These little cylinders of tender, juicy pork are a staple of Chinese cooking and are wonderful on the grill, and they’re also ideally suited to planking. They have just the right amount of surface area to cook quickly without losing moisture. They go with all flavors of smoke, from cedar to mesquite. And they take to marinades and rubs extremely well. Here are some basic techniques and a little collection of ideas for how to flavor pork tenderloin, but use your imagination and experiment with your favorite rubs, marinades, and basting sauces.

Technique

Marinate and/or rub the tenderloin and have it ready to go before you start the grill. (Three small tenderloins are usually enough for 4 servings.) I like to drizzle a little olive oil or vegetable oil on them just before putting them on the grill.

Preheat the grill on medium-high for 5–10 minutes, or until the chamber temperature rises above 500°F | 260°C.

Grilling

If you’re cooking the tenderloins on a gas or charcoal grill, it couldn’t be more simple. Make sure your cooking grate is clean (use a wire brush; I prefer to scrape the grate after the grill has been preheated), When your grill is preheated, just place the meat over direct heat and cover the grill. Use a pair of tongs to turn the tenderloins every few minutes, and cook until the temperature in the thickest part is 140F. (This will give you juicy pork cooked to a medium doneness. The internal temperature will come up slightly when you let the meat rest.) Take the meat off the grill and let it rest, tented loosely in foil, for about five minutes.

Plank Cooking

If you’re cooking the tenderloins on a plank, be sure to soak the plank in cold water for at least a couple of hours or overnight. Preheat the grill as described above. Place the soaked plank on the cooking grate. Cover the grill and heat the plank for 4–5 minutes, or until it starts to throw off a bit of smoke and crackles lightly. Reduce the heat to medium and place the tenderloins on the plank (you can fit three or four on a plank, depending on the size of the tenderloins and the plank. Cook for 10 minutes, turn the meat, and cook for another 5–10 minutes, basting if you like, until the pork is springy to the touch or reaches an internal temperature of 140°F | 60°C. If you like, just before the tenderloins are ready, you can move the tenderloin from the plank onto the cooking grate and char the outside, or caramelize it if it’s coated with barbecue sauce

Finishing the Tenderloins

When they’re ready, take the tenderloins out of the grill, tent it in foil, and let it rest for a few minutes before serving it. Carve the tenderloin into 1⁄2- to 1-inch | 1 to 2.5 cm medallions and apply whatever sauce or garnish is called for.

Here are some wonderful ways to treat pork tenderloin, one of the most versatile and delicious meats:

Classic Barbecue: Coat the pork with ballpark mustard, then sprinkle it with your favorite barbecue rub. Cook it on a hickory or fruitwood plank till it’s nearly done and finish it with a light glaze of barbecue sauce. Serve more sauce on the side.

Easy Asian: Marinate the pork with soy or teryaki sauce and finish it with a coating of hoi sin sauce, plum sauce or an Asian-flavoured barbecue sauce.

Spice-Crusted: Season the pork with salt and pepper, drizzle it with oil, and coat it with minced garlic, toasted fennel and cumin seeds, and a little cinnamon. Serve it with chopped cilantro and your favorite chutney.

Balsamic: Coat the pork with balsamic reduction and, if you plan ahead, marinate it overnight. Before cooking, sprinkle on some chopped fresh rosemary and granulated garlic. Serve the pork with a sprinkle of salt and pepper, a further drizzle of the balsamic reduction and some chopped fresh mint.

Harvest Time: Season the pork with salt and pepper and coat it with a rub made with light brown sugar, powdered ginger, a sprinkle of freshly grated nutmeg, a pinch of clove, and a little cayenne pepper. Baste it with melted apple jelly and serve it with baked apples or apple slices that have been fried in butter with a sprinkle of brown sugar added at the last minute.

Southwestern: Flavor the pork with salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, dried oregano and granulated onion and serve it with wedges of lime, some salsa and cornbread or corn tortillas.

This is the time when all the freshest ingredients are available locally. Visit your favorite farmer's market and find some ingredients to make a salsa, the perfect accompaniment to grilled meat and fish.

These recipes, and many more, are available in my cookbook, Barbecue Secrets DELUXE!, available in bookstores and as an e-book from the Apple Store.

Black Bean and Grilled Corn Salsa

This salsa is great on grilled fish, but it also stands up on its own as a dip.

1 14 oz | 398 mL can black beans, rinsed and drained
3 whole fresh cobs of corn, shucked
1 tsp | 5 mL minced fresh jalapeño pepper
2 medium tomatoes, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1/3 cup | 80 mL chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup | 60 mL red onion, diced
1/4 cup | 60 mL fresh lime juice (about 2 limes, squeezed)
1 tsp | 5 mL kosher salt
1 avocado
tortilla chips for dipping

Prepare your grill for direct high heat. Grill the corn until the kernels turn a bright yellow and there’s some nice charring. Remove the cobs from the grill and let them cool long enough so you can handle them. Cut the corn from the cobs with a sharp chef’s knife or a mandoline.

Combine all the ingredients, except the avocado and chips, in a bowl. Cover and chill the mixture for at least two hours. Dice the avocado and add it just before serving the salsa with the chips.


Chimichurri

Makes about three cups | 750 mL

This is the classic Argentine condiment. It takes various forms, some finer, like a pesto, and some, like this one, chunkier, like a salsa. Chimichurri goes well with almost anything grilled, planked, or barbecued, but I like it best on lamb. Make it at least a day before you’re going to use it to let the flavors come alive.

1 small bunch flat leaf-parsley, chopped (about 1/2 cup | 125 mL)
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and finely diced (optional)
1 tomato, peeled, seeded and finely chopped (optional)
2 Tbsp | 25 mL fresh chopped oregano (or 1 Tbsp | 15 ml dried oregano leaves)
1 Tbsp | 15 mL paprika
2 bay leaves
1 Tbsp | 15 mL kosher salt
1 tsp | 5 mL freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp | 10 mL crushed dried red chile flakes
1/2 cup | 125 mL extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup | 50 mL sherry vinegar
1/4 cup | 50 mL water

            Combine all the ingredients except the oil, vinegar, and water in a large bowl and toss them well to make sure the salt is spread evenly throughout. Allow the sauce to rest for 30 minutes to allow the salt to dissolve and the flavors to blend.
            Add the oil, vinegar, and water and mix the sauce well. Make sure that the chimichurri looks nice and wet, like a very thick gazpacho. If not, add equal parts oil, water, and vinegar until the mixture is covered by at least a quarter inch of liquid.
            Transfer the sauce to a non-reactive storage container. Cover it and refrigerate it to allow the flavors to blend overnight. It’s even better after two or three days in the refrigerator.

Peach and Blackberry Salsa

Makes about 3 cups | 750 mL

This salsa, invented by my wife, Kate, is something you should try only when these fruits are at their peak, which on the West Coast of Canada is in August. Paired with planked chicken, it’s a mind-blower.

