Rouladen, Red Cabbage and Spaetzle

 Rouladen is a favorite of ours.  Buy butcher sliced beef, season with salt and pepper, add chopped onion, and some mustard.  Yellow is simple but Dijon or course grainy are good options too.

Then a slice of good smoked bacon and half a garlic dill pickle; then roll and tie.



I place them on a bed of onion, carrot and celery. Then drizzle 3/4 cup of red wine and a 1/4 cup of water.  Add a bay leaf and let simmer in oven at 350 for 1 1/2 hours.

When done remove meat to a tray and keep warm. Add a little more wine and thicken with cream or a rue.  Thicken to your taste and pour over Rouladen. Serve with spaetzle, mashed potatoes or egg noodles.  We love simmered apple and red cabbage as a side along with garden carrots and peas!  This is a great Christmas dish!!!

2-2-1 Sirloin Pork Chops

Sirloin Pork Chops (from Costco) are a cheap and delicious Big Green Egg thrill!!!  Remember what I always say........taste and make your rub your way!  Tonight I used a brown sugar base (5 T) then a mixture of paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, cumin and S&P.  Taste to your desire!  Rub the sirloin chops and let sit for a couple hours; fridge first then one hour at room temp.

Set the Big Green Egg up for indirect heat with the plate-setter blocking the lump charcoal's direct heat.  Grilled chops at 270 for one hour then turned them over, sauced them and let them go for another hour.

The should look nicely browned!  Then I put them in a oven proof casserole dish and cover them with a sauce blend; again do this to your taste.  I used two different bottle sauces, added some ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and apple juice.


 Coat ribs well then cover with foil.  Back in the Egg for one hour at 250.  This is just fantastic.  Served with a tossed salad and some baked beans.  Bought a quality bakery baguette and that's it.  A wonderful pre-game meal.  In our case the night before a playoff game.  Go Riders!!!

Notice my boys thinking pork heaven!!!

Pork Country Ribs with Marvelous Mustard Sauce

The rub should always reflect your personality; tonight I used four tablespoons of brown sugar as the base then added two teaspoons of chili powder, paprika, a teaspoon of garlic powder, onion powder, dry mustard and cumin along with S and P.........always taste and adjust to suit your clan!!! Let the rubbed ribs sit for two hours in the fridge! Add cayenne if you like a bit more spice.

Marvelous Mustard Sauce for Country Pork Ribs

 1 cup packed brown sugar
2/3 cup white vinegar or 2/3 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/3 cup spicy brown mustard
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons liquid smoke
1/3 teaspoon celery seed

I set the Big Green Egg up for indirect heat at 275 and let them go for three hours with some hickory chunks in the lump charcoal for some zip!  These aren't really ribs but meaty chunks of good pork.  Served tonight with homemade garden potato salad and mushrooms with asparagus.....a yummy fall BBQ!!!   All the best from Dr. T

Baby Back Ribs with Mustard Rub

Did a yellow mustard rub today on some baby backs.  Doesn't add a lot of flavor but yellow mustard certainly helps the rub stick and marinate.  Soaked some hickory chunks and set the Big Green Egg up for indirect heat with a pan of water beneath the ribs.  I find this really helps keep the moisture just right!



RUBS:  make your own to taste!  It's easy!  Today I used a base of brown sugar (the largest portion) with garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, paprika, salt and pepper.  Sugar in tablespoons the rest in teaspoons. The key is to taste it and play with the flavors you like.

I smoked them for two hours at 225 then rotated them and smoked one hour more.  I like to stack them to self baste.  One more hour.  After four hours I basted with my favorite BBQ sauce and let them go fifteen minutes each side.  Finally covered with foil to rest for twenty.  Yum, yum.

Top Sirloin and BBQ Corn

 Top Sirloin on the Weber One Touch with Royal Oak charcoal.  Not as pure as the Big Green Egg but definitely yummy.  Soaked husk on corn for an hour in water.  Room temp top sirloins with a touch of olive oil and Montreal Steak Spice.

