Older Bolder Life

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The Older Bolder Life Friday Feast: Spicy Cumin Coriander Tri-Tip Steak

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Several weeks ago I posted a nifty recipe for our spin on a Santa Maria Tri-Tip, and wrote a bit about what makes the tri-tip cut so interesting…

Recently we’ve been playing around with tri-tip, a somewhat unique cut of meat that is kinda’ve of a cross between a largish steak and a smallish roast; my butcher buddies argue that it’s really a roast cut from the lower part of the sirloin, so it shares some of the (lesser marbled and chewier) characteristics of sirloin steaks.

Most tri-tips you’ll run across today have their generous fat caps and silver skin already trimmed for you, weighing in somewhere in the 2-3 pound range most often; untrimmed they can run close to 5 pounds.

Steve Raichlen in his ginormous book BBQ USA has a nifty, and fairly detailed explanation of the tri-tip’s apparently indisputable ties to Santa Maria, California; if you’re into food history it’s a great read with Raichlen’s typical dry humor woven in nicely.

Raichlen’s story telling can be compelling reading, and the piece referenced above from his tome BBQ USA covering the regional history of the Santa Maria tri-tip is very good, and offers some great tips on cooking this somewhat unconventional cut of meat.

We’re all in for spicy marinades and slathers around our camp, and have been tweaking this one around the edges for a while now since coming across its predecessor in Bon Appetit some time back.

The peppercorns play very well with the cumin and coriander seed, and the oyster and fish sauces serve as a flavorful binder for the spices without overwhelming the core flavors at all. Note that this one needs time in the fridge once rubbed/slathered, at least 4 hours and overnight is better.

Tri-tip is a damned easy cook once you’re ready to roll, and I must say we’ve really been enjoying tri-tip of late smoke/grilled on a pellet rig at 250 to target temps and rested for 15 minutes before slicing…

2 tbsp sichuan peppercorns
2 tbsp coriander seeds
1 tbsp cumin seeds
1/4 cup avocado or olive oil
3 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce

2-3 pound tri-tip

Toast the peppercorns and seeds until fragrant and slightly darkened, cool and grind. Combine spices with the oil, oyster sauce, and fish sauce, pour into a large resealable bag, add the meat, turning to coat, and throw in the fridge overnight (at least 4 hours).

When ready to cook, let tri-tip rest at room temp for an hour.

Grill over medium-high (indirect) heat to an internal temp of 128 to 132 for medium rare; rest for 15 minutes before cutting. Alternatively smoke-grill on pellet grill at 250 to internal temps above (about 75 minutes typically for us).

Slice across the grain (don’t forget the grain runs on different angles in each “wing” of the tri-tip) and serve with your favorite sauce. I’ll post our version of the tiger bite sauce mentioned above (and seen in several images) next week.

Hot damn, this one’s really good.

Enjoy.

the Older Bolder Life Friday Feast: Smoked Santa Maria Tri-Tip

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As we’ve all plowed through the recent holiday weekend, which some might (erroneously in fact) argue is the peak of “the grilling season” in the States, we find ourselves settling into a nice routine of grilling several outstanding proteins every week and enjoying them, most often with a cool, flavorful, refreshing salad over the following days.

Recently we’ve been playing around with tri-tip, a somewhat unique cut of meat that is kinda’ve of a cross between a largish steak and a smallish roast; my butcher buddies argue that it’s really a roast cut from the lower part of the sirloin, so it shares some of the (lesser marbled and chewier) characteristics of sirloin steaks.

Most tri-tips you’ll run across today have their generous fat caps and silver skin already trimmed for you, weighing in somewhere in the 2-3 pound range most often; untrimmed they can run close to 5 pounds.

Steve Raichlen in his ginormous book BBQ USA has a nifty, and fairly detailed explanation of the tri-tip’s apparently indisputable ties to Santa Maria, California; if you’re into food history it’s a great read with Raichlen’s typical dry humor woven in nicely.

The rub recipe below is adapted from Raichlen’s suggestion of the classic Santa Maria rub his travels and research unearthed years ago, though I think it’s much better with a bit more cracked pepper and the Mexican oregano. And don’t be put off by what appears to be a hefty dose of granulated garlic in the rub, it melts in nicely and doesn’t overpower the flavors at all.

