The Best BBQ in Texas (?)

Here is an article from The New Yorker, about the best barbecue in Texas.

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/11/24/081124fa_fact_trillin

I have read many article over the years, identifying “the best barbecue”.  Typically, these lists are Texas or Kansas City based.  Sometimes, the Carolina’s, Kentucky, Memphis, Alabama and Georgia establishments are thrown in, but typically it is Texas and K.C.

This has always left me wondering, why hasn’t anyone been able to create a barbecue joint in west Michigan that is mentioned with the legendary places like Snow’s Barbecue, Kreutz Market, Smittys, Sonny Bryan, Arthur Bryants, Rendezvous, Dreamland, Lexington, Big Bob Gibsons, and many others that are often more pilgrimages than just a BBQ restaurant.

What makes me wonder, is the dirty secret about barbecue:  it ain’t that difficult!

Is there anyone from west Michigan that knows of GREAT barbecue around here?

A Grateful Grilladelic

2008 will go down in history as a “crazy” year. No need to discuss details, but I am sure everyone will have stories to tell to their grandchildren.

Despite everything….there is so much to be thankful for and it all begins with family

Mt three kids: Jack (12), Rose (11) and Nora (3). My wife, Leanne, is camera shy, but she is beautiful, kind and a great partner and mother.

Weber Grills

Thank God some entrepreneur found an better use for the metal beacons in Lake Michigan.

The Grillery
I love the Grillery for their unabashed positioning as old-school quality. Stainless steel, wood burning, and open flame grilling. The Grillery is Grilladelic…as it celebrates the “joy of cooking oven an open fire”. In style.

Big Ricks

As posted previously, the best BBQ sauce in the market. I once had a customer who claimed she liked to freeze Big Ricks, and then eat it like a popcycle!

New Music

Check out these artists. It is impossible to grill, serve and eat without music. The fresher the music, the better.
Anna Laube
Hacienda Brothers
Jesse Drayton

Old Music
John Mellencamp

This is a terrific CD

Fred Eaglesmith

Try Fred’s Tinderbox CD. It is like discovering garlic.

Anthony Bourdain – No Reservations

What the Food Network isn’t .. (if that makes any sense)

Cookshack

Simply, best of show. For the low-and-slow, pure smoking, enthusiasts.

Local First-West Michigan
Creswick Farms
Heffron Farms
Kingmas

Lazzari Hardwood Charcoal

The best cooking fuel. Don’t take my word. Try it.

Of course, being thankful always should end with your kin.

My mother-in-law always says; nobody will love you as much as family.

That is certifiably grilladelic.

Voices of a Grateful Nation

Voice of a Grateful Nation- Volume One and Volume Two

Voices of a Grateful Nation is part of a nationwide effort by the Welcome Home Project to provide support to military veterans. Volumes I and II are the first series of recordings that will help raise awareness and funds for our veterans.
Volume One is a terrific compilation of songs by a wide variety artists with a Texas flair.  This volume has a strong blues, rock and and alt-country feel to it.  Fifteen different artists provide real diversity to the CD.  My favorites were tracks #1- I’m Coming Home by Jesse Dayton, # 3 Mother of Mercy by Gaelic Storm, # 11 Sparrows by Dustin Welch and #12-Don’t Fight it by Kevin Welch, Kieran Kane, Fats Kaplan an Lucas Kane. I think if you asked 10 different reviewers about this CD, you would probably get 10 different songs and artists as favorites…they all are great and authentic. 

Volume Two is decidedly more country and folk.  Personally I enjoyed this CD more.  It is outstanding. Some real traditional country, Texas twang and solid Americana by veteran artists, who have made a name for themselves over the years by playing in honky-tonks throughout Texas and other parts of the U.S.

Tracks #1- The Boy I left Behind (Deryl Dodd), #3 Shipping out of Iraq (Jesse Dayton), # 5 Soldiers Prayer (Mike Cross and Robin Ludwick), #9, Soldiers in the Alley (Walt and Tina Wilkins), #12 West Texas (Davin James and Gary Nunn) and #14 Fences (Mark Jungers and Susan Gibson) are just a few of the standout tracks.

As a music reviewer for WYCE, a great benefit is being exposed to new music and artists.  Voices of a Grateful Nation was a like winning the lottery.  Over 25 artists, who for the most part, are relatively unknown to me.  Of special note was Jesse Dayton, who contributed songs to both volumes.

Certainly worthy of exploring his other recordings! Both CD’s are a treasure trove of styles, talent and heart.   Highly recommended.  For more about this movement, please visit www.voicesofagratefulnation.org

Turkey Leftovers

Radio stations are playing Christmas songs. My neighbor has a yardful of Christmas lights. Kingmas has a parking lot full of Christmas trees. For crying out loud….

So I don’t feel so bad about posting a tasty-sounding leftover turkey recipe, from one of my favorite (and highly recommended) cookbooks:

Turkey Pot Pie

From: Weber’s Big Book of Grilling

Best thing ever to happen to turkey leftovers. And this homemade version is simply over the top.

For the vegetables:

2		tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
1		medium yellow onion, cut into 1/2-inch dice
3		medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice
2		celery stalks, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1/2		pound button mushrooms, thinly sliced
1		teaspoon dried thyme
1/2		teaspoon dried oregano

For the sauce:

3		tablespoons unsalted butter
2		teaspoons Madras curry powder
1/4		cup all-purpose flour
1-1/2		cups chicken broth
3		cups diced grilled turkey
1/4		cup finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
2		tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2		teaspoon kosher salt
1/4		teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1		sheet (9- by 10-inch) frozen puff pastry, thawed
1		large egg

To prepare the vegetables: In a medium sauté pan over medium-high heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter and cook the onion and carrots, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer the onion-carrot mixture to a large bowl. Melt the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter in the sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the celery, mushrooms, thyme, and oregano. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the juices from the mushrooms have evaporated, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the celery-mushroom mixture to the other vegetables.

