Cinco de Mayo – Burnin’ Love Style!

Cinco de Mayo is the kind of holiday that outdoor cooks live for. Grilled meat, fresh tortillas, hot sauces and salsas, and plenty of Cerveza Fria!

Cinco de Mayo (Spanish for “fifth of May”) is a celebration held on May 5 (duh). It’s celebrated nationwide in the United States and regionally in Mexico, primarily in the state of Puebla, where the holiday is called El Dia de la Batalla de Puebla (English: The Day of the Battle of Puebla).The date is observed observed to commemorate the Mexican army’s unlikely victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. Contrary to widespread popular belief, Cinco de Mayo is not Mexico’s Independence Day—the most important national patriotic holiday in Mexico—which is actually celebrated on September 16.

Today, revelers mark the occasion with parades, parties, mariachi music, Mexican folk dancing and traditional foods such as tacos and mole poblano. Some of the largest festivals are held in Los Angeles, Chicago and Houston.

Here’s what dinner’s gonna look like at my house, this year…

Carne Asada

Carne Asada is a Mexican recipe for marinated, grilled beef served in in tortillas. This is not your run of the mill taco. This is a flavorful and delicious meal that is great for any occasion, and, for my money, skirt steak is one of the best cuts of meat you can ever toss on the grill!

Prep Time: 30 minutes     Cook Time: 12 minutes      Total Time: 42 minutes

Yield: Serves 6 to 8

2 pounds skirt steak
12 flour tortillas
1/2 cup tequila
1/2 cup lime juice
1/4 cup orange juice
4 cloves garlic crushed
1 medium onion chopped
2 teaspoons black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cumin
1 cup fresh pepper pico
1 cup simple guacamole
2 teaspoons hot sauce

Mix juices, garlic, onion, tequila, hot sauce, cumin, salt and pepper in a bowl. Add meat and marinate both sides. Cover and refrigerate, turning meat over occasionally. Let steak marinade for 6 to 8 hours. Preheat grill. Place a few drops of water on each tortilla, stack and wrap in aluminum foil. Place on grill. Remove meat from marinade, discarding marinade.

Place on grill. Turn steak and tortillas once during cooking. Cook to your liking (12 to 15 minutes for medium-rare). Cut into thin slices, across the grain. Place a few slices of steak on each tortilla with salsa and guacamole and serve.

Fresh Pepper Pico

Some folks aren’t fans of the heat, like I am…so I developed this recipe to allow me to minimize the fire by cutting out the jalapeno and some of the white onion (yes, some folks find white onion to be “too hot”) but still retain the contrasting crunch of those crisp, raw veggies with the fresh tomatoes. (And it’s purty, too!)

This attempt got major kudos from the “Mild not Wild” portion of the family.

5 fresh Roma tomatoes, chilled and diced
1/2 large white onion, diced
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 large orange bell pepper, diced
2 Tbs fresh squeezed lime juice
2 Tbs fresh minced garlic
Salt & pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving.

Simple Guacamole

3 medium Haas avocados, ripe. Peeled and diced.
1 Tbs lime juice
Salt, pepper, garlic powder to taste.

Mix and chill

Elote (Mexican grilled corn)

4 ears corn, shucked
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup grated cotija cheese
4 wedges lime

Preheat your grill for medium-high heat.

Grill corn until hot and lightly charred all over, 7 to 10 minutes, depending on the temperature of the grill. Roll the ears in melted butter, then spread evenly with mayonnaise. Sprinkle with cotija cheese and serve with a lime wedge.

Watermelon Margaritas

1 teaspoon lime zest
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons coarse salt
1 lime wedge
1 cup watermelon puree (*see note)
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/2 cup premium 100 percent agave tequila
1 cup ice

In a medium saucepan, combine the lime zest, water, and sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat, and cook, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat. Cool to room temperature and strain out the zest. (Can be made in advance; keep in a covered container in the refrigerator.)

Chill a margarita glass in the freezer for 30 minutes. Place the coarse salt in a shallow dish or saucer. Wet the rim of the glass with a lime wedge and dip the glass into the salt, coating the top edge.

In a cocktail shaker, combine 2 tablespoons of the cooled lime syrup with the watermelon puree, lime juice, tequila, and ice. Shake until frothy and well chilled, at least 1 minute. Strain into the prepared glass and garnish with a lime wedge.

*Note: To make the watermelon puree, remove seeds from fresh watermelon and cut into large chunks. Place in a blender and process until smooth.

Ole Baby!

-Perry

How to Spatchcock and Inject Whole Chickens for Grilling

Here’s a video we put together, over at our sister-site www.hautemealz.com, on how to spatchcock (remove the backbone) and inject a whole chicken with marinade.

This a a great method for adding some amazing flavors, while reducing your grilling or roasting time by almost half.

Enjoy!

Here’s the injection recipe I like to use:

2 Tbs Tabasco Sauce (I like the new Buffalo flavor)
2 Tbs apple cider vinegar
2 Tbs Lemon Juice
2 Tbs Light Brown Sugar
2 Tbs Worcestershire Sauce
2 Tbs fine sea salt
1/2 Orange Juice
2 cups apple juice

Heat and stir to dissolve solids, cool, and inject into the whole chicken (see video), then allow chicken to rest for 1 hour before cooking.

