Category Archives: Cooking

Advantages of a Silicone Cooking Utensil

In this day and age, one is not surprised to learn that silicone, which used to be a component for computers, microchips and breast implants is now a common material used for cooking utensils. A silicone cooking utensil can actually have a competitive price with cooking utensils made from metal and nylon. There are a variety of cooking utensils that utilize silicone. One common structure for a silicone cooking utensil is to have a wooden handle. This is especially true for spatulas, spoons and others.

There are also many bake ware that are made from silicone. These silicone bake ware needs a firm surface to be laid on if you wish for the cake or to maintain the square or rectangular form you put it in.

Why Use A Silicone Cooking Utensil?

Kitchenware is usually exposed to constant heat and even cold. This is one of the main reasons why a silicone cooking utensil is great for the job. Silicone can withstand heat which can be more than the average stove temperature or oven temperature. It does not lose its form when exposed to heat or cold and silicone also does not retain any smells or colors from the previous foods it has been exposed to. A silicone cooking utensil is also resilient when it comes to being cleaned or washed.

Silicone cooking utensils also have the distinct advantage of not being corrosive to ordinary pr common kitchen substances. It also does not corrode or react negatively to exposure to heat and then cold or vice versa. This means that your silicon cooking utensil will probably last longer than the other kitchen utensils you have with the right care and attention.

One advantage of using a silicone cooking utensil is its gentleness when it comes to dealing with non-stick surfaces. Silicone is softer than wood and can not scratch or damage the surface of non stick pots and pans. Bake ware made from nonstick materials are also exposed to less risk of damage and scratches when the baker uses silicone cooking utensils. Some people may not be aware of it but scratched and damaged nonstick cooking utensils need to be disposed of because exposure to the substances of the scratched surface can lead to cancer and other serious conditions.

These are just several of the advantages of using a silicone cooking utensil. The price of a silicone cooking utensils may seem high but the longevity and sturdiness of the product make sit worthwhile.

Tips for grilling chicken

One of the most preferred ways of eating any meat is by grilling it. Of all the meat options available, the most far reaching and delicious one has to be the chicken. Grilled chicken has many nutritional benefits, variety of flavors and can be cooked in a various ways. Chicken is easy to cook, doesnt require much prep, and if done right grilled chicken can be absolutely spectacular, making it a mouthwatering option! For this to happen though, you will need the best tips for grilling chicken! You cannot expect to just snap your fingers and your grilled chicken will just knock the socks off of your guests. Grilling chicken is just not that simple. Here are some tips for grilling spectacular grilled chicken.

Grilling chicken the right way!

Even though chicken is one of the most commonly cooked meat products, it is still very easy to go wrong while cooking it. Most people either end up overcooking the meat, making it stringy and tough or under cooking it and leaving it raw and smelly. Grilling chicken might not be a science but tips for grilling chicken, if followed correctly, will help you make the most delightfully cooked grilled chicken every single time.

Best Tips for Grilling Chicken

Buy FRESH ingredients! One of the all-time favorite tips for grilling chicken is to use the finest and most fresh ingredients! If you have the option to buy fresh chicken from the butcher or frozen chicken pieces from the cold storage, pick FRESH chicken every single time. There is nothing like a fresh chicken for a successful grilling experience. The taste and texture differ so much that you will feel like you are eating two different meats altogether.

POUND the chicken! If you are grilling boneless pieces of chicken as is mostly the case, an even thick slice of tender meat is what you are looking for. Pound the piece of chicken till it reaches a uniform thickness. One of the most important tips for grilling chicken is to cook the chicken all the way through without allowing the sides and ends of the piece to become dry and this is much easier to achieve if you follow the previous steps.

Use a MARINADE! Chicken pieces make for wonderful and marvelous grilling meats. One of the most supreme tips for grilling chicken is to use a marinade that will not allow the chicken to become dry and stringy which we already mentioned. Since chicken doesnt have any layers of fat it cooks fast and can easily become dry. While this makes it a healthy meat to eat, you might end up with dry bits and using tips for grilling chicken like making a marinade or brine which will reduce the chances of this occurring.

Prevent FLARE UPS & CHARRED chicken! Another tip for grilling chicken is to cook it fast on high heat! Trying to expedite the process by increasing the quantity and intensifying the quality of flames might lead to a flare up and nobody likes to eat scorched or charred chicken. Chicken will cook fast; this doesnt mean it needs high flames, just high temperature. Generally grill your chicken 3-4 minutes per side on high heat. If you want to add BBQ sauce waits until the last minute, if you add it too soon it will create a burnt skin that is unpleasant to eat.

The Different Cooking Configurations of the Big Green Egg

The Big Green Egg ceramic grill is incredible because of its flexibility. You are able to set up your Egg up for direct cooking, similar to a regular grill, to barbecue chicken. With only one additional component you can set up your grill to become a slow smoker that is able to do smoking “low n slow” all day long! You can also use your Egg as an oven to cook up bread, pizza or even cookies.

The traditional grilling set up is commonly known as direct cooking, because you are cooking your food directly above the hot coals. Simply set your Stainless Steel or Cast Iron Grid right on top of the Fire Ring, and you are ready to grill direct. Many Eggheads can lift the level of their cooking surface with extenders or lower their cooking surface by taking out the Fire Ring to set the grid right on the Fire Box.Shifting the level of the cooking surface affords you more control over the style of heat your food will encounter; make the grill surface higher to avoid the flames for grilling vegetables, and drop the cooking surface to quickly sear pork chops. Direct grilling is commonly used for steaks, hamburgers, fish, pork tenderloin, and vegetables.