4 peaches, peeled and diced, not too small
1 cup | 250 mL fresh blackberries,
washed and picked over
1/4 cup | 50 mL red onion, diced
1/2 fresh green jalapeño or other hot pepper,
seeded and minced
4 tsp | 20 mL fresh lime juice
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl. Let the salsa stand, covered, in the fridge for about an hour.


Blackened Snapper on the Grill

Makes 4 servings

If you’ve ever tried to cook this delicious, spectacular dish indoors, you’ll know it’s a bit of a nightmare. It was invented by the great New Orleans chef, Paul Prudhomme, and was designed to be cooked in a restaurant kitchen where there is industrial-strength ventilation. The combination of butter and an extremely hot pan creates so much white smoke that you may not be able to see your fellow diners by the time the dish is ready to serve. I actually had to crawl from the kitchen into the dining room one time just so I could see where I was going. Cooking this dish takes a special technique that uses a gas grill to preheat cast iron pans to create the same effect as chef Paul’s restaurant kitchen. Don’t cook this dish if you’re worried about smoking out your neighbors!

Note: You need two 9 inch | 23 cm heavy cast iron skillets to pull off this recipe.

SAFETY WARNING: It’s extremely easy to severely burn your hand if you absent-mindedly grab the handle of the insanely hot pan when you take the fish off the grill. Please be careful!

4 8-10 oz | 250-300 g snapper fillets
¾ lb | 12 oz. butter
1 batch Cajun Rub (see recipe below)

Warm four serving plates and four small ramekins in a low oven.
            Prepare your gas grill (sorry, charcoal grills just don’t generate enough heat for this recipe) for direct high heat. Place two cast iron skillets on the cooking grate with their handles pointed away from you. Let the pans heat up in the grill for at least 10 minutes, until they are extremely hot.
            While the pans are heating, melt the butter in a sauté pan until it is just melted. Turn off the heat but leave the pan on the stovetop to keep warm.
            Dip the snapper fillets in the melted butter and sprinkle them generously on both sides with the rub mixture. Drizzle a little of the remaining butter over the rubbed fillets.
            Open the grill and quickly place the fillets in the pans. This will cause a lot of white smoke and the butter may flame up, so be careful. Cover the grill and cook the fish for just a couple of minutes. Carefully and quickly turn the fillets over with a long spatula and cook them for another minute or two, until the outside of the fish is nicely blackened.
            Put on some oven mitts, just in case you grab a pan handle by mistake. With your spatula, remove the fillets from the pans and place them on the serving dishes. Transfer the remaining butter into the warmed ramekins. Serve the snapper immediately, with the ramekins of butter for dipping. 

Cajun Rub

Makes about a half cup of rub.

I’ve featured this rub in the recipe for Blackened Snapper on the Grill (see page xxx), but it’s a great all-around grilling or blackening rub that showcases the classic flavors of Cajun cooking.

2 Tbsp | 30 mL sweet paprika
1 Tbsp | 15 mL kosher salt
1 Tbsp | 15 mL granulated garlic
1 Tbsp | 15 mL granulated onion
1 Tbsp | 15 mL cayenne pepper
1 Tbsp | 15 mL freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbsp | 15 mL white pepper
1 ½ tsp | 7.5 mL dried oregano leaves
1 ½ tsp | 7.5 mL dried thyme leaves

Mix the rub ingredients together.

It’s time for us to start weaning ourselves from the convenience of gas grilling and rekindle our relationship with charcoal.


All it takes is one whiff of smoke from some charcoal briquettes, mixed with an aromatic hint of lighter fluid. That distinctive aroma activates an area at the base of our skull that I like to call the Kingsford Olfactory Cortex. The smell of charcoal instantly transports us back to the campfires and cottage weekends of our youth: Dad’s in an apron, burgers are sizzling, hot dogs are plumping up, corn cobs are roasting, and Mom comes out the screen door with a pitcher full of cherry Kool-Aid, ice jingling and sparkling in the summer sun. I think I want to cry.

Those memories never leave us, but few new ones are being made now for our own kids. Sadly, Canadians don’t grill much over charcoal any more. According to Weber’s Grillwatch survey, only about one in 10 Canuck backyard cooks owns a charcoal grill compared to almost half of our counterparts south of the border. 

I know, it’s a lot colder up here, and running outside to push a button on a gas grill is a damn sight easier than going to the trouble and mess of ripping open a bag of charcoal, dumping it into the grill and getting it going, not to mention having to clean up the ashes left behind.

But that convenience comes at a cost. Charcoal imparts such great flavour that there’s almost no comparison between a steak seared on a gas grill and one that’s kissed by smoke. I would argue that pretty much anything tastes better when cooked on a charcoal grill, from your lowly skinless chicken breast to a roast duck. 

Even sweets are lifted to a new level when they’re cooked over charcoal. I’ll never forget an evening at the beach a few years back when, after grilling some brats in my Smoky Joe portable grill, I used the leftover coals to reheat a pear crisp. The vapours from the fire turned a great dessert into a mind-blowing revelation.

A little history

Charcoal has, of course, been around for a long time. Back in the olden days, tradesmen called colliers would stack wood in a giant cone-shaped pile and then cover it with soil or clay, with a hole in the bottom for air and one at the top to serve as a flue. They’d light a smouldering fire and, several days of careful tending later, the wood would be transformed into brittle, clean-burning dark grey charcoal to be used for cooking and heating.
The process of making charcoal, called carbonization, is simple: you heat wood slowly, with little or no oxygen to feed the fire, and instead of burning, the wood shrinks as its organic matter vaporizes. What’s left are porous chunks of charcoal, consisting mostly of carbon, that burn cleaner and hotter than wood.

Charcoal briquettes have also been around for a long time, but the Kingsford briquettes that we know and love were developed in the early 1920s by Henry Ford and one of his relatives, a fellow named E.G. Kingsford. Ford’s early autos had wooden parts and his factories produced lots of wood scrap. A factory was built to turn the scrap into charcoal briquettes. For years, American backyard cooks got their Kingsford charcoal at their local Ford dealership, and today Kingsford converts about a million tons of wood scraps a year into briquettes and owns about 80 per cent of the market.

Briquettes vs. lump charcoal: which is best?

Over the last couple of decades, the dominance of briquettes has been challenged by makers of lump charcoal, which is preferred by some cooks because it burns longer and hotter. It’s also purer. Lump charcoal is basically an organic product – pure carbonized hardwood – whereas Kingsford and other briquettes are made from charred softwoods that are mixed with mined coal, limestone, starch, sodium nitrate and borax (or sodium borate).

For some reason, health nuts don’t like the idea of food cooked over this chemical package, arguing that it contains carcinogens. But man, what tasty carcinogens they are! Those additives are what make Kingsford start easily, burn evenly, and provide its distinctive aroma and flavour. The bottom line: meat cooked with Kingsford tastes great.

My barbecue team, Rockin’ Ronnie’s Butt Shredders, has been competing for almost 20 years now, and we’ve always used good old Kingsford briquettes, with a few chunks of hardwood like hickory, mesquite and cherry wood added for extra flavour. My view is that if you want to win the hearts, minds and taste buds of the barbecue judges, you’ve got to hit that Kingsford nerve hard, and we’ve got plenty of cheap plastic trophies to show our strategy works. As for the carcinogens, last time I looked, life causes death. I like to think that most of us can handle a little borax in our lives without getting into a big panic. In fact, panic is known to cause more deaths than borax.