Cook the chicken over medium-high, indirect heat (i.e. no coals or burners on directly under the bird), with the grill cover on, for approximately one hour, or until the internal temperature registers 160 degrees F in the breast area and 175 degrees F in the thigh.

Remove from grill and let rest for 10 minutes before carving.

Enjoy!

-Perry

Cigar del pinar with Yellow Sriracha Sauce

Here’s an awesome appetizer to keep the zombie hordes away from your grill at the next cook-out. I’ve made this recipe a couple of times this month, first for out G.R.U.N.T.S. inaugural dinner, and – because it was so good – again for an appetizer for out hautemealz.com Easter feast.

The first gig was a Cuban theme and that’s how I found this recipe…well, actually, I never did find a recipe, just this description:

“Cumin spiced ground beef it mixed with olives as well hard-boiled egg and other spices then its rolled in light pastry and deep fried till golden and crunchy, its served with a habanero sauce, that is just slightly spicy and compliments the dish really nicely.”

With those in-depth instructions, I decided to use egg-roll sheets (big won-ton wrappers), Roberto Guerra’s Cuban hamburger recipe for the meat, and make my yellow sriracha sauce for dinner.

Perfect storm, baby.

Cigars del Pinar

1/2 lb ground sirloin (15% fat)
1/2 lb ground pork
1/2 lb pork/beef chorizo
1 Tbs each cumin, salt, ground pepper
1 cup black olives, chopped
1 lg yellow onion, diced
5 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
2 cups cabbage, shredded
20 egg-roll wrappers (1 pkg)
Peanut oil for frying

In a large skillet, cook meats with onion and spices, until cooked through and finely crumbled. Drain most of the excess oil and mix (still hot) with the cabbage. Add in the olives and eggs, and toss until well combined.

Place 2-3 Tbs of this mixture onto a egg-roll wrapper, and roll up (see slideshow, below) wetting the ends with a brush of warm water, to seal.

Bring 2 inches of oil to medium high heat in a large, heavy skillet. Using long tongs, add the egg-rolls in batches, leaving plenty of cooking room around each. Fry until golden and crispy (it goes quick 1-2 minutes per side, max). Remove to paper towels to drain.

Serve warm with cold Yellow Sriracha Sauce

Note: Plan to finish these up at least 15 minutes before you intend to serve them, the interiors stay freakin’ hot for a long time!

How to Roll a Cigar (del Pinar, that is…)

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Yellow Sriracha Sauce

4 yellow bell peppers, diced
1 hot yellow pepper*, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup distilled white vinegar
1 Tbs light brown sugar

Chop the peppers and place in a bowl. Add garlic, salt & vinegar. Cover and let set on the counter overnight or 8 hours.

In the morning, remove peppers & garlic from bowl and place in saucepan. Add 1/4 cup of the vinegar mixture, 2 Tbs of water and the brown sugar.

You can add more vinegar if you want it more tart and a thin sauce. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 5 min. Remove from heat and cool slightly.

Puree until blended but it still has texture.

*For more heat, replace with a habanero, minced.

Clambakes and Grilled Oysters in La Caja China

One of the fine folks over at the La Caja China Facebook page, asked: “Any tips for a clam bake in a La Caja China?”

Okay, I’ve done oysters and clams, both on the grill, and in the box. If you want a real “bake”…here’s what I would do:

Place a couple of disposable 1/2 sheet baking pans in the bottom of the caja, and put the Over Size Grill, 21″ x 40″ (http://www.lacajachina.com/over-size-grill-21-x-40/) on top. Fill the pans 1/2 way with boiling water, and close up the Caja China. Start you coals, as usual, and burn until ready to spread (you’re “pre-heating” your caja), carefully remove the lid and place your clams/oysters/lobsters, with split yams, par-boiled potatoes, shucked sweet corn, etc, on the interior grill.

Close her up, and roast 45 minutes to 1½ hours.

Be ready with your favorite melted butter recipe!

Now, let’s talk about oysters. I love oysters…I love ‘em so much, I’ve written two novels and a cookbook about ‘em (okay, so there was other stuff in the novels, but plenty about oysters, too! lol) Here’s my favorite grilled oyster recipe…

Twice Grilled Oysters…and a Little History

 Chinook Indians gathered for centuries along Washington’s Long Beach Peninsula to harvest oysters and other seafood. They called it “tsako-te~hahsh-eetl” or “place of the red-topped grasses.”

In 1854, while thousands were streaming into California in hope of finding gold, a young sailor named R.H. Espy was searching for his own treasure far up the northern coast. He became lost while navigating Washington’s then uncharted Shoalwater Bay and, in a heavy fog, Espy and his men feared they would paddle out to sea and never be seen again.

Lucky for them, the local Indian Chief spotted them and led them safely to shore.

On that shore, Espy found his treasure…in the form of vast clusters of native oysters, growing along the unclaimed mudflats of the bay. In San Francisco, hungry treasure-hunters paid fifty-dollars a plate for oysters, and soon Espy staked his claim and hit his mother-lode.

