Brats-Avoid the Explosion!!

At a recent family gathering I was cooking our old standby Bratwurst. I was pondering about how hard it is to cook a simple thing like brats without burning them. Whether its gas or charcoal the brats will eventually blister and juice will shoot out like a water hose. This is like Nitroglyceren when it hits the heat source and can make the brats flame up and become burned and charred. Try this. Put the brats on the bun rack and flip them every 10 minutes or so. After they have turned a little grey or less pink move them down to the actual heat source and roll them every few minutes. This will brown them up with out burning them. This trick also works great for Hotdogs. Hold the char please!!!

The Dip that'll make them flip!!!

The Super Bowl is coming up and so are the decisions about what to take. I have been making this dip for several years and its always a big hit.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

2 Boneless skinless chicken breast

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup Ranch dressing or Bleu Cheese

3/4 cup pepper sauce (such as Frank's Red Hot®)

1 1/2 cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Bunch of Celery

Boil the Chicken in a saucepan in water with Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, and Salt. Cool to touch and shred like Barbecue.

Mix the cream cheese and ranch in saucepan melting the cheese. Careful not to scorch.

Mix Chicken and Franks Red Hot in Saucepan.

Now take a Pyrex dish and layer chciken and sauce mixture, then ranch and cream cheese mixture, top with Cheddar Cheese and Bake at 350 degrees until cheese is bubbly (45 minutes to an hour)

Slice Small Pieces of Celery like for Soup and Put on Top.

Serve with Frito's Scoops, Celery Sticks, and Ice Cold Beer!!!

Wounded Warrior Project: The Greatest Audience for Whom I Have Ever Cooked!!

I have cooked all over these United States. From Ribs in Knoxville, Fajitas in Tucson, and Rock Lobster in The Florida Keys....But, I have never cooked a morsel of food for a bunch more deserving than The Wounded Warriors. My good friend Jace Jackson has been cooking for The Wounded Warriors at Fisher House at Fort Campbell for a long time. The Fort Campbell Fisher House is a Home for families of wounded soldiers to stay comfortably while their loved ones are cared for at Blanchfield Army Hospital at Fort Campbell. Every Thursday they have a lunch for The Wounded Warrior project. Recently I was able to become involved with Fisher House and we were able to take a group from Dell up to cook for them today. What a humbling experience to see their smiling faces even after their bodies and minds have been damaged by IEDs and Bullets. It's no secret that I love to cook but, These Heroes will always be my favorite audience. If you get a chance to help our Military please do it. Huaahh!!!

Brats need jackets too!

When it gets to be Fall I am reminded of Football and cooler weather. What goes great with Football is Bratwurst and Beer. To keep them from getting cold I like to give them "Jackets". Pepper and Onion Jackets. Take a White Onion and slice it like its for burgers. Then cut the rings in Half. Take a Bell Pepper and remove the seeds and thinly slice them. Put 1 tablespoon of Olive Oil in a skillet and sautee until the onions are translucent. As a finishing touch sprinkle some Sesame seeds on top. Now your Brats have jackets and they are ready to go for the cold weather.

The Master Becomes the Student!

One thing is for sure, You can learn from anyone, anytime, and anywhere. I profess to be a Barbecue and Grilling Afficionado but, I am surprised all of the time. I have a network of friends and family who are always grilling and innovating in there own right. On Saturday night my Brother-in-law showed me a box of Frozen Hamburgers from Kroger called Private Selection. For a change I had my wife pick some up. When I opened the box I saw a plastic bag full of Pre-fab Frozen burgers with marks cut into them to make them look like a hand patted burger. I must admit they looked just like any box burger I had ever seen.

But once I cooked the burgers and ate one I was blown away. The Flash freezing seals in the Angus Flavor and the internal ingredients danced on the tip of my tongue. What flavor and what a fine product! I had the Monterey Jack Chipotle but they have several flavors to choose from. I suggest everyone try them right away.

http://www.kroger.com/in_store/corporate_brands/Pages/ps_angus_burger.aspx

Insane in the Membrane

Have you ever eaten Ribs and had trouble biting through the paper like membrane underneath the bones? It is not good and it makes that succulent meat less special. The membrane can easily be removed and it is necessary for good quality ribs. Take a butter knife and slide the blade between the bone and the membrane and remove the membrane. It will peel off and you can pull it away from the bones. This makes the meat cook evenly and make thats paper like film gone when the ribs are ready to eat. After removing the membrane rub them with spices and put them on the grill.

Water Pan Smoking

Let's face it Meat is better when it's cooked slow and low. Sometimes life gets in the way and we don't have time to smoke. Problem solved....Let me introduce Water Pan Smoking. Simply said it is using Indirect Heat and Water in the Main Part of the Grill to Smoke meat in half the time. What I do is place a metal pie pan (not disposable type) in the grill with water in it. It goes under the meat that is being cooked. On the other side I build my fire with coals like I do when grilling regular style except I add some smoking wood to the top of the coals. The water in the pan makes the meat juicier and the water helps regulate the temperature of the grill and keep it constant. As the Box heats up the water boils and the steam helps keep the temperature constant. For a unique flavor the water can be substituted with Beer, Red Wine, or any other liquid. Sometimes you can add onions, garlic, or other spices to impart different flavors into the meat you are cooking. In this example I am smoking a Tri-Tip sirloin. I basted it with some Mesquite Marinade every 30 minutes and smoked it for around 2 hours. I removed it from the smoker at about 170 Internal degrees. The basting was super easy with The Sauce Tool http://www.thesaucetool.com/