Chicken Thighs with a Crabmeat Stuffing

Chicken Thighs with a Crabmeat Stuffing

     Wow!! It’s been almost a month since I’ve posted anything! I do believe that’s the longest I’ve ever gone and I’m sorry for that. We’ve been going through some trying stuff (close family and friends will know what I’m talking about) and cooking just hasn’t been much on my mind lately. Not that we haven’t been cooking, but its been stuff like burgers or fajitas or stuff that wasn’t really blog worthy. Or stuff we’ve already done here. Been doing quite a bit more cooking inside, more than is normal for us.  But we’re back!! And today we are bringing you these bundles of chicken with a crabmeat stuffing. And never fear…I’ve got about six cooks lined up that I am super excited about. So stay tuned and see what we’re cooking up.

     We’ve been trying to clear out the freezer a bit lately. I came across these chicken thighs and I didn’t want to just throw them on the Egg with a bit of rub or sauce. No…I wanted to do something else. We’ve all seen stuffed chicken breasts….why not thighs? Dark meat has more flavor than white meat and is less likely to dry out. Sounds like a winner to me, so I started looking around for recipes, found one I liked and modified it a bit to fit our tastes.

Applying the stuffing to the boneless chicken thighs.

     Before we get started, if you can find boneless chicken thighs, do yourself a favor and buy them. Not that its hard to debone a thigh, it’s just a pain in the but. That’s what was in the freezer though, so that’s what I used. I’m keeping my eyes out for boneless from now on.

Ingredients

• 6 boneless chicken thighs, skin on
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup celery, diced fine
• 1/2 cup onion, diced fine
• 1 6oz can lump crabmeat, drained (if you can get fresh, go for it. Not kitchen tested as I couldn’t get any)
• 2 tbsp white wine (we used Pinot Grigio as that was what Mrs. G was drinking)
• 1/2 tsp poultry seasoning
• 1/4 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
• 2 cups bread cubes
• your favorite bbq or chicken rub (We used Dizzy Pig’s Tsunami Spin, a rub with mid and far Eastern influences)

Layering the stuffing on is the easy part, wait till you get to rolling them up.

Directions

1. Add the vegetable oil and butter to a large skillet and over medium heat.
2. Add the celery and onion and sprinkle on a pinch of salt. Sautee until soft, about five minutes.
3. Remove from heat and add poultry seasoning and pepper. Next, stir in crabmeat, bread cubes and wine. Allow to cool.
4. Preheat your grill to 400F. If using an Egg or other ceramic cooker, set it up for a direct cook with raised grates. For other charcoal or gas grills, you want a 2 zone cooking set up with flame on one side and none on the other. (This will allow you a safe area to move chicken in case of flare ups.)
5. Lay the chicken out skin side down and spread an even layer of the mixture over each one.
6. Now the tricky part….roll the chicken up and secure with toothpicks. We didn’t get any pictures of this as we had nasty chicken stuff all over our hands and didn’t want tot get it on the camera. You understand, don’t you and forgive us? I knew you would.
7. Once you’ve got them all rolled out, season the outside with your rub and place on the grill.
8. Cook the chicken for about 20 minutes, turning every so often to ensure even cooking (I went about every 5 minutes)
9. Cook until chicken hits about 165F. Sure, that’s high for chicken breasts, but the thighs can take that kind of heat without drying out.

Onto the Egg at 400F

     We’ve talked about wood and smoke before. Have you been paying attention? What kind of wood would pair well with chicken?

About 10 minutes in.

If you answered a light wood, possible a fruit wood such as apple or cherry, then you are correct! Give yourself 10 points. Not sure what you are going to do with them, but 10 points has to be better than none, right? Notice those two small pieces of chicken off to the side? Casualties of my poor deboning skills. I like to call them chef’s treats as I get to eat them while the chicken is cooking.

Finished after 20 minutes.

Once the chicken is done, remove it from the grill and loosely cover with foil for about 5 minutes to rest. This gives you some time to make a salad or some other side dish.

Is your mouth watering yet?

     We kept it simple and just went with a wedge salad. We figured the bread crumbs in the stuffing already counted as carbs, so we didn’t need a potato or rice or couscous.

Dinner is served!!

