Prime rib has become a New Year’s Eve tradition at our house. So much so that I started craving it a good two weeks ago. While researching recipes, I ran across Michael Ruhlman’s grill/roast method. It involves searing the roast on the grill, letting it rest, and then finishing it in the oven.

Perfect.

We had plans to go see a comedy show with friends, so the goal was to have all the prepping and searing done in advance and quickly finish it when we got home.

Prime Rib
1 6-pound Hereford Beef boneless ribeye roast
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
2 tablespoons dried rosemary leaves
2 tablespoons dried thyme or oregano
2 tablespoons kosher or sea salt
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon paprika

Prepping the roast started on New Year’s Eve eve. First I scored the fat cap (deckle) on the roast, making shallow diagonal cuts in a diamond pattern at about 1-inch intervals. Then I combined the salt and spices to make a rub inspired by Mrs. O’Leary’s Cow Crust from AmazingRibs. I put the roast into a jelly roll pan and start working the rub into the meat, making sure to get it into the slashes in the deckle – sprinkling, rubbing, rolling, and repeating to coat all the sides. Working over a 6-pound hunk of meat is not the time to be shy. I picked up any rub that had fallen off by bouncing the roast against it, making manly grunting sounds as needed .

When the roast was heavily crusted with rub, I moved it to a rack set over a roasting pan, and then moved the whole works to the fridge, letting the roast sit uncovered overnight.

On New Year’s Eve afternoon, I removed the roast from the fridge and let it sit out while I fired the Big Green Egg up to nuclear temps – 800°F on the dome thermometer, meaning the grate was probably about 1000°F.

I took the roast off the rack and seared it on the grate for 2 minutes on each side (considering this was a $50 piece of meat, those were some of the longest 4 minutes of my life). I removed the roast to the rack and closed the vents on the BGE to reduce the heat to 500°F. I put the roast back on the grate for another 2 more minutes on each side.

I moved the roast back to the rack and inserted a Maverick remote thermometer. While the outside was wonderfully crispy, the internal temp was only 42°F (about air temp). I stashed the roast in the garage with a disposable drip pan as a cover and went inside to get ready for our guests.

By the time we were ready to leave for the show, the internal temp had risen to 75°F. When we returned it had dropped to 60°F.

I let the oven heat to 300°F, added about a cup of water to the roasting pan to keep the juices from burning, and put the roast on the middle rack of the oven to finishing cooking.

“Wait a minute – you let a beef roast sit naked in the fridge overnight, seared it so it was still raw inside, then let is sit for 4 hours in a garage, and you still plan to serve this to guests?!? Don’t you like them? How can that be safe?”

I hear you, but it’s perfectly okay. While I wouldn’t do this with ground meat, the inside of a roast is largely a sterile environment. Any nasties that get on the meat in the fridge are not going to grow because of the cold and the salt in the rub. Searing kills anything on the meat, and 4 hours in a unheated garage in a northern climate is pretty much the same as storing it for that long in the fridge. Yes, the internal temp is 75°F, but there’s no way for anything to contaminate the inside, and finishing it in the oven again kills off anything on the outside that might give you the gleep.

It took 2 1/2 very long hours for the roast to hit 125°F internal  (good thing for appetizers, wine and great conversation!). I removed it from the rack and let it rest, covered, on a cutting board for 20 minutes while I made the Yorkshire pudding.

The Verdict: 4.5 out of 5 stars While it was midnight before the meal hit the table, our hungry (and extremely patient) friends said that it was well worth the wait. I gotta agree – the crust was thick and tasty with lots of salt and herbs while the inside was an almost perfect rosy rare.

But while the food was a hit, the timing was amiss. The show ran longer than we expected and that not only meant that the roast was late getting in the oven, but that it took longer to cook because its internal temp had dropped. Prime rib does taste wonderful with champagne, but I don’t think dining at midnight is going to become a tradition around here.

The Nutrition: Meals like this are the reason people make resolutions. Make it a great new year!

Tiz that time of year when folks start looking for gifts for their favorite foodie. Because every cook has different tastes, and because your mileage may vary, this year I’m going to try to avoid making recommendations.

