Tag: barbecue

Grilled Shrimp & Skirt Steak-Surf and Turf Time!

Grilled Shrimp & Skirt Steak-Surf and Turf Time!

The one consolation to the pandemic for us (which goes to show just how fortunate and entitled we are), my kids came home at various times for extended stays.  I’ll admit, having been empty-nesters for awhile, it took some adjusting but it was nice.  Despite finding ourselves falling back into the “parent-child” trap, conversations were much more introspective for all of us.

Surf and Turf

Dinner the night before the last J moved back to the City was a family favorite we haven’t done in quite awhile, a variation of Surf and Turf.  Grilled Rosemary Garlic Shrimp and Hoisin BBQ Skirt Steak.  Both are simple to make and delicious.

So the surf and turf started with skirt steak grilled on the bbq.  It’s so stupid easy I’ll just include the recipe here.  It is a one to one mixture of Hoisin Sauce and your favorite barbecue sauce.  Slather it all over the meat and allow to marinade for a couple of hours. That’s it.  You can pump it up with minced garlic and a bit of soy sauce if you like. Throw it on the barbie and grill to medium rare, done.  You could use Flat Iron, or Flank Steak (texture is pretty different though). Be forewarned, skirt steak is no longer an “economical” cut, yikes!

Shrimp Primer

In Asian cookery, leaving the shrimp shells on when cooking is a given.  My dad always told me to buy shrimp with the shells on, they taste fresher and more flavorful.  The shells seem to absorb the seasonings.  The way to eat them is to suck all the flavor off the shell-on shrimp and then peel the shrimp and eat it.  With deep-fried shrimp, you can actually eat the shells, it’s crispy, crunchy and delicious.  A favorite dish my dad would make, don’t chuckle, Ketchup Shrimp.  It’s roots are Cantonese. Shell on shrimp are stir-fried with aromatics like ginger and garlic and finished with Ketchup.  The flavor profile is sweet, salty, a hint of tart and it is quick and easy. I can remember happily munching on the shells, yums.  I bet these could be thrown on the grill too.

This grilled shrimp recipe is from Epicurious by way of the sadly defunct Gourmet magazine.  It’s been a favorite in our house for a long time, I think it will become a favorite in yours too.  

I deveined and removed the legs from the shrimp, leaving the shell and tail intact. The garlic is chopped and mashed with coarse salt and added to olive oil along with minced rosemary.  Please try to use fresh rosemary, its so fragrant or substitute fresh herb of choice like oregano, thyme, lemon zest and smoked paprika.

Allow the shrimp to marinade for 4-6 hours.  The beauty of this dish, you can make it year-around!  In the summer, throw it on the barbecue.  In the winter, like NOW, I use a stove top pan and grill 3-4 minutes a side until the shrimp turns color.  Serve with lemon wedges.  Good and easy.

GRILLED ROSEMARY GARLIC SHRIMP

Delicious and easy recipe for grilled shrimp
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Keyword garlic, Grilled shrimp, rosemary
Prep Time 15 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup finely chopped garlic mashed to a paste with 1 teaspoon coarse salt
  • 2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary leaves plus sprigs for garnish
  • 16 shrimp about 10-16 per pound jumbo or large
  • lemon wedges as an accompaniment
  • 3 tbsp olive oil plus oil for brushing shrimp

Instructions

  • In a large bowl stir together garlic, minced rosemary, and 3 tablespoons oil and add shrimp. Marinate shrimp, covered and chilled, at least 4 hours.
  • To grill, thread 4 shrimp on each skewer and brush with additional oil. Grill shrimp on an oiled rack, set about 5 inches over glowing coals, 3 to 4 minutes on each side, or until just cooked through.
  • Alternatively, grill in a hot well-season ridged grill pan, covered, over moderately high heat 3 to 4 minutes on each side, or until cooked through.
  • Garnish shrimp with rosemary sprigs and serve with lemon wedges.

Notes

If grilling outdoors, thread shrimp on skewers. The original recipe calls for putting shrimp on skewers, that's too much work for me!
Substitute herbs- use oregano or thyme, smoked paprika, 
For an Asian flavor profile mince garlic and ginger and add basil or cilantro.

Enjoy!

Grillin’ and Chillin’ (Vietnamese Grilled Chicken)

Grillin’ and Chillin’ (Vietnamese Grilled Chicken)

Summer!  Time to fire up the grill and take the cooking outdoors.  You will actually find us in our backyard cooking quite a bit and not just during the summer. Yes, we are that family that uses the barbecue at Thanksgiving or before the Rose Bowl game on New Year’s Day.  While much of the country is shoveling snow we are shoveling barbecued ribs and chicken into our mouths.  One of the perks of living in California.

Wes is the go to barbecue guy in our family.  I realized long ago that I should stick to indoor cooking.  In my defense I can make some pretty mean marinades for whatever our pit-boss is grilling.  A family favorite is grilled Vietnamese Chicken.  The marinade has so many bold and bright flavors characteristic of Southeast Asia-lemony, garlicky, sweet from honey and salty from fish sauce, its a taste explosion.  It has definitely become one of my standard marinades for barbecue chicken.  I hope it will become one of yours too.  The inspiration for my marinade comes from two wonderful cookbooks I have had on my shelf for years, The Foods of Vietnam (Nicole Routhier) and The Best of Vietnamese and Thai Cooking (Mai Pham).  Both are great primers for Vietnamese cooking.

chickenpsd

Don’t let the list of ingredients scare you off.  Most are readily available at Asian markets and at Whole Foods or Safeway.  In a pinch I have used lemon peel for lemongrass.  Though not as nuanced as lemongrass, lemon peel will add that citrusy flavor to your chicken.  Fish sauce adds umami (flavor) and a bit of pungency that kicks it up a notch.  Just thinking about this is making my mouth water!

Grillin’ and Chillin’ Vietnamese Gilled Chicken

Ingredients

For marinade:

  • 6 cloves of garlic
  • 2 shallots
  • 1/4 cup lemon grass diced or substitute lemon peel if not available, zest of1/2 lemon
  • 2 tablespoons nuoc mam fish sauce
  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 quarter -sized slice of ginger minced
  • 1/4 cup mild flavor honey
  • 1/3 to 1/2 cup vegetable oil

Approximately 2-3 pounds of chicken- breasts and thighs or drumsticks

  • 1 yellow onion sliced or cut into wedges
  • 1 lemon halved
  • 5-6 sprigs of cilantro optional

Instructions

  • Place marinade ingredients into blender or food processor and process until marinade is emulsified. Garlic, lemongrass and shallots should be finely minced.
  • Place chicken in a ziplock bag or large non-reactive bowl. Pour marinade over chicken
  • Add onion, lemon and cilantro and mix thouroughly.
  • Marinade for up to 2-6 hours or overnight in fridge.
  • Bring to room temperature before grilling.

Wes's Barbecue tips:

  • Gas grill: Preheat grill for 12 minutes, Inside burners on low and outside burners on high.
  • Place chicken pieces in center of grill, skin down.
  • Turn off middle burners either right before or right after placing chicken on grill
  • Cook covered for 12 minutes (temperature will be approximately 400 degrees)
  • Flip chicken and grill for additional 15 minutes. Check for doneness.
  • Remove and let stand for 5 minutes.
  • We like our chicken on the edge, as in just done..nothing worse than dry chicken, so you may find you need to grill a little longer.
  • Enjoy!