A Fun Little Story Then Some Food

Google still hasn't fixed the background issue with the text.  Bear with me and my patches......

The Fun Little Story

I am a writer.  When a writer has a story inside then, they have to let it out.  Therefore, you may want to skip the first few paragraphs as it's just a story.  It has a moral and purpose, but if you want to cut to the chase, I completely understand.

You may remember from last weeks post, 24 Hours of Food, that I took a ton of time in the kitchen recreating an old recipe of my Grandmothers, who just turned 90 years old.  It's called Chili Sauce and, although it tastes nothing like chili, it was a huge part of my childhood and all of us kids still talk about it as if it were Gossamer, a mythical and unattainable goal.  Having succeeded, I asked Gina to get some good quality hot dogs for dinner.  After grilling some really tasty wings (there's a Blog Post for that) I added a few dogs to the fire, topped them with Chili Sauce and took a bite.

I almost cried it was so good.  It was an instant transport back to Fenton Rd. and eating Koegel Hot Dogs topped with a sauce that I hadn't tasted in almost 20 years.  I tried to explain it and even got Gina and Andrew (who never try anything) to taste it.  They were less than impressed but seeing that I could barely contain myself, Gina told me to call Grandma and tell her about it.  I didn't even finish my dinner and I was on the phone.  I told Grandma of the toil, the tasting, the adding, the tasting again, and the 5 hours I spent over the stove tending and cooing as if I were watching an infant child.

....and then I got to the Green Peppers.....

Though the story had, to this point, been filled with congratulatory comments, laughs, and chuckles of pride in my accomplishment, I had mentioned that one of the ingredients was finely diced Green Peppers.  Grandma said "Oh.  I would have never added Green Peppers to mine.  I don't care for the taste of Green Peppers".  Throughout the rest of the conversation the comments were a much more civilized version of "I'm glad you like it...even if it's not like mine".  Now, anyone else that had spent so much time pondering the aromas and flavors of such a condiment and spent countless hours tending to this attempt would have been crushed.  However, knowing Grandma, I finished the conversation, which was one of the best we've had in years, I told her I loved her, hung up the phone, and proceeded to laugh uncontrollably for the next 15 minutes.  I then called my Mother and told her the story as I tell it to you...and she laughed her butt off too.


There's a post I put up a few months back called Technique/Good Riddance in which I explained my passion for cooking and making double damn sure it's done right...First Time, Every Time.  I laughed because, although my love of food and eating great things came from my Father, I now understand where that anal retentive passion for perfection comes from. God Bless you, Grandma.  Your not so subtle way if kicking me in the ass has amounted to something.  Something really tasty.


Before this tale comes to an end I get on with this weeks recipes:  1) I have an all new recipe for Chili Sauce that is no less than a culinary masterpiece, even if it's not EXACTLY like Grandmas.  2)  I'll type the recipe out and take it with me in the casket.  You want it?  Get a shovel. 


Some Food


As I promised and signed my name to, the West Georgia Locavore Challenge is going until the end of July and I promised that I would buy and eat as much local as I could.  This is the easiest Challenge I've ever signed on for.


The Farmers Market visit was just awesome this week.  Thanks to Paul at Full Life Farms for the tomatoes, this weeks batch of Chili Sauce will go over without a hitch.  After that, Brian Hager and Wendy Crager supplied the Yard Long Beans, Garry Farms provided Blue, Red, an Purple Potatoes, and Hembree Lane Farm, a newcomer to The Cotton Mill Farmers Market, provided some exceptional young Green Beans. 


On with the show......


I can't remember where I got the chicken but I know I got it at Farmers Fresh CSA some time ago and have had it frozen for a bit.  it's freakin' huge and it's natural.  That's all I need to know.  I get the grill ready with a batch of hot coals and, since I was a dope and accidentally threw my Apple Chips across the yard (don't ask how) I had to use a piece of oak wood I keep for the back porch fire pit.  And then I did this......


Slow Smoke Roasted Chicken


1 large Roasting Chicken
1 Fuji Apple cut into chunks
1 Vidalia or other Sweet Onion cut into chunks
Olive Oil
Coarse Sea Salt
Fresh Cracked Black Pepper
Granulated Garlic
Granulated Onion
Paprika
Butchers Twine

Start with rinsing the bird and patting it dry.  Toss the apple and onion chunks in olive oil, about 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp cracked pepper and stuff equal parts apples and onions into the cavity.   Whenever I stuff a bird for the grill, this is always what I use.  It imparts a certain sweetness to the meat and helps it stay very moist. Using a short length of butchers twine, tie the leg ends together to help keep the stuffing in.  Using another length, simply tie around the bird to keep the wings next to the body.  For those that aren't familiar with the term, this is Trussing.

Rub the entire bird with olive oil and season with coarse sea salt, cracked pepper, granulated garlic and onion, and a very light dusting of paprika.  Place on a piece of heavy duty aluminum foil large enough to hold some of the juices that will flow as the bird cooks.

