For the past 24 hours I’ve been thinking about an exchange, I overhead, at a local grocery store, between a husband and wife. It was short, so very short and yet it has haunted me for the past 24 hours or so. The discussion, in the frozen food section, went something like this:
Husband: “We need hash browns. Are the cheap ones any good?”
Wife: “They’re horrible, but they’re just for the kids so get them.”
There are three possible ways in my opinion, you can interpret this conversation. First, the generic brand frozen hash browns taste horrible but the kids won’t know the difference so get them. Or they have no real nutritional value but they’re just kids so get them anyway. Lastly, I suppose it could be a combination of the first two.
Don’t get me wrong here. I’m not on a don’t buy frozen hash brown soapbox here. Just look at me and you know I’m not the most healthy eater in the world. I buy frozen hash browns. I buy lots of frozen foods. There are times when necessity dictates their use. My gut tells me these two parents were exercising their parental rights and buying their kids frozen hash browns because they couldn’t/wouldn’t appreciate the time and effort it takes to make a fresh hash brown. And that’s the sad part for me. As a people, we have forgotten how to cook. And the lost art of cooking has pretty much sentenced a good part of our youth to living in a food purgatory. I place devoid of any real, natural flavor.
Continue reading Are Your Kids Destined To Live In Food Purgatory?
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Over on the BBQ News page I published an article about a study done by a group of Rhode Island doctors that dealt with several people who ingested loose bristles from their BBQ grill cleaning brushes. I use a grill cleaning brush but I also use a few other techniques for keeping the grime from building up on my grill grates. This article got me thinking about a variety of other ways to clean the grates. So, how about sharing a technique or two on how your clean or keep your grill grates clean?
(Commercial business, please don’t use this as an advertising arena for your grill cleaning product. I’ll just delete blatant advertisements. If you want a listing for your product(s) use the “Grail’s List” link above for your free listing.)
How do you clean your grill grates? Use the comment section below!
 The tri-tip is a cut of beef from the bottom sirloin primal cut. It is a small triangular muscle, usually 1.5 to 2.5 lbs. (675 to 1,150g) per side of beef.
The scientific name of this muscle is tensor fasciae latae, inserted in the fascia lata, the connective tissue covering the quadriceps femoris, also called quadriceps extensor, a group of four muscles which in turn insert in the patella, or knee cap of the animal.-Wikipedia
Last week I published a tri-tip blog post. I got several emails and social media comments about how others cook this cut of meat. I got to thinking that it would be a great idea to provide a forum for others to share how they cook a particular piece of meat on the grill or smoker.
Some like to grill, some like to smoke. Some even combine the two methods. It doesn’t matter how you cook it, it’s about sharing your skills and talent so others can enjoy some great tasting tri-tip.
Please take a moment and add your tri-tip cooking advice using the comment section below. I’ll transfer your suggestions and comments to the blog post as they are left.
BBQ Grail reader suggestions and tips for cooking tri-tip:
Continue reading How Do You Cook Tri-Tip?
| Original content here is published under these license terms: | X | | | License Type: | Non-commercial, Attribution, no Derivative work | | | | License Summary: | You may copy this content, and re-publish it in unmodified form for non-commercial purposes, provided you include an overt attribution to the author(s). You are not permitted to create derivative works. | | | License URL: | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/ |
One of the great things about the BBQ community is the willingness to help those less fortunate. There are a many worthwhile BBQ organizations that do good things. One of the best is Operation BBQ Relief. My friend Wayne Brown published this story yesterday on his blog. He has given me permission to republish it here. If there is anything you can do to help this great organization out, please do so. (Operation BBQ Relief Logo is courtesy of Operation BBQ Relief)
 As you may have heard in the news, the Midwest got rocked with some major storms. One of the hardest hit areas was Harrisburg, IL., where an EF4 tornado ripped through the town. Between 250-300 homes were destroyed in the small town of 9,100. One of the crews going out to assist in the aftermath is Operation BBQ Relief.
Operation BBQ Relief is the perfect embodiment of what BBQ people are all about. It was born in May 2011 out of the response of competition BBQ teams from eight states answering the need to help feed displaced families and emergency personnel in the wake of the Joplin, MO disaster. Operation BBQ Relief is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization whose mission is to provide hope and compassion to those affected by natural disasters through cooking and catering of BBQ meals. The group prides itself on rapid mobilization of teams into any areas where natural disasters strike.
