Love me Tender.....loin..... Spicy Orange BBQ Pork

As much as I enjoy grocery shopping, there are weeks that I put off the weekly shopping trip day after day, trying to postpone the inevitable and hoping that I can pull just one more dinner out of the freezer. This has been one of those weeks. With the long weekend and the holiday throwing me off, our dinner routine has been a little out of whack. I’ll have to break down and go today or tomorrow, or I’ll feel the wrath of a 5 year old with no pizza; but this week, for just one more night, I pulled one out.

A few shopping trips ago, I picked up one of those cryo-sealed pork tenderloins and chucked it directly into the freezer to save for later. Wonderful little things to have on hand, they don’t take too awfully long to defrost and cook up in a flash.

Earlier in the day, I had been searching Tastespotting for a new marinade or sauce to put on the loin, when a Kraft Foods email came through, sporting a bit of inspiration. I’ll admit, I didn’t read much of the recipe, just enough to get the idea in my head, then went home and got to work.

First, I cleaned the loin, removing any excess fat and the silverskin. Then I lightly rubbed it with oil and seasoned it with salt and pepper (no time for a marinade last night, so a sauce or glaze was going to have to do).

While the hubs took it upstairs to his preheated charcoal grill, I mixed up the sauce. In true “kitchen sink” fashion, I pulled two partial bottles of barbeque sauce out of the fridge ad dumped the contents of each into a small saucepan on the stove. (way to clean out the fridge, mom!) To the mix, I added about ¼ cup frozen orange juice concentrate (I always keep some of this in the freezer for seasoning sauces and marinades), about a teaspoon of dark sesame oil, and a teaspoon or so of red pepper flakes. I simmered the mixture until the flavors came together and then took it up to the hubs, with the admonishment (as he was picking up the basting brush) “don’t start basting it too soon or it will burn”.

After which, I walked back down my wonderful new adjoining decks to the kitchen and started some potatoes. A superbly easy new side dish that is quickly becoming one of my favorites. I took two large baking potatoes and sliced them into three thick slices each, along the length. Just as with the tenderloin, a little oil, salt and pepper, is all they need. Then, back up to the deck and on the grill they went.

At which point, I poured myself a glass of wine and headed to the couch to catch up on the “Demon Hunting Soccer Mom” piece of fiction I’ve been reading this week.

After just a short while, a beaming hubby came back from the deck bearing a lovely platter of pork and potatoes. The tenderloin was moist and tender, perfectly cooked with just a hint of smoke (nice job, hon!) and the potatoes (admittedly, they went on too early and a couple got charred) were a nice accompaniment.Notes on the sauce/glaze: With the meat cooked just right, this didn’t need a marinade at all. The glaze had a terrific flavor. Just the right amount of orange and sesame, but I think next time I’ll add more red pepper. The flavor was wonderful, but next time I want a little more heat. The only thing I might change would be to fire up the heat at the end so that the glaze actually “glazes” the meat instead of just saucing it, but it still worked out well. The hubs and I both enjoyed it, so this one will definitely be a keeper at my house.

The Deluge

Have you ever seen that movie, “Hard Rain”? I distinctly remember thinking that it sounded like a ridiculous title for a movie. I mean, what’s next? Fall of Snow? Dense Humidity? The Fog? Oh...wait....

All of which is beside the point.

I know this is going to come as an enormous shock to you (yes, that's sarcasm), but I found a recipe I wanted to try last week for grilled chicken breast with a different flavor kick. I had the chicken all thawed out and ready to go so that we could have a quick meal on Sunday night before going to the fireworks (which we never made it to since Little Man decided he’s had a busy enough weekend and fell asleep early).

Sunday morning, the heat was oppressive when I left the house at 8:30 for breakfast at the MIL’s. While we were relaxing on her back deck over pancakes, the wind shifted and the temperature plummeted. It was wonderful. It remained that way most of the rest of the day, staying heavily overcast as though threatening to rain, but never quite following through.

Until it was time to grill.

I had been watching the skies all morning, and seeing no change over the course of the day, I had come to think of it as just an overcast day and wasn’t a bit concerned about any impending downpour. We arrived home and immediately started shucking corn (another story to be continued later in this post) and prepping the chicken for the grill. Literally, the moment the hubs put the chicken on the grill, the skies OPENED. It was so bad, I could barely reach my hand out the door to hand him the tray. I would have sworn someone had just opened a flood gate and it was pouring down the roof onto the deck.

