Made my roti dough...


Filled a ball of roti dough with some of the peas....



pinched the dough closed...




twisted the top.....


rolled out....



and fried....



The sauce ingredients... tomatoes (crushed and whole), celery, garlic, onion, cumin, masala, boiled eggs, cooked potatoes, and some habanero pepper. Also added a bit of water and a maggi cube.







While the sauce simmered I marinaded the chicken, seasoned it with a dry rub and smoked...



I seasoned the potato slices with dry rub and grilled along with the beans...






The smoked chicken, grilled potatoes, beans, spicy sauce with boiled eggs and roti....








To eat, you tear off a piece of roti, place chicken and veggies inside then top with the spicy sauce. Like eating a taco.

It was very tasty and I hope I can figure out how to make it again! :)

I smoked a few olives, pecans, p-nuts, cashews, sea salt, sea salt flakes, cheese and a mix of kosher salt/pepper/garlic and onion...

I stir the salts about every hour...







The apple/pecan smoked pecans, olives, cheese, sea flakes, sea salt, p-nuts, kosher salt mix and cashews.

Everything smoked for 7 1/2 hours at 65 degrees...

My stash has been replenished. :)

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Born in Carini, Palermo, a small city in Sicily, Caesar Randazzo graduated as an engineer. Because of the work shortage, he came to America and worked as a dishwasher and pizza delivery boy for his uncle's pizzeria in Brooklyn, New York. There he worked his way up and learned much about the restaurant business. Caesar migrated to Chattanooga, Tennessee in 1976, and opened five Italian restaurants, only to sell them all seven years later and move back home to Sicily.

Caesar spent two years in Sicily before deciding that his future was in the U.S. He returned to Nashville, got lost, and ended up on White Bridge Road. Says Caesar, "I saw the parking lot at Lion's Head full of cars and people standing in a long line. I thought it was Times Square in New York." The people had come to the movie theater, and Caesar noticed that the restaurant space next to the theater was for rent. He contacted the landlord, and three months later opened his Ristorante Italiano.

SMOKES & EARS from Joe York on Vimeo.

"The men and women featured are part chef, part athlete, and part five-star general. They not only talk a big game, but walk it every step of the way: with grease on their hands, sweat on their brows, and meat on their minds from sun-up to sundown."

"Americans are rethinking tradition this Thanksgiving with more than 70 percent of consumers saying they would opt out of using the oven to instead grill (18 percent), smoke (25 percent) or fry (28 percent) their turkey, according to HPBA's Thanksgiving poll. Turkeys can be fried in less than an hour, smoked over low heat for several hours or even cooked on a grill - each option offers a mouthwatering meal packed with juicy flavor and crispy taste.

According to the National Turkey Federation (NTF), an estimated 46 million turkeys will be cooked this holiday. Based on HPBA consumer poll responses, that means up to 32.2 million turkeys could be getting the boot from the oven! Americans agree that grilling, smoking and frying are preferable to the oven for a number of reasons:

• Allows you to try something new (54 percent of respondents)
• Gives you a more tender or juicy turkey (54 percent of respondents)
• Frees up space in your oven for other cooking (53 percent of respondents)
• Easier clean up (52 percent of respondents)

To heat up Thanksgiving meals, HPBA and NTF have the tips and recipes for a winning holiday feast:

Tips for Outdoor Cooking and the Ultimate Turkey Experience

• Check to make sure the grill, smoker or fryer is in working order.
• Be sure to read the owner's manual for safety precautions.
• Stock up on enough charcoal, propane, oil or wood chips needed to cook the meal.
• Be sure to use the grill, smoker or fryer outside only - never indoors and make sure that it's set-up on a flat, stable surface, preferably on a protective grill pad, and away from any combustible materials.
• Purchase a whole turkey according to the weight recommendations in your grill's, smoker's or fryer's owner's manual.
• Thaw the turkey completely and pat it dry. Cook the bird un-stuffed.
• Brine the turkey for increased flavor and moisture.
• Outdoor cooking times depend on many factors: the size and shape of the turkey, the distance from the heat and the outside air temperature. Allow more time on cold or windy days and at high altitudes. Allow less time in very hot weather.
• Have a food thermometer handy to measure the internal temperature of the bird; the temperature should be 165° F to 170° F in the breast and 175° F to 180° F in the thigh.