     The chicken turned out pretty good, if I do say so myself. Juicy, with a nice flavor from the rub and just the right amount of smoke. The first bite gave you that familiar stuffing taste with the bread and onions and celery and poultry seasoning, but then you noticed it was just a bit different from Thanksgiving stuffing. I’d really like to say that the crab meat stole the show, but in all honesty…it was kind of lost with all the other players. It didn’t jump out and you and say, “Hey!! There’s crab in here!!” Maybe fresh crab would give it that extra UMPH. I don’t know.

     I do know that it was fun writing a blog post again. Expect one again real soon. Like maybe tomorrow. Or Monday. And expect venison.

Texafied Pimento Cheese Burger

Texafied Pimento Cheese Burger

According to The Garden and Gun Blog:

As best as culinary historians can tell, the pimento burger was created there (edit Columbia, South Carolina) by Jacob “J. C.” Reynolds, who, around 1954, opened the Dairy Bar on South Main Street in the shadow of the state capitol. Reynolds introduced his signature burger sometime in the 1960s, and it quickly became a favorite of harried bureaucrats and hungover college kids. Reynolds spread homemade pimento cheese directly on the bun before adding a thin beef patty and a layer of chili. Other Columbia lunch spots followed his lead and created their own versions, and for decades the pimento burger ruled as an unheralded but much loved local specialty….

…A proper pimento burger is an exercise in balance and proportion, wider than it is tall, with a thin bun that, at a minimum, has been well-toasted or, better yet, given a sandwich-press squeeze just before serving. The key is to melt the pimento cheese, transforming it into a molten goo that seeps into the beef and the bun, a blissful, unified whole….

     I’ve never had a Pimento Cheese Burger. Seen them on T.V., but never actually indulged in one myself. Loving both burgers and pimento cheese, I’ve been curious about trying one for years. After a fellow named Hashmaker on the Big Green Egg forum made one last week and then said to me, “I’d like to see your take on the pimento cheese burger.”, it was bumped to the top of the to-do list. But since I can’t seem to leave things well enough alone, I thought I would “Texafy” it. 

     How should we go about Texafing it? Let’s start with the pimento cheese. I love pimento cheese, so I don’t want to mess with that much. Let’s add some jalapenos! Next, the bun. Hamburger buns are good (it is a hamburger, duh!) Brioche buns? Been done and I can’t find them in my neck of the woods anyway. Think Texas….think local…Telera rolls! These are used to make Mexican tortas, why not my Texafied burger. Hmmm…what else does a burger need? Bacon! Gotta have bacon on a burger. Now we got us the start of a burger.

Cast of characters for the pimento cheese (minues 1/2 jalapeno diced)

     For the pimento cheese, I knew I wanted to go home made on it. Looked at a couple of recipes online, threw some out (no Paula Deen, I don’t need cream cheese in my pimento cheese, thanks) and finally settled on one that was on both the Serious Eats  and Savuer websites, but doubled the recipe (I wanted some for sandwiches later in the week) and changed a few things here and there.

Ingredients

For the Pimento Cheese

• 4 ounces grated extra sharp cheddar cheese (I used Cracker Barrel)
• 4 ounces grated sharp cheese
• 6 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoon diced pimentos
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tablespoon diced jalapeno
• Salt and black pepper

For the Burger (makes 4)

• 1.5 lbs of 80/20 ground beef
• couple dashes of Worcestershire sauce
• pinch of garlic and onion powder
• salt and pepper
• 8 slices of bacon
• Telera Rolls (or whatever buns you prefer for hamburgers
• lettuce and tomato and onion optional

Hamburger patty onto the Mini BGE at 550.

Directions

1. At least 30 minutes before lighting the grill, mix together the ingredients for the pimento cheese in a bowl. Taste and adjust seasoning accordingly. Place pimento cheese in the refrigerator to chill and allow flavors to marry.
2. Combine ingredients for the burgers and shape into 4 thin patties. Place in freezer for a maximum of 30 minutes prior to grilling.
3. Light grill and pre-heat to 550F.
4. Remove patties from freezer and cook for about 4 minutes per side. Flip and top with 2 tablespoons of pimento cheese per patty and continue to cook for another 4 minutes.
5. Remove patties from grill when pimento cheese has melted and burgers have reached the desired level of doneness. Top with desired ingredients.

Flipped after 4 minutes and topped with pimento cheese

     One thing I read and was a bit skeptical on (even though it made sense) was that the burger would not need any condiments. If you think about it, the mayo is already in the pimento cheese. If you want to add ketchup or mustard, be my guest, but try it first without them. I was pleased with the flavor and didn’t think additional condiments were necessary.

