Iron Chef Duet!

It has been ages, felt like eons, indeed so much time has passed that it almost faded into legend... but Iron Chef Mom and Iron Chef Grill have returned! (Huzzah! The villagers rejoice!)

Now that my mom is living nearby, we have an additional source for Secret Ingredient inspiration. So tonight, for the first time, the two Iron Chefs teamed up for a historical battle against... well... no one, really. Perhaps it was against the Secret Ingredient itself. For tonight's was truly unique. Not a usual part of the American diet, although it certainly should be. Tonight's ingredient was... chicken livers. Nutrient-dense and incredibly inexpensive, liver of all sorts should be restored to it's once-a-week spot on the menu.

We decided to go with a vaguely Cuban theme for the meal.

The menu:

Grilled skewers with veggies and bacon-wrapped chicken livers
Grilled green beans
Fried chicken livers with onions on herbed, buttered white rice and braised greens
Grilled Orange Bananas Dean (an Iron Chef Grill original)
The wine: MiBal Tinto 2006 Ribera del Duero, 100% Tempranillo

The skewers
Cherry tomatoes
Chopped green peppers
Marinated halved button mushrooms (marinated in Worcestershire sauce),
Bacon-wrapped chicken livers

The chicken livers were marinated in this:

1/2 cup soy sauce (tamari in this case)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp ground ginger
a few dashes salt and pepper

The green beans were tossed with olive oil and salt, then grilled.

The fried chicken livers followed, somewhat, the Julia Child recipe from The Way to Cook. I breaded with half cornmeal, after seeing that in a few online recipes, and hoping it would help them be more crisp. It didn't work. But, here's what I did:

About 1 pound of chicken livers, trimmed and cut into bite-sized pieces
Salt and freshly-ground pepper
1/4 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup white rice flour
several shakes each: chili powder, regular paprika, sweet paprika
3 tablespoons duck fat (leftover from our Christmas duck)
1/2 cup gently browned onions (recipe to follow)
1/4 cup dry vermouth
1/3 cup chicken stock

Season the chicken livers with salt and pepper, then dredge in mixture of flour, cornmeal, and seasonings. Fry in duck fat over medium-high heat, a couple minutes per side. Top the liver with the browned onions, pour in the stock and vermouth, raise the heat, and boil rapidly, basting the liver with the sauce. Scoop liver over herbed rice (recipe to follow) and garnish with parsley, if desired.

Browned Onions

Slowly saute 3 cups sliced onions in 2-3 tablespoons of butter, in a covered pan, stirring frequently, until the onions are very tender- 15 minutes or so. Uncover the pan, salt lightly, raise the heat to moderately high, and let the onions brown nicely, stirring frequently- 5 minutes or so. Can be made ahead of time.

Herbed Rice

Stir herbed butter (or butter and fresh oregano, parsley, and/or sage) into prepared rice, about 1 tablespoon butter per cup of rice. For this dish, make a ring of rice on a platter, place braised greens in the middle, and top with the fried chicken livers and onions, including the pan sauce. Garnish with parsley.

Grilled Orange Bananas Dean
(as opposed to Bananas Foster, where all the booze is cooked off...)

The booze is NOT cooked off here, and is quite tasty. The original recipe can be found here, but this time he used Amaretto for half the liquor, and I really like the change.


The Judge, my mama, really liked it all. She preferred the fried chicken livers... as did the Grill Geek. I was really surprised to like both (I'd never had chicken liver before.) The flavor of the bacon-wrapped was awesome, but the texture of the fried was better. I'm hoping to have them again soon, but in a marinara sauce. We didn't get done in an hour (it's amazing how fast that first 30 minutes goes!) but we all declared it a "win" anyway.

Get Yer Goat!

I am now converted... I love goat.

The Grill Geek had some sort of goat years ago, at a Jamaican restaurant. He loved it. I was a bit more leery, but... as we've been eating all sorts of weird things lately, decided we'd get some as soon as we could. On a recent trip to the farmer's market in Austin, the opportunity arose. They were out of ground meat, so we opted for steaks. They were called something else, but looked like itty bitty t-bones. I handed them over to the Grill Geek as a totally-not-surprising Iron Chef Grill ingredient.
He worked wonders.



Pandering to the judge is always welcome, so he wrapped things in bacon. The bottom left of the photo shows unidentifiable blobs that I will tell you are bacon-wrapped tomatoes . He thickly-sliced some fresh, local (greenhouse) tomatoes, wrapped them in bacon, and grilled away. They looked like a bit of a pain in the arse, but they tasted FABULOUS. Anyway, back to the rest... hot dogs at top left, "for the kids", smallish pieces of goat in the middle, fat green onions, then bigger pieces of goat.
He also grilled some asparagus (simply toss with oil and salt and it becomes pure joy.)


