5

Smokey Garlic & Onion Burgers

August 4, 2011
by Curt

Here’s a quick and easy recipe to whip up some very tasty burgers without a lot of fuss.

We’re going to be doing these on the grill, but we’ll add some soaked wood chips to the coals to give it that nice smokey flavor. Typically, when I do any grilling or smoking, I don’t use chips, and I don’t soak the wood. But considering we’re just doing up a few burgers on the grill, I think soaked wood chips would be the best approach to add smoke to the burgers.

So then, lets get things going here.

Smokey Garlic & Onion Burgers

Ingredients

2 lbs. ground meat (go for the lean choice)
2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Wood Chips Preparation

Before you get started, lets get the wood chips soaking. You can use any type of wood chips you want that is suitable for smoking meats. (Please, no pine!). A few suggestions of common easy to find woods are: mesquite, hickory, apple or cherry. If you can find some peach, try that out. It gives a nice sweet flavor.

Throw about 2 handfuls of chips into a pale of water and let them soak for at least a half an hour.

Preparation

In a bowl, mix together the ground meat, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper.  Now make up some patties. You can make them as thick as you want.

If you haven’t already gotten the grill going, you’ll want to do that now. You’ll need a medium hot grill for these. Leave a cooler area on the grill to move the burgers to. You’ll want an area for indirect cooking to get some smoke to the burgers.

Note: The cooler area without coals should be under the smoke stack of the grill, (if applicable). This way the smoke will be routed across the burgers.

Okay, put the burgers on the grill. Take a quick look at the burger section of my article; “Grilling Tips” for some helpful tips on grilling burgers.

Now that you’ve got the burgers on the second side, and you’ve let them cook for a few minutes, move the burgers to a plate quickly, and put the soaked wood chips on the coals. Now put the burgers back on the grill away from the coals on the cooler area of the grill. Close the grill lid and let these slow cook and soak up all the delicious smoke flavor.

Hamburger is done at an internal temperature of 160 degrees. 165 for well done. If you want pink, then 150 degrees will give you that. Me, I like my meat completely done!

Note: If you don’t have a quick check digital meat thermometer, you should get one. It takes all the guess work out of grilling.
 
: Recipes
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6

About Pepper

August 4, 2011
by Curt

We’re talking black pepper. Although personally, I don’t use much pepper since I tend to not like hot flavors on my food, but black pepper is one of the most often used spices, as is salt.

In fact, it’s not only popular today, but it was once used as currency and presented to the gods as a sacred offering.

After researching black pepper, and writing this post, I think I’m going to start using pepper in moderation in more foods. It’s very healthy, as is cayenne peppers by the way.

Stop Bleeding with Black Pepper
Next time you nick yourself in the kitchen, reach for the black pepper, says Roberta Lee, M.D., vice chair of the department of integrative medicine at the Beth Israel Medical Center. Run cold water over the wound to clean it, using soap if you were handling meat. Then sprinkle on the pepper and apply pressure. In no time, the bleeding will stop. Turns out, black pepper has analgesic, antibacterial, and antiseptic properties. And don’t worry—it won’t sting.

Some interesting facts taken from “The World’s Healthiest Foods“.

  • Black pepper comes from the pepper plant, a smooth woody vine that can grow up to 33 feet in hot and humid tropical climates. They begin to bear small white clustered flowers after 3 to 4 years and develop into berries known as peppercorns. Ground peppercorns produce the spice we call pepper.
  • Black pepper stimulates the taste buds in such a way that an alert is sent to to the stomach to increase hydrochloric acid secretion, thereby improving digestion.
  • Black pepper has long been recognized as a carminitive, (a substance that helps prevent the formation of intestinal gas), a property likely due to its beneficial effect of stimulating hydrochloric acid production.
  • Black pepper also has diaphoretic (promotes sweating), and diuretic (promotes urination) properties.
  • Black pepper has demonstrated impressive antioxidant and antibacterial effects–yet another way in which this wonderful seasoning promotes the health of the digestive tract.
  • And last but not least, the outer layer of the peppercorn stimulates the breakdown of fat cells, keeping you slim while giving you energy to burn.