Burger assembled with bacon and served with onion rings.

     Notice the toasted buns? Gotta have toasted buns with a burger. If you really don’t care about your health, go ahead and toast those buns in the bacon grease. I’m not saying I did that, but I I’ll deny it if you ask. Look at all those spices in the melted pimento cheese. I may have gone a bit heavy handed there.

My new favorite burger

     Ooey, gooey, meltedy cheesey burger!! I had been texting on and off with a BBQ buddy by the name of Dyal_SC through out the night. After two bites, I had to put down the burger to text him and declare I had found my new favorite burger! So good, so decadent. The perfectly melted cheese played nicely with the burger, creamy and delicious, with just a hint of heat from the cayenne and jalapeno. The bacon added the right amount of saltiness and smoked flavor. Like I said before, there was no need for additional condiments. I did put a slice of tomato on the bottom and it complimented it perfectly. Not sure how the lettuce would have worked out. While at the store, I thought I remembered having lettuce. Turns out it had gone bad, so I did without. After trying it, I don’t think it was really necessary. The pimento cheese burger was everything I thought it would be….and more! If you haven’t tried one yet, I highly encourage you to make one.

     On a side note, I told you I doubled the pimento cheese in order to have extra for sandwiches later on. While the pimento cheese worked perfectly on the burger, standing by itself for a sandwhich…not so much. Maybe the hamburger patty, bacon and bun were enough to mitigate the heat and make it seem not so hot. Maybe overnight the flavors married and intensified. Whatever the case may have been, it was way too hot to eat by itself between two slices of white bread. Really put the burn on. I would suggest either not making enough for leftovers or leave/reduce the amount of jalapenos and cayenne pepper. Other than that, I’m calling this one a success with no need for tinkering.

Sauerbraten Chicken Wings

Sauerbraten Chicken Wings

     With Mrs. G off to Germany, I’m just imagining all the great food she must be eating. Schnitzel, spaetzel, bratwurst and other sausages, pig knuckle and pig shank (Hey, don’t knock it if you haven’t had it. It’s really good).  Tons of good food. Most of which I can’t/never tried to cook. Thinking about German food, my love of chicken wings and a conversation with a fellow blogger, Kristi of Necessary Indulgences, about said chicken wings, got me doing some research until I came upon Sauerbraten Chicken Wings. Not something I saw while I was in Germany. For all I know, not something they even make, but it sounded good to me.

    Sauerbraten literally translates to sour roast meat. While usually referring to beef, it can include venison, lamb, mutton or pork (and even horse in the old days). Normally, tougher cuts of meat are used. They are allowed to marinate for 3 to 10 days in order to tenderize the meat. Since chicken is not a touch cut of meat, we can reduce the amount of time it needs to marinate down to one day.  As far as I can tell, this recipe is pretty authentic minus the juniper berries which can be difficult to find.

Chicken Wings cooking on the Big Green Egg indirect at 400F (before sprinkiling with salt and pepper)

Sauerbraten Chicken Wings (serves 4)

(I cut the recipe in half since I was just cooking for myself in case you were wondering why there isn’t 4 lbs of wings in these pictures)

Ingredients

• 4 lbs chicken wings, tips removed
• 3 cups water
• 3/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 bay leaves
• 10 peppercorns
• 6 whole cloves
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 medium onion, diced
• 1 lemon, cut into eight wedges
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 1 1/2 Tbsp butter
• 1 1/2 Tbsp flour
• 4 Tbsp crushed ginger snaps

Almost done

Directions

1. Combine water, red wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar, bay leaf, peppercorns, cloves, salt, onion, and lemon in saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer 10 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.
2. Remove 1 cup marinade liquid (try not to get any solid pieces), cover, and reserve in refrigerator. Place wings in a Zip-Lock bag and pour remaining marinade over. Seal and refrigerate overnight.
3. Set up grill for an indirect cook and pre-heat to 400 degrees F. Remove wings from marinade (discard marinade), shaking a bit to remove any excess liquid. Place wings on grill, sprinkle with coarse salt and fresh ground pepper, and cook  for about 30 to 40 minutes, turning once halfway through. Times may vary due to size of wings and different grills. Make sure to cook them to a minimum of 165.
4. Towards the end of cooking, melt butter over medium heat in a saucepan. Add flour to butter, stirring until flour begins to brown (should be golden brown in color), about 3-4 minutes. Slowly add the reserved 1 cup marinade and stock, whisking until smooth and slightly thickened, about 2-3 minutes. Add ginger snaps, whisking until dissolved.
5. When wings are cooked, remove from grill to a bowl or serving platter. Pour 1 cup of sauce over wings and toss. If desired, add remaining sauce (about 2/3 cup) or serve passed as dipping sauce with wings.