Of note, we’ve grilled this recipe over live fire for what seems like forever (red oak is the traditional wood of choice in Santa Maria), though of late we’ve taken to smoking this one at 225 until it’s 125-130 and searing in butter in a cast iron pan to crisp up the exterior, and keeping the interior a delightful, and delicious, medium rare.

The classic Santa Maria salsa served with this is a bit unusual as salsas go, but it’s damned good – I’ll share that recipe next week…

1 tbsp freshly cracked black pepper
2 tsp good coarse salt
2 tsp granulated garlic (or garlic powder)
1-2 tsp dried rosemary, crumbled
1 tsp dried Mexican oregano

1 tri-tip, 2-3 pounds, trimmed of fat cap and silver skin

Prepare the rub and generously season the tri-tip on all sides; then rest in the fridge for a minimum of an hour up to overnight.

For a smoked, pellet grill, low and slow cook, fire your grill/smoker to 225, and cook until reaching an internal temperature of 125 to 130 for medium rare (135-140 for medium).

Pull and sear in butter (or oil of choice) in cast iron quickly on your stove/grill to crisp and brown up the tri-tip, looking for a finished temp of 135 for medium rare, 145 for medium. Rest for 15 minutes, then slice thinly against the grain (don’t forget there are two grain directions in a tri-tip!).

For a standard, live-fire grill cook, cook for roughly 10 minutes per side to reach the medium rare temps above; pull and rest and serve as per above.

Next week I’ll share the classic Santa Maria salsa that is often served with this delightful protein.

Enjoy.

the Older Bolder Life Friday Feast: Cheesy Brisket Peppers w Shallot Vinaigrette

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I don’t know about you, but this time of year we’re feasting three or four days every week on delights from the grill or smoker.

We had a rainy and surprisingly cool May and early June here in North Texas (northward of 17 inches of rain in about 5 weeks in our neighborhood), but full on Texas summer has arrived in its hot-as-blazes glory over the past ten days or so.

These hot, steamy days were made for grilling or smoking proteins outside, and we’re forever on the hunt for nifty side dishes to serve alongside.

Having lived for many years under the bright Texas sun, my wife and I have a deep and abiding love for great Tex Mex, but dammit, it’s not the healthiest cuisine on the planet by a long shot. I in particular enjoy a great chile relleno though haven’t eaten the deep fried, classically prepared version in years.

A few weeks back I was basically whining to my friend Chef Libby in Austin about that very thing when she fired me a pic of a commercial grill covered with over 100 of these Cheesy Brisket Peppers she’d recently cooked for an event in Austin. Libby’s advice was that they can play either as the main event for a dinner, or make a great side dish when there’s a grilled or smoked protein as the centerpiece.

She’d sourced the recipe concept from Bon Appetite, and readily admitted their shallot vinaigrette was amazingly good on the roasted peppers (and lots of other stuff), though the addition of some smokey, chopped Texas brisket to the peppers was her call.

And what a great call that simple addition of a few tablespoons of brisket was.

Libby does these over live fire or in the oven; having just added a pellet grill to our home arsenal, I’m doing a batch of these on the Traeger on Saturday for friends coming over, though the peppers imaged in the post today were done in the over (easy peasy to do by the way).

These provide a ton of taste and visual appeal for the minimal effort involved, and you’ll want to make extra shallot vinaigrette too – it’s damned good.

2 medium shallots, sliced thinly lengthwise
1/4 C red wine vinegar
1 and 1/2 tsp sugar (optional)
1 tsp kosher salt, more to taste
1/4 cup EVOO or avocado oil

4 Anaheim or New Mexico chiles, cut in half lengthwise, seeds and inner membranes removed
1 tbsp EVOO or avocado oil

1/2 cup (more or less) chopped brisket or protein of your choice (optional)
1/2 pound pepper Jack cheese, cut in to 1/2-inch cubes
Fresh ground pepper

Optional:
2 garlic cloves, grated fine
Chopped pickled jalapeño pepper slices, diced fine

Combine the first five ingredients for the vinaigrette and set aside.