Despite my love of briquettes, I swing both ways when it comes to charcoal. While I’m loyal to Kingsford for cooking Southern-style barbecue, I often use pure hardwood lump charcoal when I’m grilling. It generates excellent heat for searing and charring, and if you want to add extra flavour, all you need to do is toss some wood chips or chunks on top of the hot coals just before you’re ready to grill. Close the lid of your grill and you’ve got a perfect hot, smoky chamber that will make whatever you’re grilling sing. Another advantage of lump charcoal is that it produces much less ash, which makes it great for kamado-style cookers, which quickly clog up and lose their air flow when you try to cook on them using briquettes.

What kind of charcoal cooker to buy

Speaking of the urn-shaped kamado, it’s one of the hottest pieces of cooking equipment out there right now. The classic Big Green Egg has long been the Cadillac of charcoal cookers, but in recent years many knock-offs have come onto the market, including the Primo, the Big Steel Keg and the Kamado Joe. Even the cheapest models will set you back $600, and the high-end brands can cost a lot more than that. This ceramic cooker is based on an ancient Asian design, and it’s extremely versatile, allowing you to smoke a pork shoulder at 200 degrees or sear a steak at 700F or even higher.

If you don’t want to shell out for an Egg, there are lots of extremely cheap charcoal grills on the market that are great to take to the beach or on a camping trip, but they don’t last long and they don’t work all that well. You can’t go wrong with a good old Weber kettle-style covered charcoal grill, which is a solid, versatile cooker that will set you back a couple of hundred bucks.

For picnics, camping and boating, nothing beats the Cobb, a portable charcoal grill that’s among the most versatile and convenient cooking tools I’ve ever used. Every outdoor cook should have a Cobb in his or her arsenal.

If you want to graduate to the world of Southern-style barbecue, the perfect entry-level device is Weber’s Smokey Mountain Cooker, nicknamed the Bullet. It’s a specialized device that will introduce you to a big new world of flavour, but it’s not for the dabbler.

How to start your coals

Barbecue purists don’t approve of chemical fire starters like the smelly white cubes or the kerosene-like liquid starter you get at the supermarket. Aficionados like to start their coals using a charcoal chimney, which isn’t much more than a metal cylinder with a handle on it. You put your charcoal in it, and there’s a little chamber at the bottom where you place a couple of balled-up pieces of newspaper. Light the newspaper, wait for about 15 minutes, and you’ve got a chimney full of hot coals – just enough to grill a few pork chops. You can also use it as a seed fire for a bigger quantity of charcoal that you can use for longer cooking projects and bigger cuts of meat.

My preferred method is to light up a tiger torch – a propane torch usually used by roofers to melt tar – and point its roaring flame at the coals you’ve loaded in your grill or smoker for a minute or two. That’s kind-of hardcore, however -- I do it not only for convenience but also to intimidate my opponents at barbecue contests. 

Let’s start a fire together

As a self-proclaimed barbecue evangelist, I encourage you to welcome charcoal into your life. It will free your taste buds from the humdrum world of propane and bring back a bit of old-fashioned ritual to your grilling. Here are a few of my favourite recipes for dishes that taste best when cooked over coals, from my cookbook, Barbecue Secrets DELUXE!


Spice-Crusted Pork Blade Steaks

Makes 6 servings

I love pork blade steaks because they’re inexpensive, extremely tasty, and very hard to ruin. The cumin seeds add an earthy tang and an interesting texture to these rich, chewy steaks. Serve them with your favorite summer sides (I like grilled asparagus and cherry tomatoes).

For the rub:
2 Tbsp | 25 mL powdered ancho chiles
(if you can’t find ground anchos, any chili powder will do)
1 Tbsp | 15 mL granulated garlic
1 Tbsp | 15 mL granulated onion
1 tsp | 5 mL freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp | 5 mL ground chipotles (substitute cayenne pepper if you can’t find ground chipotles)
1 tsp | 5 mL dried oregano
1 tsp | 5 mL dried parsley

For the steaks:
1 Tbsp | 15 mL cumin seeds
6 pork blade steaks (8 to 10 oz | 225 to 300 g each)
kosher salt
2 Tbsp | 25 mL Dijon mustard (regular prepared mustard will also do)
extra virgin olive oil

Combine the rub ingredients in a small bowl and set the rub aside.
            Toast the cumin seeds in a dry sauté pan over medium heat until they’re fragrant and just starting to turn light brown. Remove the cumin from the pan and set it aside.
            Generously season the blade steaks with salt. Using the back of a spoon or a basting brush, coat the steaks with a thin layer of mustard. Sprinkle the cumin seeds on both sides of the steaks and pat them in so they stick to the mustard. Sprinkle a generous coating of rub on the steaks and drizzle them with a little olive oil. (You’ll have rub left over, which is great for grilling just about anything.)
            Prepare your grill for high direct heat. Place the steaks on the cooking grate, close the grill, and immediately reduce the heat to medium. I like to throw a chunk of hickory or mesquite among the coals just before I start cooking to add an extra dimension of flavour.
            Cook the steaks for 8–10 minutes, turning them once or twice, or until they are springy to the touch. Remove the steaks from the grill, tent them with foil, and let them rest for 5 minutes. Drizzle them with a little olive oil and serve.

Seared Calamari with Fresh Tomato Basil Salsa

Makes 4 servings

The secret to great grilled squid is to use the freshest and smallest you can find, and to cook it over high heat for no more than a minute per side. Any longer and it turns rubbery. In this recipe, the tomato salsa provides a cool, tangy, herbal complement to the hot, garlicky calamari.

1 lb | 500 g cleaned squid, equal parts bodies and tentacles
1 Tbsp | 15 mL kosher salt
1/2 cup | 125 mL extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp | 2 mL red pepper flakes
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 cups | 500 mL small, ripe cherry or grape tomatoes
1 Tbsp | 15 mL fresh basil
1 Tbsp | 15 mL rice vinegar or white wine vinegar
salt and freshly ground pepper

Coat the squid in the salt, then rinse it thoroughly with cold water. Pat it dry with paper towels. Slit the bodies and score the inside surfaces with diagonal cuts. Cut each squid into bite-sized pieces. Place them in a bowl with 1/4 cup | 50mL of the olive oil, the red pepper flakes, and the garlic. Toss them to coat them and marinate them in the refrigerator for about an hour.
            Preheat your charcoal grill on high and in this case keep the lid off for maximum combustion. Using hardwood charcoal in a kettle-style grill works best. Try to time it so you put the squid on the grill when the coals are at their hottest, which is right after they’re all ignited. You can tell coals are ready when they’ve got a light coating of white ash. While the grill is heating, coarsely chop the tomatoes (halves or quarters are fine), slice the basil leaves into fine shreds, and toss them together in a bowl with the vinegar and the remainder of the olive oil. Distribute the salsa between four plates.
When the grill is hot, gently place the calamari on the cooking grate, taking care not to let the pieces slip through the cracks (you may even want to use a grill-topper with small holes designed for this kind of task). Don’t walk away! Stand at the open grill and tend the squid with a set of good tongs, turning the pieces often so they cook quickly and evenly, no more than a minute per side. Remove the squid from the grill and transfer it to the plates.
Sprinkle each serving with just a pinch of kosher salt and a light grinding of pepper. Drizzle the calamari with a little more olive oil and serve it immediately with a crisp, fruity white wine.

