Over the past year, I have been working at developing my grilling skills.
There are many techniques that everyone seems to take for granted -
even those who write "grilling for dummies" books. For example,
one side comment that I came across that has been extremely helpful
is to baste the meat with oil. This really works great, keeps the hamburgers
from sticking and tearing apart, works well with fish. It was a breakthrough.
Another breakthrough for cooking fish was to use the indirect method.
Similarly, to use the indirect grilling method for thick steaks so that
they have a chance to cook through without crisping on the outside.
Grilling vegetables has been a big challenge as well. Recenly I found
(and made some adaptions to) a recipe for grilled corn.
Grilled
Corn
4 servings
| Original Recipe |
My Adaptations |
| 2 tbs butter |
2 tbs butter |
| 2 tbs grated lemon rind |
1/4 tsp lemon juice |
| 2 tsp minced shallots |
2 tsp dehydrated minced onions |
| 2 tsp honey |
2 tsp honey |
| 1 tsp salt |
½ tsp salt |
| 1 tsp ground cumin |
1 tsp ground cumin |
| ½ tsp smoked paprika |
½ tsp paprika |
| 12 ears shucked corn |
12 ears shucked corn |
The original recipe
for this is on page 124 of the June 2004 Cooking Light magazine.
("Corn on the Cob with Smoked Butter"). As shown above, it has
been doubled to a dozen ears of corn.
I have found that
cooking the corn with hamburgers or steak gives it a very nice "smoky"
flavor. Prefering the taste of natural smoke, I use regular paprika rather
than smoked paprika. I was a bit concerned that the cumin would over-power
the taste, but it actually blended into the overall experience very well.
Melt the butter in
a bowl in a microwave oven (20 seconds). Combine the other ingredients
- lemon juice, onions, honey, salt, paprika. Mix thoroughly. Heat briefly
in the microwave (15 seconds) and stir thoroughly. Set aside for 1-2 hours
for the spices to mature. When ready to grill the corn, heat the mixture
briefly in the microwave (10-15 seconds) if necessary. Generously baste
the corn with the sauce. I actually make a double batch so that I can
be generous in basting.
Pre-heat the grill
on high for 15-20 minutes. Brush it. Cook the corn with the burgers or
steak. I found that direct heat for 15-20 minutes, turning every 2-3 minutes
until the corn starts to brown or "pop" worked well. Use any
remaining sauce to baste the corn before serving. Enjoy!
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