Crispy Wings...

The last time I made wings was on Super Bowl Sunday. I have only made them a few times on my egg; and while they tasted really good, most everyone was hoping they would be a little more crispy...

After reading for a bit on the BGE forum; I decided to try something a little different with this batch. Rather than put the wings in a pan and sprinkle the rub over them; I decided to use a zip lock bag and shake them like I would do for stew beef and flour. Also, rather than going straight rub, I added some corn starch to the rub. Based on what I had read, the corn starch would help the skin crisp up while the wings cooked indirect and the meat stayed moist.

Here are wings, washed and dried, with the rub and cornstarch mix. The rub is Dizzy Pig Swamp Venom. I mixed the rub and corn starch in about a 3:1 mix.

After a few vigorous shakes, they went into the fridge for a while as the I got the egg set up. I set the egg up for indirect cooking using the plate setter. Got the temperature settle in about 400 and used some mesquite chunks for flavor. The wings were on for an 1:15 and came off looking good.

These were the best wings I have made so far...

 
Served with a simple sauce made up of Frank's Red Hot mixed with Blue Cheese dressing...

Let me know if you try this method or have one of your own for really crispy wings!

Enjoy!

Ed

Fire Roasted Salsa and Grilled Chicken...

Over the 3 day weekend I was able to take advantage of the nice weather and do most of my cooking outside; on the Egg, the way nature intended...

I wanted to try something new; and decided that fire roasting up a bunch of fresh veggies and pairing them with some grilled chicken sounded just right. Fresh, healthy, and not to heavy...

No special recipe here; my basic wing it process applies to this one.

Here the fresh veggies; washed and ready to go...

 Cut, and and removed the cores and seeds from the peppers. I then tossed them all with some olive oil and seasoned them with sea salt and pepper. I had the Egg prepared and was going to cook them direct at about 350 for about 45 minutes or until they got a nice char on them.

Just on the Egg. This set up in from the Ceramic Grill Store, The PSWoo3 and the now unavailable Woo Extender. They make great products and their customer service is top notch as well...

Here they are ready to chill in the fridge for bit before I complete the salsa...

 While waiting for the veggies to cool a bit; I prep the chicken for the grill. Tossed with a little Wegman's Basting Oil and some Dizzy Pig Jamaican Firewalk . Great rub with some heat and touch of citrus sweetness.

 After putting the chicken on the Egg to begin cooking; I finish up on the salsa. The veggies are rough chopped and the tomatoes peeled before being chopped and added. To finish the salsa; I added some fresh chopped cilantro and minced garlic, along with a little extra virgin olive oil and some fresh lime juice. Also added some sliced black olives too...

After the chicken finished cooking; to 165 on an instant read thermometer, it was time to plate the meal. Topped it with some freshly sliced avocado. My family gave this meal two thumbs up and enjoyed the salsa even more the next day with some corn tortilla chips.

Don't be afraid to throw your veggies on the grill and let them get some fire time...

If you do make the salsa or this dish; let me know how it turned out.

Enjoy,

Ed

Good Weeknight Meal...

Like most people; my wife and I can be pressed for time at the end of the day to get something healthy on the table for dinner. Luckily for us; our daughter Elise is pretty adventuresome when it comes to food for a 9 year old, so we can try more things for dinner without having to always have a plate of chicken nuggets nearby (not that's there anything wrong with that)...

This is just a classic meal of chicken, veggies, and potatoes with a paleo twist... The potatoes are actually cauliflower!

This meal is easy and quick to prepare...

The organic chicken breasts can be cooked any way you normally do your chicken. My preferred and recommended method of course is to do them on your Egg or whatever grill you happen to have. Cooking over fire is always better than cooking inside. Another thing I recommend is buying the chicken in bulk and then cooking the entire batch. For me in this case it was 10 breasts. Left over breasts can be sliced up for salad and used in other recipes in the following nights to take care of the protein component of your meals.

The veggies are even easier...

First the strings beans. I used a bag of organic string beans and simply steamed them right in the bag using the microwave. When they were done, tossed them in a bowl with some garlic infused olive oil and some sea salt.

The cauliflower was pretty easy too and turned out to be the star on this plate. I used two heads of organic cauliflower, stemmed and cut up into little chunks, removing any of the tougher stem parts. Cooked them in microwave until tender and then turned them into "potatoes". Used my blender and pureed the cauliflower, adding melted butter, sea salt,  fresh ground pepper, and a little garlic salt. Blended them until everything was smooth and about the same consistency as normal mashed potatoes. They turned out great.

If you want to make this healthy meal even quicker, use chicken from an early cook and just reheat along with the fresh veggies...

Here is the plated meal...

Enjoy!

Ed