Finished and all sauced up

    If you like, you can go ahead and pretend I served up these sauerbraten wings with some authentic German sides like Kartoffelknoedel (potato dumplings), spaetzle (a type of egg noodle that is to die for), Rotkohl (red cabbage), boiled potatoes or potato pancakes and a nice, cold pint of German beer. I don’t mind. No need to admit I ate it with tater tots and a bourbon and Coke. 

Sauerbraten Chicken Wings ready to eat

     This was  quite an unusual twist from the normal wings. There was no heat involved. Instead, it had a nice mixture of sweet from the ginger snaps and sour and tang from the apple cider vinegar and red wine vinegar. Definitely an interesting change to what most have come to expect from wings. While not my favorite wing recipe, I’ll be making these again. Especially next fall when Oktoberfest rolls around.

The original recipe that I modified can be found HERE

Smoked Cajun Turkey Breast Lunchmeat

Smoked Cajun Turkey Breast

     Have you ever looked at the ingredients on a package of lunchmeat? Truth be told, I haven’t, but I’m sure if I did, it would be scary. I’m sure they are filled with additives and preservatives and chemicals that you can’t pronounce. If you want, I’ll wait here while you go check.

     I know I should probably care, but honestly, I didn’t really make this turkey breast for health reasons. No…I made it ‘cuz I got a MEAT SLICER! And like a kid with a new toy, I just had to play with it. I guess I could also justify it by saying its cheaper than buying lunchmeat as well.

The Egg was set up for an indirect cook using apple wood chips for smoke.

Ingredients

• boneless turkey breast
• Tony Chachere’s Injectables (I used their Butter and Jalapeno for an extra kick)
• Dizzy Pig Swamp Venom or other Cajun seasoning

1 hour in

Directions

1. Set up your grill or smoker for an indirect cook. Temperature isn’t really that important, but it will affect the time it takes to cook your turkey breast. You can run it anywhere from 250-400.
2. Inject your turkey breast, rub it down with your Cajun seasoning and then place on your grill. If you are using wood chips (or chunks), add them at this point. I suggest a light wood like apple or cherry as turkey absorbs smoke readily.
3. Smoke your turkey until it reaches an internal temperature of 160F (mine took and hour and a half)
4. Remove turkey and loosely tent with aluminum foil. The temperature will continue to rise to 165.
5. After about 30 minutes, you can take a taste (for quality control purposes, of course). You can now slice your turkey, but it will slice better if you allow it to sit in the refrigerator and completely cool.
6. Build a sandwich and congratulate yourself on a job well done.

Finished and resting before slicing.

If your turkey breast was encased in netting, make sure to remove it before slicing your lunchmeat.

Sliced and ready to build sandwiches.

     We actually waited until the following morning to slice our turkey breast. Why do I say “we”? I should just say “me”. I’m not sure what Mrs. G was doing, but she was busy, hence the lack of any action shots of the turkey being sliced.

     While I have not constructed a monster sandwich out of the lunchmeat yet, I did manage to snag a few slices of it for quality control purposes and let me tell you it, it is far superior than any that you will be able to find at your grocery store. The hint of smoke from the apple wood, the spice and heat from the injection and the rub. So tasty and sliced paper thin…perfect for building giant subs with.  I’m going to have some good lunches this week. So what are you taking for lunch this week?

Baltimore Pit Beef

Baltimore Pit Beef

Last week, I was wracking my brain trying to come up with something to cook for the Superbowl. Somehow, I wanted to tie the cook into the game. I started thinking “What is Baltimore famous for?” I thought about crabs and crab cakes but I really wasn’t feeling it. Then I remembered an episode of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives and Man vs. Food where they had a sandwich. A Baltimore Pit Beef Sandwich to be exact from a place called Chaps. A quick check on YouTube of those two shows and I knew what I was going to make. (BTW, I also tried thinking of something for San Francisco, but couldn’t come up with anything BBQ or grilled. I thought about New Orleans as well and almost did a crawfish boil, but either I waited one day to late to order or I had to commit to either a 15lb bag or a 30lb bag. Kinda too much food for Mrs. G and I alone)

The star of the show – a 4lb beef round roast.