These guys need your help in the wake of the disaster in not only Harrisburg, IL, but also in Harveyville, KS. Below are several ways you can help:
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Financial Aid – monetary assistance is crucial in an effort like this. Businesses will donate goods to assist, but there are always other expenses. You can make a donation to Operation BBQ Relief by clicking on the Donate button at the top of their web page: http://www.operationbbqrelief.org.
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Volunteer – it takes a lot of hands to prepare the food to feed the large number of people that they will be feeding. In Harrisburg, they will be setting up at the Methodist Church at 122 West Poplar, Harrisburg, IL. In Harveyville, KS, they will be setting up at the Fire House at 270 Main St., Harveyville, KS. Wherever you choose to go, look for the smokers. Continue reading Operation BBQ Relief: Helping Those In Need
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My friends over at Easy Peasy Foods recently published a great blog post on how to remove BBQ sauce stains from your clothes. Over the last four years I’ve published enough “how-to” posts that may have contributed to getting your clothes dirty I figured it was time to publish something on how to help clean up the mess. With the permission of Easy Peasy Foods here are their tips on removing BBQ related stains. Do you have a BBQ related cleaning tip? Share it below, in the comments section, and you might just win a bottle of Easy Peasy BBQ sauce I’ve got here at BBQ Grail World Headquarters.
 Whether you are braving the cold and prepping your BBQ ribs outside on the grill or opt to use Easy Peasy BBQ Insurance for the kitchen, BBQ Sauces are a must have for any barbecue meal.
The irresistibly of BBQ sauce, however, often seeps into our clothes and can leave a mark that could be tough to get out. The key is catching the problem early in order to generate an Easy Peasy solution later.
Check out these tips to removing your BBQ sauce stain nightmare.
Step 1. Remove as much of the excess barbecue sauce as possible from the fabric.
Step 2. Run the fabric under cold running water (not warmer water), letting the water run over the back of the stain so it does not spread it further.
Step 3. Rub a liquid detergent into the stained portion of the fabric. Work it in gently.
Step 4. If the garment is white, or you have tested it for colorfastness, apply a mild bleaching agent like hydrogen peroxide or white vinegar with a sponge. You can also use lemon juice (Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy) on white fabrics. Rinse well.
Continue reading Guest Blog Post: 9 Easy Peasy Steps to Remove BBQ Sauce Stains
| Original content here is published under these license terms: | X | | | License Type: | Non-commercial, Attribution, no Derivative work | | | | License Summary: | You may copy this content, and re-publish it in unmodified form for non-commercial purposes, provided you include an overt attribution to the author(s). You are not permitted to create derivative works. | | | License URL: | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/ |
“Bacon makes everything taste better.” There’s a phrase you hear/read a great deal all over the internet. Whether it’s on Facebook or Twitter or on any of the million or so chat rooms and forums on the world-wide web people are constantly extolling the virtues of bacon. But does bacon really make everything taste better? Over the weeks and months to come I’m going to try to answer that question by grilling or smoking a range of food items wrapped in bacon. So stay tuned for some weird and whacky cooking experiences.
In our first installment of “Does Bacon Rally Make Everything Taste Better” we’re going with something basic. Saltines!
I was scrolling through Facebook the other day when I came across a picture of a bacon wrapped saltines on the page of Chef Barry Martin. It seems Barry had written this strange food item up on Char-Broil’s website. I’m afraid I didn’t read all that much of the article because I didn’t want to get to many ideas on how to do this. It only took a couple of minutes to decide this would be the first installment of D.B.R.M.E.T.B. For more details on how this appetizer/snack came about check out the link to Char-Broil’s website.
Continue reading Does Bacon Make Saltines Taste Better?
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I thought it only fair to let my readers know that yesterday I got a huge package of “Buffalo Style” hot sauce from the McIlhenny Company. More than enough to satisfy anyone’s wing cravings. Along with the package was a very nice note from one of booth attendees. It was a thoughtful and heartfelt note. I also received a phone call and after a long discussion, with apologies all around, I feel it’s necessary to close out this chapter and move on.
In my book the McIlhenny Company, makers of Tabasco brand products, has done more than enough to make up for the hard feelings I had from visiting their booth at the Fancy Food Show. They took ownership of the issue, explained their side, listened to my side and now it’s time to eat some wings. Lots and lots of wings.
| Original content here is published under these license terms: | X | | | License Type: | Non-commercial, Attribution, no Derivative work | | | | License Summary: | You may copy this content, and re-publish it in unmodified form for non-commercial purposes, provided you include an overt attribution to the author(s). You are not permitted to create derivative works. | | | License URL: | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/ |
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