There's a quick recipe below. I have a little something to say first.......
As you may or may not have noticed, I have mentioned that the West Georgia Locavore Challenge is underway. Knowing that I have people all over the Country reading this Blog (I hope) you can find out more about it here: http://www.westgalocavore.com. Take a minute to read over whats going on there and then read this: http://grist.org/locavore/local-haterade-authors-say-locavores-do-more-harm-than-good/
If you don't feel like investing the time in reading those, let me sum up very quickly. The West Georgia Locavores (and I include myself among them) believe in eating as much as possible of what is grown and produced locally. However, Pierre Desrochers seems to think that trying to remain as "Local" as possible is actually more destructive than mass produced foods that come from all over the World and, among other things, increase the problems of Food Safety. Umm...What?!?!?!
Whether you agree with High Production Foods or not, whether you live Organically or not, you have to realize that not only are you getting top notch ingredients but your also supporting a Local Economy. A great deal of the recipes I have posted for over a year call for Organic ingredients and the majority of what I list in my ingredients, I source as close to home as possible and of that, I talk to my "Suppliers" and look them in the eye every time I buy from them. I say "Suppiliers" but I really should be saying friends. Sure, some of them are a little more stuffy than others, but we all live for the same thing: Local, organic, and really, REALLY, Good Food. Not to mention, when you hear numbers about National Unemployment Rates, jobs created, etc. those aren't just numbers. They are people and the money you spend at Farmers Markets keep people working and keep money in your Community.
If you haven't visited your local Farmers Market, you need to and you need to do it more than once. You'll notice a lot of the same faces week to week and you'll also notice how committed these people are to doing what they love. So committed, in fact, that they have dedicated their lives and fortunes to it. I've gone into detail about how this effects the local economy (check out the post Political Food). Take the time to check out the links provided and form your own opinion.
You do come here for recipes, so without further delay..........
So, during the West Georgia Locavore Challenge and since the July 4th holiday was upon us, I decided to grill, as most Americans do, but I had the chance to get my hands on some locally grown and organic Japanese Eggplant, Zucchini, Grass Fed Beef, and Free Range Chicken. What to do wit hall of this came to me very easily: Put it on skewers.
This done, I revert to my very basic knowledge of Teriyaki Sauce and I decide to wing it. I knew there were a few basics of Teriyaki and I decided that adding what I thought was traditional ingredients would do the trick. This is what I came up with:
Teriyaki
1 bottle Soy Sauce
1/2 cup Organic Molasses
1/2 cup Honey
2 Tbsp. finely ground Black Pepper
2 Tbsp ground Fresh Ginger (please, PLEASE, use fresh Ginger)
1/2 cup Good Quality Spiced Rum
2 cups Ice
1 can Coca Cola
In a medium sauce pan, add Soy, Molasses, Honey, Black Pepper, and Ginger bringing it to a light simmer over medium heat, turn off, and let sit for at least 30 minutes. Seperately, in a large glass, add Ice and pour Spiced Rum over it, add Coca Cola and give a slight stir. Set off to the side and sip occasionally while you wait. I told you I was going to tell you exactly what I did.
The benefit of this recipe is that it is easily expandable (including the Rum and Coke) and keeps for about a month in the fridge (unlike the Rum and Coke) and has all of the properties of being able to be canned and stored for extended periods..
I let the meats sit in the Teriyaki for about an hour, which required another Rum and Coke, but you will find that the longer you let meats sit, the more tender they will be. The veggies can take a short soak or even a quick toss and be just fine.
For the benefit of hindsight, I decided to look up an online recipe or two when I was done. Turned out to be quite close to what I had done and I even added a few things that weren't listed in most recipes.
I realize I haven't provided as much in the Recipe Realm as I usually do but I wanted to make a point about locally grown foods. There are a ton of benefits to supporting your local farmers and the least of them is that you end up with very high quality ingredients for your table and your family. I know I have a few Bloggers that follow me and I know at least one or two of them believe in cooking what's in season and what comes from nearby. I you don't believe me, if you don't believe the cooks that I know that support this mindset, you at least have to realize that for tens of thousands of years, mankind only ate what was close enough to find, harvest, plant, or hunt. 25,000 years of Human Evolution have gotten you this far. How much harm could you be doing to your local economy and yourself to continue that tradition?
As Always....
Party Well, Eat Better
Rob
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