Some summer nights, the best place to eat out is your own back patio
Some days you just don’t want to work.
That may seem odd considering our job is to search out places to eat and share our findings with you.
But it happens, especially this time of year.
You should know us well enough by now to realize we are often blessed with good food, whether we’re doing our due diligence for you or staying home. Mix in outstanding weather and comfortable patios, and neither of us want to go any further than the other guy’s back deck.
Trying to turn that into a dining column is difficult.
The idea, born on the patio of Bennidito’s while enjoying good wine and better pizza, was to offer backyard barbecue ideas.
We thought about taking the best entrees from fine eateries and sharing recipes that you could duplicate. That, however, had the danger of leaving someone out – and if that’s what you want to do, you’ve got the Internet.
Speaking of the Internet, it can hurt as much as it helps. One of us had a pork loin out, and that usually means slow cooking on the way to pulled pork sandwiches.
Yawn.
Been there, done that.
Often.
The decision was made to try something, anything, different, even if it meant a special trip to the store. Good idea/bad idea. With just a couple clicks of the mouse, about 100 recipes presented themselves. Of the first 25, 20 sounded really good, and it was time to get on with it.
(Maybe looking up recipes, like grocery shopping, shouldn’t be done on an empty stomach.)
Anyway, after all of that, the winner was a home-produced rub seared into the meat with the help of a favorite homemade barbecue sauce.
It was awesome, trying something new that was quick and easy (after spending so much time perusing recipes) so it didn’t get in the way of the usual duties of the day.
Maybe that’s why most of us stick with our handful of favorites when it comes time to cook in the backyard.
As we considered what to share, we realized how much we enjoy backyard cooking with no real favorites – or too many. And it’s great fun to test new recipes when time allows, which isn’t always the case.
So the restaurateur went with his go-to for the three basics: steak, chicken or salmon. At times he will get more creative, but when time or energy is lacking, he still knows how to ensure a great meal.
Steak: Get a good cut like sirloin (ribeye tastes great because of the fat but also cooks differently because of that). Marinate with soy sauce and pepper. Two to three minutes on one side (it’s all about thickness), then turn over and cook until juices start to bleed through on top. That should produce rare, with medium taking a couple minutes longer.
Chicken: Tenderize and marinate in olive oil, lemon juice, rosemary, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper, and a little vinegar. Will cook faster because of the tenderizing.
Salmon: On aluminum foil, season with olive oil, Italian seasoning, a little white wine, butter, lemon juice and parsley. Wrap into a tent and place on grill. Because it is steam cooking, it should be ready in 10 minutes, but it is hard to overcook (within reason).
A recent reunion was enhanced because we didn’t overthink the menu. Instead we stuck with those simple recipes and focused on the friendship.
Simple.
Delicious.
And not near as memorable as the meal the third night, when we gave a nod to the days when kids were with us and had Hobo Stew.
That is your basic meat and potato meal that the kids always enjoyed preparing.
This recipe is for four and serves plenty. Fortunately it can easily be adjusted for younger children or share servings.
Hobo Stew
Kids get a kick out of this simple, hearty meal. There are a number of tweaks that can be made to make it special for your family. Add something green, like beans or peas. Heat it up with red pepper flakes or jalapeños in the burger.
Most importantly, you’ve engaged the kids around preparing a meal and using the grill with not too much time or effort.
2 pounds ground beef
1/2 to 1 onion
4 pounds potatoes
2 pounds carrots
Peel potatoes and carrots, coarsely shred them and divide into four equal piles. (At grandma’s place the kids loved to shred the veggies in the hand-turned, table top grater. Look up salad master vintage grater and add to your treasure hunting list.)
Dice half or more of an onion.
Make four hamburger patties, a quarter- to half-pound.
Tear off a big piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil for each meal.
Take half of a share of potatoes and make a base in the middle of one half of the foil, add carrots and onions (the order is important). Use a bit of salt and pepper before adding the hamburger patty, which gets a tad bit of salt, pepper and, in our family, Alpine salt from Montana. Then add the second half of the portion of onion, carrots and potatoes, with a tad more spicing. It is important to put the potatoes next to the aluminum foil and the onion next to the meat.
Add 3 tablespoons of water.
Fold the aluminum foil over and close the edges well.
Use a permanent marker to identify the pouch.
Place on a barbecue over medium heat for about 20 minutes, turn over, and cook another 10 or so minutes. Steam is OK, smoke means it’s too hot or you forgot water.
Serve off of the aluminum foil.