Grilling recipes

[MNeagle]

Now that it's the season, bring forward your grilling recipes!

[MNeagle]

O.K., here's a gal (I subscribe to her newsletters) on hamburgers!!


How to Build a Better Burger - Even in the Winter!

by Leanne Ely, C.N.C

Have you ever gone to a cookout, having saved all your calories for a great grilled hamburger only to be grossly disappointed? That was me this past weekend (we had unseasonably warm weather!). The burgers were barely edible and had I known going in, I would have opted for the grilled chicken which as also on the menu. Sigh. Let me tell you what went wrong so you too, don't kill your burgers.
http://savingdinner.com/wp-content/uploads/BetterBurger.jpg


First up, the meat. The gal who hosted the party is very fat conscious. I appreciate that, so am I. But when it comes time to slap your patties together, you need a little fat to make 'em good. This is not what happened. Extra lean beef went into these dried burgers. It was also ground too fine, making it mushy. Ugh. Gotta have a little fat and make the meat coarsely ground.

Secondly, the fire. It was too cold. The grill has to be hot (and clean, did I mention clean? Black schmutz all over your burger is nasty! I don't want to eat what you had the weekend before!). Make it hot, hot, hot. Clean the grill, get it hot and then let your burger sit till it's ready to be flipped. If you flip it too soon, it will fall apart.

Third, defend against the urge to pat the patty! When you overly babysit the burgers, flattening it out with the spatula every 2 minutes, you are throwing the juiciness away and making a perfectly good burger into a hockey puck. Resist the spatula-they are for turning only, not patting!

Fourth, turn down the heat. Once you've flipped it once, turn down the heat, the grill will mark the other side nicely and now it's time to get the middle cooked. Having your grill at about a medium heat will do that beautifully. When your burger feels a little bouncy in the middle, it's cooked medium and is ready to be pulled. Remember, it will continue to cook for just a minute, so it will be just right once you dig in.

Fifth, let 'em rest. Just 5 minutes is all you need. Then the juices settle, the pinkness goes away (unless you want the pink, which you really shouldn't do for health reasons) and your burger is right for the eating.

Sixth, let's eat. Toasted buns are best, stack the lettuce, tomato, and onion. Let the mayo, ketchup and relish have its way and dig in! Incidentally, my friend asked me for help with her burgers and this is exactly what I told her too, so don't think I'm ratting her out! Anyway, here's a recipe for a great side dish:

Asian Coleslaw
Serves 4

16 ounces shredded cabbage
3 green onions, chopped
3 teaspoons grated ginger root
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon lime juice
1/4 cup lowfat mayo


Place cabbage and green onion in a large bowl.

In another bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients and pour over over cabbage mixture.

Toss, cover and refrigerate, allowing flavors to meld for at least an hour.

Nutrition per Serving: 108 Calories; 8g Fat; 2g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 5mg Cholesterol; 243mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 1 1/2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates. Points: 3


View this newsletter online: http://www.savingdinner.com/news/HowToBuildABetterBurger.html (http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Cmdk3&m=3XiNl0P2lu.m5_l&b=zg_jLfvhZgTcAHGMGJHNAw)

[Heimdhal]

Ive been working on smoking and curing meats the last few months. I dont really have any grilling RECIPES per se because I dont really use recipes for grilling, I just peruse the spice cabinent and decide what will go best with the rest of the meal. That said, its hard to go wrong with garlic and onion powder, a hit of cayanne, salt, ground pepper, worsch sauce and a little blue cheese mixed into the ground beef and let set over night. This is all done to taste, so taste it as you go! (yep, taste raw meat, you heard right ;) )


My smoking and curing has paid off well though. Last week we did cured semi-dry sausages:

Grinding the meat:
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m179/TeamPointBlank/237ddc2d.jpg

My helper:
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m179/TeamPointBlank/34efefd5.jpg

Adding spices:
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m179/TeamPointBlank/c6682d9e.jpg

The casing:
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m179/TeamPointBlank/46ab738c.jpg

Post stuffing (Wife is the stuffing assistant, hence no photos of that)
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m179/TeamPointBlank/b43eb94d.jpg

Link flip in action!:
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m179/TeamPointBlank/763dc55c.jpg

Ready to be hung to cure:
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m179/TeamPointBlank/6b11f6e3.jpg

Curing!:
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m179/TeamPointBlank/5b71442f.jpg

2 days of curing later

cold smoked
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m179/TeamPointBlank/093f8fdf.jpg

[Heimdhal]

All done after three hours of cold smoking, ready to be cooked for dinner:
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m179/TeamPointBlank/94cffbca.jpg


Dinner! A potato, mushroom and cheddar cheese smoked sausge casserole:
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m179/TeamPointBlank/3da3ad37.jpg

[osoab]

Now that it's the season, bring forward your grilling recipes!


