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In yesterday’s heat,
this was the most refreshing snack I could think of :
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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In my humble opinion,
these days’ the word BBQ means different things to different people.
I have lately come to the conclusion that to the majority of folk’s BBQ describes a social gathering of one or more people, the main purpose is to cook out in the open, enjoy the weather, food and company. (Even BBQ restaurant’s used to cook their food outside).
Since each region, restaurant, family and grill cook swears that their version (smoking, grilling, open fire, covered grill, etc) is the gospel, describing BBQ as a cooking method seems rather futile to me .
However, I had many a chef getting his / her knickers in a twist discussing what BBQ actually and REALLY means, so I just accept whatever is the explanation of the day.
( Even the origin of the word Barbecue seems to have different proponents ).
If I take my classical french training into consideration, you have the cooking methods :
Grilling (never covered), Smoking (always covered) Jerking ( a combination cooking metod, since we grill, smoke and steam at the same time) and “the way of Life BBQ”, where we use any cooking method traditionally employed in our area and / or backyard, invite a bunch of friend’s and family over and have smoked, grilled, jerked food, maybe a barrel of beer and lot’s of fun.
BBQ – happy cooking outside, whichever way, as long as you are having fun ! 🙂
Please give us your opinion in the poll below.
Live is Good !
Brussels Grill: Mixed vegetables (Photo credit: batigolix)
Beef and Corn on a Charcoal BBQ grill (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Some chicken, pork and corn in the barbeque (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: a typical offset bbq smoker (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: Image of a propane smoker in use. Diagrams the elements. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: Preparing grill for grilling, grill with flames and cones. Česky: Příprava grilu pro grilování, gril s plameny a šiškami. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: Chicken wings being cooked slowly over charcoal ashes. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: “Little Chief” food smoker, popular in the Pacific Northwest for home smoking of fish and meat (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Pork steaks cooking over a charcoal fire (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: A barbecue on a trailer at a block party in Kansas City. Pans on the top shelf hold hamburgers and hot dogs that were grilled earlier when the coals were hot. The lower grill is now being used to slowly cook pork ribs and “drunken chicken”. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Can’t claim credit for this cooking, my friend Paul was responsible. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
This is a traditional asado. The picture shows ribs grilled in the traditional Argentinean way. The meat is on top of the grill and the charcoal or wood at low fire under the grill. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Deutsch: Bratwürste auf einem Grill (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Español: Cocinando carne para hamburguesa al grill. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Barbecue (Photo credit: Johann Richard)
The smoking setup – left (Photo credit: ntang)
Pork ribs being smoked (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Cooks remove racks of herring from a traditional smokehouse (Heringsräucherei) (Photo credit: drakegoodman)
English: Barbecue grill trailer and church, Index, Washington. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
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Plenty of watermelon & mango smoothie,
Bella and I enjoying a breezy afternoon in the garden.
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Life is Good ! 🙂
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1 qt coarsely chopped watermelon
1 qt coarsely chopped mango
1 cup yoghurt
2 cup whole l milk
10 ea mint leaves
1 ea large lime, juiced
I qt ice cubes
Blend everything until thick and smooth.
Cheers ! Enjoy !
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Yesterday’s lunch:
Sauteed st. peter’s fish, baby bok choy , baby corn, sauteed potatoes, straw mushroom, chilies.
Small (for me) but tasty, satisfying portion.
And yes, “St Peter’s Fish” is just another name for “Tilapia” 🙂
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I love chicken wings !
But then again, who doesn’t ?
What I don’t like are the over-greasy, over-sauced,
limp skinned wings you get in so many joints.
I love my wings crispy, VERY crispy.
Here is what I do in order to achieve that:
Simmer the wings in seasoned oil at 220 F for 5 minutes,
remove from heat and let wings cool in oil.
Remove wings from oil, reheat the oil to 375 degrees.
Fry until VERY crispy.
Serve with dipping sauce of your choice.
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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There are literally thousands of different types of pasta available to us, not including the many types we are able to easily make ourself at home.
If I ever had to pick THE ONE, THE ONLY pasta for that lonely island I’d be stuck at for a long time, together with the only song (Kashmir), the only woman (Maria), the only drink (Iced Tea) and the only book ( So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish, by Douglas Adams) , it would definitely be “Udon”.
In my opinion, udon is the ultimate , most versatile, most satisfying pasta. Readily available in most asian food stores, either fresh or frozen, udon is a great culinary delight. Their ability to hold on to any sauces they are paired with makes them the ideal slurping pasta for a comfortable, homy meal. Last night, this is how I used udon for dinner :
” Vegetarian Yaki Udon ”
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Another udon dish I prepared at home, this one with protein.
Yaki Udon Video
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Last week I bought some pumpkin at the grocery store.
I had planned to use it as side dish, but the days passed and the pumpkin just sat there.
So today when I felt like having a soup, curried pumpkin and carrot cream with ginger and chili oil came to mind. I have done this soup a few times in the past for privat dinners at home, and it was always a success with my friends and family.
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“ Curried pumpkin and carrot cream with ginger and chili oil ”
Ingredients:
1 Pumpkin, peeled and deseeded
2 Carrots, diced
3 Banana, peeled and diced
4 Onion, peeled and diced
5 Ginger, grated
6 Garlic, chopped
7 Scotch bonnet hot sauce
10 Cinnamon stick
11 Butter
12 Chicken or vegetable stock
13 Salt and cayenne pepper to taste
Method:
Sautee first 6 ingredients in butter until onions are translucent,
add curry and cinnamon and sauté for one minute.
add stock and simmer until vegetables are soft.
Mix in blender until smooth, add yoghurt and salt and Pepper to taste.
To serve, drizzle with more yoghurt and chili oil.
Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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This morning at breakfast time,
my body said “super sandwich “,
while my brain said ” fresh fruit’s “.
Strangely enough, today the brain won 🙂
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Chocolate Milk,
Watermelon, Banana, Mango, Cherries.
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Yesterday’s light and healthy dinner :
” Vietnamese pork & mushroom dumpling soup “.
I made twenty two dumplings, could not stop eating,
ate all of them at once ( Bella helped a bit. )
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Dumplings:
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Won ton wrappers, roundPork, very finely chopped or ground
Shiitake mushrooms, chopped
Scallions, very finely sliced
Egg white
Ginger, grated
Garlic, grated
Sesame oil
Fish sauce (Nuoc Mam)
Salt, cayenne pepper
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Soup:
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Chicken broth
Baby bok choy, blanched
Straw mushrooms
Ginger, grated
garlic, grated
Scallions, sliced
cilantro, coarsely chopped
Fish sauce (Nuoc Mam)
Sesame oil
Chili oil
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Yesterday’s dinner – simple, yet soooo satisfying.
Pork & Porcini, a match made in food lover’s haven
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Season pork chop with salt and cayenne pepper,
Dip into finely chopped dry porcini, sautee in olive oil on
low heat until center reaches 162 F.
Let chop rest for five minutes before serving.
Meanwhile, saute onion and garlic in olive oil, add broccoli, tomatoes and chili.
Season with salt, pepper and a dash of Maggi.
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ChefsOpinion 