To make the sauce: In a large saucepan over low heat, melt the butter. Add the curry powder and cook for 1 minute to bring out the flavor. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Whisk in the chicken broth and simmer until the sauce thickens.

Add the cooked vegetables, turkey, parsley, lemon juice, salt, and pepper to the sauce. Stir and simmer for 1 minute. Transfer the mixture to an ovenproof 10-inch skillet or deep 10-inch pie pan.

On a lightly floured surface roll out the puff pastry to 1/8-inch thickness. Lay the pastry over the skillet, trimming any excess with a knife. Cut three or four slashes in the pastry to allow steam to escape. Beat the egg with 2 teaspoons water; lightly brush the entire surface of the pastry with the egg mixture.

Place the skillet on a small baking sheet and place on the cooking grate. Grill over Indirect Medium heat until the filling is bubbling and the pastry is golden brown, 40 to 50 minutes. Carefully remove the hot pan from the grill. Allow the pie to cool for about 10 minutes before serving.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Talking Turkey Again

Here is a super-simple, slam-dunk, seasoning formula for deep fried turkey:

PLUS

Equals

SUCCESS

In other words, inject Louisiana Seafood’s Cajun Butter into your turkey, and you have a perfect seasoning.  You got to trust me on this…we used to sell this Cajun Butter by the case for deep-frying.

Grilling – Old School Style

There is a grill company called Portable Kitchen. It is cast aluminum.  Very basic but pretty cool too.  Real old-fashioned.

Here is a recipe I have used numerous times from their website.  Very successfully too. It is a dry brine.  It makes it a heck of a lot easier to store the bird overnight in the refrigerator (vs. a big pail of brine)

PK Thanksgiving Turkey
Martha James, Little Rock, AR

Combine a dry rub mixture consisting of one-cup salt, one-cup of brown sugar, 1 teaspoon of sage and 1 teaspoon of thyme.

Rub the fresh or thawed turkey inside and out with mixture.

Place in a bag and refrigerate overnight.

Rinse turkey and pat dry with paper toweling.

Place bird breast down, in a pan with a stick of butter in the cavity.

Grill, indirect heat.  I allow about 2-3 hours, but a lot depends on the temperature of the grill.  November barbecue also adds the element of outdoor wind, cold temps, adding significantly to cooking times.  I always rely on an internal temperature gauge for turkey. I shoot for about 170-175 degrees in the breast before pulling.

Weber Recipe- Brined Turkey Breast (and Happy Birthday)

This is from the Weber website.  I have always been happy with Weber recipes.  They have some great cookbooks.  Check out the brine and review the brine from the previous post.  You can get a sense for the flavor profile just looking at the ingredients.  I like turkey breasts, and prefer a boneless turkey breast, tied up.  I did a couple on my rotisserie last year.

Speaking of which, my blog is one year old today.  I just hit my 10,000 page view.  I know, it is small, but it is mine!  Hopefully next year, I will be looking at around 1,500 views per month.

Weber Recipes

Brined Whole Turkey Breast

This tasty number is just the ticket for a smaller crowd, or to supplement the menu for a large one.

For the brine:

2/3		cup kosher salt
1/2		cup honey
10		whole allspice, crushed
1/4		cup peeled and coarsely chopped fresh ginger
4		garlic cloves, bruised with side of knife
4		whole cloves
2		bay leaves
1		cinnamon stick
1		whole turkey breast, 5 to 6 pounds
1		tablespoon butter, melted

To prepare the brine: In a large, 8-quart stockpot, dissolve the salt in 2 cups of very hot water. Add the rest of the brine ingredients and stir to combine. Cool to room temperature.

Rinse the turkey breast under cold water, drain, and place the turkey in the brine. Surround it with about 6 cups of ice cubes. Add enough water to totally cover the turkey breast by at least 1/2 inch. Carefully stir the brine one last time. Cover and refrigerate 12 hours or overnight.

Remove the turkey breast from the pot and discard the brine. Pat turkey dry with paper towels.

Place the turkey, skin side up, in a roasting pan set in a disposable aluminum pan. Brush the skin with the melted butter. Grill over Indirect Medium heat until the skin is golden and the internal temperature reaches 170° F, about 1-1/2 hours. Transfer the turkey breast to a cutting board and let it rest for 15 minutes before carving into thin slices.

Makes 6 servings.

Brine Recipe- Turkey

This recipe came from the 2003 Eggtober Fest.  So, all you egg lovers out there, this one is for you!  (I am still looking for Julie Applegates turkey brine recipe…she won a couple of local contests with it…any help out there?)

West Michigan Turkey

With Thanksgiving rapidly approaching, I know many folks who are certifiably grilladelic, and very picky about their turkeys.  I have bought several fresh turkeys, through Heffron Farms, that come from Otto’s Turkey Farm in Middleville, MI.  These birds are not injected full of saline and other stuff you find in the basic frozen Butterball.  I have had great results with these birds.  (to save a little money, I ask for “seconds” which are typically birds that might be missing a wing or have damaged leg. Tastes great, less expensive)

Another place to consider would be Creswick Farms.  Nick and his wife were customers of The Outdoor Cook several years ago, when they were getting their farm off the ground.  Check out their website.  They are located in Ravenna, MI and are very active with local first and “farms without harm”.

I will post some turkey recipes in the upcoming weeks.