In the mostly rural area where I live we have a group of 30-40 friends that put on our own backyard barbecue competitions three or four times a year. There is one coming up in a couple weeks where the
theme is gonna be surf and turf. We are supposed to cook one dish with either fish or seafood, one beef, and one chicken. Since I don't have a lot of experience in this area I'd like to see what kind of recommendations I can get from some of you more seasoned competitors.
There are two web sites I am going to ask you to go to for recipes. First is the free site site here and then the barbequebible.com both have excellent recipes. For chicken I would do chicken thighs, for fish do a smoked catfish after marinating over night. For beef a marinated flank steak would work well, I don't from your writing think your up for a brisket or chuck. Tri-tips are probably as scarce as they are in my NC mountains.
I like your idea about the catfish, hadn’t thought about that. I have catfish and thighs on hand. You would be correct about my brisket prowess, I’ve cooked probably less than ten and although they’ve all been edible none of them were gonna wow any judges.
Scotch: Current favorite- The Arran (anything by them), Glenmorangie 12yr Lasanta, sherry cask finished. The Balvenie Double Wood, also like Oban 18yr, and The Glenlivet Nadurra (Oloroso sherry cask finished) among others. Neat please.
About meReal name: Aaron
Location: Farwell, Michigan- near Clare. (dead center of lower peninsula)
Occupation:
Healthcare- Licensed & Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) at MyMichigan Health, a University of Michigan Health System.
Hmmm there’s something fishy about this thread... good luck with your land, air, and sea cook.
BTW you could really blow their minds with turtle, frog legs, or crawfish cook!
For chicken I like thighs or lolipop chicken legs. Seasoned accordingly. Or you could go Cornish game hen for shits and giggles if they would count it.
For beef it depends on how long you have to cook.
I like what Huskee mentioned. You could make it a theme... fish taco, beef taco, chicken taco!
Agree with the chicken thighs in White Sauce they are amazing.
I wanted to throw out a different seafood idea. I have cooked little neck clams in white wine lemon juice and garlic on the grill. They come out amazing. Just don't overcook!
Something I want to try is crab meat mixed with cream cheese stuffed into a jalapeño and wrapped in bacon. Kind of like a Crab Rangoon meets ABT and had a little appetizer baby..
Trying to think of other fish dishes I have done on the grill that were good enough to cook for company.
Swordfish kabobs
Seared Bluefin tuna with soy sauce and wasabi has to be super fresh though
My take on salmon. I lived in Seattle for a year and I am now spoiled. I can't eat farm raised salmon it is terrible. In Seattle they sell fresh wild line caught salmon. There is no comparison. There are some online fish mongers that sell wild caught frozen but it is very expensive. Back in the day you could get wild caught salmon for $3.99 lb at the local grocer. I ate it often just grilled with olive oil and S&P.
I would tend to agree with you on the lack of pork but on the other hand we just did one a couple weekends ago that is an annual event where you pay your entry fee and the host supplies your pork butt, that way everybody cooks the same quality of meat and it all comes down to what you do with it. We also had a side competition for chicken wings and everybody cooks different stuff to share during the day. It ends up being an all day party with bragging rights at the end and a large potluck dinner
Fish is a staple in our house. If you really want to wow your neighbors and aren't afraid to take on a bit of a challenge, why not try Red Fish Pontchartrain? The Pontchartrain sauce is what puts an ordinary filet over the top. This can be done with any type of filet; be it catfish, trout, even salmon. It depends upon what's available to you in your area.
LSG Adjustable Grill/Smoker, MAK Pellet Grill, Large BGE with Several Attachments from the Ceramic Grill Store, Weber Gasser, Cast Iron Pans & Griddle, Grill Grates, Mostly Thermoworks Thermometers, Avova SV Stick, BBQ Guru Controller and Fan
Or--instead of Salmon do Steelhead and use your favorite Salmon Recipe. It might be that several in your group have not had Steelhead which to me is similar but slightly different in taste and texture.
Comment