This article originally appeared in Calgary's City Palate magazine.

These recipes celebrate the bounty of fresh seafood from Pacific waters available in BC right now.  Visit your favorite fishmonger today and grill some over the weekend!


Grill-Seared Scallops with Sea Asparagus

There’s not much that can beat the glorious flavour and meaty texture of scallops, except scallops that are seared on a hot grill. The key to great scallops is to let them speak for themselves, so this is a very simple recipe. I’ve added sea asparagus, which is a great complement if you can find it, but otherwise you can serve them straight up.

Serves two or three as an appetizer
 
Six jumbo Alaskan Weathervane or Digby sea scallops
            ¼ lb sea asparagus (optional)
            Kosher salt
            Olive oil
            2 Tbsp. chopped fresh flat leaf Italian parsley
            fresh lemon wedges
            truffle oil (optional)
           
Preheat your grill for direct high cooking.

While your grill is preheating, bring some water to a boil in a saucepan. Add the sea asparagus and cook it for a minute or two. Remove the asparagus from the water and set it aside in a bowl.

Lightly salt the scallops, drizzle them with a little olive oil and take them out to the grill. Scrape the grill so the cooking grate is as smooth and clean as possible. Place the scallops on the grill. Cover the grill and cook them for about two minutes, turning them about every 30 seconds, until the scallops have nice char marks and are starting to feel firm to the touch.

Transfer the scallops from the grill to a plate and let them rest. While the scallops are resting, toss the sea asparagus with just a little olive oil and a squeeze of lemon.

Serve the scallops on a bed of sea asparagus and sprinkle some chopped parsley on top. A bit of juice will have come out of the sea scallops while they were resting, so be sure to drizzle that over everything. Garnish with a lemon wedge and, if you want to get fancy, finish the scallops with just a drop or two of truffle oil.


Grilled Pacific Snapper with Fresh Tomato Basil Sauce

Fresh Pacific snapper is a firm-fleshed fish that is great on the grill. In this recipe I’ve paired it with a delicious sauce made with fresh seasonal vegetables.  It goes well with some steamed rice and grilled asparagus.

Serves 4

4 6-oz. portions of boneless, skinless Pacific snapper fillets (you can substitute another firm-fleshed fish like halibut)

For the balsamic reduction
1 cup balsamic vinegar

For the sauce
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
½ cup chopped white onion
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
½ tsp. Kosher salt
½ tsp. crushed chili flakes
2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh basil

For the rub
Kosher salt
Granulated onion
Dried basil
Extra virgin olive oil
           
For the garnish
            Freshly chopped parsley
            Lemon wedges
 

Pour the balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook, watching carefully, until the vinegar has reduced to about 1/3 of its original volume (about 10-15 minutes). It should be a thick syrup that coats the back of a spoon. Set it aside to cool. (You’ll have some left over, which is great for drizzling on pretty much anything.)

Preheat your grill for medium direct cooking.

While the grill is warming up, make the sauce:  Heat the oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat and sauté the onions and garlic until they are translucent (about two or three minutes). Add the salt, chili flakes and chopped tomatoes and sauté the mixture for another couple of minutes, until the tomatoes are heated through. Add the chopped basil and give the sauce a stir. Adjust the seasonings to taste and set the sauce aside.

Sprinkle the snapper pieces with a light coating of salt, granulated onion and dried basil, and drizzle them with olive oil.

Scrape the cooking grate so it’s as smooth and clean as possible. Place the snapper on the cooking grate and cover the grill. Cook it for about three minutes and, with a large spatula, carefully turn the fish. Cook it for another three minutes or so, until the fish is firm to the touch. Carefully remove it from the grill and set it aside to rest for a minute or two.

Serve the fish on a bed of the sauce, surrounded by a drizzle of the balsamic reduction and topped with a sprinkle of the chopped parsley. Garnish with a wedge of lemon.

This week let’s celebrate good old mesquite, one of the most flavourful and versatile cooking woods. It grows everywhere, but I suppose it’s most associated with places like Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, where mesquite wood and charcoal have been used for ages to produce some of the best barbecue in the world. In the early 1980s a bunch of fancy New York and California chefs started to use it to fuel their grills, and the mesquite fire spread from there to become popular in restaurants across North America.

Mesquite is a dark-coloured, dense, hard wood. It’s actually a member of the legume family and produces beans that were a staple food for the aboriginal people of the American Southwest. Its smoke has a sweet, strong aroma with a bitter edge; if you’re not careful you can use too much of it. In competition I like to use a blend of mesquite, hickory and a fruitwood like apple or cherry for a nice, well-rounded flavour, but mesquite on its own works extremely well in many applications.

Mesquite charcoal is highly valued by outdoor cooks because it burns clean and hot for maximum searing power. Lump charcoal – even if it’s made from mesquite – doesn’t impart a lot of flavour, so if you use it, add a few chunks of mesquite wood on top of the coals once you’ve got them going. 

You can buy mesquite chips and chunks at most barbecue stores and in the grilling section of home improvement stores. Chunks work best when you’re using a covered charcoal grill like a Weber kettle. If you’ve got a gas grill, the easiest way to get some mesquite smoke into your food is to wrap a couple of handfuls of mesquite chips in aluminum foil sort of like a big cigar, poke some holes in it with a fork, and place the package under your cooking grate, right above the heating elements. As your grill heats up, the chips will start to smoulder and throw off lovely aromatic smoke into the cooking chamber. If you want extra smoke, soak the chips for an hour or so before using.

Here are a couple of great recipes that take full advantage of mesquite’s magical powers. Hope you like them! If you do, let me know by posting a note on the Barbecue Secrets Facebook page.

Tequila-Lime Quail

This dish is inspired by a recipe in an old cookbook called Mesquite Cookery by Courtenay Beinhorn. You can get frozen quail, six in a pack, in the frozen poultry section of bigger supermarkets. These tasty little birds make a great first course. Gnawing on their tiny drumsticks makes me feel like Shrek.

Makes six appetizers or three first-course servings

6 quail
½ cup tequila
¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tablespoons corn oil or other neutral-flavored oil
8 crushed pequin chiles or 1 tablespoon crushed chile flakes
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ancho chile powder (regular chile powder will do)
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
some more corn oil for brushing the birds
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 firm, ripe avocado
Lime wedges and cilantro leaves for garnish

Remove the backbone from the quail using a sharp knife or poultry shears. Discard the bones or save them to make stock. Once you’ve removed the backbones, place the quail, bone-side down, on a cutting board and press down on them with the heel of your hand to flatten them. You’ll feel the breastbone crack.