Instead, here are some products that I’ve enjoyed using this past year. I wholeheartedly give them the Food & Fire Seal of Approval (for what that’s worth ). If you think your grill guy/girl might appreciate some of them, go for it and enjoy the great food that (hopefully) may come your way in return!

Steel Grill Roaster from Williams-Sonoma – It’s a perforated stainless steel pan, so the food gets directly exposed to the flame, but it’s raised up a bit so it cooks more evenly. Great for roast veggies and shrimp.

Cholula Hot Sauce - There are now 4 flavors of Cholula: Original, Chili Garlic, Chili Lime, and Chipotle. I’ve been a big fan of their original sauce for years – not much heat or vinegar, but a solid chili taste that works great on almost any Mexican dish. The new sauces take that original flavor and add some very nice accents to it.

Bayou Classic Cast Iron Griddle - I’ve had this for a while, but really put it to work this year. I’ve made some excellent blackened steaks and sizzling fajitas on it.

Thermapen Splash-Proof Thermometer - The new version of my favorite  instant-read thermometer adds a splash-proof seal. It’s fast, accurate, and easy to read. I like it so much I now I have the new one in my grill table and old one in the kitchen.

High-Que Fire Grate Upgrade - I’ve been cooking with this new grate for the Big Green Egg for 6 months and it works as promised. The Egg comes up to temp faster and burns between 25°F and 50°F hotter than it did with the old grate. I’ve not had any problems with ash clogging the grate, even though I usually reuse the lump.

Emile Henry Flame-Top Cookware - I’ve been lucky enough to get to try out Emile Henry’s new line of flameproof ceramic that’s designed to go directly on a live flame. I’ve tried their tagine, Dutch oven, and pizza stone and they all cook like champs.

All-Clad d5 Stainless Pans - My dear wife gave me a nice set of new All-Clad pans almost a year ago. I’ve cooked the hell out of them since then, and continue to be very pleased with them. They heat evenly, respond quickly to temperature changes, and are easy to clean.

Wishing you all a happy and a healthy and a merry!

Being a northerner with not a speck of Italian heritage, my experience with corn grits has been pretty limited. Growing up, it (sadly) just wasn’t a food that was on my radar.

Since becoming gluten-free, however, that’s all changed. Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free Corn Grits/Polenta has become my new best friend. My dear wife makes wonderful pizza crusts with it, and I’ve served it as both a cheesy side dish and as a pasta-replacement topped with pork ragú. This year for Thanksgiving, I wanted to try a polenta dressing in place of my usual cornbread recipe.

6 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 cups coarse-ground grits
16 ounces cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 cup milk
6 large eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion,chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
1 medium bell pepper, chopped
8 ounces Andouille sausage, chopped
1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
1-2 tablespoons Louisiana-style hot sauce

Preheat your oven to 350°F and grease up a 4-quart Dutch oven.

In a large saucepan, bring the broth, salt, pepper, and Cajun seasoning to a boil. Whisk in the grits. Bring to a low boil, whisking frequently, then reduce the heat to low and simmer until the grits are thick, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.

While the grits are cooking, heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, bell pepper, and garlic and saute until the onion softens (about 5 minutes). Add the Andouille and cook until it is heated through and starts to give off some oil (about another 5 minutes). Remove the pan from the heat and let cool.

In a small bowl, whisk the eggs and milk together. In a large bowl, pour in the polenta and then stir in both the cheese and sausage mixture. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt, pepper, and hot sauce.

Gradually stir the egg mixture into the polenta, mixing until everything is combined. Pour the works into the Dutch oven.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the center is set and the edges are a bit brown.

The Verdict: 4.5 out of 5 stars
While this was way too spicy for my relatives, my dear wife and I loved it – rich, creamy, crunchy, and spicy. I still miss my Mom’s gluteny stuffing, but this got me through Thanksgiving without feeling too deprived.

The Nutrition:
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha….

I hope everyone had a happy Thanksgiving! We traveled to see family, so I had one of those rare meals where I got to be a guest. All I had to do was bring a side dish and carve the bird. It was a very relaxing trip. When we got back, my dear wife wanted just a little Thanksgiving dinner for the two of us, so I decided to try a boneless turkey breast.

