WEEKEND ON THE GRILL: Semi-Smoked Rib Eye

I've got one of those big packs of rib eye steaks from Costco. Been kind of bored with how I've been cooking steaks lately so I thought I'd try it like I cook my tri tip.

That, I marinade overnight in a 50/50 blend of pineapple and orange juice to break down the connective tissues and make it more tender. Then, it's seasoned with rub and cooked low and slow for a few hours in my smoker.

It's not necessary to to the "low and slow" method for the steaks but much of the rest of the recipe is the same.

I marinate the steaks for 4 to 5 hours. After that, I sprinkle some Kosher salt and black pepper on them.

Then, using a pinch between my fingers, I sprinkle each of the following: cayenne pepper, onion powder, mustard powder, and paprika.

On a charcoal grill, I sear each side for three minutes over direct heat. Move each steak to the indirect side of the grill, cover, and cook for an additional eight minutes per side.

When done, I cover and wait 10 minutes before serving.

INGREDIENTS

2 inch thick choice or prime rib eye steaks
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp mustard power
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp onion powder
8 oz orange juice
8 oz pineapple juice


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Darryl Musick
Copyright 2018 - All Rights Reserved

SUPER SIDES: Honey Glazed Carrots and Asparagus

We're modifying the Martha Steward honey glazed carrot recipe a bit to make this side dish for our pan-fried rib eye steaks.  Also, I'm messing with the prep a little bit so I can have it ready early. That way, when it's time to make dinner, the only thing I have to do is stick the pan on the stove and cook.

INGREDIENTS
6 carrots
4 stocks of asparagus
1/2 cup of honey
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
7 ounces chicken broth
5 tablespoons butter
salt and pepper

Peel the carrots.  

Cut both the carrots and asparagus into 1/2 inch chunks. In a 3-quart pot, melt the butter and cook the carrots for 10 minutes, stirring twice.

Remove from heat and add the asparagus, honey, chicken broth, vinegar, and salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, remove from heat, cover, and refrigerate until ready to cook dinner.

When ready, bring to a boil (we're cooking ours outdoors on our gas grill side burner), then lower to low heat and simmer for 15 minutes.

Darryl
Copyright 2016 - Darryl Musick
All Rights Reserved

DINNER: Pan Fried Rib Eye Steak

My wife found a deal on a Lodge cast-iron skillet and got it for me.  This week, I'm christening it with some Prime steak.

I seasoned the pan last week with some lard, now it's time to cook.

INGREDIENTS
2 rib eye steaks, about an inch thick and 10 ounces
salt
pepper
Worcestershire sauce
olive oil
(optional, honey broth)

Place the steaks in a sealable plastic bowl.  Sprinkle some Worcestershire sauce on them. I'm also ladling a scoop of the honey broth that I got from the honey glazed carrots side dish that I made.

The weather's beautiful so I'm going to cook these outside on my gas grill. If you'd like to stay indoors, you can also do this on your stovetop and oven.

I put the skillet on the side burner and turn the heat up high, getting the pan very hot. 

At the same time, I turn on the burners under the hood and get the temperature to around 300 degrees.

I coat each steak with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, on both sides. The steaks go into the skillet along with any remaining marinade, which I pour over the top of the meat. Two minutes on each side.

Then, I move the skillet into the grill and close the hood. The steaks get another six minutes per side.

Cover with foil when you remove them and let rest for ten minutes before serving.

Darryl
Copyright 2016 - Darryl Musick
All Rights Reserved

DINNER: Garlic Herb Barbecued Chicken

Every now and again, I try to hit the sweet spot with chicken on the barbecue. Sometimes I'm successful (like my chicken 'wings' style thighs that I need to post someday) and others not so much.

This week, I'm at the upper end of the successful range. Not quite perfect but, still, a solid entree.

When cooking chicken, I like to use thighs. They're juicier and have more flavor than breasts and have more meat than drumsticks.

I have a butcher at the Original Hollywood Farmer's Market who will even debone them for me without removing the skin...these are best of all (it's easy to find boneless/skinless thighs but most meat counters don't leave the skin on). Ask your local butcher if they'll do this for you.

INGREDIENTS

6 chicken thigs, skin on
1 Cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon garlic infused olive oil
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
3 hot red chiles (like Thai chiles)
2 tablespoons poultry rub

Put the buttermilk and chiles into a blender. In a sealable bowl, marinated the chicken in the buttermilk/chile mixture overnight.