The Plate Setter Accessory is a heat barrier sold by the Big Green Egg manufacturer. If you possess a Plate Setter, you are able to use your Big Green Egg for indirect smoking. To configure your Big Green Egg for indirect barbecuing simply set the Plate Setter right on the Fire Ring with the legs facing up, rest a drip pan full of water on the Plate Setter, and then place your grid on top of the Plate Setter. If you are baking pizzas you can put your ceramic baking stone directly on the grid and you are ready to grill cook indirectly.The basic concept behind indirect smoking is that your meat is indirectly exposed to the fire, so it roasts via convection and radiant heat. This cooks the food slower than exposing it to direct heat, and is the only choice for true smoking. If you want to slow smoke brisket, pulled pork, or ribs you will need to do it via indirect grilling.

If “low and slow” isnt your thing, you can make use of the Plate Setter to change your smoker into an outdoor oven. Even though the fire is being blocked by the Plate Setter, the internal grill temperature can reach as high as 600F and allow you to cook out of this world brick-oven style pizzas. Just about anything you could bake in a normal oven you can roast using the indirect cooking set up of the Big Green Egg.

How to Cook Pork Shoulder Its All In The Rub

Fall, Football and BBQ at the tail gate or on the patio; how can it get better than this?

Pork Shoulder is a great choice for a main fare feature at your next gathering and it has two great advantages. First, it is easy to prepare and second, you can feed a group for somewhere south of three dollars a pound. The pork shoulder is the front leg of the pig and comes in two different cuts. I like the butt cut, which is the top side of the leg and has less bone in it than what is called the picnic cut. The one we recently prepared was a six and a half pound roast, which served twelve people, with some left over.

Most pork shoulder recipes call for using a smoker, which is the key to cooking a pork shoulder, mainly because it is an indirect heat source and allows for a long slow cooking process. Dont have a smoker? No problem, neither do we. Just remember that the process requires indirect heat. Here are the keys to grilling a pork shoulder, using a three burner gas grill.

It starts with the rub. In a small bowl mix the following ingredients:
cup organic paprika
2 Tbs Salt
2 Tbs Pepper
2 Tbs organic cumin
2 Tbs organic garlic powder
2 Tbs. chile powder
3 Tbs brown sugar

Coat the pork shoulder with the rub. Be liberal. A 6 8 lb. roast should use the entire rub mix. By the way, dont cut off any of the fat on the roast. The butt cut usually has one side with a layer of fat and you want it. Once you have the roast well coated with the rub, put it in the refrigerator and let it set. Overnight works best, but if time does not permit, at least give it a couple of hours.

Using a three burner grill works great. You will need an aluminum pan, a raised rack and some foil. Follow these steps:
Turn the two outside burners on at low heat.
Place the pan, with the rack directly over it, on the middle burner.
Put your pork shoulder on the rack, fat side up.
Close the lid.

Dont open the lid for three hours. No peeking! At the end of three hours check the internal temperature of the roast. If its in the 130 140 range you are right on track and your roast should look like its done, but its not. Next, cover the roast with a tent of foil, reduce the heat to one burner and close the lib. In about 2 -3 more hours you should have a pork shoulder ready to serve at an internal temp of 185 degrees.

Enjoy!

Cooking Brisket in the Oven – A Beginners Guide

Did you know that at one time, brisket was considered a very poor quality meat? History has it, that two brothers from Germany, back in the 1950’s decided to smoke up some leftover brisket they had. They left the brisket inside their smokehouse for an entire weekend. When they returned to work they sliced up the meat and served it to their customers. The meat was so flavorful and tender that it quickly became a hit.

I remember the first time I had the pleasure of eating beef brisket. It was at this fabulous little Barbecue Restaurant in Croton-On-Hudson, NY called Memphis Maes.

New York isn’t known for its BBQ, so my wife and I were a bit skeptical. But after we took our first bite of the “Texas BBQ Beef Brisket”, we became believers! My wife then looked at me and said , “You have to make this!” Not wanting to let the lovely wife down, I took it upon myself to try and recreate the BBQ brisket at home. I don’t own a smoker, so I needed to improvise and cook the brisket in the oven.

Believe it or not, the oven makes a pretty darn good BBQ brisket. Many BBQ enthusiasts will tell you that a smoker is the only way to cook brisket, but I can tell you from experience this is simply not the case.

The secret to a good beef brisket is to cook it nice and slow at around 225 degrees for several hours. So if you are looking for a quick and easy meal tonight, cooking brisket in the oven is not the way to go.

You will have to prepare this particular recipe one day in advance and you will need to plan some extra time to cook the brisket as it takes several hours to finish cooking.

Lets Talk About Dry Rubs

There are a variety of different dry rub recipes you can use for your beef brisket. One such recipe is listed below. Don’t be shy with your dry rub. You want to really coat the brisket well. Its not called a rub for nothing, so really rub those spices into the meat with your hands. After the rub has been applied put the brisket in the fridge and let it marinade over night.

DRY RUB

– 1/4 Cup Paprika – 1/4 Cup Light Brown Sugar – 2 Tbs Chili Powder – 2 Tbs Kosher Salt – 2 Tbs Freshly Cracked Black Pepper – 1 1/3 Tbs Granulated Garlic – 1 1/3 Tbs Granulated Onion – 2 Tsp Ground Cumin

THE SAUCE

We need some type of liquid to slowly braise the brisket in the oven. Braising is an excellent way to cook brisket in the oven because it keeps the brisket moist and very tender.

What I do is mix some good quality store bought barbecue sauce with a little beef broth to thin it a bit. I like to use a smoke flavored barbecue sauce. To give it a little more smoky flavor, I also add a few drops of liquid smoke. This makes a very tasty braising liquid.

LETS START COOKING ALREADY!

Before we start cooking, lets do a little preparation.

Remove the brisket from the fridge and leave it on the counter for 30 minutes or so to allow it to come to room temperature.