Prep the chiles and preheat the oven to 475 or fire the broiler (or even the grill). Drizzle the peppers with a tbsp of oil, dust with good salt and fresh ground pepper, and place cut side down on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake/broil until skins begin to blister and the peppers soften, 5 minutes under the broiler and perhaps 6-7 in the hot oven.

Remove from the oven, turn over (tongs!), and spoon in a tbsp or so of the optional protein or chopped jalapeños if you’ve chosen to use them (we used chopped brisket in the pics there), then divide the cubed cheese among the peppers. Top with the grated garlic if desired.

Return to the oven/broiler and bake/broil until the cheese has melted and is beginning to brown (4-5 minutes in the oven, 3 or so under the broiler).

Remove from the oven, plate, and drizzle the shallot vinaigrette over; season to taste with more good salt and fresh ground pepper.

Enjoy.

the Older Bolder Life Friday Feast: Grilled Rosemary Lamb Chops

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Like many of you, when thinking about the Easter table we often think of lamb or ham as the centerpiece protein; this year my lovely wife called for a Greek inspired meal featuring a perennial favorite – Grilled Rosemary Lamb Chops.

Last Easter’s Merguez Sausages were damned tasty, and I personally think this Ancho Leg of Lamb hung the moon, but lamb chops won the day this year.

Lamb chops are easy to source, quick to grill, and as always provide incredibly flavorful meat right off the bone. My only real complaint about them over the years has been that given that most lamb chops are cut fairly thick, sometimes there’s a bit more char outside after grilling given the time needed to make sure the deepest meat is a perfect medium rare.

This year I decided to sous vide the chops (130, 90 minutes) after rubbing with a bit of olive oil and a fresh cut garlic clove, with the chops then loaded into BPA-free bags with several sprigs of fresh rosemary.

A Quick Sidebar on Sous Vide and Texture…

As an aside, while we still use the sous vide method around our camp with some regularity, I am as I’m sure you are aware of a growing backlash against sous vide (nothing to do with the somewhat tired BPA discussion), but instead focusing on texture.

There are a number of talented chefs and home cooks who continue to report that they find proteins that spend time in a sous vide bath, while often cooked to perfection from a temperature / doneness perspective have a different texture than say thick-cut, bone-in ribeye cooked using a reverse sear technique. (Interesting my son Jake and I have had a very similar discussion a couple of different times this winter, and both find we’re leaning to the texture of the reverse sear method).

The other texture issue with sous vide has to do with pre-salting proteins before they’re placed in the water bath; some folks feel that doing so can make some proteins taste “rubbery and hammy”; there’s been a fair amount written on the subject, and we don’t salt red meats pre-sous vide, particularly if they’re going to be held for hours or a day or two before grilling, but still lightly salt chicken breasts for cold chicken salad (for example) before their time in the bath.

You make the call…

Back to Our Grilled Rosemary Lamb Chops

All the chops needed then was a quick turn on the grill to caramelize the surfaces and we were good to go, with this delightful Greek Salad, a recipe of homemade tzatziki, and crumbled feta on board.

These chops are delicious cold as well or heated gently prior to serving; cook a big batch when these come up in rotation.

Enjoy.

the Older Bolder Life Friday Feast: Ancho and Chipotle Glazed Beef Short Ribs

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Now that we’re beginning to see a hint of cooler fall weather, and inspired by some great recipes our friend Chef Libby in Austin has been sharing of late, we’ve been experimenting for weeks now with chile pepper based salsas and sauces to flavor up all sorts of dishes.

This recipe is a great example. A few weeks ago Libby and I were chatting about a recipe close to this one that showed up in Bon Appetit’s feed. We agreed their version was good, but was missing something; I thought it needed a deeper, fruit-like flavor note that anchos bring to the table.

Libby tried several different peppers (including guajillo and dried Californias by report) as well, though ended up agreeing with me that the ancho addition was the home run, and she also (being a Southern chef and knowing her catering audience in Austin very well) add just a bit of molasses too.