Poor Matt, I almost felt sorry for him. Almost. If I didn’t think he would have broken my camera, I’d have taken a picture to show you. But then, as he always tells me, “A chicken has a brain the size of a pea and even it has the sense to get in out of the rain”.

Apparently the same can’t be said for husbands.

As I’ve mentioned before, he is a flipper. He can’t stand to let something sit on the grill (or in a pan, or anywhere else) and not flip it, or stir it. Repeatedly. Especially if it doesn’t need to be flipped. Or stirred. So, I say he has no one to blame but himself. It was kind of pathetic though. Looking out the screen door at him, completely drenched, while he’s standing there, holding his flipper, and looking in like a puppy that’s been kicked.

In the end, we had a very nice supper. I’ve decided this recipe needs something, but can’t quite decide what the magic ingredient will be. It was definitely a good one, though, and the hubs thought it was definitely a keeper. You can never have too many different ways to grill chicken, in my opinion.

Spicy Honey-Glazed Chicken Breasts
Ingredients:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/2 cup honey
2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon lemon juice
8 skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 4 pounds)
Salt

Directions:
In a small saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until translucent and beginning to brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the honey, hot pepper sauce and chili powder and simmer for 1 minute. Remove from the heat, stir in the lemon juice and set aside.
Preheat a grill or large grill pan to medium-high. Rub the chicken with the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil and season with salt. Grill until well marked, about 7 minutes. Flip and cook until the bottoms are well marked and the chicken is cooked through, another 2 minutes. Transfer to a plate and brush with the reserved honey glaze. Cover with foil and let rest for 5 minutes.NOTES: The recipe says to simply grill the chicken breast and then top with the glaze at the end. You cover it with foil to help the flavors absorb, and it was good. But I’m thinking that it still needs some kind of pre-grill marinade to help carry the flavor carry through the meat.As a side dish.....we had corn. The farmer who cash rents our ground is very good to us and plants two rows of sweet corn every year, just for us. So, every year about this time, we gorge ourselves on corn until we can stand no more, and then there is still a ton leftover that we have to give away.
We didn’t know that this was the last of our corn for the season. Because it shouldn’t have been.

Monday morning, we discovered that at some point between Friday night and Sunday night, someone pulled up to the field and stole all of it. Every. Single. Ear. GONE.

I’ve heard of this happening, but it really galls me that people have the nerve to do this. They wait until no one is around (like over a holiday weekend) and pull up to the field in a truck with 2-3 people. Then they clean you out. Next thing you know, your entire sweet corn crop is gone and someone is sitting on the road side somewhere selling your corn out of the bed of their truck.

I’ll tell you what, I’d sure like to know who these people are. It takes a hell of a lot of nerve. Next time you buy corn out of someone’s truck, and you don’t know who they are, think about it. It may not come from where you think.

A Hunka, Hunka Burnin' Love.....

Sometimes, not matter how well you think you're doing, something just goes wrong.....terribly wrong.

You all know me by now, and how easily influenced I am by the products made available to me by my local grocer. Well, last week, wandering the meat case, I found a lovely selection of beef back ribs. Naturally, a couple of packages went directly into my cart. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. In the cart with ya.

A bit of quick research showed me that the best way to cook these bad boys was to season, then roast on a rack in the oven, covered with foil for a couple of hours, then finish them on the grill for some nice caramelization.

That has got to be my all time favorite culinary term. CARAMELIZATION. Love it.

And so....it began. The Great Beef Massacre.

It all started innocently enough. I whipped up a batch of my new grill-seasoning-of-the-moment, and slathered it all over the fatty little bones.

Then I placed them on a rack on a baking sheet and covered them with foil.

They baked for two hours, making the house smell like heaven while Ginny and I were sampling a couple of lovely wines (to be featured later in The Ten Spot).

Pulling them out of the oven, I burned my finger on the luscious steam released by the ribs when I pulled back the foil....carefully.... I thought.

I trotted the tray outside to the front yard where the preheated grill was waiting and arranged them eagerly on the grates, then skipped back up the steps to refill my wine glass.

I was inside for TWO. MINUTES.

When I came back through the front door, I was greeted by this:

(okay, technically the lid was still closed when I came back outside, but I digress...)

Which produced THIS:

And, once the flames died down....this....(notice the white charring on the ends up the bones? Classy....)