1 (3-pound) boneless turkey breast (buy a prepared one, or ask your butcher to debone and net a fresh one)
1-2 tablespoons of your favorite barbecue rub (Tasty Licks Ribit Rub in this case)

I set the Big Green egg up for an indirect cook at 300°F using an inverted plate setter to diffuse the heat. While the grill was coming up to temp, I dusted the breast heavily on all sides with the barbecue rub.

When the grill was ready, I added a chunk of pecan wood for smoke, and when the smoke turned from white to blue, I loaded the breast on the grate.

I cooked the breast, turning every 30 minutes, until the internal temp hit 155°F – about 1 1/2 hours total. I moved it off to a cutting board and let it rest for 15 minutes before removing the netting and slicing.

I served the turkey up with some sautéed green beans  and the polenta dressing left over from our big family meal.

The Verdict: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Very tasty – the turkey picked up a lot of the flavor from the smoke and the rub and was nice and juicy. I’m thinking about doing up a couple more of these and then running them through the meat slicer for sandwiches. To keep the costs down, I’m probably going to have to learn to bone and net my own bird. This video shows how to do it with a leg of lamb, but same idea.

The Nutrition:
If we’re just talking about the green beans and the turkey, life is good – 3 ounces of skin-on turkey breast is only 2 Weight Watchers points and the green beans are (mostly) free. Dare not, however, try to figure out the points for the dressing. I did and it made the poor little points calculator cry. Definitely a dish for special occasions.

I would no more go out to eat on Valentine’s Day than I would go out celebrating on New Year’s Eve.  It’s amateur night – too many packed restaurants with uninspired food and iffy service. Plus, since we’d both been sick, I didn’t want to be out with a whole bunch of people. I just wanted to be home with something tasty – oh, and a good meal too.

Earlier in the week I had gotten a couple of really nice ribeyes out of the freezer and my dear wife had caught a deal on a some king crab legs, so we were set.

I fired up the Big Green Egg and set the oven to 350°F. I seasoned up the steaks with a little sea salt and fresh ground black pepper. When the Egg got up to 600°F, I put the crab legs on a jelly roll pan in the oven and headed out to the grill.

The ribeyes went on for 90 seconds of undisturbed searing. Then I rotated the steaks 90 degrees and gave them another 30 seconds on that side. I flipped the meat and repeated the process on the other side. I flipped them back over and checked for doneness. I gave them another minute on the grill and pulled them when the big one had hit 130°F.

I pulled the steaks off to a plate, covered them with another plate and let them rest for 10 minutes. By then the crab was heated through and my dear wife had bowl of roasted brussels sprouts ready.

A better-than-going-out Valentine’s dinner on the table by 7pm. Not too shabby.

I’ve been old and boring and sick all this week – winter and the crud have had me down. So we were just going to take it easy this weekend. Imagine my surprise when I woke up this morning and my dear wife presented me with an early Valentine’s Day treat – chocolate-covered strawberries!!!

She’d gotten up early to make them for us. She even took photos of the preparations (did this food geek marry well or what?). They were absolutely decadent – rich and sweet and juicy.

Isn’t she the best?

Sadly, sharing chocolate-covered strawberries is also a great way to share the crud and now she’s down sick . Not to worry, I’ll nurse her back to health and it’s supposed to hit 40°F this week. Winter isn’t over, but I can see the end from here.

Just in time for the holidays, my dear wife has been whipping up batches of these nuts for gifts and parties. It’s impossible to eat just one or two. Most people take a couple to taste and then quickly come back for a handful. As much as I like to pick on Martha, this is based on one of her recipes.

1/4 cup white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2  1/2 cups whole, raw almonds
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon olive oil

Preheat your oven to 350°F.  Spread the almonds out onto a 12×18 jelly roll pan or rimmed baking sheet. Toast the nuts until they are fragrant and start to get golden-brown, about 10 minutes.

In a small mixing bowl, combine the sugar, salt, and cayenne pepper.

In a large skillet over medium heat, combine the water, honey, and olive oil . Cook until the mixture starts to bubble, about 1 minute. Add in the toasted almonds and stir until they are evenly coated.  Cook for another minute.

