Episode 3 - Pool Party

Episode 3 - Pool Party episode

Cajun chicken salad

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• Salt
•  1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 2 Tbsp mustard
• 1 Tbsp cider vinegar
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon Cajun or Creole seasoning
• 1 teaspoon prepared horseradish
• 2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1/2 cup chopped green pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped green onion
• Tabasco or other hot sauce to taste

Grill chicken.  Chop up chicken and mix with ingredients above.  Serve on a baguette or in lettuce cups.

Blackened shrimp on cucumber slice

For the Cucumbers

• 16–20 (½ -inch-thick) English cucumber slices
• 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
• ½ tsp. sea salt½ tsp. pepper
• 1/3 cup chopped mint

For the Blackened Shrimp

• 2 tsp. paprika
• 2 tsp. onion powder
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 1 tsp. pepper
• 1 tsp. dried ground thyme
• 1 tsp. dried ground oregano
• ¼ to ½ tsp. cayenne to taste
• ¼ to ½ tsp. red chili flakes to taste
• 16–20 (about 1¼ lbs. total) large deveined tail-on shrimp
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• cooking spray 

1.      Put the sliced cucumbers in a bowl and mix with the olive oil, lime juice, salt, pepper, and mint. Cover and refrigerate.
2. Prepare the blackening seasoning by combining the paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, sea salt, pepper, thyme, oregano, cayenne, and red chili flakes. Coat the shrimp with the blackening. On the direct heat side of the grill, cook shrimp about 2 minutes per side till well done.    Serve on a cucumber slice.

Gazpacho

·         4 green onions, trimmed
·         1 small red onion, peeled and quartered
·         2 garlic cloves, peeled
·         1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
·         1 (1/2-inch-thick) slice country-style bread (about 2 ounces)
·         6 ripe tomatoes (2 1/2 pounds)
·         1 red bell pepper
·         1 green bell pepper
·         1 cucumber, peeled
·         3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
·         3 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
·         1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
·         1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
·          teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
·         2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
·         3/4 teaspoon sea salt
·         1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Grill vegetables.  Let cool.  Combine in a blender and refrigerate.  Serve in a shotglass with toasted baguette.

BYBBQB Episode 2 - International BBQ

Episode 2 - International BBQ episode

Beef Bulgogi

·         1 pound well-marbled, boneless sirloin, tenderloin or skirt steak
·         4 large garlic cloves
·         1 cup peeled, chopped ripe Asian or Bosc pear
·         ¾ cup finely chopped onion
·         1 teaspoon finely chopped ginger
·         1 scallion, chopped
·         2 tablespoons soy sauce
·         1 tablespoon roasted sesame oil
·         1 tablespoon light brown sugar or honey
·         ½ teaspoon black pepper
·         ½ teaspoon sesame seeds, toasted
 
Serve in a lettuce wrap or on a cold redleaf lettuce salad

Thai Beef salad

• ·         1 lb sirloin steak, about 1 to 1 1/2-inches thick
• ·         3 tablespoons lime juice
• ·         3 tablespoons soy sauce
• ·         3 tablespoons canola oil
• ·         2 tablespoon brown sugar
• ·         1 teaspoon minced garlic
• ·         1 1/2 teaspoons minced ginger
• ·         1 1/4 teaspoons red curry paste or chilli-garlic sauce
• ·         1/2 head red-leaf lettuce, torn (about 6 cups)
• ·         3 shallots, thinly sliced (about 1/2 cup), divided, for garnish
• ·         1/2 cup coriander leaves, rinsed and dried
• ·         1 cup basil leaves, sliced into ribbon

1.       Rinse and pat the meat dry. Place in a sealable plastic bag or small glass dish.

2.       In a medium bowl combine 3 tablespoon of the lime juice, soy sauce, canola oil, brown sugar, garlic, ginger and red curry paste. Pour half the mixture into the bag with the meat

3.       Seal tightly, and marinate meat in refrigerator at least 4 hours or overnight, turning occasionally.

4.       Reserve the rest of the mixture refrigerated, to dress the salad. 

5.       Grill steak until medium-rare, about 5 minutes per side, depending on desired doneness. Let rest until room temperature then slice thinly against the grain. 

6.       Combine lettuce, sliced shallot, cilantro, basil and beef in a salad bowl, reserving a few shallots for garnish. Add the reserved dressing and toss to coat. Divide salad among 4 plates and garnish with reserved sliced shallots.

Season 2 - Episode 1 - Bacon

Having a battle against Bill using bacon was a great deal of fun.  Using the great quality bacon from Dabrowski's meats was even more fun.  Here are my recipes from Episode 1 of season 2.