Suffice it to say that Ginny and I survived on crusty bread and olive oil for our supper that night.

Now, as I said before....you all know me. I can't just let something like that go, So, I bought another two packages of ribs and prepared them in the oven again for the hubs the other night. I declined the use of the grill until we could nail down the issue with the uber-flamage.

Again, I seasoned and roasted them.

Again, the house smelled like heaven.

I was smart enough to avoid the steam burn this time (I still say that was an omen on the first go-round).

And....we dined.

(no caramelization, but we made do.)

Beef back ribs don't actually have much meat on them, just so you know. And I'm not in the habit of eating straight fat. But damn....this ft was goooood. The hubs and I got down and dirty with these ribs and ended up with a big greasy mess all over the place, but it was well worth it.

Upon the hubs' suggestion, I saved all the bones and excess fat and threw it in a freezer bag to use for my next batch of beef stock. That's going to be some flavorful stock....I can hardly wait to get it going.

Lesson learned? Since the grill was parked in the not-so-level front yard, the grease was pooling in places unknown instead of running into the grease trap and proceeded to cause a massive grease fire. Now that that is no longer an issue, I hope to be having some new grilled recipes to share with you soon!

Bacon Wrapped Chicken Poppers - Revisited!

I do my very best to keep each and every post here original. But, some things are worth repeating. Ironically, the last time I made (and posted) this recipe was almost exactly a year ago. This one is an appetizer (although most of the time, the hubs has it as his main course) that is very easy, but always seems time consuming to me, only because I tend to do it in stages.

Stage 1: cube and marinate the chicken for 24 hours
Stage 2: clean and seed the jalapeños
Stage 3: partially cook the chicken, then stuff the peppers and wrap with bacon
Stage 4: Saute or grill

I spread these stages out over the course of a day or more, depending on what else I have going on, as it makes my prep work at dinner time much easier. Also, sometimes this is one I prep ahead and then send with Matt to an event to cook “on location”. Usually we make this indoors on the stove top, but since we all know I can’t keep myself away from the grill these days (and really, they are so much better on the grill!) the hubs and I grilled them last night. (**note: If you are grilling, make sure to pre-soak your toothpicks so that they don’t burn up on the grill.)One thing that was different this time is that I assembled them the day before, intending to cook them Sunday evening, but we had an injury/incident at home that night and they went right back into the fridge for the next day (everyone is fine now, but it made for a crazy night). I was concerned that having them sit out of the marinate for that long would dry them out, but they ended up being just fine. Obviously. You know. Since we scarfed them down like a bunch of Mary Jane lovin’ college students with the munchies. He’s lucky he had any to take to work today.I highly recommend this one for any outdoor gatherings you may have this summer, they go over like gangbusters, and it never fails that people end up begging me for the recipe. I tend to make this one any time I see big, beautiful fresh jalapeños at the grocery.

Check out last year's post for the details!

I Never Claimed to be Queen of the 'Que

Of the many recurring themes I touch on in this little blog, is the fact that I live in a house of picky eaters. My husband simply refuses to eat anything that even remotely resembles a healthy meal (or, for that matter, anything ethnic or with flavors he is unaccustomed to), and unfortunately, our son is trying like hell to walk in his shoes.

How do I handle this, you may ask? Simple. I bitch a lot.

Yep, I learned long ago that there is just no converting him, no matter how hard I try, so I have mainly given up on trying to pull the “Deceptively Delicious” routine with his meals and I take my victories anywhere I can.

Whenever the hubs has a job in the St. Louis area, he picks up the local papers on his way to work and reads them on his breaks. Fortunately for me, on Wednesdays, two of these newspapers publish a “Food” section and another includes a magazine insert called “Relish”. It is in this magazine that my picky eater found a new love. The hubs came home from work that day with the page folded back so I could get a good view of the full color picture that was making his mouth water.

This little jewel is dubbed “Indian Style Grilled Chicken”, so there is no claim being made that they are purveying anything traditional or specific, like Tandoori chicken, which I appreciate. The method for this chicken is similar, in that it utilizes a marinade of yogurt and various spices. Having attempted a similar recipe before, and being disappointed in the stove-top results, I decided this recipe was going to have to wait until I got my much-anticipated new grill for Mothers Day (Yes, its true, I knew that he would cave in and get it for me). In this manner, the chicken may have marinated a bit longer than intended, as the night I planned to cook it (the night after the grill came home) something came up unexpectedly and I didn’t manage to get the grill completely assembled. Hence, no chicken for dinner. (A quick peek at my new baby. Didn't I do a nice job putting her together? I am woman - hear me roar!)