The joke was on us. Both children devoured every scrap of goat we were willing to toss their way. No one got enough. The hot dogs were utterly ignored. The tomatoes were melty-juicy-tart inside crisp-salty... wow. Goat tastes like buttery bambi-beef. So juicy. So meaty. So good.

Iron Chef- Mystery Meat

The mysteries keep coming. We bought a quarter of a cow last fall, and are using up the last little bits now. One package was apparently folded before it got frozen, and the part of the label telling what was inside was tucked into the fold. Mystery meat. Looked like it could be a roast or a really thick steak... nope. Short ribs. And time was short as well. Not the best situation for short ribs. Whoops.

The Grill Geek volunteered for an impromptu Iron Chef Grill.


Basting with an Asian-inspired sauce. He has no idea how to recreate the deliciousness... he didn't write down how much he used of anything. Worcestershire, tamari... vermouth instead of sake... probably some other stuff.


Gratuitous gazebo shot. No point here. Just showing off. This is the good life... sunny day, light breeze, a margarita on the outdoor bar, big chunks of beefiness on the grill... yeah.


The result: short ribs on rice, a salad with lemon vinaigrette, and grilled Brussels sprouts (with onions and garlic, done in a foil pack). The Grill Geek wasn't very pleased with the result- too tough and chewy. It was a lot of work to eat, but it was delicious. Even our finicky Fairy Child gobbled some up. I think we'll stick to low and slow for short ribs in the future, though.

Iron Chef Grill 3!

This was an impromptu Iron Chef... we happened to be at a store that happened to have the exact ingredient I had been looking for since the first Iron Chef Grill "episode." So... guess what, honey? It's time for you to shine!

Kyo no tema... tai!

Whole red snapper. Way back when I was looking up inspiration for my own Iron Chef Shark night, I happened across many recipes involving whole fish, stuffed with something, and grilled. I salivated. I hungered. I longed. So, naturally, I decided then and there that the Grill Geek's first ingredient ought to be a whole fish. And promptly couldn't find any.

We also managed to hammer out another rule of Iron Chef Grill with this installment. Unlike Iron Chef Mom, where nothing but the already-present contents of fridge, freezer, and pantry may be used (no trips to the store for ingredients), grilling is all about last minute jaunts for _____ and beer. So, the Grill Geek ran out for crab, shrimp, and beer. I think it's a fitting rule.
We still have a lot of rule-making to do for the Grill version.

• 3 tablespoons butter

• 3/4 cup fresh bread crumbs

• 1/4 cup chopped green onions

• 1/4 cup celery, diced

• 1 clove garlic, minced

• 4 ounces cooked shrimp

• 4 ounces cooked crabmeat

• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

• 1/8 teaspoon salt

• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

To Make Stuffing: Melt 2 tablespoons butter or margarine in a skillet. Add the bread crumbs. Saute and stir the mixture over medium-high heat till the bread crumbs are browned. Remove the bread crumbs to a mixing bowl.

Melt 1 tablespoon butter or margarine in the skillet and sauté the onions, celery and garlic until tender; add to bread crumbs in mixing bowl, then stir in shrimp, crab, parsley, salt and pepper and toss gently.

Cram this stuff inside le' poisson. Grill 20-25 minutes, or until flaky.

I wish I'd remembered to take a "before shot."

It was delicious!

Iron Chef Grill 2!

Good things happen when he grills... that's why I (as Family Budget Officer) authorized the purchase of a new grill out of our tax return. He got this shiny pretty one at Big Lots, of all places. Hey... it works! We had been ogling various really fancy grills at Lowe's. This one cost about $800 less than those. And the whole point is... they make fire. This cheap one makes fire just fine.

Anyway, enough about grills and more about gills. I chose marlin steaks as his secret ingredient. The man behind the counter said they were well-suited for grilling, and I'd never had them before. That makes for a perfect Iron Chef Grill ingredient!


The menu, as he wrote it:

Wine: Frei Brothers Chardonnay, 2005
Entrée: Grilled Naigiri steak with lime butter
Side 1: Lemon Salsa
Side 2: Sautéed Mushrooms and Onion
Side 3: Jasmine Rice
Dessert: Grilled Grapefruit

Sautéed Mushrooms and Onions

2 tbsp. butter
½ lg. onion, sliced
4 oz. fresh mushrooms, clean and thickly sliced
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 c. red wine

Mix first four ingredients, cook over medium-low heat. Stir once. After 5 minutes, pour wine in and stir. Cook for another 5-7 minutes, or until onions are turning translucent, stirring once or twice more.

Grilled Naigiri with Lime Rum Butter

2 Nairagi (marling) steaks (about ½ lb. each), skin removed
2 slices bacon
1/3 cup butter
1 medium-size clove garlic, minced or pressed
Juice of 1 lime
1 shot Sailor Jerry's Spiced Navy Rum

Skin fish, wrap bacon along edge, securing with toothpick. Melt butter, mix in lime juice, rum and garlic.

