly surprised...

Here is the subject in focus, a beautiful flank steak, right out of the wrapper...

I also got to use my new toy, a meat tenderizer that I found in our BBQ trailer.

First, I tenderized both sides of the meat thoroughly...

Then, into a plastic bag with the Stubbs marinade for a two hour swim...

Then, I mixed up some marinade for our asparagus: olive oil, sea salt, minced garlic, and fresh ground lemon pepper blend...

How much of what you ask?  Just enough olive oil to slurry the dry ingredients, a tablespoon of the garlic and salt and pepper to taste.  Nothing fancy.  Then, into the bag for a swim.

I fired up the grill and got it screaming hot.  While the grill was heating up and after two hour of marinade at room temperature, I pulled the flank steak from the bag and let it drip drain.  Then, I coated both sides with a nice beef rub: Oakridge BBQ Santa Maria Steak Rub...

After allowing the rub to form a moist outer coating, about 30 minutes, onto the hot portion of the grill with the asparagus.

Obviously, flank steak is thin.  So, you don't need long to cook on a hot grill.  This piece of meat was on the grill for five minutes a side.  The asparagus was on indirect heat getting turned every minute or so.  The finished product?

Perfect medium on the inside.  Flavorful and juicy.  The Santa Maria rub complemented the citrus, chili, soy, and spice elements of the Stubbs marinade.  Served with the asparagus and crusty bread, it was a tasty night...

If you are craving beef flavor and can't have all that fat and/or don't want to pay premium prices for a better cut of beef, a properly prepared flank steak can satisfy that need for a bovine fix.

Upon further review, the Stubbs Beef Marinade works on the grill.  I would not recommend for use as a brisket injection.  That review stays at 1 out of 4 stars.  But, as a marinade for grilling a piece of beef, I will rate this marinade 3 out of 4 stars.  Is it as good as their pork and chicken marinades?  No.  But, when used for grilling, this marinade has found a place in our pantry.

Thanks for stopping by...

Bill

Another Practice with a Home Cured Ham and a Veggie Roast

Earlier in the year, I gave making a home cured ham a whirl.  We liked the taste, but I was a bit unsatisfied as the cure did not make it to the middle of the ham.  So, for Easter, I cured three, five pound fresh hams and took a different approach.

Before coating the outside of the ham with the sugar/salt mix, we made a small batch of brine for injecting.  It was 1/2 cup of turbinado sugar, 1/2 cup of sea salt, and 1 cup of water...

We brought it to a boil, placed in a pint canning jar, and let sit in the refrigerator all day long to cool down.  Once chilled, I injected into the deepest part of all three hams...

Then we covered with a 50/50 mix of sea salt and turbinado sugar, covered with foil, and placed in the refrigerator...

After three days, we removed from the refrigerator, drain the water that had been pulled from the pork by the sugar/salt mixture, and reapplied the sugar/salt mix...

Look at all of the water that was pulled out of the meat in just three days.  Impressive if you ask me.

Then, after eight total days of cure time, I rinsed the hams thoroughly with cold water to remove the excess salt and sugar...

Then I covered with ice to sit over night and remove more of the salt/sugar mix...

The next day, I fired up the smoker and removed the racks inside so that I could hang my hams for smoking.  While I was waiting on the smoker to come up to temperature, 200 F, I prepared my hams for smoking.  I removed them from the ice and patted them dry.  Then I prepared my ham stockings...

I purchased these ham stockings so that I could smoke hams, but I can't wait to use them to make chicken stock.  Just put your chicken and veggies in one of these and you should eliminate the hassle of straining the broth.  But, I digress...

After the hams were placed in their Easter stockings, Hope tied them to the wooden hangers.  I used untreated pine for my hangers, and had pre-seasoned them in the smoker.  Don't use treated wood as you may leach chemicals from the wood into your meat.  Bad news...  Once tied, I placed the ham into the smoker with a 50:50 mix of hickory and apple smoking wood in the ash pan...

After three hours...

