Unfortunate for me that I moved to the dry side of the Santa Ana mountains where even local seafood doesn't dare tread. I can't get Gulf Shrimp here, which is why I seek out shrimp po'boys when I go home.
Tonights cook using the light our son gave me for Christmas. I hadn't planned anything special, but SWMBO suggested steaks and, well, she ain't called SWMBO fer nothin'.
The asparagus was done early and I ate most of mine before the steaks were done. There's a mashed up and buttered yellow potato in the bowl.
Whenever I cook steaks, I never can get the side done at the same time. All of my concentration is on getting the steaks right as any bit of distraction usually makes me mess them up.
A five-day brine in salt, water, and prague powder, then smoked stupidly low and slow (200-225 F for ten hours) in my Chimp pellet grill. I used the rub from the free side, which is absolutely excellent.
It stalled out on my at 150 F, and then I did the foil boat for awhile, then decided to just wrap the entire thing in foil to finish. Once it hit 203-205 F and was probe tender (more or less), I let it rest for an hour. It came out excellent.
Preeeeeettttttyyyyyy.....
Incredibly moist and tender. Nothing at all like the first (and prior to this, only) flats I did four years ago that turned out indistinguishable from shoe leather and were utterly inedible.
To serve, I Reuben'd up: toasted marble rye bread (baked the day before in my local HEB), homemade Russian dressing, sauerkraut, and Swiss cheese. I will never walk into a Jason's Deli again. This was so delicious!
So, so good.....and so worth the wait.
Last edited by Michael_in_TX; January 1, 2024, 09:08 AM.
Been doing a fair amount of indoor cooking and a pot of beans always seems to be brewing in my winter kitchen. As mentioned in the Rancho Gordo thread, I began with RG Royal Corona white beans but had some issues in the soaking stage which precluded their use. Instead I switched to Marcellas and didn't miss a beat as far as
New Year's Eve Four Course Dinner: I made and served one course at a time.
Starting with Fresh Bluepoint Oysters...Delish!!
Then moving on to Pacific North West Razor Clams, Sautéed in Garlic Butter. I never had them before. They were beyond delicious and are only available for a very short time. I'm glad I got them when I could.
And then one of our go to favorites: Italian Style Baked Clams
Finally the Coup de Grâce, the Pièce de Résistance: (must say with a French accent)
Shazam! What a seafood lovers meal that must have been. And, it’s about the only post that could competitively follow Steve’s above. Well played, Troy!
The are not as nice as Huskee’s, but they were very good.
A little small, just 4lbs, but easily the Best beef plate ribs we have ever had.
Sourced fresh from a new local whole-animal butcher shop.
Found them last week, less expensive than Publix, all prime, organic meats.
They will cut me anything I want. I feel blessed.
Ended the year on a seafood note. Although I didn't post much over Christmas due to all the insanity around here, New Years' was pretty laid back. We did Prime Rib and pork over the early part of the holiday so I was ready to lighten up my fare.
So last night I did some applewood grilled, fresh filets of Red Snapper served over a bed of long grain and wild rice kicked up with some diced veggies and pine nuts. (Tech tip of the day, use chicken stock in lieu of water when cooking your rice).
As a topper I grilled some shrimp as an accompaniment and drizzled the whole affair with a Sauvignon Blanc and Kerry Gold butter/wine sauce. Dish was so rich and satisfying that I passed out afterwards and nearly missed the fire works!!
Have a great New Years each and everyone of you !!!
Yesterday I engaged in two culinary firsts for me.
First, I smoked my first batch of home-cured bacon. The belly came from a Berkshire hog I bought from a nearby farmer. I used the recipe from "Charcuterie" for the dry brine, and then smoked over apple wood for about 90 minutes until it reached IT 150F. I let it cool down, and then fried up a couple of test strips. Man, oh man. It's so good. It was all I could do to limit myself to just two test strips. My cardiologist will smack me upside the head for this, but the fat was AMAZING. I don't know that I'll ever go back to store-bought.
