Category Archives: Recipes

Flat Iron Steak: When Recipes Go Wrong

Salted flat iron steak

I’d eaten a flat iron steak in a restaurant but never grilled one at home. So while recently browsing the meat counter and noticing some impressive looking flat irons, I picked up one and grilled it on my Weber Summit 450 gas grill.

 

For those not familiar with this cut, the flat iron steak comes from the beef shoulder. It was identified in 2002 as a new retail cut by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association in partnership with the University of Nebraska and the University of Florida. This effort was undertaken to find lower-priced cuts that could be trimmed into steaks and roasts that were flavorful and tender but could be offered at a lower price than more popular cuts. Continue reading Flat Iron Steak: When Recipes Go Wrong

Caribbean Jerk Ribeye Steaks

Caribbean Jerk marinated USDA Choice ribeye steaks

The older I get, the more I forget. For example, I forgot that I took these photos of Caribbean Jerk marinated ribeye steaks back in September 2015…I just found them on my hard drive!

I also forgot the name of the guy who told me his favorite thing to grill was ribeye steaks marinated with Safeway Signature Select Caribbean Jerk Marinade.

Oh well. What I do remember is that these steaks were delicious!

Here’s what the marinade looked like in 2015. The label has changed since then. Continue reading Caribbean Jerk Ribeye Steaks

Compound Butter For Steaks & Seafood

Compound butter on grilled steak

Compound butter (a mixture of butter, herbs, and spices) is an excellent way to add flavor and moisture to any grilled steak or seafood, and it’s so easy to make.

Your family and friends will be impressed at the sight of a perfectly grilled steak or piece of fish with a disc of compound butter on top, melting slowly over the meat—and the flavor will blow-away their taste buds!

Components Of Compound Butter

Compound butter consists of a good quality softened butter and any of the following mixed in:

  • Herbs (minced fine) and spices (freshly ground or cracked), e.g. garlic, onion, shallots, ginger, citrus zest, peppers, etc.
  • Salt, to taste.
  • Acid, often lemon juice or vinegar, to balance the flavors.
  • Sweet, rarely used, but might include honey, agave, maple, etc.
  • Exotic ingredients, rarely used, like black truffles.

Continue reading Compound Butter For Steaks & Seafood

Grilled Rhubarb

Grilled rhubarb

I’ll bet you’ve never grilled rhubarb. Well, I hadn’t either until recently when I listened to an interview with Tinky Weisblat, author of Love, Laughter, and Rhubarb. She was talking about the versatility of rhubarb as an ingredient in not only pies but cocktails, appetizers, and main courses, and at one point she mentioned that rhubarb can be grilled.

Who knew? I thought I’d give it a try.

Buy & Prepare The Rhubarb

This is what rhubarb looks like at my supermarket. It’s several individual stalks bound together with ties. They come in different sizes; I bought a small bundle of four stalks to experiment with. Continue reading Grilled Rhubarb

Cedar-Planked Goat Cheese Appetizer Three Ways

Cedar-planked goat cheese appetizer three ways

A cedar-planked goat cheese appetizer is not the first thing that comes to mind when I think about a pre-meal snack. Those who know me know that I’m more likely to grab a handful of potato chips or a slice of cheddar cheese on a Ritz cracker than head for the grilled goat cheese.

But here it was, Mother’s Day 2018. Time to do something new and different. A cedar-planked goat cheese appetizer that looks great, tastes great, and is easy to prepare on the road at Mom & Dad’s house on their Weber Genesis 2 gas grill. Continue reading Cedar-Planked Goat Cheese Appetizer Three Ways

Grilled Portobello Mushrooms On The Weber Gas Grill

Lately my wife has been grilling portobello mushrooms on our Weber Summit 450 gas grill. Here’s an example of one of her recent preparations.

Ingredients

Makes 2 servings. Double ingredients for 4 servings.

For the mushrooms:

  • 2 portobello mushrooms, stems removed and brushed clean. (Save stems for another use.)

Clean mushrooms with stems removed

Brushing mushroom caps

For the marinade:

  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons champagne vinegar
  • 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1.5 teaspoons Dijon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • 0.5 teaspoon Kosher salt
  • 0.5 teaspoon chopped cilantro

Continue reading Grilled Portobello Mushrooms On The Weber Gas Grill

Skirt Steak: Part 2

In a previous post, I wrote about the two types of skirt steak—outside skirt steak and inside skirt steak—and showed an example of grilling inside skirt steak with a spicy Korean marinade on my Weber Summit 450 gas grill.

In that post, I casually mentioned that both cuts of skirt steak can be a very long piece of meat (especially the more desirable outside skirt steak) and that it can be advantageous to cut it into smaller pieces before marinating and grilling.

I wanted to show you an example of a really long piece of outside skirt steak, one that I bought recently at a quality butcher counter here in San Jose. Continue reading Skirt Steak: Part 2

Naan Pizza On The Weber Gas Grill

Close-up of a naan pizza

I’ve tried making pizza a few times on the grill, but it always seems like a big hassle. I don’t want to make my own dough, I don’t want to track down ready-made dough at the supermarket, I’m not a big fan of those bready pre-made crusts…and don’t get me started on pizza stones!

So when I saw someone on television make pizza using naan, a thin Indian flatbread, I thought it looked easy enough to give it a try myself. Continue reading Naan Pizza On The Weber Gas Grill

USDA Prime Ribeye Cap Steaks From Costco

Seared USDA Prime ribeye cap steaks from Costco

Introduction

In a post last week, I encouraged you to try grilling a USDA Prime tri-tip roast. As long as I’m on a Prime meat kick, I’d like to suggest that you try the harder to find but oh so delicious USDA Prime ribeye cap steak, also available from time to time and in limited quantities at Costco.

I last grilled ribeye cap steaks in February 2016 and enjoyed them very much. In January 2018, I found ribeye cap steaks at Costco that were rolled, tied, and sliced into pinwheel steaks—a better presentation and easier to cook, I think. Continue reading USDA Prime Ribeye Cap Steaks From Costco

Bone-In Strip Steaks With Shallot Oil

In May 2017, I watched a Facebook Live session in which Harry Soo of Slap Yo’ Daddy BBQ grilled a steak using shallot oil as an added flavor element. I had no idea what shallot oil was, how it was made, or how it tasted on a steak, but I wanted to find out.

I searched the web, found several recipes for shallot oil, and picked one from New York Times Cooking that looked easy.

  • 1 cup peanut oil
  • 2 cups (about 7 oz.) thinly sliced shallots, Asian or European
  • Yield: 1 cup oil + 1 cup fried shallots
Shallots at the supermarket
Shallots at the supermarket

I went to the supermarket and bought 1/2 pound of shallots, which ended up being two shallots. No clue whether they were Asian or European, but I suspect the latter. Having never cooked with shallots before, I had no idea they would be as big as they were; I was expecting something smaller like a head of garlic. Continue reading Bone-In Strip Steaks With Shallot Oil