Don't Forget The Trimmings!

Beyond the bird, seven in ten Americans admit that they would like to see grilled side dishes on their Thanksgiving platters, including grilled vegetables (51 percent) or grilled bread, fruits or desserts (18 percent). While the turkey is the centerpiece of the meal, Thanksgiving's savory side dishes and trimmings can all be cooked outdoors. Try America's Outdoor Cooking Experts Bill and Cheryl Jamison's recipes for crispy smashed potatoes, grilled apples slices or grilled vegetable orzo."

Talking Turkey with HPBA originally appeared on About.com Barbecues & Grilling on Thursday, November 19th, 2009 at 14:40:30.

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Photo © 2008 Regarding BBQ Inc., licensed to About.com, Inc.

Brining Turkey - Step by Step originally appeared on About.com Barbecues & Grilling on Thursday, November 19th, 2009 at 02:35:35.

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Burners in these grills can deteriorate causing irregular flames and in some models the metal lids can catch fire, causing a serious metal fire. If you own this grill you are asked to immediately discontinue use until you can receive replacement parts for your grill. Call (888) 840-9590 or visit www.lowes.com for information on how you can get the parts needed to repair your grill.

Check your grill for the specific model number. Model numbers are printed on a label on the inside or backside of the grill. Models SLG2006B, SLG2006BN, SLG2006C, SLG2006CN, SLG2007D, and SLG2007DN will need complete replacement of the burner assemblies. Models SLG2007A, SLG2007B, SLG2007BN, and SLG2008A will need the burner assembly and lid replaced.

Please take this and all recalls seriously. Several people have been injured in relation to these grills. You can find more information on this recall at the Consumer Product Safety Commission website.

Recall Alert: Perfect Flame SLG Series Grills originally appeared on About.com Barbecues & Grilling on Wednesday, November 18th, 2009 at 16:01:14.

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Bulldog has changed owners since 4 years ago. Ralph & Gina Rangel are the new proprietors. The outside logo has changed. The Bulldog insignia is no longer present on the front window. The interior is inviting and warm. We grabbed a seat and our very friendly waitress came right away with utensils and menus. Some cold frosty beverages were in order. Bulldog has several beers on draught. The menu has the usual suspects for a BBQ joint. They do have grilled steaks and prime rib which I have not tried. One thing we noticed was the absence of cornbread. I seem to recall a wonderful corn muffin from a previous visit. Cornbread is usually a staple at BBQ joints. I wonder why it was taken off the menu. We were on a mission to try the BBQ. Ms. Goofy ordered the pulled pork sandwich and I ordered pork ribs. Our sides included cole slaw, macaroni salad and macaroni & cheese.

Pork Ribs: Now the barbeque judge emerges. We took a look at the ribs to critique the appearance. These ribs looked very average. They do not jump out and start the drooling process. A bite is taken for the taste. These ribs are slow cooked with a dry rub. The sauce is served on the side. The taste again is very average. The rub does not add or subtract from a fairly bland pork flavor. The smoke flavor was very minimal. Some sauce was applied and another bite was taken. The sauce has a sweet/vinegar tomato base. This was a big improvement but we wanted to eat ribs, not sauce. The texture bordered on a little overdone.

Pulled Pork Sandwich: The pulled pork meat was the best part of our meal. The appearance was very appetizing. The meat was a good mix of bark and center meat. The flavor of the meat was smoky and tender. The bark was a treat in itself. (Bark is the caramelized intensely flavored exterior of the pork) The texture was spot on for pulled pork. It was served on a lackluster plain roll.