Before cooking, drain off the marinade. Sprinkle the thighs on both sides with the salt and pepper. Apply the rub.

On a charcoal gril, cook on each side for 3 minutes each, covered.  Move to indirect heat, cook for 6-8 minutes on each side, making sure all the juices running out are clear.

Move back, skin side down, to the direct heat.  Cook for 5 minutes, watching carefully for flareups and moving to another part of the grill when they happen.  This last step will make the skin extra crispy.

Cover with foil and rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Darryl
Copyright 2016 - Darryl Musick
All Rights Reserved

DINNER: Grilled New York Steak

My wife called this a Fred Flintstone dinner. I think that's a compliment.

We really cooking with gas today...no, really.  I haven't used my gas grill for at least two years so I take off the tarp and clean the cobwebs off for today's meal.

I want to use the gas grill mainly because it also has a side burner I can use for the sauce.

That sauce will be a sherry/garlic reduction.

The main thing with a meal like this is to get great ingredients. In this case, it's USDA Prime New York steaks that I found for $9.99 per pound at Costco.


INGREDIENTS
2 - 1 pound New York steaks (Prime, if you can, but at least Choice)
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/4 cup sherry
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

About 3-4 hours before cooking, put the steaks in a sealable bowl. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.  Splash the top surface with Worcestershire sauce, seal the bowl and put in the refrigerator.

In a skillet big enough to easily accommodate your steaks, heat up the olive oil on med/high heat.  Sear the steaks on each side for two minutes. You can also see why this is a good meal to cook outside with all the spatter.

Move the meat to the grill, about 300 degrees, and cook on each side for 6-8 minutes.

Back over in the skillet, put the garlic in the oil with the meat drippings. Stir in with the sherry. Use a spatula so you can scrape the meat bits stuck on the bottom of the pan. 

Turn the heat down to low/medium and continue cooking as long as he meat does. Put the sauce in a bowl or cup and set aside.

When the meat is done, cover with foil and let rest for 10 minutes.

Serve with some of the reduction sauce ladled on.

Darryl
Copyright 2016 - Darryl Musick
All Rights Reserved

Classic Barbecue: Ribeye Steak

Most of my Sunday dinners are cooked out back, on my Weber kettle grill. Since we live in Southern California, we can barbecue just about year-round. Nothing like standing over burning coals, cold beer in hand, coaxing the flavor out of the food.

This week's Sunday dinner is the classic ribeye steak, served with roasted potatoes and corn on the cob.

The recipe for the steak will follow but first, the sides.  Here's our basic roasted potato recipe.  The corn, simply wrap in foil for cooking.

Now to the main entree...you must start with a quality piece of meat.  A well marbled ribeye, at least USDA Choice, preferably Prime if you can get it for a decent price. Costco occasionally has prime steaks that are reasonable. If not, look for lots of marbling on the meat...the more the better.

I should mention that you should probably expect to pay at least $8 a pound, so this won't be a cheap dinner but will be much, much less that going out to a restaurant for it.

We've got 1 1/2 inch, Prime steaks.

INGREDIENTS:

2 - 12 ounce ribeye steaks, 1.5 inches thick (modifications for thinner steaks are noted below)
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 green onion, finely chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper

First, I put the steaks in a sealable plastic bowl about 4 hours before cooking.  I put the Worcestershire sauce on them and spread it out evenly.

Next, I put the green onion in my little, handy food processor and chop up.

The green onion goes on top of the steaks. I seal the bowl and put in the refrigerator until it's time to cook.

For cooking, I heat up coals in the barbecue and make sure they're all to one side. You need half of the grill to not be over burning coals.  Put the corn against the edge of the grill away from the coals. Salt and pepper the meat and put directly over the coals for three minutes per side (2 minutes for 1 inch steaks, 1 minute for half inch steaks). Watch out for flare ups, as shown above. Move the meat away from any flames during this searing period but keep over the coals.

After searing, move meat to the other side of the grill, without the coals underneath.  Cook 8 minutes per side (6 for 1 inch thick, 4 for half inch thick) for medium rare.

Remove and cover the meat for 10 minutes with foil before serving.

We serve a steak and a half for three people and save the rest for later.

Leftover rating: 4

Darryl
Copyright 2015 - Darryl Musick
All Rights Reserved