Hardcore keto folks will of course gasp at the inclusion of brown sugar (and the molasses), though I tend to agree with Mark Sisson that the occasional inclusion of any sweetener in a marinade or glaze isn’t in any way going to break the “carb bank” and disrupt your nutritional ketosis. Of course you can leave it out and rely on the natural sweetness of the anchos too.

This recipe was developed by the team at Bon Appetit apparently specifically for grilled short ribs, though we (and Libby) think it’s great on flank, skirt, and hanger steaks – all tougher, deeply-flavored cuts that need to be grilled just to medium rare and rested, then thinly sliced across the grain with care. Though I haven’t done so yet, I can imagine the sauce playing very well with pork tenderloin or chops, and I’ll probably make a batch around Thanksgiving when there’s a turkey on the menu…

The short ribs are a great call, and made a wonderful taco for these images, and even better bacon-wrapped poppers the next day.

6 garlic cloves, toasted (see below)
3-4 canned chipotles in adobo
1 presoaked, stemmed and seeded ancho Chile (2 if small)
1 tbsp chipotle adobo sauce
1/4 cup, scant, dark brown sugar (packed)
2 tbsp plain distilled white vinegar
1 tsp molasses, optional
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup water

1 and 1/2 pounds boneless beef short ribs (thicker the better)
1-2 tsp kosher salt
Optional: pinch of ground cumin, pinch of ancho chile powder
Avocado oil

To serve
Slaw of your choice – try this one
Red onion, cut into wedges through intact the root end
Avocado, small dice
Lime quarters
Chopped cilantro
Sliced radishes
Tortillas (gluten free or not)

Toast the garlic until charred, peel, then toss in the blender or food processor with the chipotles, adobo, soaked ancho chile, brown sugar, vinegar, molasses, kosher salt, pepper, and water. Blend until smooth, then set aside.

Fire the grill, and rub the short ribs with a 1 teaspoon or so of kosher salt, the optional cumin and ancho chile powder, then drizzle with the avocado oil and rub everything in.

Now grill the short ribs, rotating every 2 minutes or so, until crisp and browned – roughly 8-10 minutes. Now slather all sides of the ribs with the slather, turning every minute or so, for another 3-4 minutes until shiny and glazed.

Pull the meat, rest 15-20 minutes (finish the toppings), and grill the onion wedges in the meantime (trim off the root end when finished to separate the rings).

Now cut the short ribs into 1/3-inch pieces against the grain, and build that short rib taco drizzling a bit more of the adobo slather on to finish.

Enjoy.

the Older Bolder Life Friday Feast: The Family “Original Recipe” Grilled Chicken

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Like many of you, we’ve grilled a truckload of chicken on the back porch grill over the years, maybe even a couple of truckloads, and have a handful of favorite recipes we reach for time and time again when doing so.

This recipe, what we’ve come to call The Family “Original Recipe” Grilled Chicken is one that I unwittingly cobbled together back when I was in high school grilling now and again for the family.

The idea first came from a family friend named Butch who ran a family ranch along the breaks of the Canadian River in the Texas Panhandle, a ranch eventually buried beneath the waters of the then in development Lake Meredith.

We attended several big parties out on the ranch way back in the day, and even as a youngster I watched the men cooking over the open fire slather chicken with a baste made principally of grass-fed, ranch-churned butter and Worcestershire sauce. Even as a kid I learned that complimenting the cook and asking reasonable questions is a great way to learn all sorts of useful things, including some time-tested delicious recipes.

Over the decades since we’ve fiddled with all sorts of additions and modifications to the recipe and approach to cooking, settling on a pre-grill dusting of paprika and garlic powder (or granulated garlic), followed by a frequent turn and baste cook – with the simple basting sauce we’ve closely guarded until now – until the chicken is a golden-mahogany brown and ever so flavorful.

The time and turns needed to get a great crust on the chicken always precipitated a balancing act requiring a watchful eye – the fats in the baste will burn if applied too early, wait too long to start basting and the chicken could end up overdone, dry, and under-flavored.