I put the corn on the coals to brown first then move them aside.  Coals should be white hot for steaks...four minutes a side then rest covered with foal off the grill.  I scorched my corn a little more then stripped it buttered it and just a little salt.  34 degrees Celsius tonight but wonderful with a glass of wine.

 Depressed that our football team lost so it's Saturday night baby back ribs and low fat Cesar salad with extra garlic and extra anchovies.

Rubbed ribs with brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, cumin and salt and pepper.  The amounts are to taste with sugar being the largest.  Today for two large racks I used four tablespoons of brown sugar and about 11/2 teaspoons of everything else.  Often lessen the salt for health.

Set the Big Green Egg up for indirect heat using the plate setter and a tin foil pan of water.  Rubbed ribs were in a rib rack for three hours undisturbed at 250.  Then opened the egg and basted them with bbq sauce.  Closed for half an hour, flipped, sauced again and let go another 30 mins at 275.  All in all five hours of smoking goodness.  Forgot to mention I used eight baseball sized lumps of wet hickory to increase the flavor.  Food of love. Enjoy the moments and listen to life.  Peace.  Dr. T.

Cedar Plank Salmon

I have to admit I got lazy.......sorry Big Green Egg.........I grilled on a grill......feels like a sin but here goes....soaked a natural cedar plank for an hour in water.......heated grill nice and warm.......dusted a salmon fillet with garlic powder, chili powder and salt and pepper..........let it go fifteen minutes on the cedar plank just til it starts to smoke nicely......then brushed on Calgary Cattle Boyz sauce and grilled five to seven minutes more.  Major good!  Served with green beans and cous cous (chicken broth) with parsley, chili powder and cayenne.

 Sometimes a quickie can be good!!!

If your cedar plank starts to burn spritz with water/apple juice combo.  Serve on a thick newspaper sheet with the salmon still on the board.  Sure to please the hungry.  Red wine?  Well you choose.

New York Steak

New York Steak on the big green egg is great!  Get your butcher to cut them just over one inch thick.  Rub with olive oil and season with Montreal Steak spice.  Let sit at room temperature for half an hour.

 The cigar is from a friend and I am mighty glad.  Just
once or twice a year so a vice I can justify.



Get the Big Green Egg up to 700 degrees.  Direct heat with the grill.  Let them go four minutes a side until a nice browning appears.  SHUT DOWN the egg completely and let the steaks sit for 8 minutes.  Take off and rest.  Med to med rare.  Vary for how you like them.  But the key is smoking hot for a crust.  Best steaks ever.  Serve with a robust red wine. a mixed green salad and a potato of your choice.

Tandoori Chicken on the Big Green Egg

Bone in chicken thighs on the Big Green Egg.  I marinaded them in a cup of yogurt with curry powder, garlic, lemon juice, cumin, coriander and salt and pepper for about four to six hours.  Then get the Big Green Egg up to four hundred degrees with indirect heat.  I used the plate setter.  The thighs cooked at four hundred for half hour then at 325 for an hour.  Well done and yummy.  Could cook twenty minutes less for more juicy thighs.  Rotate them once for crispy goodness.

 Curry cauliflower is an easy addition.  I chop it up and coat lightly in olive oil and my favorite Lalahs Curry Blend.  Roast it for 35 minutes at 350 then add mushrooms, peas and a tin of curry sauce.  I prefer to make my own with tomatoes, yogurt and spices but sometimes you have to cheat!!!  Another fifteen minutes and the mushrooms and peas are great.

Serve with rice and hot Indian pickles.

Pork Tenderloin and Grilled Eggplant

Did a nice rub of brown sugar, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika and salt and pepper on some pork tenderloin.  Let them smoke with water soaked apple wood for an hour at 400; looking for internal temp of 145 then rest.

Turned out great.  The question is how much smoke you like.  Add some chips halfway to increase flavor.  You could also insert slivers of garlic into the tenderloin to add flavor.