Stir in the sugar mixture and continue to cook until the mixture has thickened and the sugar starts to caramelize, about 2 minutes. Spread nut mix onto a baking sheet in a single layer and let cool to room temperature.

The Verdict: 5 out of 5 stars
Quick, easy, tasty – these have been a huge hit with everyone who has tasted them. There is a good bit of heat to them, and it hits you right up front, but then the sweetness catches up and you’re right back in the bowl for more.

Silicone Prep Bowls – very useful when it comes to measuring and having all of your ingredients ready. They’re flexible, so you can just squeeze them to get sticky ingredients like honey out neatly and they easily clean up in the dishwasher.

Insulated Food Gloves – these are great for handling hot food without getting burned. I use them when pulling pork or carving up a turkey.

Flat Bamboo Skewers – I discovered these this year. They work so much better than round skewers. Threading food into them is a breeze and and they flip a lot easier without the food rolling.

Lightning Nuggets Firestarters – since we got our new deck I’m leery of flying sparks. I just have to touch one of these with the MAPP torch and in 20 minutes the Big Green Egg is roaring.

Egg Rite Egg Timer – no guesswork, just boiled eggs exactly like you like them no matter now hot the burner, what size the pan, or how many eggs are in it.

Pickapeppa Sauce - Jamaican ketchup, a spicy/sweet/savory blend that’s somewhere between jerk seasoning and Worcestershire sauce. Wonderful on chicken wings or thighs.

Pasta de Aji Amarillo/Hot Yellow Pepper Paste – this South American pepper brings a mild, fruity flavor to the table. It’s essential for the highly addictive Crema de Ají.

Tiger Sauce – a wonderful sweet and spicy hot sauce that I love on shrimp and salmon.

BBQ 25 – Adam Perry Lang’s simple and straight forward guide to putting more flavor into your grilling. This book has dramatically changed my cooking style.

Serious Barbecue: Smoke, Char, Baste, and Brush Your Way to Great Outdoor Cooking – I’m hoping Santa is listening and I find this other Lang book in my stocking this year.

Happy Holidays and Happy Grilling to all!

We held our Thanksgiving dinner on Friday this year. With an extra day to work with, I thought I’d try taking the bird apart, making the gravy and sides dishes in advance, and then grilling turkey first thing the next day.

The problem I have with roasting a whole turkey is that while the white breast meat is done at 160°F internal, the dark meat is still pretty chewy at that point. Legs and thighs really need to go to at least 180°F to be tasty. By separating the dark and white meat, and by placing the dark meat closer to the heat, I was hoping to get both done perfectly.

Taking the bird apart was the hardest part. I started with an 18-pound, natural bird. Working just with a good chef’s knife, I first removed the hind quarters by pulling the drumstick away from the turkey and then cutting through skin between leg and body down to the joint. I pushed the thigh flat until the joint popped, and then cut through the joint.

I removed the wings by cutting all the way around the joint until the wing came free. Next, I removed the breast by inverting the body and cutting down through the ribs on each side until I cut through the shoulder. A clever might have come in handy here, but my dear wife’s childhood memories of cutting up freshly picked chickens helped, too.

The breast and hind quarters got coated with some olive oil and a heavy dusting of Tasty Licks BBQ Turkey Rub courtesy of Fred’s Music & BBQ Supply. I put them in the fridge overnight uncovered to help crisp the skin.

The wings, back, neck and giblets got coated with some olive oil and sea salt and went into the oven to be roasted at 375°F until golden brown and crispy (about 2 hours) and then into the stock pot with some water, herbs and veggies to become the base for the gravy.

It was a cold and snowy start on Friday. Just 17°F when I shoveled a path across our deck and fired up the Big Green Egg. But within 20 minutes she was at 500°F, and once I got the temp adjusted she sailed along at 350°F for several hours.

I set the grill up for an indirect cook, using a plate setter to diffuse the heat. I put the breast in the center of the grate and arranged the hind quarters around it.

The breast hit 160°F after 1-1/2 hours on the grill. I checked the hind quarters and they were at 190°F and 195°F, so I took all the turkey off the grill and let it rest for 10 minutes before carving. Here it is served with all the usual suspects.

