Saturday, June 25, 2011

Bacon wrapped pork tenderloin (pig in a pig)

You wanted more bacon, here you go!

Trim the silver skin and excess fat from the pork tenderloin, use toothpicks to wrap in bacon. Hit it with pepper and grill indirect on medium heat. With all the bacon fat it flares up pretty easy so keep a close eye on it (which is pretty fun anyway because this is one of the best smelling recipes out there).

Also great to finish with your favorite barbecue sauce.

Remove the toothpicks and cut into 1-2" slices.

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Clean out that freezer... Bacon wrapped shrimp and sea scallops

The world agrees: anything wrapped in bacon tastes good.

Dijonnaiasse glaze in descending order: mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, honey, melted butter, olive oil, minced garlic, pepper.

Partially cook the bacon in the microwave. Remove excess fat if you want to (my bacon was really fatty so I did this). Pre-cooking the bacon allows you to cook the shrimp and scallops on their own time, rather than worrying about under-cooking the bacon. Plus the bacon gets crispy on the grill.

Wrap the shrimp and scallops in bacon.

Salt and pepper the shrimp.

Grill until 2/3 done then add the sauce. I opted for a split of dijonnaisse and BBQ sauce this time. Both are great with bacon... (Carsons sauce from Chicago is awesome).

Great with Pinot Noir, Red Zin, or your favorite beer, and your favorite woman.

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Marinated, Grilled Leg of Lamb

A few years ago I grilled a leg of lamb and I really didn't put any art or science into it, and the result showed.  This time I thought it through, scoured the web for best practices and recipes and came up with my own hybrid "best of" recipe with ingredients taylored to what Amy and I love.   Here's the marinade, and I never measure, but... always consider first the salt, you want some salt in the marinade but not too much.  How much is too much?  I don't really know, but I do know I can always add more later.

With marinades, the intent is to increase the flavor as well as the tenderness, so don't be shy with your favorite seasoning. 

Ingredient list (in approximate order of how much I used):
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
Dijon mustard
Lemon juice (and I also used some shaved leomon rind which gives great flavor)
Vinegar
Garlic
Shallot
Truffle oil
Soy sauce
Pepper
Rosemary
Thyme
Salt (soy sauce already gave us some salt)

Combine the ingredientes and place in a food processor.

The lamb... Trim the excess fat and butterfly the meat (slice it further so you can spread it out on the grill).  You don't want a big "roast", you want the meat to be of even thickness so that it cooks evenly.  I wish I'd have taken a picture to show where I sliced it, but hey, part of the fun is trying something new and figuring it out on your own. 

Place the lamb and the marinade in a zip-lock bag and let marinate overnight.  Some recipes say you can marinate for a few hours, and I'm sure that is great, but I love the stronger flavor that an overnight marinade provides.


Sear it on both sides against the hottest part of the grill.  Don't leave it alone for too long due to the fat in the olive oil.

If you have your coals spread out evenly and the fire isn't too hot, you can cook this directly over the charcoal with minimal flare-ups. 


I used "hardwood lump charcoal"... smells great and I like how it looks.


Grill to medium rare (pull off the grill at about 125 degrees).  Let it sit for a few minutes then slice it against the grain (about 1/2 inch slices or thinner is good), on an angle.  Great with Pinot Noir or Zinfandel (yes, red).