Side Dishes: The macaroni salad and coleslaw was uninspired. They could have come out of a 5 gallon bucket from Costco. The macaroni and cheese was dry and not creamy at all. The side dishes were disappointing. There was no cornbread on the premise.

Bulldog BBQ is a clean, warm and inviting restaurant. It is a good place to grab a beer and watch a game. The owner and staff are very friendly and efficient. The food is pretty mediocre for a BBQ joint. The ribs were very average. The sides were uninspired and did not compliment the meat. The pulled pork was excellent but fell into an unexciting and dry roll. We did not feel the ‘Love’ with the food. To be fair we ate here 6 months earlier. Our visit was basically the same. We returned to review today on request from Meathenge. We did not try all the menu items. Dr. Biggles will do a follow up review to try some different menu offerings. Will we return? I would like to return and try a steak, but after today’s review, we probably will not be welcome.

Bulldog BBQ & Steakhouse

601 Main St

Martinez, CA 94553

(925) 335-9915

I like that Ninette broke the rules and didn’t do the standard list of questions for this peer award. Oddly, because I’m up really early today, I’m going to go back to it, though, which is odd for me to do, I think.

Here are the questions for me to answer, with one word only.

1-Your cell phone? iPhone
2- Your hair? non-balding
3-Your mother? Sue
4-Your father? Bruce
5-Your favorite food? Varied
6-Your favorite drink? Orangina, no Lagavulin, no Ale… whoops, I failed that one!
7-Your dream last night? Forgotten
8-Your dream/goal? Heaven
9-What room are you in? Great
10-Your hobby? Cooking
11-Your fear? Clowns
12-Where do you want to be in 6 years? Napa
13-Where were you last night? Home
14-Something that you aren’t? Feminine
15-Muffin? Man?
16-Wish list item? NikonD700 (see how I made that one word?)
17-Where did you grow up? Haven’t
18-Last thing you did? Shower
19-What are you wearing? Clothes
20-Your TV? Big
21-Your pets? Dog&Cats
22-Friends? Yes
23- Your life? Blessed
24-Your mood? Good
25-Missing someone? No
26-Vehicle? Saab
27-Something you aren’t wearing? Dress
28-Your favorite store? Apple
29-Favorite color? Navy
30-When was the last time you laughed? Yesterday
31-Last time you cried? Looking at Ninette’s gorgeous photos and being hungry (failed again)
32-Your best friend? Between
33-One place you go to over and over? Pittsburgh
34-One person who emails you regularly? Uncle
35-Favorite place to eat? Home

Now, I’m to nominate other blogs for the award, too. Typically, it’s 6 blogs, but I’m going to nominate the current Outdoor Cooking Guild blogs! I think they all do a great job, and you’ll find some amazing outdoor cooking on all of them!

Personally, I think they’re all Over The Top.

Thanks again, Ninette!

POLL: What's on the Menu this Holiday Season?
1) Turkey
2) Ham
3) Lamb
4) Fowl (goose, duck, etc.)
5) Prime Rib (or other large beef roasts)
6) Fish or Seafood
7) Barbecue (pork, brisket, ribs, etc.)
8) Other (Please Specify in the Comments)

What's on the Menu this Holiday Season? originally appeared on About.com Barbecues & Grilling on Wednesday, November 18th, 2009 at 02:50:21.

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Lordy, it must have been 3 weeks ago when Chilebrown of Mad Meat Genius gifted me more than a few pounds of No Name Bacon. It wasn't long after when he posted his review of No Name Bacon. He and Ms. Goofy are a machine, they can get it done. I'm not a machine, I'm lucky to find clean underwear and get my wagon gassed up on a weekly basis.

After going through 2 pounds ourselves here at Meathenge Labs and 1 pound to my sister and husband Meathead, we're giving the No Name Meat Company more than a few thumbs up.

It's a good, solid commodity bacon. Good fat to meat ratio, great smoke flavor while cooking, good smoke flavor for eating, a nice semi-low sugar content with an easy finish.