Lately we’ve been adding a nifty par-cook using a sous vide technique, and it’s clearly producing the best Original Recipe Chicken we’ve ever done, and I mean ever. The point of using a sous-vide par cook is to gently precook the chicken, with a light application of spice, at 140 degrees (for about an hour and half for those interested), then go right to the grill and layer on the flavor via a series of baste and turns. This guarantees you won’t overcook the chicken – it’s incredibly moist and tender, and packs all the flavor of the traditional all-grill-cooked approach.

Either way, this is one fine recipe, and makes the best damned chicken salad or cold chicken sandwiches you’ll eat this summer. And by the way, it’s awesome with the Gochujang Curry Peanut Sauce recipe I’m posting next week (last image below).

2-4 pounds chicken breasts, thighs, leg pieces (see above)
Garlic powder
Paprika

4 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp grass fed butter
2 tbsp avocado oil
1 tbsp chile powder of choice (optional)
1-2 tsp molasses (optional)

Sous Vide + Grill Method
After dusting your chicken pieces with a light sprinkle of paprika and garlic powder (or granulated garlic), seal in the BPA-free sous vide bags of your choice.

Now sous vide at 140 degrees F for 1.5 hours, then remove and pat dry.

While the chicken is in the sous vide bath, combine the 5 sauce ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat and cook until simmering, stirring occasionally. Turn off the heat and let cool in place.

Fire the grill during the last 15 minutes of sous vide time.

Dust the par-cooked chicken pieces again with a light sprinkle of paprika and garlic powder, then grill for 2 minutes per side. After the first turn, begin basting the chicken pieces with the prepared basting sauce, turning every 2-3 minutes until a deep, rich, mahogany-colored glaze and crust develops on the chicken.

Pull and rest for 5-6 minutes, then go to it.

Grill Only Method
Prepare the sauce as per above while you’re firing the grill.

Dust the chicken pieces again with a light sprinkle of paprika and garlic powder, then grill for 4 to 5 minutes per side, you’re not looking to cook the pieces through, but to set the spices and partially cook the chicken. .

After the first turn, begin basting the chicken pieces with the prepared basting sauce, turning every 2-3 minutes until a deep, rich, mahogany-colored glaze and crust develops on the chicken. If using a gas grill, you’ll want to turn down your grill to medium-low during the basting phase of the cook.

Pull and rest for 5-6 minutes, then go to it.

Enjoy.

The Older Bolder Life Friday Feast: Gochujang Skirt Steak

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As the world begins to wake back up and we move onward toward summer (at least here in the northern hemisphere), perhaps like many of you we’re looking forward to gatherings around the grill with friends and family. Hell bells, we’re only two weeks away from Memorial Day, the more or less official kick-off of the summer season (at least up until this alternative universe year we’ve been living in of late).

Though we’ve lived in the Northern Rockies for most of our married lives, my lovely wife and I both grew up in Texas and have enjoyed the Texas food scene for years, not only its classic roots in barbecue and classic Tex Mex, but also the various fusion variations that have arisen (i.e. the Vietnamese fusion cuisine in Houston and beyond).

That said, we’ve also over the past few years become huge fans of gochujang, the spicy, fermented Korean red pepper paste that’s packed with a peppery, funky umami that’s not blisteringly spicy-hot.

I’ve written about using gochujang here with chicken and we’ve been fiddling with a Gochujang Skirt Steak off and on for a couple of years now, finally settling more or less on this version.

Many would argue skirt steak’s truest, and most delicious, destiny is to be marinated lightly, rubbed with fresh garlic, then quickly grilled to medium-rare, rested, and thinly sliced across the grain to be placed in a taco, along with a spicy salsa, avocado in some form, and any of the dozens and dozens of options that make tacos sing for you.

For most of us in the Primal and Paleo worlds, tacos made from traditional corn and wheat flour aren’t often on the menu (or at all), and I’ve yet to shake hands with an “alternative” tortilla product that didn’t make me longingly wish (or even beg) for the traditional version.

The traditional skirt steak position in culinary history duly noted, sliced skirt makes a powerfully tasty salad topper or as the protein component of your favorite bowl over a nifty cauliflower rice (or whatever).

This one is best with 12-hours or more in the marinade and the ginger grated in, though even a couple of hours in the marinade imparts flavor you’ve probably not enjoyed in your grilled skirt steak (or flank, or London broil) before.