Combine the tequila, lime juice, 2 tablespoons of oil, chiles, salt, cumin, chile powder and cilantro in a bowl and mix them together well. Combine the marinade with the quail in a heavy duty Ziploc bag, push the air out of the bag and seal it. Put the bag in your refrigerator and marinate the quail for at least one or two hours, turning them once or twice. (You can marinate them overnight if you like.)

Get your charcoal or gas grill going at medium-high. If you’re using a gas grill, use mesquite chips wrapped in aluminum foil; if you’re cooking with charcoal, place one or two chunks of mesquite on the hot coals just before you start to cook.

Remove the quail from the marinade and pat them dry. Brush them with some oil and give them a light coating of salt and pepper. When your fire is hot, put the quail on the grill, bone side down. Cover the grill and cook the quail for four minutes. Turn it over and cook it for another four minutes, or until the skin is crispy and golden brown and the meat is cooked to a core temperature of 160F.

Remove the quail from the grill and while it’s resting, peel the avocado. Serve the quail garnished with a few cilantro leaves, a couple of slices of avocado and a lime wedge.

 
Grilled Pork Tacos

Instead of making tacos with seasoned ground meat, try it this way, with smoky slices of grilled pork tossed with enchilada sauce. Yummy!

Serves four adults or two teenagers

1 small onion
1 10-ounce can of enchilada sauce
1 fresh lime
4 8-ounce boneless pork loin chops
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
1 teaspoon granulated onion
2 tablespoons corn oil or any neutral-flavored oil
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
Your favorite taco condiments (salsa, guacamole, pickled jalapeño)
12 warmed corn or flour tortillas

Peel and chop the onion and sauté it in the oil over medium heat for about three minutes, stirring often, until it’s translucent. Add the enchilada sauce and the juice of half a lime. Season the sauce to taste and set it aside.

Combine the salt, pepper and granulated onion and garlic and sprinkle the mixture onto the pork chops. Drizzle the oil over the chops to coat them lightly.

Get your charcoal or gas grill going at medium-high. If you’re using a gas grill, use mesquite chips wrapped in aluminum foil; if you’re cooking with charcoal, place one or two chunks of mesquite on the hot coals just before you start to cook.

Place the chops on the grill, cover it, and cook them for about 4 minutes per side or until they’re cooked through to about 140F for medium-rare, or 160F for well done.

Remove the chops from the grill, cover them loosely in aluminum foil, and while they’re resting, heat the tortillas by placing them, one at a time, in a hot non-stick skillet, turning them once to heat them through. When the tortillas are done, thinly slice the pork chops and toss the slices in the enchilada sauce. Transfer the meat to a serving bowl and lay out the pork, tortillas and condiments on the table so everyone can make their own tacos.

__________________

My cookbook, Barbecue Secrets DELUXE!, now available as an iBook from the iTunes Store.

Zesty Lamb Kebabs

Makes 4 main course servings, and 6–8 appetizer servings

These easy, delicious kebabs make a great party appetizer or a tasty main course. The secret to this dish is to not overcook the lamb, which becomes tough and rubbery if it’s left on the grill too long. Serve it either as an appetizer or as a main course on a bed of rice.

8 long metal skewers or
12 7-inch | 18 cm bamboo skewers, soaked for at least 1 hour
 
To marinate the lamb:
1 2 lb | 1 kg leg of lamb
1/4 cup | 50 mL chopped fresh mint
1/4 cup | 50 mL chopped fresh basil
1 tsp | 5 mL dried mint
1 tsp | 5 mL dried basil
1 Tbsp | 15 mL ground coriander seed
pinch cayenne
1/2 cup | 125 mL extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp | 5 mL Dijon mustard
zest of 1 lemon, finely chopped

For the kebabs:
1 purple onion, cut into bite-sized
chunks
16 cherry tomatoes
kosher salt to taste
olive oil, for drizzling
1 lemon (the same one you zested),
cut in half for squeezing

Cut the lamb into 11/2-inch | 4 cm chunks. Combine all the marinade ingredients in a bowl and mix them thoroughly with the lamb. Place the lamb in a resealable plastic bag or a nonreactive bowl, refrigerate it, and
marinate it for at least 2 hours, or as long as overnight.
            Prepare your grill for direct medium heat. Thread the lamb chunks on the metal or bamboo skewers, alternating them with the onion chunks and cherry tomatoes. Grill the kebabs, turning them 2 or 3 times, until the lamb is medium rare (6–8 minutes), taking care not to overcook it. Remove the skewers from the grill, sprinkle them with salt, drizzle them with oil, and squeeze some lemon juice over them. Serve the kebabs immediately.

Tandoori Lamb Kebabs

Makes 4 servings

Tandoori paste is available in the Indian food section of most supermarkets, and it’s a great thing to have in your fridge. It adds intense flavor to chicken and lamb, and if you have the foresight to marinate the meat overnight, it also has a tenderizing effect. Serve these lamb kebabs with steamed basmati rice, a vegetable curry, and your favorite chutney.

eight 7-inch | 18 cm bamboo skewers, soaked for at least 1 hour

1/2 cup | 125 mL tandoori paste
1/3 cup | 75 mL yogurt
2 Tbsp | 25 mL lemon juice
3 Tbsp | 45 mL chopped fresh cilantro
one 3 lb | 1.5 kg boneless leg of lamb, cut into bite-sized chunks
1 large Spanish onion, cut into bite-sized chunks
3 oz | 75 g butter
lemon wedges and cilantro sprigs for garnish

Mix together the tandoori paste, yogurt, lemon juice, and chopped cilantro in a medium nonreactive bowl. Add the lamb chunks and coat them with the marinade. Refrigerate the lamb overnight if possible, or at least 1 hour. Thread the lamb chunks onto the skewers, alternating them with pieces of onion.

Heat the butter in a small saucepan just until it’s melted. Set it aside and keep it warm.
            Prepare your grill for direct medium heat. Place the kebabs on the cooking grate and grill them for 6–8 minutes, or until the lamb chunks are springy to the touch. Every couple of minutes, turn and baste the kebabs with butter (be sure to have your spray bottle at the ready; the butter can cause flare-ups). Remove the kebabs from the grill and serve them garnished with lemon wedges and cilantro sprigs.



Minty Potato Hobo Pack

Makes 4–6 servings

Why, oh why, do we ignore the glories of fresh mint in North American home cooking? It’s delicious, refreshing, and its aroma is like nothing else. This dish is insanely simple to make, and the combination of mint and potatoes will wow your guests.  Because this recipe calls for indirect heat, you can use the hot side of the grill to cook your steaks and grill your veggies.