Having never done one before, and knowing that I couldn’t duplicate exactly what I saw on the videos, I turned to the guys at The Egghead Forum. I knew that if anybody knew how to do one on the Egg, these would be the guys and they did not disappoint. I got plenty of tips and pointers. I finally settled on Steven Raichlen’s recipe that was published by the New York Times HERE.

While normally pit beef is made from top round roast, I was told bottom round and eye of round would work as well. Someday, I am actually going to become better organized and plan ahead. When I went to the grocery store, the only top round they had was sliced for London Broil. I figured that was not going to work and after talking to the butcher and discussing what I was going to do, he suggested this beef round roast.

Beginning the sear at 450F

Ingredients

For the rub

• 2 tbsp of season salt
• 1 tbsp of paprika
• 1 tsp of garlic powder
• 1 tsp of dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

For the sandwich

• 3 to 4 lb top round roast (or bottom round, eye of round or rump roast)
• 8 Kaiser rolls or 16 slices of rye bread
• Tiger Sauce (see recipe)
• 1 onion, sliced thin
• 2 ripe tomatoes, sliced thin (optional)
• iceberg lettuce (optional)

For the Tiger Sauce

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup prepared horseradish
• 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
• salt and pepper to taste

I use this cast iron bacon press to hold odd shaped meats up so that I can get a sear on all sides.

Directions

1. Combine ingredients of the rub in a bowl. Apply liberally to the beef, patting it in. Place in a baking dish and cover. You can cover the beef with the rub for a few hours, but for maximum flavor, leave it for 3 days in the refrigerator, turning once a day. (I applied mine about 6 hours ahead)
2. Remove meat from the refrigerator about an hour before you plan on cooking and allow to begin to come to room temperature.
3. Preheat your grill to 450F. If using a grill other than a Kamado style grill, set it up with a direct and indirect zone.
4. Sear your beef on all sides. I did mine for about 6 minutes a side taking about 30 minutes total.
5. Remove beef from the grill. If using a Kamado style grill, set it up for an indirect cook at this point and return beef to grill. If using another types of grill, move the meat to the indirect heat portion of the grill.
6. Continue cooking until you reach an internal temp of 120 for rare and 125 for medium rare. You do not want to take it past this point or it will be tough. This will take approximately another 30 minutes or so, give or take depending on the size of your cut of beef.
7. Allow meat to rest for 25 minutes,
8. Slice beef as thinly as you can across the grain. A good, sharp knife works well, but an electric slicer would be better.
9. Pile beef high on a roll slathered with Tiger Sauce and top with raw onions. You can top with lettuce and tomatoes is desired.

Cooking indirect at 450F

     If you watched the videos of Chaps, you will notice we didn’t follow their method exactly. They cook the beef over direct the whole time. You can try this method if you want, but you will be manning the grill the entire time. By searing and then moving to an indirect cook, you give yourself a bit of a break and can sit back and relax while the beef is finishing up.

Quality Control

Had to take just a bit while it was resting. You know…quality control and all that.

Ready to slice

Breaking out the meat slicer that I got for Christmas. You do have a meat slicer, right?

Maiden Voyage

The meat slicer worked great and made quick work of the beef. While not as heavy duty or as fast as the ones you would find in a deli, this one will work pretty good for home use. Just don’t rush it and force the meat. Allow the slicer to do the work for you.

Pile of meaty goodness!

Will you look at that? What a beautiful site! A pile of meaty goodness, nice and pink and tender.

Baltimore Pit Beef

     We ate ours just as they serve them at Chaps (I’m assuming), meat piled high, topped with a thinly sliced raw onion and the Tiger Sauce. Truth be told, I totally forgot about getting the lettuce out and slicing the tomatoes. Honestly, this sandwich doesn’t need it. The sharp, pungent flavor of the onion and the creaminess (yeah, I know, that’s not a word, but it should be) and heat from the Tiger Sauce paired perfectly with the beef. Slicing the beef thinly transformed what can often be a tough, lean cut of beef into a tender cut. Overall, a great sandwich and one we will be doing again. While it isn’t traditional BBQ, what with it being grilled directly and the lack of any smoke used, it is down right good eats.