By Mary Ellen Psaltis
It’s time to take the cover off the grill, open up the lawn chairs and brew a pitcher of sun tea. Here’s what I learned from my extensive research on the getting it right on the BBQ – it’s purely personal. Everyone has an idea of perfection. What’s yours?
First there’s the sauce. I took a slow stroll down the bottled sauce aisle at Bayview Thriftway. There’s a zillion. Well, a lot – from smoky apple to scorching hot. There’re local varieties such as Mama Scott’s and nationwide brands that you grew up eating. Tasting each and every sauce would take more dinners than there are days in a summer. Pick one and get started.
After you’ve made your sauce selection, you can consider meat, fish, vegetables and/or fruits for the grill. Bayview has a fine selection of responsibly raised and grown beef (Painted Hills) and organic chicken. Pick up a package of chicken thighs for a change; they are moister than breast meat and will cook speedily on the grill.
When you grill vegetables, it helps to have a basket. It makes for easier turning and no pieces fall between the wires. Asparagus is easy without a basket, but make sure you have some long tongs. Pineapple slices hold together well and are a fun summer dessert. Bayview has real live basil and other cut herbs including one of my favorites, Italian parsley.
You can count on Bayview to fulfill your barbequing needs.
I consulted with three engaging and fun residents of Thurston County for their best ideas on the barbeque season.
Meet Terry Taylor
Terry Taylor, a long-time Olympia resident, loves to co-create community, whether in work teams or around the dinner table She owns Versoria. As a coach and consultant, Taylor has had many rewarding experience enjoying the journey with others.
Here are her thoughts on barbequing. “I love entertaining and barbeque on the deck can be casual or elegant. I like to use fresh herbs and fruits and vegetables so I count on Bayview to have what I need. Try my favorite party menu… just add friends!”
BBQ Gourmet Dinner
Prepare in advance:
1. Fire up the briquettes. Preheat oven to 350. Line a large enough baking dish with aluminum and set aside.
2. Rinse and slice in half, 12 fresh figs. Depress center of fig with the back of a spoon.
- Mix together:
- 1 cup goat cheese, crumbled
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves, snipped from stem
- Stuff the figs with a heaping tablespoon, set aside.
3. Rinse and trim asparagus spears, season with salt and pepper, set aside.
4. Rinse and pat dry a half salmon fillet
5. Mix the following with half-cup fresh squeezed orange juice and a quarter cup honey:
- 1/3 cup kosher salt
- ¼ cup chili powder
- ¼ cup paprika
- 2 tablespoons garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon cayenne
- 2 tablespoons coriander
- 1 tablespoon black pepper (fresh)
- 2 tablespoons dried thyme
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- Brush the fish with liberal amounts of the orange marinade, throw away any remaining.
Grill:
6. Sprinkle 2 heavy handfuls of hickory wood chips when the coals are white around the edges, wait a few minutes until the hickory wood smoke is billowing.
7. Get a friend to help you transfer the fish onto the grill, skin side down. Use two large spatulas or a pizza spatula.
8. Cover the grill with a lid and smoke/cook for about 15 minutes.
9. With same friend, transfer to baking dish and pop in the oven to finish cooking – approximately 10 minutes. Fish should be opaque. Don’t overcook! I do this for safety sake to make sure the salmon is cooked.
10. Meanwhile, leave the lid off the bbq and let the flames burn the grill clean, use a brush if necessary and work fast to use the coals while they’re still red hot.
11. Lay serving size bundles of trimmed and rinsed asparagus on the fire-cleaned grill.
12. Use tongs to place stuffed figs on the grill.
13. Cover BBQ to roast the asparagus and figs for about 5-10 minutes. Pierce asparagus to make sure it’s tender but not soggy. Goat cheese will be melty, but not gooey.
14. Plate it all up, garnish the figs with fresh oregano, put a little parsley next to the salmon.
15. Pop a bottle of pinot grigio, enjoy with friends
Meet Greg Stevens
Stevens has supported Thurston County with many years of dedicated service through the Rotary of Hawks Prairie, Salvation Army, YMCA, and Olympia Master Builders (to name a few). He works in sales for MIXX 96. Stevens is also an entertainer, musician and always on the go!
His thoughts, “This is my personal recipe – lots of work, but darn well worth it. Actually I stole this recipe from an old Radio Station manager that I used to work for.
Unbelievable Southern-Smoked Brisquet! (others spell is Brisket)
By Greg Stevens
Ingredients:
- 10-15 pounds Texas Style Brisquet (Hopefully with a lot of fat on it!)
- Seasoning Salt,
- Montreal Steak Seasoning
- 1 Can of Coca Cola (Classic)
- 5 pounds of Hickory Chips
Directions:
You’ll need at least a double burner gas grill to pull this one off. Light one side, and let it heat up to 200 degrees. On the lit side, take off the grill part off of this side.
Start soaking Hickory Chips in Water at least one-hour before cooking….
- Pull the brisquet out and lay it on a cookie sheet.
- Spread Seasoning Salt (Lawrey’s or Johnny’s or your favorite) and Montreal Steak Seasoning liberally all over the brisquet rubbing it in….
- Take a meat fork and poke holes all over the meat
- Take soaked hickory chips and put in an aluminum pan with enough size to fit into the open burning side of the grill. Make sure that the flame is turned down so it doesn’t get too hot
- Take the brisquet and lay it on the cold side of the grill.
- Close the lid on the grill and let it stay for at least 2-3 hours
- After 2-3 hours, fill up the Hickory Chips in the pan again, and turn the brisquet around 180 degrees(to smoke the other side)
- Let it cook another 2-3 hours.
- Pull the brisquet off of the grill and put in a turkey roaster pan or a pan big enough to hold it.
10. Dump the can of Coca Cola on it
11. Put in a 200 degree oven for 6-8 hours.
12. Pull out the brisquet, and while it is still hot, scrape all the fat off of the meat (it usually just slides off)
13. Separate the top muscle from the bottom one and get all of the fat out of that area.
14. Put in the refrigerator to cool for 8-10 hour.
15. Take the cool brisquet and slice about 1/4 inch wide strips, being sure to slice “across the grain” of the meat. (If you’re doing it right, it will be hard to keep in slices, it will start falling apart on you.)
16. Put the meat in a pan and heat it in the oven for about an hour at 200 degrees…
17. Serve with BBQ sauce on the side, and you can add Potato Salad, Yams, BBQ Beans and Bread……
18. This is Livin’!
Meet George Sharp
You can find George in and around Thurston County as the Executive Director at Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater Visitor and Convention Bureau. Did you know that he was the National Lentil Festival Executive Director in the 90s? How about the original Tase T. Lentil mascot? He owned the Cougar Café in Pullman and was known for his BBQ Butch Burger, but today he’s recommending a Lentil BBQ burger as a healthy choice.
George’s World Famous BBQ Lentil Burger
Ingredients:
8 ounces of lentils (Red Chief is his favorite). Wash off the dirt
1 egg, mix in with lentils
¾ cup chopped red onions
3 shakes of Johnny’s seasoning salt
½ to 3/4 cup water
2 teaspoons of your favorite BBQ sauce
Optional Ingredients: garlic salt, cauliflower, carrots, bread crumbs or croutons, seasonings of your choice.
Add all ingredients together in a sauce pan and boil until lentils are tender (10-15 minutes.)
Let cool and then form in to patties.
Bake patties at 375 degrees for 20 minutes or place on foil and put on BBQ for 20 minutes.
Add buns and fixings and enjoy.
Eat Well – Be Well