If you see it, and want good bacon, buy it. This bacon is Meathenge Approved.

xo, Biggles

Deep fried turkey is great, as long as you exercise caution when cooking one up.  Here's 10 tips to a perfect fried bird.  And be sure to check out our recipe for a great smoked turkey, as well!

1.  Safety first.  Place the fryer well away from the house and anything flammable like a wooden deck in case the hot oil spills.

2.  Test the oil levels.  Adding 15-20 pounds of anything to liquid will make the level rise so your best bet is to test it in advance by putting the turkey in the pot then filling with water until the bird is fully immersed. Remove the turkey, noting the level of the water on the side of the pot with a permanent pen. Dump the water, dry the pot well (water and oil don't go well together).

3.  Don't go overboard with the seasonings.  Think how moist and flavorful chicken fried in peanut oil is without the addition of injections, rubs,etc.  But if you must, inject the meatiest portions of the turkey using an injecting needle with a flavorful liquid such as white wine and turkey seasonings.  Try to keep the injection light in color so the meat doesn't come out with dark streaks.  As for rub, apply it the night before so the flavor can really absorb into the meat, otherwise most of it's coming off like dirt in a bath.

4.  Oil it up.  Once you're ready to get frying, fill the pot with oil(preferably peanut)to the line you made previously.  Heat to approximately325 degrees. When prepping the turkey, make sure it is fully defrosted and patted dry. Again, water and oil don't go well together and ice crystals will cause some nasty little red spots all over your body.

5.  Dress the part.  Before you get started, make sure you are wearing shoes,not sandles, long pants, a long sleeved shirt and whatever else to protect from small bits of flying grease or overflow.

6.  Be prepared.  Keep mitts, a lid for the pot and a fire extinguisher on hand in case you have to remove the pot quickly from the open flame. Note,water will only make the situation worse if you have a grease fire. Suffocating it by putting the lid on the pot is your best bet.

7.  Get cooking.  Once the oil is fully heated, place the turkey onto the rack provided,attach the hooked rod and SLOWLY lower it into the oil.  You may want to wear a welders glove to help with the heat, but the key is not to drop it in and cause a splash back.  From there, let the fryer do its job.

8.  Bring the turkey to temperature.  When deep frying turkeys,a good rule of thumb is 3 minutes per pound (i.e. 45 minutes for a 15pound bird).  To be extra certain, check the internal temperature with a remote thermometer.  Once it reaches 170 degrees, you're good to go.

9.  Rest it.  While friends and family will be anxious to dive right in, allow the cooked bird to rest 10-20 minutes before carving so the juices can redistribute.

10.  Enjoy!

- SmokeInDaEye.com, Home of Bigger, Badder, Bolder Competition BBQ(c)

Let’s start by rubbing down the bird with ‘Hoochie Mama Rub’. Paprika, sugar, salt, black pepper, chile powder, garlic, onion, celery, chipotle, cayenne are listed as ingredients. It had a nice fresh spice aroma. Ms. Goofy tried a little dab on her paw and whimpered, It tastes salty she barked. She noticed a hint of celery in the flavor. The heat was a little delayed. It was a little burn that originated in the back of her throat. The burn factor was not ‘burn the house down hot’. It was a little more of a subtle shout out from the peppers saying, ‘I am here’. The real taste test will be later after the chicken has been cooked. We rubbed the chicken and let it rest in the Chilebrown Ice cave for a couple of hours.

The chicken was cooked over a direct mesquite charcoal medium fire. The last 10 minutes we brushed on SuckleBusters BBQ Sauce. What are the secrets of this award winning sauce? Vinegar, water, brown sugar, tomato paste, cane sugar, natural smoke flavor, salt, cayenne, mustard, onion, Xanthan gum, garlic and cloves are listed as ingredients. We opened the bottle and a pleasant vinegar and spice smell hit our sinuses or Ms. Goofy’s snout. We tried a little on a spoon. It was very sweet. It did have a good balance of smoke and vinegar. We did not detect any heat level at all. The sauce was a little thin. We basted the chicken several times. Now for the real taste test, will this stand up to the judges?