I had an eggplant on hand so grilled that as well.  Slice about an inch thick then marinate in 2 parts olive oil, one part balsamic vinegar, thyme, basil and salt and pepper for twenty minutes.  Yum, yum.

The Big Green Egg is flexible and fun.  Try some different meats and veggies.  The key is to get a good fire going and manipulate it using the vents.  Trial and error!!!!!!!!!

Baby Back Ribs 4-30-30

Try this out!  4-30-30 baby backs (thick from Costco)!!!  On the Big Green Egg set with natural charcoal and large wet hickory chunks at 250 for four hours.  Gently smoking with the goodness of a homemade rub. Make your own to taste---I used brown sugar, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, cumin, paprika and salt and pepper.  I never measure just do to taste.  Brown sugar is the largest amount.  I let mine sit in the fridge rubbed for three hours.

 Set up the Big Green Egg for indirect cooking.  This means adding charcoal and hickory into the hopper. Don't over fill but fill.  Then the clay place setter to diffuse heat.  Next a tin foil tray with water in it to keep moist.  Then place the grill on top with the ribs in a rib rack.

After four hours undisturbed at 250 I open up the egg move the ribs out of the rack and shuffle around.  Baste with my favorite BBQ sauce (Calgary Stampede Sauce) and let grill for fifteen minutes.  Then flip and sauce and do for fifteen more minutes.   Final step is to place ribs in a tin foil pan, cover and let rest for 30 minutes on the grill SHUT DOWN.  Meaning vents closed.  Rocking good.  Tender but still have some competition bite!  Dave and Wil are waiting patiently.  Served with red wine, potato salad and a kale coleslaw.  Simply fun!!!

Whole Chicken on the Big Green Egg

Have tried whole chickens three times on the Big Green Egg and still not perfected.  Today I pushed garlic, rosemary butter under skin and placed half a lemon inside of each.

Using indirect cooking with the place setter and a tin pan of water the chicken seemed to steam a bit.  I cooked them for two hours at 300.  They were delicious; smoked with apple wood and one chunk of hickory but we felt they were too moist (if that is possible).  Next time no pan with water and see what happens.  Good reviews from those who ate them!!!

How To Be Happy

Rack of Pork

Smoking a rack of pork is fun.  Rule one is don't get it 'frenched.'  Frenched racks with exposed bone just burn or look bad.  Ask your butcher for a bone on pork roast 'not frenched.'  First step is to grind fresh rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper in a mortar.  Use the amounts you like.  Then cross cut the fat on the rack lightly and rub the roast.  Let sit at room temperature for forty minutes.

Next set up the Big Green Egg for 275 with indirect heat.  I soaked some apple wood in water and made a tin foil pouch and used one large lump of hickory.  Placed them around the coals to slow smoke.

I maintained a nice smoke at 275 for two hours.  Used a instant read thermometer to check internal temp and was at 139.  Opened up the flow and raised temp to 350 for 15 minutes then pulled it off to rest under foil.  Fantastic, smokey yummy goodness.  

Once rested slice between ribs and serve.  Tonight we served with homemade low fat yogurt potato salad and broccoli nut salad.  Life is good!                                                                                              

Paella on a Weber One Touch

Try Spanish paella today!!!  I bought a paella pan but a big stainless steel frying pan would work.  I googled five recipes and mixed them up.  First fry up some chicken and chorizo then set aside.  I am cooking on a Weber One Touch.  Then stir fry some onion, garlic, thyme, bay leave, chili pepper to taste and rice.  

Once the rice gets started I add a large teaspoon of saffron and stir slightly then cover.

After ten minutes I add the chicken and sausage and cover again for ten more minutes.  Then add jumbo shrimp, 11/2 cups frozen peas and salt and pepper.

 Cover and let go until a light crust forms on the bottom.  A must in Spain.  We garnish with garden parsley and serve with a light Cesar salad.  All good and great cooked on charcoal.