I was on the ball the next night, however, rising early the next morning to work on the grill again and getting it upright in time to put some flame to the chicken thighs that had been lounging in the fridge nearly 48 hours at that point.

Now, I never claimed to be queen of the ‘que.

My inaugural dinner had its ups and downs and I did manage to get almost every piece of skin to stick like glue to the hot grates, but that didn’t deter me. I was a woman on a mission. And, in the end, beauty IS only skin deep.What was under the skin is another story. Luscious and moist, tender and flavorful, the Man of the House couldn’t stop raving about how good it was, and frankly, I have to agree. This one will definitely be on the menu again this summer. And next time....he better not make off with all the leftovers again!
Indian Style Grilled Chicken
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon coriander
2 teaspoons garam masala
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup hot sauce, such as Frank’s Original Hot Sauce
¾ cup plain yogurt
¼ cup heavy cream
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons soy sauce
Cooking spray
8 bone-in chicken thighs

1. Combine all ingredients (except cooking spray and chicken) in a large bowl; stir until well blended. Add chicken, turning to coat well. Cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours.
2. Prepare grill and spray grate with cooking spray.
3. Remove chicken from marinade and place on a platter. Discard marinade. Grill chicken skin side down 6 to 8 minutes, turn and grill second side 6 to 8 minutes. Serves 8.

Relish Magazine (http://www.relishmag.com/)

Grilled Pork Chops with Chili Maple Glaze

I originally found this recipe online as a stove top variation on a Bon Appetit recipe. I’d quote the source (if I could find it) but I’ve taken creative license and have adapted it even further. Since I received a new grill from the hubs for Mothers Day, I’ve wanted nothing more than to grill everything in sight. So, when I pulled this recipe out of my “must try” file, I just couldn’t bring myself to light the stove. I personally think it was much better this way (not that I tried it on the stove!) and the hubs agreed. He took all the leftovers with him to work for lunch yesterday.
The chili garlic sauce that I picked up at the asian market gave it a nice kick, and the maple syrup added an unexpected sweetness. I really wasn’t sold on the idea of combining the two, but in the end, it really worked!

Grilled Pork Chops with Chili Maple Glaze
6 boneless pork loin chops

1 tsp chinese five-spice powder

salt and pepper

1 cup chicken broth

3 tbsp maple syrup

2 tbsp chili garlic sauce

1. Season pork chops on both sides with salt, pepper, and five-spice powder.

2. Heat grill to high and cook the pork about three minutes on each side, giving it some lovely grill marks.3. Meanwhile, combine chicken broth, chili garlic sauce and maple syrup in a saucepan and reduce by half.

4. Brush over pork chops and let the grill do its job by turning it into a caramelly (is that a word?) glaze.

This one was so fast and easy, not to mention flavorful. Throw a few slabs of zucchini on the grill at the last minute and you have a full meal!

Have Beer, Will Travel.....or Grill.....