6 medium Yukon Gold potatoes
2 tsp | 10 mL dried mint leaves
1 large yellow onion
¼ lb | 125 g butter
extra virgin olive oil for drizzling
1/2 cup | 120 mL tightly packed fresh mint leaves
½ a fresh lemon, the other half cut into wedges for garnish
kosher salt

Bring the butter to room temperature.
            Take 6 feet | 2 M of wide, heavy-duty aluminum foil and fold it in half. Place the foil on a counter and coat it with about ¼ of the butter, leaving about a 4 inch | 10 cm margin all the way around the rectangle.
            Peel the onion and slice it into 1/4-in | 6 mm rounds, split the rounds into rings, and spread the rings to cover the buttered area of the foil. Cut the potatoes into ½ inch slices, leaving the skins on, and layer them on top of the onions, sprinkling a little dried mint and salt on each layer. Top the potatoes with a few dabs of the butter, reserving half of it for finishing the dish.
            Gather up the foil around the edges and close up the hobo pack, making it into a loaf-like cylinder. Make sure you have a tight seal all the way around.
            Prepare your grill for medium-high indirect heat. Place the hobo pack on the grill (away from direct heat), and cook for 15–20 minutes. At this point, you can take the hobo pack off the grill and it will retain its heat for at least half an hour if you have other things to prepare.
            When you’re ready to serve the potatoes, finely chop the mint leaves and set them aside. Put the hobo pack on a serving platter and carefully open it, taking care not to get burned by the escaping steam. Sprinkle half the chopped mint leaves over the potatoes, add the rest of the butter in daubs, and gently toss the mint, onions, and potatoes together. Sprinkle some salt and the rest of the mint leaves over the potatoes, drizzle them with a little olive oil, and squeeze the lemon over top. Serve the potatoes immediately, garnished with lemon wedges.

Barbecue Secret
It’s easy to burn the bottom of a hobo pack, but it’s hard to screw up using this basic technique. Make sure to use heavy-duty foil and double it. Coat the foil with oil or butter, then put whatever ingredient will take the most direct heat, like bacon or onions, first. Then lay on the rest of your ingredients in order of vulnerability and cooking time—potatoes next, then bell pepper, and so on, with any fresh herbs on top. Finish the package with a couple of dabs of butter or a drizzle of oil, seal it tightly, and place it on medium direct heat. If the bottom layer of onions and/or bacon get charred, they’ll add to the flavor. To avoid risk of burning altogether, cook hobo packs using high indirect heat.

These recipes (except the potato salad) are from my cookbook, Barbecue Secrets DELUXE!, now available as an iBook from the Apple iTunes store. Check it out!

Thai-flavored Beef Burgers with Sautéed Shiitakes

Makes 4 burgers

For the burger mix:
11/2 lb | 750 g ground beef chuck
(80 percent lean)
2 Tbsp | 25 mL finely chopped fresh
Thai or Italian basil
1 Tbsp | 15 mL fresh lime juice
2 tsp | 10 mL fish sauce
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tsp | 5 mL grated or finely chopped
lime zest
1 tsp | 5 mL grated fresh ginger
1/2 tsp | 2 mL freshly ground
black pepper

For the mushrooms:
3 Tbsp | 45 mL unsalted butter
2 Tbsp | 25 mL canola or peanut oil
1 small shallot, finely chopped
2 tsp | 10 mL grated fresh ginger
8 oz | 250 g fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems
removed, cut into 1/4-inch | 5 mm slices
few drops sesame oil
1/4 tsp | 1 mL kosher salt
1/4 tsp | 1 mL freshly ground black pepper

To finish the burgers:
4 hamburger buns, lightly buttered and
sprinkled with granulated onion
1 tsp | 5 mL toasted sesame seeds

Line a cookie sheet with waxed paper. Gently mix the burger ingredients in a large bowl with your hands, taking care not to overwork the meat. Wet your hands with cold water and shape the mixture into 4 patties about 3/4 inch | 2 cm thick. Cover them and refrigerate them for at least 1/2 hour or up to 4 hours.
            Prepare your grill for direct medium heat. While the grill is heating, prepare the mushrooms. Melt the butter with the oil in a sauté pan over medium heat, and add the shallot and ginger. Add the mushrooms and cook the mixture, stirring occasionally, until it’s tender, 4–6 minutes. Add the sesame oil, salt, and pepper and mix them in thoroughly. Set the mushrooms aside and keep them warm.
            Brush the burger patties with oil and grill them over direct medium heat for 4–5 minutes per side, or until the internal temperature reaches 160˚F | 71˚C. Remove them from the heat. Grill the buns for 30–60 seconds, butter side down, until they’re nicely toasted. Serve the hot burgers on the toasted buns, topped with the mushrooms and a sprinkling of sesame seeds.

The Wakefield Inn Oyster Burger

Makes 4 burgers

Years ago the Wakefield Inn, a pub on BC’s Sunshine Coast, invented the ultimate burger —and it’s not grilled. To get the right texture, you need to pan-fry the oysters. The Wakefield Inn used seasoned flour to coat the oysters, but I prefer the extra crunch of cornmeal. Serve the burger with a dill pickle, a dollop of Easy Alabama Potato Salad (see recipe below), and a big mug of cold beer. Sadly, the Wakefield Inn has fallen to a condo developer’s wrecking ball and all that’s left is the great view, and this recipe.

1 tsp | 5 mL ground cumin
1 tsp | 5 mL ground ancho chiles
1 tsp | 5 mL freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup | 125 mL cornmeal
1 Tbsp | 15 mL butter
1 Tbsp | 15 mL olive oil
12 medium-sized fresh West Coast oysters, pre-shucked (you can buy them in tubs)
4 burger buns, toasted and buttered
4 Tbsp | 60 mL commercial tartar sauce
1 bunch green leaf lettuce
4 slices crisply cooked bacon
1 thinly sliced ripe tomato
pickle slices and parsley sprigs, for garnish

Combine the cumin, ground ancho, pepper, and cornmeal in a small bowl and pour the mixture onto a dinner plate. Heat the butter and oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat until the butter is sizzling. Lightly coat the oysters in the cornmeal mixture and fry them in the oil and butter until they’re crisp on the outside and done inside, 2–3 minutes per side.
            Spread 1 Tbsp | 15 mL of tartar sauce on each toasted and buttered bun. Add a leaf or two of lettuce, 3 of the fried oysters, one crispy slice of bacon (ripped in half), and 1 or 2 slices of tomato. Sprinkle the works with salt and pepper. Top with the other half of the bun, and garnish with a pickle and a parsley sprig.


Easy Alabama Potato Salad

Makes 8 servings

I once met a nice woman from Alabama on a plane, and I quizzed her on what she and her family liked to eat in the summertime. She shared this quick, pantry-based recipe for a potato salad that’s bound to bring back memories of happy times for anyone. I’ve added a favorite ingredient, toasted pecans, to give it some extra crunch.

3 lb | 1.5 kg yellow-fleshed potatoes
1/2 red onion, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 cup | 250 mL mayonnaise
1 Tbsp | 15 mL green hot dog relish
1 Tbsp | 15 mL prepared mustard
1 tsp | 5 mL sugar
1 tsp | 5 mL white vinegar
sweet paprika and chopped chives or green onion for garnish
1/2 cup | 125 mL toasted pecans, coarsely chopped (optional)

Peel the potatoes and cut them into quarters. Place them in a large pot of cold salted water. Bring the water to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer the potatoes, uncovered, for 10–15 minutes, until they are almost done. Drain them and let them cool to room temperature.