Ha! Going back to store bought is not only not an option, be prepared to do a whole 10lb belly. If you tell friends and/or family how good it is; plan on a Hobart or equivalent tools to help slice 10lbs at a time. 🤣
I do 10lbs every quarter and happily give most away. 👍
Grill/Smoke/Roast = SnS Grills Kettle + SnS Deluxe Insert & Drip n' Griddle
Grill/Smoke/Roast = Hasty-Bake Gourmet Dual Finish with HB rotisserie and Grill Grates
Smoke = Weber Smokey Mountain 22.5"
Pizza = Blackstone Propane Pizza Oven (Stacy's, but she let's me use it sometimes)
Indoor Cooking = LG Studio 30" gas range
Camp Cooking = Coleman 2 burner white gas stove
Thermometer = FireBoard FBX2 with 2 ambient and 6 meat probes
Thermapen Mk IV = Light blue
Thermapen Mk IV = Black
PID Controller = Fireboard Drive + Auber 20 CFM Fan (FB gen 1 fan)
PID Controller = Fireboard Drive + Fireboard 20 CFM Fan (FB gen 2 fan)
Knives
Wusthof Classic Ikon set: 9" carving knive, 2X 8" Chef's Knife, 7" Santoku and three utility knives
Kamikoto Kuro set: 7" Santoku, 6.5" Nakiri, 5" Utility
Amazing Ribs Brazilian Steak knife set
Favorite wine = whatever is currently in the wine rack
Favorite beer = Sam Adams Boston Lager or Shiner Bock
Favorite whisky = Lagavulin Distiller's Edition 16 year old single malt
Best Cookbooks - Meathead's "The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling", Chris Lilly's "Big Bob Gibson's BBQ Book", Aaron Franklin's "Franklin BBQ", Raichlen’s “Brisket Chronicles”
Current MCBS - Momofuku
Current fanboy cookbook - "Chasing Smoke: Cooking Over Fire Around the Levant"
For New Year’s Eve, we got out part of the gift that Jim White gave us as a Secret Santa this year. No, not the naughty nurse outfit Panhead John. We got out the Gyro/Shawarma stand, sliced and pounded thin some chicken breast, marinated it, and cooked it on the Hasty-Bake. Also did up some tzatziki and horiatiki (Greek tomato salad) minus the bell pepper and used Ken’s Steakhouse Greek Vinaigrette rather than making my own dressing.
It was very good for the first go round of Chicken Gyros, great way to break in the new gift, get to use the Hasty-Bake for the end of the year, and celebrate the end of 2023 and beginning of 2024
Got the chicken on the stand pretty easily!
Discovered that even with the shortest spike, the stand won’t fit in the SnS Kettle and had to break out the Hasty-Bake.
Plated product
Earlier in the day!
Magnificent Taittinger Champage!
Dozer did not make it to midnight …. Poor puppy was out by 9:00 PM
WayneT I found the 2012 Comtes on wine.com .... I've also seen it on Wine Enthusiast. A few years ago Stacy and I had the 2008 Comtes at Taittinger and it was amazing. Decided to acquire it for this New Years and the 2012 absolutely was worth the splurge
Nice Eric. When we make our way back the PNW, we want to come celebrate with you and Stacy! Vintage champagnes are rare but it sounds as if you found a real winner. What’s even cooler is that it’s made from the white Chardonnay grape as opposed to Pinot Noir or Pinot Meunière. You’ve inspired me to do some research and find a vintage BDB soon.
WayneT we really like Domaine Carneros in Napa and they sometimes have a vintage BdB that is excellent and half the price of the Taittinger. We would love to get together for BBQ and vino
Sometimes you want something light, fresh, and citrus: salmon filet seasoned with Tony C's sautéd in EVOO, and added to green leaf lettuce, matchstick carrots, and mandarin orange slices, topped with Bachan's Yuzu sauce. Yum.
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