In the ongoing saga that is my husband's love affair with his grill, we are constantly trying new things so that he can learn lots of different ways to use his new toy. We have made beer-butt chicken once before, with mixed results. Recently, I was placing a book order on half.com when I ran across a copy of Steven Raichlen's Beer Can Chicken for $.75. I could hardly resist that. While I have been acquiring some new cookbooks recently, I've also been picking several up for Matt. This book has a section on variations for beer-can chicken (which, if you are not familiar, is a whole chicken, impaled on an open can of beer, and then grilled upright) as well as one for Beer-less Birds, and Other Birds on a Can. What really caught my eye, and made the decision to get the book for him, was the reference to "Welder's Chicken". Well, you know the hubs is a welder by trade, so I couldn't resist.
Saturday, I picked up a couple of roasters and invited Matt's sister and another friend over for dinner. I went to work prepping the birds. We decided to try two different recipes, and since we only had one beer can chicken roaster, we settled on a Cajun Chicken and the Welder's Chicken (which is wrapped in layers of foil instead of roasted on the can. Hence, the name....you are supposed to pick it up off the grill with welder's gloves because using tongs would break through the foil and release all the lovely juices prematurely.)
I will include both recipes at the bottom, but since he instructs you on specific grill set up for each recipe, if you want to try it, you may want to pick up a cheap copy for yourself! If you're really serious, let me know and I'll scan the pages and email them to you! The recipes are long, but its worth reading them because I included some personal notes here and there about our experience with them.
After about an hour and a half (right on schedule, based on Raichlen's instructions) we had two beautiful birds sitting on our table. He suggests checking the birds' temperatures with an instant--read thermometer to determine doneness, but it was completely unnecessary. The Cajun Chicken won our hearts immediately, as it was the most gorgeous bird any of us had ever seen. Golden and gorgeous with a nice crispy skin and the meat was lovely and smoked (this one is grilled over indirect heat). The welder's chicken lacked the aesthetic appeal, since roasting it wrapped in foil prevented any browning, but the bird literally fell apart, was moist and delicious, and had hints of both the bacon and lemon without being overbearing.
There was very little conversation that extended beyond "Mmmmm" and "ooooh my god..." and there was even the occasional "forking" of another diner's hand when one tried to keep a piece of crispy skin away from another (seriously, my niece jabbed our friend Mike in the hand for trying to take it from her). A couple of people even got a little wild (yes, there was alcohol involved, and yes, we live in the country) and chicken bones were flung over the side of the deck as they were licked clean. I know, it sounds very redneck, and it was, but sometimes you just gotta live in the moment...
So, here they are, it was a bit dark, and we were famished, so the pictures aren't fabulous, but take a look at these girls....The gorgeous birds and some baby zucchinis...The Welder's Chicken...And, finally, the Cajun Chicken. A terrible picture, it doesn't do her beauty justice....Ragin' Cajun Beer Can Chicken

Method: Indirect grilling
Serves 2 to 4
For the beer can chicken:
1 can (12 ounces) beer
1 chicken (3 1/2 to 4 pounds)
1 teaspoon Liquid Smoke

For the rub:
1 1/2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning
1 1/2 tablespoons Old Bay Seasoning
2 teaspoons vegetable oil

You'll need: 2 cups wood chips or chunks (preferably hickory or cherry), soaked for 1 hour in water or beer to cover, then drained; vertical chicken roaster (optional)
1. Pop the tab off the beer can. Using a church key-style can opener, make 2 or 3 additional holes in the top of the can. Pour the Liquid Smoke into one of these holes. Insert a chopstick or skewer and gently stir to mix the Liquid Smoke and beer.
2. Remove the packet of giblets from the body cavity of the chicken and set aside for another use. Remove and discard the fat just inside the body and neck cavities. Rinse the chicken, inside and out, under cold running water and then drain and blot dry, inside and out, with paper towels. Place the chicken in a large bowl on its side and pour half the smoke-flavored beer over it. Let marinate in the refrigerator, covered, for 45 minutes, turning twice. Make sure each breast side and the back have marinated for 15 minutes. Set the can with the remaining smoke-flavored beer aside
3. Make the rub: Put the Cajun and Old Bay seasonings in a small bowl and stir to mix.
4. Set up the grill for indirect grilling (see page 000 for charcoal or page 000 for gas) and preheat to medium. If using a charcoal grill, place a large drip pan in center. If using a gas grill, place all the wood chips or chunks in the smoker box or in a smoker pouch and preheat on high until you see smoke, then reduce the heat to medium.
5. Remove the chicken from the marinade and pat dry. Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of the rub inside the body and cavity and 1 teaspoon inside the neck cavity of the chicken. Drizzle the oil over the outside of the bird and rub or brush it all over the skin. Sprinkle the outside of the bird with 1 tablespoon rub and rub it all over the skin.
6. Spoon the remaining rub through a hole in the top of the can into the beer. Don't worry if it foams up; this is normal. If grilling the chicken on the beer can, hold the chicken upright, with the opening of the body cavity at the bottom and lower the bird onto the beer can so the can fits into the cavity. If using a vertical chicken roaster, fill it with the beer as described on page 000 and position the chicken on top.
7. If using the beer can, pull the chicken legs forward to form a sort of tripod, so the bird stands upright. The rear leg of the tripod is the beer can. You don't need to do this if using a vertical chicken roaster. Tuck the wing tips behind the chicken's back.
8. When ready to cook, if using a charcoal grill, toss all the wood chips on the coals. Stand the chicken up in the center of the hot grate, over the drip pan, away from the heat. Cover the grill and cook the chicken until the skin is a dark golden brown and very crisp and the meat is cooked through (about 180¡ F on an instant-read meat thermometer inserted in a thigh), 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours. (See page 000 for other tests for doneness.) If using a charcoal grill, you'll need to add 12 fresh coals per side after 1 hour. If the chicken skin starts to brown too much, loosely tent the bird with aluminum foil.
9. Using tongs, grab the bird with tongs by the beer can just below the bottom, carefully transfer it in its upright position to a platter, and present it to your guests. If using a vertical chicken roaster, grab it with oven mitts or pot holders. Let rest for 5 minutes, then carefully lift the chicken off the support. Take care not to spill the hot beer or otherwise burn yourself. Normally I discard the beer, but some people like to save it for making barbecue sauce. Halve, quarter, or carve the chicken and serve.