Black pepper is available whole, crushed or ground into powder. To ensure best flavor, buy whole peppercorns and grind them yourself in a mill just before adding to a recipe.

So then, black pepper is much more than a spice to just add heat to the food. It’s very healthy and beneficial to your body!
 
: Spices & Flavors
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9

Smoked Three Bean Salad

August 3, 2011
by Curt

A new rendition of my baked beans cooked on a smoker. Of course, all of these beans are already cooked, so we’re actually just warming them up and marrying the flavors together.

I tried a different combination of beans to try and create something completely different. After looking around though, I see it’s been done. Oh well, these will be the best, right!?

I believe you’re going to like the flavor of this recipe. I held back on the addition of sweetening ingredients and kept it to just a small addition of brown sugar. I didn’t want to overdo the sweetness and overpower the flavors of the beans and ground beef.

If you have more than one rack in your smoker, or you’re only doing a small meat item, then this can be added right in with the main meat item while you smoke. A meal all done on the smoker. And then again, this dish could be a meal all on its own, although it’s intended as a side dish.

Smoked Three Bean Salad

Ingredients

1 lb. ground beef
1 can (15 oz.) Pork and Beans
1 can (15 oz.) Cannellini Beans (Ready-to-Eat by Progresso)
1 can (15 oz.) Kidney Beans
1 medium onion (diced)
1 Tablespoon chopped Cilantro (Dried)
1 Tablespoon garlic powder
2 Tablespoons mustard seeds
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons salt

Preparation

Fist of all, make sure the smoker is going and up to temperature. It should be at around 250 degrees.

Note: My wood recommendation for this would be something light like pecan, apple, or if you can get it, use peach or mulberry. Peach and mulberry both impart a very nice sweet taste.

In a skillet on the stove, brown the ground beef and drain off the grease. There won’t be much if you use ground beef with a lean ration such as 85/15.

Note: Before mixing the ingredients, rinse all three of the beans in a strainer before adding to the rest of the ingredients. This will help reduce unnecessary salt.

Mix all of the ingredients together in an aluminum baking pan, or a pan of your choice. Put this into the smoker at around 250 degrees for about 2 hours. They should be bubbling hot.
 
: Recipes, Sides
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7

Citrus Mustard Grilled Chicken

August 2, 2011
by Curt

Here’s one my wife has been putting together for years. She made up the marinade today and I grilled up 3 chicken breasts marinated in it. Man did that turn out tasty. You can definitely taste both the mustard and the citrus flavors. A definite keeper!

We used split chicken breasts for this with the rib bones in rather than skinless boneless breasts. Cooking meats with the bone in always adds more flavor to the meat. We did however remove the skin first. I’m starting to choose bone-in meats more and more all the time now.

So, here it is, and I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Citrus Mustard Grilled Chicken

Ingredients

3 to 4 chicken breasts (with ribs)
3/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup lime juice
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
2 tablespoons olive oil
Ground oregano to taste
Ground basil to taste

Preparation

Combine the lemon juice, lime juice, Worcestershire, mustard and olive oil together in a container just large enough to hold the chicken breasts. Remove the skin, and put the chicken breasts into the container and marinate them for 2 hours.

Fire up the grill. You’ll want a medium high heat for this. Leave a cooler area on the grill to move the chicken to in case the fire gets too hot. You’ll want some indirect cooking anyway if these breasts are on the thicker side. While the chicken is cooking, sprinkle both sides of the breasts to taste with the basil and oregano.

This should take you about a half an hour to cook if you keep the breasts just outside the edge of the coals.

Note: For a more accurate way of knowing when the chicken is done, put a temperature probe into the center of the thickest part of the breast. It should measure 165 to 170 degrees.

That’s it. Enjoy!
 
: Cooking Stories, Recipes
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