2 pounds skirt steak, trimmed, cut into 4 to 5-inch pieces
1/3 cup plus 1 tbsp gochujang
5 tbsp avocado oil (olive oil works as well)
5 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
1 medium red onion
2 gloves garlic, grated
1 tsp kosher salt
Optional: 2-inch piece of fresh ginger, grated

Prep and trim the skirt steak, lightly sprinkle with salt.

Combine the gochujang, oil, rice vinegar, grated garlic, and ginger if using in a large resealable bag. Grate the onion using the largest holes on your trusty box grater and add to the mixture. Now add the skirt steak pieces and mash around until well coated. Seal and throw in the fridge overnight.

When ready to cook, fire the grill, and drain the excess marinade from the skirt steak (don’t wipe off the clinging marinade). When the grill is ready, grill for 5-8 minutes (pending your skirt thickness and fire) until lightly charred and cooked to medium-rare. Rest the meat for 10 minutes before slicing thinly against the grain.

When we have an irresistible urge for a taco (hey, we are in Texas) these are unbeatable wrapped in a hot tortilla with some quick-pickled onion, a dollop of additional gochujang, and maybe a slice of firm avocado.

See you at the grill this weekend.

Enjoy.

the Older Bolder Life Friday Feast: Greek Marinated Grilled Flank Steak

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As I shared on Monday when chatting about our favorite tzatziki recipe here, my lovely wife and I came a bit late to enjoy Greek cuisine as much as we do today.

We both come from families who, from a home cooking and menu perspective, ate fairly routine American fare during our years at home decades ago; we both grew up in Texas so adventurous dining back in the day was typically either barbecue or Tex-Mex. Heck, I’m not even sure there was a Greek diner or restaurant in my panhandle home growing up…

Later my wife and I lived in Salt Lake City for years, which happens to host a surprisingly robust Greek community, and one of my former business partners and mentors introduced us to the wonders of cooking (reasonably) authentic Greek cuisine at home – and this wonderful Greek salad we’ve served for years (including again this past week!).

A couple of weeks ago we had occasion to eat at one of our favorite Greek eateries here in the DFW metro to celebrate a small but meaningful life victory, we enjoyed a dish we’d not savored in a while – a simple but incredibly delicious marinated and grilled flank steak.

I of course pestered the restaurant team for their recipe, and while they didn’t provide all the details, it was enough to guide my research, which included time on the phone with friend and Chef Libby in Austin.

After a bit of experimenting and tweaking, this is the recipe we’ve dialed in for this Greek Marinated Grilled Flank Steak.

Living in Texas as we do, I often reach for skirt or hanger steaks when preparing fajitas (which granted we enjoy often); it’s been a pleasure to cook with flank again as well – flank shares the same deep, beefy flavor as skirt (and hangers), the same robust tooth when cooked just so, and yet is delightfully tender when thinly sliced across the grain. And compared to some of the other cuts we’ve posted recipes for over the years, grass-fed flank can feel like a true bargain too.

Plan ahead for this one as you’ll really want to let the flank marinate for 24-hours, though 8 works in a pinch. And you can argue if you must, but this one begs to cooked to just medium, rested for 8 to 10 minutes, and thinly sliced across the grain.

2 to 3 lb flank steak
1 cup EVOO or avocado oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup coconut aminos or tamari
2 tbsp fresh chopped mint
1 tbsp lemon zest
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dill weed (dried)
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
1/2 tsp salt

This one couldn’t be easier.

Whisk the marinade ingredients in a medium bowl, pour over the flank (I prefer to cut our flank into 3 to 4-inch wide pieces prior or marinating) and place in a resealable bag or your favorite non-plastic marinating container.

Marinate for preferably 24 hours, but at least 8, turning the flank occasionally to make sure all sides are well coated and exposed to the marinade.

Fire the grill, drain the flank while the grill is preheating, then grill to your desired finish – though flank begs to be cooked just medium rare, rested for 10 minutes, and then sliced thinly across the grain.

Great hot or cold, make sure you have tzatziki on hand for your Greek feast.

Enjoy.