Episode 1 - Bacon episode 

Bacon wrapped Bacon 

• 1 lb of Dabrowski’s slab bacon 
• 1 lb of Dabrowski’s sliced bacon 
• 3 cups apple cider or apple juice
• 1/4 cup bourbon (I used Forty Creek) 
• 1/2 cup of maple syrup 
• 20 peppercorns 
• 2 bay leaves 

1. Preheat grill to 350 F.   

2. Place slab bacon in a foil pan and cover it with the apple cider, maple syrup, bourbon, peppercorns and bay leaves. 

3. Cover with foil and braise for about 3 hours.  Remove and let cool. 

4. Cut into pieces 1 inch by 1 inch by ½ inch.  Wrap with sliced bacon and grill on indirect heat till sliced bacon is crispy.  You could sprinkle with maple sugar or brush with maple syrup mixed with hot sauce before serving. 

Bacon wrapped pineapple 

• -sliced bacon 
• -pineapple cut in 1 inch chunks 
• -tajin seasoning 

1. Sprinkle tajin on the pineapple 

2. Wrap each piece of pineapple with a slice of Dabrowski’s double smoked bacon 

3. Cook over indirect heat until the bacon is crispy.  Remove and serve 

Bacon Crack 

• 1 lb. bacon 
• 1 pkg Pillsbury crescent rolls 
• ½ cup maple syrup 
• ¾ cup brown sugar 

1. Preheat pellet grill or gas grill to 325 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet (like a 15x10) with foil and liberally grease the foil with cooking spray (or use a silpat). Unroll the crescent rolls into one single plane of dough and pinch any perforations together to seal. Stretch the dough out to fit the size of the pan with your hands so it's even. Prick the dough with a fork all over. Set aside. 

2. Cook your bacon about half way.  It will continue to cook when you bake the crack. 

3. Drizzle half the maple syrup and half the brown sugar on the dough.   Top with bacon and add remaining brown sugar and bacon.   

4. Bake for approx. 25 minutes or until bubbling and caramelized. Remove from the grill and allow the pan to come to room temperature.  Cut and serve.  

Vietnamese Egg Coffee

We just wrapped up season 2 of Backyard BBQ Battle 3 weeks ago.

I used this recipe on the show as a side to my main dish on the East meets West episode and it was well received by the judges.

It has absolutely nothing to do with BBQ, but it was really tasty and will be made often in my house.  Enjoy!

Vietnamese Egg Coffee 

• 1 egg yolk 
• 3 teaspoons of instant espresso powder 
• 2 tablespoons of sweetened condensed milk 
• Boiling water 

1. Brew a small cup of espresso. 

2. Crack an egg and discard the whites. 

3. Put the yolk and the sweetened condensed milk in a small, deep bowl and whisk vigorously until you end up with a frothy, fluffy mixture. Add a tablespoon or two of the brewed coffee and whisk it in to temper the egg.   

4. In a clear coffee cup (we’re going for aesthetics here), pour in your brewed coffee, then add the fluffy egg mixture on top.

Great Tastes of Canada

Received an email a few weeks back that the Cooking Web Series I had applied for called Great Tastes of Canada has been put on the back burner indefinitely.

I'm a bit upset due to the amount of work I put into the audition tapes, but I also know that things happen for a reason.  For instance, we are in talks for season 2 of Backyard BBQ Battle.  We need to finalize some details.

The amount of feedback and comments that my co-host Bill Pudim and I have received in regards to the show is staggering.  Eastlink must be pleased too if they are willing to go with a second season.  We think this is a win for everyone.  Eastlink gets some fun programming to air, and we get to do what we love.... cook!

I'll leave you with the out-takes from my Great Tastes of Canada audition video.  Just to put it into context, I made 2 videos.  The first was to be a contestant.  The second was to be a judge as I had been asked to submit for both.  Filming was done mostly alone (camera on a tripod) but Andrea was able to help with some parts as well.  During the filming, both kids were here.  Trying to film with kids in the background being kids was not easy.  It didn't help that I wanted it to be perfect so I did many retakes.  Either way, here are the bloopers.  They are long (5 minutes) but at least fast forward to the last minute and watch Carter steal the show.

Catered a dinner for 45

This week, I had the opportunity with my Northern Ontario BBQ Society and TV co-host Bill Pudim, to cook a dinner for 45 locals.  Instead of competing against each other, we joined forces and cooked together.

I have to admit that Bill did most of the heavy lifting, getting all the long cooked meats done the night before (Brisket and pork shoulder).

I arrived shortly after lunch at the scenic Airport hotel in South Porcupine, Ontario to help him with the final prep, take care of ribs and some sides and serve the dinner.

We served a typical BBQ platter..... 4 meats (brisket, sausage, pork and ribs) as well as sides (pickles, kaiser, mac & cheese, caesar salad and coleslaw).

We served huge plates of food on cafeteria trays on butcher paper.  It cut down on dishes for sure.  Most of the trays came back to the kitchen empty so that was a sign that our cooking must have been up-to-par.

our tray looked similar to this one.

We received some really good comments about the food.  It was a lot of work and I slept like baby but we had a blast.

Thanks to some friends who helped out with prep and service (Andy Rochon, Alain Bélanger and Pierre Carbonneau).