Weekly Favorites 05/20/18 to 05/26/18

This week's batch of favorite food and restaurant articles features summer and summer flavors!


Whatever Happened to Sun-Dried Tomatoes? - via Taste Cooking

Sun Dried Tomatoes
Photo Credit Taste Cooking/Antonis Achilleos

Personally, I love sun-dried tomoatoes. I like them in sandwiches, pizza, salads, you name it. But I do know, that are quite a few folks out there who don't care for them. What's your take on them?

Game Changing Grill Hacks
Photo Credit Delish.com

10 Game-Changing Barbecue Hacks You Need in Your Life This Summer - via Delish.com

With Memorial Day just around the corner, summer is officially here. Barbecues will be a regular occurrence. I even saw that our neighborhood pool is opening next week! This barbecue hacks will you up your game on and around the grill!

Backyard Pitmaster

Brisket U Certificate

Over the weekend, my wife surprised me a  backyard barbecue class with Brisket U. These classes are all taught by certified KCBS judges and pitmasters, who are often members of competitive barbecue teams! At the end of the 3 hour class, you will have all of the knowledge you need to smoke the perfect brisket in your backyard. As much as I'd like to give you some pointers here, I don't think the folks at Brisket U would appreciate it! You'll just

have to find a class near you!

Weekly Favorites 03/11/18 to 03/17/18

Another week gone by, and another list of my favorite food and restaurant articles!

Performance Plate - via Outside Magazine

Energy Bars - Photo Credit Six Studio Stocksy

I don't get out as much as I used to, but I still consider myself a pretty active, outdoorsy guy. If you're like me, a good snack bar or granola bar goes a long way when hunger strikes. Here, Outside Magazine's editors bring you the top list of snack bars! 

Shrimp and Carolina Gold Rice "Grits" - via Garden & Gun

Shrimp and Carolina Gold Grits
Photo Credit Johnny Autry/Garden & Gun

We don't make shrimp and grits often, but when we do, watch out, there's a shrimp or grit that stands a chance! So when I saw this Chinese influence shrimp and rice dish, I had to click on it! And you better believe I'll be making this sometime soon!

Southern Soul's Brunswick Stew Recipe - via Garden & Gun

Southern Soul's Brunswick Stew Recipe
Photo Credit Garden & Gun

I don't know exactly what it was that drew me in to this recipe, maybe it was the smoked meat, or the spice, or the  fact that serves 15 to 18 people, but I do know, that I am going to have to try it! 

11 Truly Old-School Red Sauce Italian Joints in NYC - via Eater.com

Baked Ravioli at Frost
Photo Credit Robert Sietsema/Eater.com

When I think of New York City, I always think of classic Italian restaurants either in Little Italy or The Bronx or Brooklyn. Here, eater.com lays out 11 of the best old-school Italian joints to check out next time you find yourself there!

Weekly Favorites 02/11 to 02/17

My favorite food and restaurant articles I came across this week! I've been finding myself drawn to unconventional places to read about food this week, most notably, Outside Magazine.









The Simple Meal That's Powering Team USA  - via Outside Magazine

An Olympic Breakfast
Photo Credit: Outside Magazine

With the Olympics in full swing, this article stood out and seemed appropriate to include. I don't want to give too much away, but I'll say three words: Oats, eggs, and coffee.


HEB Buys a Delivery Service - via eater.com

Photo Credit: HEB

Food delivery services are in full swing, and for good reason. Why take time to go the store if you don't have too. So much productivity comes out of these services. Texas based HEB has now acquired it's very own on-demand food
service, a startup called F
avor.

Four Go-to Camper Meals
Photo Credit: Outside Magazine

Four Go-to Camper Meals - via Outside Magazine

I used to do a lot of camping and backpacking. The challenge was to find good food to make that was edible and nutritious as well as being portable enough to take camping. These four meals will definitely come in handy next time I make a trip!

Why Do Barbecue Pitmasters Always Wear Black Gloves
Photo Credit: Austin American-Statesman

Why Do Barbecue Pitmasters Wear Black Gloves - via Austin American-Statesman

I can honestly say that I have always wondered why barbecue pitmasters wear those black gloves. Now I know!

Junior's Texas BBQ and Seafood

I went through the archives and found another throwback post from my days as the Houston BBQ Examiner. This time around, I'm sharing a restaurant review I wrote for Junior's Texas BBQ and Seafood!

Junior's Texas Barbecue and Seafood

Although the restaurant and clientele may seem a little ruff on the outside, it is quickly apparent that Junior’s Texas Barbecue and Seafood is a place where everybody knows your name. It is apparent that the people sitting around the bar have all shared some good times together. The restaurant is homely and everybody is a friend. You will quickly find yourself caught up in a conversation with a stranger, enjoying a beer.

The menu covers the classic barbecue and seafood dishes with little flair, but the food itself makes up for it. A perfectly sweet barbecue sauce accompanies the tender brisket and ribs, chicken and turkey, ham and sausage. The chopped beef sandwich is great and far from a sloppy-joe, like some of the other places out there. The beef in these sandwiches has a ruff chop that helps the sandwich to really stick together. The seafood options include fried shrimp baskets and poboys, all served with fries. The classic barbecue sides, beans, coleslaw, and potato salad are all there too.

The only draw back is the service, which is where everybody being friends turns out to be a bad thing. Often times, the waitresses seem busier catching up with friends than bringing out the food orders. But, it is hard to feel unwelcome with the friendly waitresses, and the clientele make up for the wait, making the time fly by.