Welder's Chicken
1 stewing hen or roasting chicken (6-7 pounds)
1 lemon
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and cut in half
2 tablespoons poultry seasoning
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
5 slices bacon (the smokier, the better) (yeah, I used, like TEN. Come on, its BACON)

You'll also need 4 pieces heavy duty aluminum foil (30 by 18 inches each)
1. Remove the packet of giblets from the body cavity of the chicken and set aside for another use. Remove and discard the fat just inside the body and neck cavities. Rinse the chicken, inside and out, under cold running water and then drain and blot dry, inside and out, with paper towels. 2. Using a vegetable peeler, remove 3 strips of zest (the oil-rich outer rind) from the lemon, taking care not to remove any of the bitter white pith underneath. Place 1 strip in the neck cavity and 2 strips in the body cavity of the hen. Cut the rind and white pith off the lemon and discard. Cut the lemon crosswise into thin slices and remove the seeds with a fork.
3. Rub the outside of the hen with cut garlic. Place 2 garlic cloves (4 halves) in the body cavity and 1 clove in the neck cavity. Sprinkle 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning inside the body cavity and 1 teaspoon inside the neck cavity. Sprinkle the remaining poultry seasoning on the outside of the bird. Generously season the bird inside and out with salt and pepper.
4. Place a piece of heavy duty aluminum foil shiny side down on a work surface. Place 2 bacon slices in the center and place a few lemon slices on top of them. Place the hen breast side up so the backbone is parallel to the long side of the foil, on the bacon. Drape the remaining slices of bacon over the breast and top with the remaining lemon slices. Bring the ends of the aluminum foil up over the hen, folding over the edges several times and crimping them to make a tight seal. Tightly wrap the bird in 3 additional layers of foil, shiny side out ( so it will reflect the heat) to make a sturdy packet. Be sure all of the bird is covered with foil.
5. Set up the grill for direct grilling and preheat to medium. When ready to cook, place the foil wrapped hen on the hot grill and grill until hen is cooked through (about 180 degrees on an instant read thermometer inserted into the hen flesh, but not touching a bone) (yeah, so I'm thinking to myself, this bird is wrapped in FOUR, count 'em, FOUR layers of individually wrapped foil. How in the holy hell am I going to insert a thermometer through the packet without letting all the liquid and steam out, not to mention, finding the right part of the bird to stick it into? Trust me on this one, just cook it an hour and a half or so, and it will be fine. We opened the packet and legs and wings just FELL off), 1 1/4 to 1 3/4 hours, turning and rotating the bird every 15 minutes. If using a charcoal grill, you'll need to add 12 fresh coals per side after 1 hour.
6. Transfer the hen to a platter and, if you like, show it off in its flame-darkened packet to your guests. (yeah, right, our guests were so hungry for chicken by this time that they were tearing it out of the foil before it even made it to the table!) Let the hen rest 5 minutes (again, I don't think so), then, wearing welder's gloves or heavy duty grill mitts, unwrap the bird. (my husband is a welder, and yet we all have little burns on out finger tips because we were all too lazy and/or ravenously hungry to go looking for his welder's gloves) Take care to avoid the escaping steam (seriously, unless you want a poultry facial). Scrape off and discard the bacon (not us country folks, as much as it grossed me out, people gladly ATE that bacon). Serve the hen at once (no shit, Sherlock).