I took the hams to an internal temperature of 150 F.  Then, I pulled two of the hams to chill and freeze for later in the year.  With the third ham, I ramped the temperature of the smoker up to 350 F and brought the internal temperature of the ham to 165 F for dinner.  Here are the two hams I pulled at 150 F...

For a side dish, I made a brussel sprout and asparagus roast (yes, fresh asparagus is back!)

Quick and simple...

Brussel Sprout and Asparagus Roast

1 lb fresh brussel sprouts, cleaned, trimmed, and cut in half
1 lb fresh asparagus, cleaned, trimmed, and cut into 1 inch pieces
1/4 large sweet onion, diced
1 tbsp garlic
Fresh ground pepper and sea salt to taste
Olive oil for coating
Parmesan Cheese to cover

Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl with enough olive oil to coat thoroughly.  Spread in the bottom of a 9 x 12 pan that has been sprayed with cooking oil.  Cover with fresh grated Parmesan cheese.  Place foil over top to seal and place in a 350 F oven.  Bake for 30 minutes and remove foil.  Cook 15 more minutes or until the cheese and veggies are starting to brown.

Once the ham was done, I brought it inside, let rest for 15 minutes, then sliced...

Served with the brussel sprout/asparagus roast and some homemade scalloped potatoes...

We really do like home curing the ham.  It allows us to make a ham with great smoky flavor and a lower salt content.  It is still a work on progress, but we are closer to a recipe that will make us happy.

Thanks for stopping by...

Bill

Grilled Shrimp, BBQ Guam Style

Now, it is pretty obvious that I love American Style BBQ.  But, I do get tired of the stuff.  So, I am always looking for other flavors to try out at home on the smoker or grill.  If you are looking for those different flavors, you need to go visit Rueben over at BBQ Guam.  Rueben has all of those flavors going on that are not what we see here in the US.  If you haven't visited his site, you need to get over there and give it a look.  You will not be disappointed.

Now, on to the recipe...

Grilled Ouzo Shrimp

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil1/2 cup ouzo (Greek liqueur) or anise liqueur
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (got to be fresh)
1/4 cup minced garlic
2 tsp red pepper flakes
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
2 lb. jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
Grape tomatoes

I can't stand Ouzo, so I made some modifications:

Substituted 1/2 cup of Mirin for the Ouzo

Instead of the red pepper flakes, I used 2 tsp of siriracha sauce

Everything else is the same...

I did marinade the whole 6 hours...

I threw some bacon wrapped asparagus on the side.  No oil, just throw on the grill as is.  When the bacon gets crispy on one side, flip.  When that side gets crispy, put on indirect heat and serve when the rest is ready.  Good stuff...

Even threw on a cheap $5 lobster tail that was part of the seafood sale...

This shrimp was everything Rueben advertised and more.  4  thumbs up from me and the wife.  The grape tomatoes compliment the garlicy flavor of the shrimp.  The lemon juice with a slight hint of thyme bring the honey and mirin together.  They tasted even better for lunch the next day.

Ruben, this one is a winner.  We will be doing this again for sure...

Thanks,

Bill

Veal Sirloin with Ginger Lime Marinade

My butcher always has good looking local veal.  This weekend I picked up some great looking sirloins for the grill:

One of the sirloins, I seasoned like I would a steak: granulated garlic, sea salt, and fresh ground pepper.  The other I marinaded in a Ginger Lime marinade that I threw together:

Ginger Lime Marinade

1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 thumb sized piece of fresh ginger, finely minced
2 tsp sriracha sauce
Juice of one lime
Fresh ground pepper to taste

I put about a quarter of the marinade on some fresh asparagus.

Got the grill screaming hot.  Made a pork chop for the Mrs.  Veal falls in the too cute to eat category.

5 minutes a side for the veal.  10 min per for the chop.  The asparagus just gets pushed around until it is brown on the outside, but still crisp:

Finished product:

The veal was just past perfect medium.  I also made some rice pilaf for the side:

Both pieces of veal were great.  Moist and tender.  While I liked both, the marinaded piece was my favorite.

Enjoy,

Bill