Ms. Goofy gave the combination of rub and barbeque sauce two paws up. She said the original saltiness of the rub played out to a good flavor on the cooked chicken. She liked the balance of sweet and vinegar of the sauce. Overall the combination of rub and sauce was a good combination. I thought the sauce was a little on the sweet side for my personal tastes. I would also call out for more heat. This would be a good excuse to try their hot sauce. The rub came through with a little spank of heat. SuckleBusters has a quality barbeque sauce and rub that we would invite back to another barbeque.

Sucklebusters Texas Style Sauces & Seasonings
(972) 393-9509

Please don't let this happen to you. If you choose to use a turkey fryer, please be careful. I've fried two turkeys this year so far and I will be frying another one on Thanksgiving. This video is a good example of what can happen if you are not careful.

HomeSafetyCouncil.org provides some turkey fryer safety tips on their website to help reduce the chance of a turkey fryer fire.

My biggest tips include:

1. pick a location away from the house or garage

2. concrete is preferred versus a wooden deck

3. don't leave the turkey fryer unattended

4. use a thermometer to measure the oil temperature

5. turn off the fire before adding oil and before s-l-o-w-l-y adding the turkey

6. wear protective gloves

7. wear long sleeves and pants

While competing at the American Royal Invitational BBQ competition in Kansas City last month, we got to check out the countless folks from TLC on hand to shoot part of a new series entitled"BBQ Pitmasters". 

Even though for some strange reason they didn't include the style and flair of Smoke In Da Eye, viewers can expect to see several of the top names in competition BBQ including Jack’s Old South, Slap Yo Daddy, Smokin' Triggers, Cool Smoke, Wood Chicks, and more during the eight one-hour episodes which begin airing on December 3. 

And perhaps if this season is a success we can talk those folks at Original Media to bring the show up East for the second installment.  Here’s some more on the show:

(Myron Mixon.  Photo courtesy of TLC)

TLC ADDS SIZZLE TO THE SCHEDULE WITH NEW SERIES 'BBQ PITMASTERS'

Los Angeles, CA - TLC today announced that is has started production on the new docu-series BBQ PITMASTERS, taking viewers into the high-stakes world of competitive barbecue. Following some of the biggest names on the circuit, each episode travels to a different competition and show viewers what it takes to win big in BBQ.

Eight one-hour episodes of BBQ PITMASTERS have been ordered,and is scheduled to premiere December 3 on TLC. The series is produced by Original Media.

BBQ PITMASTERS transports viewers to this competitive cooking subculture, where an estimated 10 million people visit each year to get up-close and personal with the leading chefs of America's burgeoning barbecue circuit. Like an all-star poker tournament or a championship car race, it is at these events that reputations and respect are gained and lost. For pit masters,the honor rides on the virtues of one perfectly charred rib, and hundreds of thousands of dollars trade hands after a single, mouth-watering bite of brisket.

The men and women featured are part chef, part athlete, and part five-star general. They not only talk a big game, but walk it every step of the way: with grease on their hands, sweat on their brows, and meat on their minds from sun-up to sundown. Production follows these BBQ PITMASTERS at home with their families as they prepare for and compete at various events across the country, including ones in Alabama, Delaware, Illinois, Missouri, and Nevada.

In addition to the pitmasters, viewers will also meet the "supporting characters" - the outrageous customized "pits" themselves. Considered the secret weapons and a BBQ's best friend, these pits seems to develop their own personalities, with names and sometimes even genders.

"For the competitors we follow, barbecue isn't a hobby- it's a passion. Countless hours of work, hundred of miles of travel, and years perfecting recipes go into making one perfect bite of food - with the hopes of winning the title and millions of dollars in prizes," explains Eileen O'Neill, President & GM, TLC.

"BBQ PITMASTERS adds to our menu of programming, sharing stories of passionate real-life characters with the wildly popular BBQ backdrop."