And for dessert we had my dear wife’s gluten-free version of Noble Pig’s Pumpkin Cheesecake.

The Verdict: 5 out of 5 stars
I’ve been grilling turkeys for 10 years, and this was the BEST bird ever – very flavorful with a just a hint of smoke. The breast was so moist the juices ran all over the cutting board when I carved it, even though I’d let it rest awhile. The thighs and legs just about fell apart. Wonderful.

The cheesecake was also outstanding – rich and tangy. My dear wife substituted gluten-free gingersnaps and flour, used black walnuts instead of pecans, and baked it in a 9×2 spring-form pan.

We’re doing Thanksgiving here with my folks tomorrow, so today has been mostly cooking and cleaning, but I wanted to take a minute to reflect on just how lucky we are.

A couple days ago my dear wife told me that we had a “problem” with freezer space because we’d gotten a load of beef from her brother and didn’t have room for any of the Thanksgiving supplies. “We’re so lucky,” she said.

Too much food, a roof over our heads, four spoiled cats, and (soon) a house full of family. Ain’t those nice problems to have?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Christmas Day this year meant shoveling a path out the side door and putting this fine rib roast on the Big Green Egg. This is an adaptation of Dr. BBQ’s simple and tasty Christmas Prime Rib recipe. This is also my first attempt at Yorkshire pudding. I told my dear wife that I just didn’t understand a savory pudding, she said, “You will after the first bite.”

Prime Rib

One 6 pound Hereford Beef boneless ribeye roast
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon steak seasoning (I used Penzeys English Prime Rib Rub)
Kosher salt and fresh-ground black pepper

Set your grill up for a 3 hour indirect cook over medium heat (350°F). On the Big Green Egg this means using about half a fire box full of lump charcoal, an inverted plate setter to diffuse the heat, and a trivet to set the pan on.

Wet the roast with the Worcestershire sauce, rubbing it all over. This adds nice flavor and color and gives your spices something to stick to. Season liberally with the steak seasoning, then coat it lightly with salt and pepper.

Put the roast fat side up side up on a rack set in a shallow roasting pan. Add about a cup of water to the pan to keep the juices from burning. Set the pan on the trivet, close the lid, and cook until the internal temp reaches 125°F deep in the center of the roast, about 2 hours.

Remove the roast to a carving board and tent loosely with foil. Let rest 20-30 minutes while you make the pudding.

Yorkshire Pudding

2 cups flour (I used Pamela’s Ultimate Baking & Pancake Mix)
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
4 large eggs
2 cups whole milk
1/4 cup beef drippings

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Leave 1/4 cup of drippings in the roasting pan and place in the oven.

Put the flour, salt, eggs, and milk in a bowl and whisk together. Pour the batter into the hot roasting pan and bake for 20 to 30 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. While the pudding is cooking, carve the roast.

Serve the pudding with the roast and a bit of grated horseradish.

This was so good – salty and rich with just a little smoke – and so easy that I’m going to be hard pressed to ever order prime rib in a restaurant again.

We’re in the middle of a blizzard so no cooking on the Big Green Egg ’til the snow stops. Tonight it’s roasted chestnuts for a snack and oyster stew for dinner.

Roasted Chestnuts

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Set chestnuts on a cutting board, flat side down. With a small, sharp knife cut an X in each chestnut. This lets the steam to escape while they are cooking and makes them a lot easier to peel.

Put chestnuts cut side up in a low rimmed pan and bake 20-30 minutes until the shells burst open and the chestnut are golden brown. Pour into a dish towel-lined bowl, cover, and let cool for 10 minutes.

As they are cool enough to handle, peel and enjoy!

Oyster Stew

2 cups heavy cream
2 cups whole milk
1 pint oysters and liquor, separated
4 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon celery seed
1 1/2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce (Frank’s or Tabasco works well)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon dried parsley
Salt and pepper

Melt the butter in a 4-quart saucepan over medium heat.  Add the onion, garlic, and celery and sweat until translucent, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add celery seed and hot pepper sauce.  Add the reserved oyster liquor, cream, and milk and bring to a simmer. Do not let boil.  Add the oysters, lemon juice, and parsley and simmer until the oysters start to curl, about 3 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with crackers and more hot sauce.