Archive: August 2010
Tue Aug 31, 2010
The Meat Also Rises
Despite a distaste for making bread, my pursuits of grilling bread tend to be at least marginally successful. So I thought a Meatwave revolving around grilled bread would equal some good times and good eats.
When considering what type of meats to fill this bread, I came the the decision that an all out Greek feast would fit the bill quite nicely. I started researching how to make those soft pocketless Greek pitas, but the more I read, the more it sounded like they really needed to be made in the oven to get the correct consistency. Already excited about a menu of souvlaki, bifteki, and gyros, I decided to ditch the bread making and side with the meat—purchasing pitas to be filled an array of delicious grilled meats.
Wed Aug 25, 2010
Frustration, Torment, and Pocket Pitas
Grrrrrrr. Just thinking of working with dough elicits a deep visceral reaction of frustration and torment—"grrrrr" being one of the kinder phrases that comes to mind when trying to describe that feeling. I love bread, and so wish it came to me as naturally as working with meat. Why is proofing such a mystery, while seasoning so simple? Why is rising such a nail-bitter, while marinating is a walk in the park? Why is baking so perilous, while grilling so care free? All of those feelings should keep me a good distance away from any bread-making endeavors, but some perverse force seems to pull me into doughy situations that often result in the free flinging of expletives that, every once in a while, actually end with something that was worth the suffering, like these grilled pocket pitas.
More and recipe after the jump >>
Thu Aug 19, 2010
Joshua Bousel
Sauced: Bone Suckin' Sauce
Sauce Stats
Name
Bone Suckin' Sauce
Produced by
Bone Suckin' Sauce
Cost
$6.79 on buybonesuckin.com
Ingredients
Tomato Paste, Apple Cider Vinegar, Honey, Molasses, Mustard, Horseradish, Lemon Juice, Onions, Garlic, Peppers, Natural Hickory Smoke Flavor, Natural Spices, Salt & Xanthan Gum
Color
Transparent light red
Meatwave Rating
More Sauce ReviewsTue Aug 17, 2010
Fried: Hush, Puppy
With all this North Carolina talk going on around these parts, it'd be a disservice not to have sides with that, and when I think North Carolina barbecue, hush puppies are right up there with slaw as a must have on each plate. As a kid growing up in suburban Virginia, hush puppies were exclusively found in seafood establishments, and were the only redeeming part of them in my mind. This led me to think of hush puppies as lone wolves—the only thing edible from our otherwise horrendous outings to Red Lobster and Long John Silver's. It wasn't until I had them next to some chopped pork that they were reinvented in my mind as one of the greatest barbecue sides out there.
More and recipe after the jump >>
Wed Aug 11, 2010
The Most Divine Swine
Compared to ribs, pulled pork didn't take me long to get it to a place I was happy with. In just about one and half Meatwave seasons, I felt my recipe for a smoked pork butt was pretty top notch. I actually preferred my homemade pork to most I got in restaurants and at the Big Apple BBQ Block Party, with one big exception, Big Bob Gibson's. To this day, I have not eaten a barbecued pork shoulder that is as juicy, tender, and flavorful as the ones that pitmaster Chris Lilly churns out. I figured that I could never match such a seasoned pro, and was perfectly fine with my own pork, so never bothered trying to match it.
Having a chance to sit down and talk swine with Chris Lilly the day prior to this year's Block Party, then getting some pork making tips the following day, and having eaten another one of his fantastic sandwiches, I thought I really should be shooting for the stars and decided to amp up my pulled pork game. After this resolve, was there any place else to start except for the recipe that I aspire to?