All in all, Junior’s is worth a try. Stop by for lunch or dinner, or for a drink with friends after work.

Happy Eating.

Homemade Barbecue Sauce

Spring is around the corner and Summer will follow soon after. That means that barbecues and pool days are on the way! The best thing to add to those barbecues and cookouts is the perfect homemade barbecue sauce.


The Recipe:

Homemade Barbecue Sauce

• 3 Cups Tomato Puree
• 2/3 Cups Apple Cider Vinegar
• 2/3 Cup Packed Brown Sugar
• 1/4 Cup Molasses
• 2 Tablespoons Onion Powder
• 2 Tablespoons Garlic Powder
• 2 Tablespoons Pepper
• 2 Teaspoons Celery Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Cayenne (optional)
• 2 Teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce

Combine all ingredients in a sauce pot and bring almost to a boil. Reduce heat let simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. 

After 1 hour, bring out the blender. This will help remove any clumps that have formed and bring all of the flavors together. If you have an immersion blender (if you don't have one, I highly recommend you get one), you can blend it up directly in the pot and save a dish.

Let it simmer for another 30 minutes.

If you are looking for a spicy barbecue sauce, add the cayenne pepper.

Most good barbecue sauce recipes out there have some beer in the base. A good bock or dark lager works well. Add about a 1/2 Cup to bring out some more flavor in your sauce.

Tin Roof BBQ

Tin Roof Barbecue

I went in to the archives for this article. Literally. About seven years ago I was the the Houston Barbecue Examiner for Examiner.com. Saddly, my page on Examiner.com has gone inactive. Fortunately I saved all of my articles! One of my favorite articles is this one written about local barbecue restaurant Tin Roof Barbecue in Atascocita, TX. 

Locally Owned Barbecue

Tin Roof Barbecue Hours
They are now open on Sundays from 11 AM to 3 P

Owned by a retired Houston Police Officer and his wife, Tin Roof Barbeque in Atascocita, is a great place to spend a lunch break or to treat the entire family for dinner. When the weather is nice, the deck is a great place to sit and smell the smoke from grills.
Run in a house built in 1927, complete with tin roof, the barbeque is accompanied by great Texas charm, making adults and children alike feel like they are home. Ron Webber arrives at the restaurant around 4:00am every morning to get all of his grills going. His wife Nancy makes all of the sides and desserts to pair with the various meat dishes.
The menu includes old barbeque favorites, accompanied by creative names. The Lone Star is a one meat, two-side combo, and the Wild Cat is a chopped beef sandwich. Something few have ever ventured to try is the Badwich, a sandwich that offers a little bit of everything between two pieces of bread. All the menu items are excellent and none of them will steer you wrong, but a house favorite, averaging at over five pounds, is the stuffed spud. Happy eating.

 

14 mouthwatering recipes for your Labor Day barbecue | Fox News

Labor Day is coming up! Here are some ideas if you are stumped on what to make.



14 mouthwatering recipes for your Labor Day barbecue | Fox News:



'via Blog this'

The Best BBQ Joints in Every State in the U.S.

I'm a huge fan of BBQ, as you've probably guessed. Looks like a road trip is in order, at least to the lower 48! A lot of these places look amazing, though there are 1 or 2 I don't necessarily agree with.



The Best BBQ Joints in Every State in the U.S.:



'via Blog this'

BBQ Chicken

Time to dust off the blog. I haven't been keeping up with it the past few years. Things are a little bit different for me now than they were at my last post. I have a new kitchen to play with, but I also have 2 little boys to play with, Oliver and Wes. They keep me pretty busy, but I am finding new inspiration from them every day, and I love watching them grow and learn new things.

The other day it was beautiful outside and decided to grill something. We settled on BBQ Chicken.

For this recipe gather the following:

• A Grill - preferably a charcoal grill
• Charcoal and wood - I prefer lump charcoal vs briquettes. I like to mix in different flavors with the wood I use. I've been really in to pecan, oak, apple, and cherry woods. I typically soak the wood in a bucket of water to provide more smoke. It also helps control the heat.
• Chicken - This time I used some boneless, skinless chicken thighs. That's what was available in the fridge, but I prefer skin on, bone in chicken. I typically grill a mix of pieces. 
• Sauce
• BBQ Rub

Both the sauce and BBQ rub are preferential. Pick what you like. I'm not using anything that can't be found in any local grocery store.

Get the grill going while the chicken is prepped. I use a chimney starter to light the charcoal; never use lighter fluid. Get the grill to around 350 degrees.

Apply a generous amount of the BBQ rub to the chicken and set it on the grill away from the heat. Once the bottom and sides start to change color, flip the chicken to the other side. This is usually 20 to 30 minutes per side.

With both sides cooked, use a brush or mop to apply some sauce generously to the chicken. Let it sit a few minutes and flip. Add sauce to the other side. Let it sit a few minutes and the chicken is done.

A few things to try with the chicken is some smoked sausage or an onion. I'll add the onion as soon as I put the chicken on and let the smoke do it's work. If I'm adding sausage to the mix, I'll add it after I flip the chicken the first time. Sausage is typically precooked and just needs to be reheated.

BBQ chicken pairs well with a lot of different foods. Coleslaw, potato salad, corn, the list goes on and on. I made some pinto beans, mac and cheese, and cornbread to go along with mine.