At this point, it is up to you how fast you roast the bird.  However, I place it well away from the fire in the grill while simply laying a large piece of oak on the coals, closing the lid and letting it go until I hit an internal temperature of about 175 degrees, which takes about 3-4 hours.  When you hit whatever temp you like, carefully take the bird and the foil full of juices off the grill and wrap in enough heavy duty foil to go around the bird twice.  It will take some skill to get the juices in there as well but when you do, let the bird sit for about 15 minutes to finish cooking and to absorb some of the fine, smoky fats and drippings.  Sorry I didn't take a picture of this part.  It was getting late.

Needless to say, if you tent the bird and leave it longer in the pit, it will get more and more tender.  However, for those that aren't pit masters (and I truly am not) you have to dance a fine line between when the bird gets to fall apart tender and when it starts to dry out.  The onions and apples help to prevent this but there is always the chance of overdoing it.

Potatoes, Beans, and a Note About Salt

Gina does like green beans but the way she prefers to have them is sauteed with bacon, onions and potatoes.  I'm not going to type out a long, drawn out recipe for pan frying potatoes in bacon fat until golden brown and then adding onions and green beans and sauteing until they're done.  I will, however, offer this:

• When you add the green beans, do it over a high heat so that they get a few char marks on them.  It tastes great and looks great as well.
• I do green beans until they just begin to wilt and wrinkle because I like a little crunch.  However, do them the way you like.
• Don't add salt until put the beans on the serving platter.  It helps keep the beans crunchy, the salt is not going to penetrate that much anyway, and it makes a great presentation seeing the shiny beans with course grains of salt.
• When you do add salt, get creative.  I like to use Black Lava Salt because it looks great and has an interesting twang.  However, Pink Himalayan or Scottish Smoked both have wonderful flavors.  The point is, use some salt creativity to make them look great.
• Finally, if the season is right, you can find some of those great potatoes that are pink, blue, or purple all the way through.  Not only do they look really cool, they have great flavors that you wouldn't expect.

I'd like to take a minute and talk about salt.  I was under the impression, for years, that salt was salt.  Good, old fashioned Iodized Morton's was all I used because it was all I knew.  Then I started paying attention and realized that every salt from every region of the World in gloriously unique.  Pink Himalayan has a wonderfully mild flavor and actually has some health benefits.  Smoked Salt has been a favorite ever since I used it for the first time and figured out how to smoke it myself.  And so on and so forth.  If you're just using plain salt and you're happy with it, that's cool.  However, step outside the box and give some of the great salts from around the World a try.  I currently have six different salts next to my cook top.  Each with its own purpose.

Yard Long Beans...Confit

I've seen these at the Farmers Market and have been curious.  So I asked Wendy Crager, the Farmer who produced these, exactly how to cook them.  With that twisted little smile she gets sometimes, she said "Some Chefs braid them together and roast them".  I thought it was a fine idea and decided to do just that.  However, when I got home I tasted a bit of the fresh, uncooked bean and realized that there just wasn't a lot of flavor to this variety.  Nothing to do with it's growth or production, I know, because Wendy Crager and Brian Hager grow incredible produce.  Nonetheless, I had to do something to punch this bean up a bit and, whenever you're in a bind for flavor, Bacon Fat is always the Designated Hitter.

Confit is a term for immersing something in a substance to either preserve it or flavor it.  When the term comes up, it usually means something that has been slow cooked in some form of fat and that is precisely what I did.

3, 6, 9, or some other multiple of three Yard Long Beans

2 cups Bacon Fat

1 cup Olive Oil

8 whole Garlic cloves

10 black pepper corns, crushed

Butchers Twine

Start by placing all the fats, garlic, and pepper in a small sauce pan and setting it to the lowest heat possible.  You're flavoring the oil and the last thing you want this to taste like is burnt garlic.  Let this go until the garlic cloves are a golden brown.  Strain out the garlic and pepper and set aside for some other wonderful use.  I suggest whipping them into about 2 sticks of butter.

While you're waiting for the garlic to be done, tie together three beans and braid, being careful not to break them,  When you reach the bottom of the braid, tie off with more twine and trim excess bean from the end.  

When done, turn the fats back on the lowest heat possible, wind beans into coils to fit in the pot, and fully immerse then.  You may need a ramekin or something similar to weigh them down.  Allow to steep in the fats for about 30-40 minutes then turn off the heat and let them steep for another ten minutes.  When done, flash them on a VERY hot grill until some char marks begin to appear.  Finish with salt, as mentioned above, and enjoy.

It's hard to see the Yard Long's but they're there.

In the past year, I've really gotten away from being a fancy-ass and have stopped suggesting wines to go with what I serve up.  I thought it was a bit pretentious and I'm about good times and good food.  However, I'm about to make a suggestion that might seem snooty to some and is sure to piss off any wine buff who knows their stuff:  No matter what you're drinking with this meal, pour a small glass of high quality Port and have it handy.  Port is a dessert wine and meant to be enjoyed after a meal (if you read up on it, there's actually quite a bit of ceremony that goes along with it).  However, it's sweet and sturdy flavors just go so well everything I've presented here that I couldn't help but suggest it.

And after dinner, you can have another small glass of Port to stand on tradition.  Then, if you go outside for the after dinner stogie, you can take a small glass of Port with you.  When returning to the house after savoring your carcinogenic delight, have yet another glass of Port to cleanse the palate.   I think you know where this is going.  As Always...................

Party Well, Eat Better

Rob