Cut the potatoes into bite-sized pieces. Add the red onion. Combine the mayo, relish, mustard, sugar, and vinegar in a large bowl. Toss the dressing with the potatoes. Transfer the salad to a serving dish and garnish it with a dusting of paprika, a sprinkling of chopped chives or green onion, and the chopped pecans, if desired.

Honestly, I have nothing against vegetables. Some of them are good friends of mine, as you'll see in this week's recipes!

Supercharged Grilled Corn on the Cob with Savory Butters

Allow one whole cob per guest

Almost nothing goes better with grilled or barbecued meat than good old corn on the cob, and it’s so easy on the grill. It’s also easy to do a little bit more to give it an extra jolt of buttery flavor.

1 unshucked ear of corn per guest
savory butter or butters
kosher salt

Soak the whole, unshucked corn in cold water for an hour. Prepare your grill for direct high heat. Remove the corn from the water and place it on the grill. Cook it for about half an hour, turning it regularly. Don’t worry if the husks turn brown or black—the corn inside will be protected. Remove it from the grill, let it cool enough that you can handle it, remove the husks, and serve the corn with herbed butter and kosher salt. (If you want a more rustic, charred look and flavor, husk the corn cobs before cooking them, then grill them naked for 10–15 minutes, watching to make sure they char but don’t burn.)

Barbecue Secret
Roasted corn is excellent with plain soft butter and a sprinkling of a simple rub consisting of one part kosher salt and one part ancho chile powder.

Barbecue Secret
If you feel like fussing a little, you can bend the husk back to one end of each cooked corn cob and tie the leaves together with a bit of twine for a handy corn cob holder.

Flavored Butters for all Occasions

Once you’ve made any of these savory butters you’ll always want to keep some in the freezer. Brought to room temperature, they’re incredible on roasted corn on the cob or slathered on cornbread, and a pat of flavored butter on a freshly grilled steak or fish fillet is heavenly. You can even use one of these as a sautéing butter for thinly sliced mushrooms or scrambled eggs, or toss one with some cooked noodles for a quick, easy side.

Mediterranean Butter
4 Tbsp | 50 mL finely chopped flat-leaf Italian parsley
4 Tbsp | 50 mL finely chopped combination of fresh dill,
basil, or mint (or any combination of fresh herbs—try chervil,
tarragon, sage, rosemary, etc.)
1 lb | 500 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
kosher salt to taste

Red Pepper Butter
1 red bell pepper, roasted, peeled, seeded, and
coarsely chopped
1/2 lb | 250 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tsp | 5 mL sweet paprika
kosher salt to taste

Garlic Chive Butter
4 cloves garlic, put through a garlic press
(or 8 cloves roasted garlic, squeezed out of their skins)
2 Tbsp | 25 mL finely chopped fresh chives
1/2 lb | 250 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
kosher salt to taste

Gorgonzola Butter
3/4 cup | 175 mL Gorgonzola cheese
1/4 lb | 125 g unsalted butter at
room temperature
1 tsp | 5 mL fresh lemon juice
kosher salt to taste

Cut the butter into cubes and place them in a food processor. Add the flavoring ingredients and whiz the mixture until it’s thoroughly blended, stopping to scrape down the stuff that sticks to the sides of the food processor as needed. If you’re serving the butter  right away with corn, or on a piece of grilled meat, just place it in a small bowl and serve it.
            If you want to store it, use a spatula to transfer the butter onto a sheet of waxed paper or plastic wrap and shape it into a rough cylinder. Fold the wrap around the butter and shape it into an even tube about 11⁄2 inches | 4 cm in diameter. Twist the ends so the tube is sealed and tight, and fasten both ends with a twist-tie. Refrigerate or freeze the butter until you need it. To serve, slice off discs of it. Thaw it a while before dressing steaks or corn with it, or use it still frozen to stuff inside a burger.


Grilled Eggplant with Hazelnut Oil and Marjoram

Although this has a couple of relatively obscure ingredients, it’s dead simple to make, and extremely delicious.

Makes 2 servings as a side, or enough to add to a salad

1 large, firm eggplant (the big round kind)
Toasted hazelnut oil
Sea salt or kosher salt
Crushed chili flakes
Dried marjoram
Olive oil
1 fresh lemon

Prepare your grill for high direct cooking. Peel the eggplant and slice it into ¾ -inch rounds. With a basting bruch, paint it with a coating of hazelnut oil. Sprinkle on both sides with salt, chili flakes and marjoram. Let the slices sit for a few minutes. Place the eggplant slices on the cooking grate, close the grill and immediately turn the heat down to low. Cook for three or four minutes, turn, and cook for another few minutes until the eggplant has nice grill marks and has softened. Transfer to a platter and serve immediately with a squeeze of lemon and a drizzle of olive oil.  Also great at room temperature. Serve as a side with grilled Italian sausages.


Grilled Vegetable Platter

Makes 10 to 20 servings, depending what else you’ve got on the grill

There’s almost nothing as boring as a bunch of raw celery, carrots, radishes, and broccoli florets on a plate with a bowl of seasoned yogurt in the middle. Add some excitement to veggies by grilling them and serving them with a couple of interesting dips. The key here is to not overdo the vegetables. Each vegetable cooks a little differently—zucchini and asparagus cook the fastest and raw sweet potatoes take the longest to grill. This recipe is pretty elaborate and is designed for when you’re entertaining. For everyday cooking, just grill one or two kinds of veggies and they’re ready in minutes. For a party, put out this platter as an appetizer, followed by quesadillas and perhaps some kebabs. Grilled veggies are delicious on their own, but go even better with a nice dip, like a flavored mayo (see recipes below). They’re also great tossed into a green salad or served as a side with grilled meat or fish. To add more flavor, before grilling toss them with some dried or fresh chopped herbs like rosemary, oregano, or basil.

20 nugget potatoes, skins on
20 cauliflower florets (about 1 head of cauliflower)
4 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into rounds 1/2 inch | 1 cm thick
2 red bell peppers, cut lengthwise into 2-inch | 5 cm strips
2 yellow bell peppers, cut lengthwise into 2-inch | 5 cm strips
2 green bell peppers, cut lengthwise into 2-inch | 5 cm strips
2 bunches fresh asparagus spears, tough ends snapped off
4 zucchini, cut lengthwise into 1/2-inch | 1 cm slabs
20 whole ripe cherry tomatoes
1 cup | 250 mL extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
3 fresh lemons, cut into wedges

Bring the potatoes to a boil in a large pot of cold water over high heat. Turn down the heat and
simmer them for 10 minutes, adding the cauliflower florets when you have 5 minutes to go. Remove the vegetables from the pot and cool the potatoes and cauliflower in a bowl of cold water. Drain them again and set them aside.
            Preheat your charcoal or gas grill for medium direct heat.
            Put all the vegetables in a large bowl, in batches if necessary, and toss them with the extra virgin olive oil, kosher salt, and freshly ground pepper, and herbs, if desired. Grill the vegetables over high direct heat, starting with the sweet potatoes, potatoes, and cauliflower, turning them often. Grill the most tender vegetables last, taking care not to overcook the asparagus, zucchini, and cherry tomatoes (which really only need to be heated through).
            Arrange all the grilled vegetables on a big platter, drizzle them with a little more oil, garnish the platter with lemon wedges, and serve the vegetables immediately. You can also make this an hour or two ahead of time and serve the vegetables at room temperature.