The oystermen were paid in gold, and Oysterville became the second richest city on the West Coast.

Today, tiny Oysterville is a National Historic District, and fresh oysters can still be found in Shoalwater (now Willapa) Bay. A number of small, family owned farms spurn the use of dredging a pesticides used by the larger corporations, and harvest fresh, deliciously organic oysters daily.

My family and I visit Oysterville often, and we love everything about this tiny town that time forgot. So much so, in fact, that two of my novels are based there. We get our oysters, hand-harvested, directly from the bay.

Here’s a favorite recipe of mine for those who truly love oysters…

Twice Grilled Oysters

2 dz med-small fresh oysters, in shell
¼ cup Tillamook butter
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp lemon pepper

Combine butter, garlic, and lemon pepper in pan. Heat until simmering, stirring often, remove from heat and set aside.

Heat grill to med-high and scrub oysters under cold water with a wire brush.

Place oysters, cup side down*, on grill and close the lid.

Cook oysters 5-8 minutes, checking periodically. When an oyster has “popped” (the lid of the shell has opened, remove the oyster from the grill and set aside until cool enough to handle.

Reduce heat to med-low.

Remove the lid of each shell, cutting the oyster loose if necessary, and place cooked oyster in cup of shell, with about ½ of the remaining liquor.

Drizzle on teaspoon of seasoned butter over each oyster and return to the grill. Cover and allow to cook 10-15 minutes. Finished oysters will be a deep grey with browned and blackened edges.

Remove from grill and allow to cool until the shells can be handled. Serve.

Notes:

Re-grilling the oysters at a low heat with butter infuses them with a rich, nutty flavor that is completely unlike the taste of a “once cooked” oyster.

Tip: To make a unique and delicious spread, use chilled slow grilled oysters in your favorite cream-cheese based oyster spread recipe.

*To keep oysters upright on the grill, roll tinfoil into 1-inch diameter tubes and make a ring for each oyster to set in.

Teriyaki Duck Fries and Sausage

Okay…here’s your warning, straight up…this is a deep-end-of-the-pool recipe. If you get grossed out at the thought of eating organ meats or “nose to tail” cooking, you should leave this page right now and go look at another recipe. We have some awesome ones posted here.

If you choose not to leave, I’m taking zero crap from you about this post.

Good…now that they’re gone, we’re free to talk about my recent adventure with duck balls.

A few weeks back I got an email from OpenSky (an online shopping site) that Andrew Zimmern, a hero of mine, and star of Bizarre Foods, Bizarre World, and Bizarre Food America, had partnered with D’Artagnan, a famous gourmet food store, to offer a “Bizarre Meats Bundle“, including:

Duck Fries (5 lbs)
Veal Sweetbreads (20 oz)
Duck Tongue (1 lb)
Cockscombs (5 lbs)

The sweetbreads, which I chicken-fried, were absolutely amazing, the duck tongues were tasty, but kinda a pain to eat…a lot like in-the-shell pistachios, where you just get to a point where you’re not sure the pay-out is worth the effort.

Cockscombs are still in the freezer, being saved for an upcoming underground event.

That leaves the duck fries, which in the moniker they hang on (if you’ll pardon the expression) duck testicles. Specifically, the testicles from Moulard ducks raised on a duck farm in New York in a stress free and cage free environment. They are kidney-shaped and pale tan in color, and, honestly, (like many foods) not very appetizing to look at in their raw state.

I was pretty jazzed to try these out, but here was the problem…the only recipe I could find that was an actual recipe, was the one listed on the OpenSky page.

Now, it’s a great looking recipe…but I’m sittin’ here with 5 POUNDS of Daffy’s family jewels, and I can assure you, I’m the only one here who’s going to eat them! So, I went through the fridge and started pulling ingredients, and here’s what I came up with…it was awesome!

Teriaki Duck Fries and Sausage
Serves 4

1/2 lb duck fries, thawed
1/2 lb pork sausage links, cooked and cut 1/2 inch
2 Tbs fresh minced garlic
1/2 shallot, diced
salt & pepper to taste
2 Tbs Thai basil, chopped
1 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce (I like Yoshidas)
2 cups jasmine rice, cooked and hot
2 Tbs diced green onions (the green part)
2 tsp toasted sesame seeds

Wash duck fries and cut away any connecting membrane.

Heat olive oil in pan over medium heat, saute garlic and shallot until softened and translucent, but not browned. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and add duck fries, basil, and sausage pieces. Increase heat to medium-high and saute, stirring occasionally, until duck fries are opaque…add chicken stock, stir and allow to cook 5 minutes, or until most of the stock has cooked away. Add teriyaki sauce, stir and cook an additional five minutes, stirring often until glazed.

Spoon 1 cup of hot jasmine rice into a bowl, top with 1/4 cup of duck fry/sausage mixture. Sprinkle with onion greens and toasted sesame seeds.

Serve immediately.

Oh, and just so the truth is out there…my wife, because she’s awesome, tried them, and my 4y/o daughter and Bizarre-foods sidekick, Gracie, loved them!

Here’s Andrew’s video, enjoy!