Grilled Honey Teriyaki Chicken for TFF

After having been conspicuously absent for the last couple of weeks, I am hoping to start kicking things back into high gear this week! or, at least, mid-gear. I haven't been doing nearly as much cooking as I usually do since the hubs began his love affair with his new grill. That's fine with me, since I know that once the weather gets too cold or we run out of charcoal (whichever comes first) I'll be back in the kitchen full time.
Meanwhile, don't think for a minute that I am not influencing what we are putting on the table. Matt is taking the grilling thing seriously, and he wants to learn all the ins and outs, and try lots of things he has never cooked before. That being said, he's still a picky eater, so we haven't been getting too wild and crazy!
I've been looking for a good recipe to try from Tyler Florence, and while there are lots, we're in that in-between kind of season and I'm having trouble finding anything that really appeals to me. That is, until I found THIS recipe, and it is my submission to Tyler Florence Fridays this week.
I love barbecued chicken, I love grilled chicken, I love teriyaki chicken....and they had ten pound bags of chicken quarters on sale at the store for 69 cents a pound. How could I lose? SO, I planned it for a night that Matt would be home to grill (I specifically asked him, to be sure, since he hunts pretty regularly during the evenings), brined the bad boys, and got the ingredients for the glaze.
While I was still at the store after work, Matt calls (as he does every day on his way home) and asks the question....here's how the conversation went:

Matt: "so, what's for dinner?" Me: "Well, I brined that chicken this morning....you know....like I TOLD you I was going to...."
Matt: **silence**
Me: "What?"
Matt: "So, what are you going to do with it if I go hunting tonight?"
Me: **heated silence**
Me: I ASKED you this MORNING what nights you were going to hunt this week, SPECIFICALLY so I would have a good night to grill this chicken!"
Matt: " I know, but I didn't KNOW this morning, Mark just called and..."
Me: "Well, then either "I" have to grill it on YOUR precious grill, or I have to throw it out. Brined meet does NOT keep."
Matt: **silence**
Me: "SO, when you get home, come upstairs and light the grill, then I'll cook it."
Matt: **silence** (you can tell at this point that he is debating whether it is worth it to go hunting if it means he has to relinquish control of the 'man zone')

In the end, he lit the grill, put the chicken on it for me, then paused in the doorway to our bedroom, me on the deck outside, him in the bedroom, the screen door separating us. I looked him in the eye, grinned an evil little grin and said "You're on the wrong side of that door, aren't you?" and tipped my beer back. "Don't remind me." he says as he glances ruefully at his smoking grill. As he is pulling away, he paused on the road to yell up to the deck and ask how it was going. My response? I raised my beer in the air in "cheers" fashion and left him in the dust.

By the way, the chicken was LUSCIOUS. The flavors were intense and rich, and the chicken was moist and flavorful. I admit that I usually have to amp up the seasonings in Tyler's recipes to make them more to my taste, but this glaze was wonderful just as it is. I am attributing the juiciness of the chicken to the brine. The recipe says to brine for 2 hours, but I pushed the envelope and brined it before I left for work that morning, so it sat all day.
Very, very yummy.... I mean, can't you just TELL? Its making my mouth water just thinking about the leftovers waiting for me in the fridge for lunch today.

Here's the actual recipe:

Grilled Honey-Teriyaki Chicken

Ingredients
1 whole organic chicken, cut into 10 pieces
Brine:
2 cups water
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 head garlic, unpeeled
4 slices fresh ginger root, gently bashed to open up
2 tablespoons kosher salt
8 sprigs fresh thyme
2 cups teriyaki sauce
1/4 cup honey
1 large (1-inch) piece fresh ginger root, sliced and bashed to open up
1 head garlic, halved crosswise
1 teaspoon sesame oil, plus 1/2 cup toasted
Freshly ground black pepper
Scallion threads, for garnish
Toasted sesame seeds, for garnish
Directions
Begin by making the brine. Combine all the brine ingredients in a large resealable bag and swirl to dissolve the sugar.Add chicken pieces and allow to brine for 1 to 2 hours in the refrigerator.
Preheat grill to low-medium heat.
Make teriyaki glaze: In a small saucepan, over medium heat, combine teriyaki sauce, honey, ginger, garlic, and 1 teaspoon of sesame oil, and simmer until rich and slightly reduced. Remove chicken from brine and pat dry. Add to a large mixing bowl, drizzle with toasted sesame oil and season with freshly ground black pepper. Toss to coat and cook on a low-medium grill for 17 to 20 minutes per side until cooked through.Baste with teriyaki glaze for the last 5 to 7 minutes of cooking.Serve garnish with scallion threads (finely sliced scallions cut on the bias soaked in ice cold water), and toasted sesame seeds.