Grill fish for 5 min per side, basting with lime butter.

Lemon Salsa

1 lemon, diced
½ tsp. capers, rinsed
3 green onions, chopped
4 shakes dried parsley
1 tsp sea salt
cracked black pepper to taste
¼ cup red wine

Mix all, squeeze lemon peel over mixture, stir.

Grilled Grapefruit

1 grapefruits
2 tbsp. agave nectar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Mix nectar and cinnamon, cut grapefruit into ¾ inch rounds, 2 minutes and flip until lightly caramelized.

Grill Maestro in action. I love how the smoke shows up in this shot. I can almost smell it!


There it is, in all it's delicious glory. Bacon-wrapped (total pandering to the judge!) marlin, topped with delicious lemon salsa, coconut rice smothered in wine-soaked mushrooms and onions, and the fabulous, out-of-this-world incredible grilled grapefruit. Everything was so good... once again, I was making noises while eating. I can't help it.

Iron Chef Grill!

It was finally time for my husband, the Grill Geek, to join the ranks of the Iron Chefs. Cooks of culinary genius, specially-selected for their skills... or something like that. Yeah, he wanted in on the fun. I admit to delaying his debut because I was positively stumped as to what sort of Secret Ingredient I should get. But, finally, I put it on the weekly menu, I was forced into it. I had to think of something!

I got smart. I did a little research. I decided on my top three ideas and headed off the store.

Nada.

And shopping with a caffeinated, balloon-wielding three-year-old means mama don't go to Other Stores. That level of shopping is reserved for People Without Children. That's why I generally send the Grill Geek out for the shopping... the kids don't demand to go along with him.

Anyway, so I was stuck in a disappointing meat section (because of course the first Secret Ingredient will be meat!) and finally settled on the cliche of grilling... skirt steak. Ho-hum.

Well, that was the last time any "ho-hum" touched that meat.

I actually moaned with pleasure during dinner.

Several times.

Luckily the children didn't notice. They had wolfed down their boring ol' hot dogs and run off.

The Rules of Iron Chef Grill:
- 1 hour of active cooking time (like Iron Chef Mom, this first episode allowed 90, next he'll get 80, and so on.) This means there's time for marinating and unattended smoking.
- must provide something for the kids, but it needn't be the Secret Ingredient
- must be fairly original recipes (although I realize meat + fire has been done before)
- at least the main course plus 1 side dish must be entirely grilled

Now for pic goodness:

Chopping half a red bell pepper, for the Fajita Salad. He also chopped an onion, and threw that in a foil packet with the bell pepper. The poblano half went directly on the grill. Mmmm...

Once it was charry and delicious, it was diced, and tossed onto fresh Texan baby greens.




Now this... I can't tell you marvelously delicious a butter-rubbed, bacon-wrapped grilled potato is.

But I made noises.

I mean... the salty, crispy bacon and potato skin... I could happily eat one every day forever.

Hard to blog with visions of bacon-potatoes dancing through my head.

He sliced the skirt steak into almost-bite-size pieces (my one complaint...) and tossed it on the salad. The dressing, which also provided the marinade, was put on the grill to melt and meld and steal some smoky goodness.

The dressing/marinade:

½ cup olive oil, couple spoons bacon fat
¼ cup tamari
2 spoons chopped garlic
1/4 c. Worcestershire sauce
1/8 c. soy sauce
2 decent globs dijon
juice of 1 ½ limes
a little salt
1/8 teaspoon spicy paprika
teaspoon cumin

Om a-nom, nom, nom.

And then... dessert! Grilled Bananas In Orange Sauce.

2 Bananas
½ Orange, juiced
½ cup orange curaco/ Grand Marnier
1 tbsp butter
sugar
ground cinnamon

Cut bananas lengthwise. lightly stir all other ingredients together. Grill bananas for a couple minutes per side, chop into inch-long chunks, then place into mix. Let Pyrex cook up on grill for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve.

Iron Chef Grill... preliminaries

Tonight was a practice night of sorts for the Grill Geek. He wants to get in on the Iron Chef fun, so I suggested he plan and make the entire meal once. He grills a lot, but I generally make a side dish or two, and help out with fiddly details. Tonight was all him. And he did well. He has passed the test. Hee hee... and once we hash out the details (does he have to make the entire meal on the grill? How can he smoke meat with just a one hour time limit? And so on...) I will proudly share his endeavors here.

Tonight was lovely slabs of grassfed "rib steak" (I'm pretty sure they were ribeyes), our usual Sidedish, and some salted sliced cucumbers (kids dig 'em.) Delish!