I didn't think the grilling season ever ended.

[muffin]

I didn't think the grilling season ever ended.

hah! yeah, we just bundle up and huddle around the grill ;)

i have two marinades that we loooove to use.....

this was originally supposed to be for club steak but it's great on just about any cut of meat. make sure you marinate the meat at least an hour or more (don't do overnight, it ends up tasting and looking like jerky). and this recipe makes ALOT. i usually cut it in half...

4 steaks
1 1/2 cups olive oil
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp mustard powder
2 tsp salt (i skip the salt. the soy sauce is pretty salty.)
1 tbsp black pepper
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/3 cup lemon juice

here's another one that is more greek but it's good with anything, really. i use chunked chicken with this one and skewer the meat for grilling. it only needs about 20-30 minutes marinating. if there's any marinade leftover, i smear it on some potato wedges that have been parboiled. grill those after the chicken. yum!

2-3 chicken breasts
1/2 cup olive oil
3 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp dried rosemary
1 tbsp dried thyme
1 tbsp dried oregano
about a 1/2 cup of lemon juice (depends on how lemony you like it)

i feel like i've typed these up for you guys before.... O0

[zap]

I don't like red BBQ sauce,

So we always used one like your 2nd one Muffy.

Sauterne/ or white wine, or you can use beer as the base too.
real butter
garlic,rosemary,pepper
lemon

edit ; for spelling

[osoab]

I don't like red BBQ sauce,

So we always used one like your 2nd one Muffy.

Saturine/ or white wine, or you can use beer as the base too.
real butter
garlic,rosemary,pepper
lemon

Try Italian dressing with the chicken. But marinate for a minimum of a few hours, the longer the better. Keep the herbs and stuff too.

[zap]

Use a package of dry italian dressing mix and rub it on both sides of a flank steak, grill it.

Make some guacamole, and heat up some corn tortillas, slice the meat thin, (ola carne asada)

[Old Herb Lady]

Might not sound good, but this is soo good, I eat 2 of them -

( i like to use focaccia bread, yum ! )


Grilled Vegetable Sandwich


Ingredients
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil (optional)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons wine vinegar
3/4 cup olive oil
1 eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1 zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch slices
2 red bell peppers, cut into wedges
1 red onion, cut into 1/2-inch slices
4 large crusty rolls, split
4 tablespoons store-bought or homemade pesto
4 leaves romaine lettuce
2 tomatoes, sliced

1. Light the grill. In a large bowl, combine the oregano, the basil, if using, the salt, black pepper, vinegar, and oil. Add the eggplant, zucchini, bell peppers, and onion and stir to coat. Grill the vegetables in batches, turning once, until lightly browned and tender, 10 to 15 minutes per batch.
2. Spread the inside of each roll with 1 tablespoon of the pesto. Sandwich the grilled vegetables, lettuce, and tomatoes in the rolls.

Notes Slice zucchini lengthwise for grilling, so that you won't have to contend with all those little rounds of squash threatening to fall through the grate.

http://i696.photobucket.com/albums/vv328/DrMaguire/SandwichesCondiments/GrilledVegSandwich.jpg

[muffin]

Might not sound good, but this is soo good, I eat 2 of them -

looks good to me! mom's a veghead so i'm always looking for recipes that aren't pasta...

[Camp Bassfish]

Grilled shrimp. Marinade in Hawaiian dressing, grill on a searing hot grill for 2~3 minutes (winter time temp....less in the summer) with some fresh slice pineapple.

[DMac]

Grill cleaning tip (before the items hit the grill):

Once the coals have been lit and are starting to cool (you want the grill to still be very hot), cut an onion in half and give the grill a good rub (cut side down).

Sometimes I use my hand, sometimes I stick a fork in the onion. It depends how hot the fire is..

Works great!

[osoab]

Grill cleaning tip (before the items hit the grill):

Once the coals have been lit and are starting to cool (you want the grill to still be very hot), cut an onion in half and give the grill a good rub (cut side down).

Sometimes I use my hand, sometimes I stick a fork in the onion. It depends how hot the fire is..

Works great!

Why did the poor onion deserve that fate? ;D

[osoab]

I plan on grilling some burgers here in about 2 hours.

[Neuro]

To tenderize the meat slice a kiwi fruit together with your ordinary meat marinade. Enzymes in the kiwi breaks down connective tissue in the meat. It works really well!