Barbecue Secret
You can grill almost any vegetable, in any quantity, simply by tossing the veggies in olive oil,
sprinkling them with salt, and putting them on a hot grill. The more robust the vegetable, the longer the cooking time. The more you grill, the better you’ll get!

Doctored mayonnaise

I love plain old mayo—in sandwiches, as a dip for french fries, and as a simple dressing for hot or cold veggies. But mix in some extra flavor and you’ve got something that sends your taste buds to new heights. These variations are my favorites, but feel free to create your own.

The technique is simple: Combine good-quality store-bought or homemade mayonnaise with the other ingredients in a food processor and whiz them until they’re smooth, then refrigerate the result. If possible, store it in the refrigerator for a day, or at least a few hours, to let the flavors marry and intensify.

Margie’s Chipotle and Roasted Garlic Mayo

This invention of Calgary caterer Margie Gibb is particularly good as a dip for pieces of smoked or grilled sausage, but it’s also great on just about anything.

11/2 cups | 375 mL mayonnaise
1 whole head roasted garlic, cloves squeezed
out of their skins
1 tsp | 5 mL finely ground cumin (preferably made
from toasted cumin seeds)
1 Tbsp | 15 mL chopped chipotles in adobo sauce
(add more chipotle if you like it hot)

Sesame Mayo

This is the perfect dip for roasted veggies, and it’s also great tossed with rice noodles for a cool, creamy side to grilled Asian-flavored meats. Sprinkle it with toasted sesame seeds for extra texture.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups | 375 mL mayonnaise
1 cup | 250 mL mayonnaise
1 tsp | 5 mL toasted sesame oil
1/2 tsp | 2 mL soy sauce (or to taste)
1 tsp | 5 mL Chinese chili sauce or
spicy Szechuan chili oil (or to taste)
1 tsp | 5 mL grated or finely chopped
fresh lemon, lime, or orange rind
1 to 2 Tbsp | 25 mL toasted sesame seeds (to taste)

Curry Mayo

This is perfect with veggies or as a sandwich spread.

Makes about 1 1/4 cups | 310 mL mayonnaise

2 large shallots, peeled and finely chopped
4 tsp | 20 mL curry powder
1 Tbsp | 15 mL vegetable oil
1 cup | 250 mL mayonnaise
1 tsp | 5 mL lemon juice

Barbecue Mayo

A great “secret sauce” for your homemade burger, french fries, or grilled chicken wings. Cut it with sour cream for a tasty chip dip.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups | 375 mL mayonnaise

1 Tbsp | 15 mL barbecue rub of your choice
1/4 cup | 50 mL barbecue sauce of your choice
1 cup | 250 mL mayonnaise
1 tsp | 5 mL lemon or lime juice

Wasabi Mayo

Excellent on planked fish, or on fried crab cakes, or in a slaw or salad.

Makes about 1 cup | 250 mL mayonnaise

1 Tbsp | 15 mL wasabi powder or paste
1 cup | 250 mL mayonnaise
1 tsp | 5 mL lime juice

Roasted Garlic
Here’s a great kitchen staple that works well baked in the oven or planked on the grill. Roasted garlic is as versatile as it is delicious. Use it as a flavor enhancer in mayo, an enricher of mashed potatoes, and a flavor note in soups and sauces—or just spread it on a piece of toasted French bread.
Preheat the oven to 350°F | 175°C (or preheat your grill in preparation for plank-cooking). With a sharp knife, slice off the top of a garlic bulb, just enough to expose the tops of the cloves. Drizzle it with a little olive oil, season it with salt and pepper, and wrap the bulb tightly in foil. Place it in the oven (or on a soaked, preheated? plank in your grill with the heat turned down to low), cut side up, and roast it for about an hour, or until the garlic is soft and lightly browned. Once it’s cool enough to handle, you can squeeze the head and the roasted garlic comes out like toothpaste.

Makes 4 servings

Why Florida? In 1990 there was a feature in Gourmet magazine about cooking dinner in Florida. Must have been about low-cal eating for the diet-conscious retiree. That’s all I remember, except for this incredibly simple and delicious grilled zucchini.

1 large clove garlic, minced and mashed to a paste with 1/2 tsp | 2 mL kosher salt

2 Tbsp | 25 mL fresh lemon juice

1 tsp | 5 mL white wine vinegar

1/4 cup | 50 mL vegetable oil

freshly ground black pepper

2 zucchini (each about 11/2 inches | 4 cm in diameter), scrubbed

Whisk together the garlic paste, lemon juice, vinegar, oil, and pepper. Pour the mixture into a large baking dish. Halve the zucchini lengthwise and toss the pieces in the marinade, making sure they’re well-coated. Cover and refrigerate them overnight, turning the zucchini several times. Prepare your grill for medium heat. Grill the zucchini for 4–5 minutes, cut side down. Turn them, brush them with some marinade, and grill the other side for 4–5 more minutes, or until they’re just tender. Transfer them to a cutting board, slice them diagonally, and serve. This is a perfect dish to make while a large cut of meat is off the grill and resting.

Korean-style Rib-Eyes

Makes 6 servings

Koreans like a little sweet and sour in their marinades and so do I. This recipe draws on the flavors of Korean barbecue, but with a distinctly North American cut and portion size.

For the marinade:
1 cup | 250 mL soy sauce
1/4 cup | 50 mL rice vinegar
1/3 cup | 75 mL chopped green onions
2 Tbsp | 25 mL liquid honey
2 Tbsp | 25 mL finely minced garlic
2 Tbsp | 25 mL finely minced ginger
1 tsp | 5 mL toasted sesame oil
1 tsp | 5 mL Vietnamese hot sauce

For the steaks:
three 16 oz | 500 g rib-eye steaks, about 2 inches | 5 cm thick, with rib bones attached
toasted sesame seeds
1 green onion, chopped for garnish

Combine the marinade ingredients in a nonreactive bowl or pan. Place the steaks in the marinade and turn them to coat them. Refrigerate them, uncovered, for at least half an hour and up to 2 hours, turning them once or twice. Remove the steaks from the marinade and pat them dry. Transfer the marinade to a small saucepan and cook it over medium-high heat until it comes to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer the marinade for 5 minutes. Set it aside.
            Prepare your grill for direct medium heat. Cook the steaks for 4–6 minutes per side, or until they have an internal temperature of 125°F | 52°C. Remove them from the grill and let them rest, loosely tented in foil, for about 5 minutes.
            Remove the steaks from the bone and cut them into 1⁄2-inch | 1 cm slices. Divide the slices between 4 plates and drizzle them with a little of the sauce. Garnish the meat with chopped green onion and sesame seeds. Put the remaining sauce in a serving dish so guests can help themselves.