Original Media CEO Charlie Corwin adds, "The colorful characters and deeply competitive spirit of the American barbecue subculture is truly something to behold, and we have captured this captivating competitive action and bold egos in vivid detail. With this series, we are excited to be further expanding our relationship with TLC who has been a great partner on such series as LA INK, MASTERS OF RECEPTION and the forthcoming FLOWERS UNCUT."

I got a couple of really nice bone-in pork chops and an ambercup squash to start with, and got the grill going with a 3 zone fire. I cubed the squash and added some brown sugar and chipotle flakes, letting the sugar coat the squash on skewers. The chops got some salt and pepper along with some diced up cherry peppers.

The chops went on the hot part of the fire to get a but of crust built up, then were moved over to the medium heat fire, and the squash joined them on the grill on the cooler part of the fire, so the sugar wouldn’t burn.

While the grill was chugging along, I sauteed a shallot, then added 8 ounces of pomegranate juice and a couple tablespoons of port, along with some salt and pepper. I let the sauce reduce a bit, then added 1/2 tsp of cornstarch to thicken the sauce a bit.

Back to the grill, I moved the squash over to the hot part of the fire, just briefly, to caramelize the sugar a bit. Then everything came off the grill, and the chops rested for a few minutes. I topped the chops with the sauce, added a squash on the side, and served.

The sauce was great with the chops, easy to make, and definitely a good use of pomegranate juice! Pork and POM go really well together! Next, I’ll be using POM for a sauce for Thanksgiving…

I started out at Publix and purchased a Fresh Not Frozen turkey.

Next stop...Ace Hardware for some Cherry Smoking Chips.

The turkey was injected the night before smoking with Shake's Honey Brine and refrigerated.

I started by making a "smoking pouch" for the chips and placed them on the charcoal resulting in instantaneous smoke. Tip: Soaking them in water overnight will help them burn a little slower and the smoke will last longer.

After reading a few of the posts at The BBQ Bretheren, I decided to drape some bacon on the bird for a little insurance, but I was hopeful to avoid a turkey that tastes like bacon. Tip: If I do this again, I'll start the cooking process without the bacon, which will help achieve golden brown skin on the bird. Bacon is effective, but could be added after the turkey has been cooking for a couple of hours.

I started the water pan with a 1/2 gallon of apple juice mixed with a 1/2 gallon of water. I stuffed the turkey cavity with five or six apple halves and smoked the bird on my WSM at temperatures hovering consistently between 240 - 250 degrees. I pulled the turkey off the smoker when the temperature in the breast reached 170 degrees. I've read a lot of "guides" recommending cooking the birds to 180 degrees as measured in the inner thigh as well.

After looking back through my pictures tonight, I noticed that I failed to take a picture of the finished product.

My smoked first smoked turkey was a semi-success. I achieved tender and moist white meat, but the bbq turkey was not quite as satisfying for me as the deep fried turkeys I'm more accustomed to.

Will I do it again? Definitely yes. I love a bbq challenge.

Each year brings a new theme to the party. In the past we’ve done themes that include:

• France
• Italy
• Southern Hemisphere, but not Australia
• USA, but not California

When we pick the theme, I do the food to match it, from smoked meatballs with pasta and marinara to foie gras and steak au poivre. This year, Dreyfus helped out as my sous chef.

This year’s theme was… drumroll, please… Spain!

The rules of the party are pretty simple: each couple brings two bottles of wine to share, one red and one white, along with information about the wine, vineyard, grape, whatever.

We served several Spanish cheeses, which I was too busy to record or even photograph… duh! But they were great, and Spanish cheeses are definitely worth checking out more. We also served a couple of cured chorizos, one spicy, one not, along with a few loaves of artisan bread. But the main dish was paella, which I made based on a recipe sent to me from my Uncle Mike in Dallas. It turned out really good, once I let it cook the rice enough (the timing in the recipe was a bit short).

One paella was all seafood, with mussels, clams, haddock and shrimp. The other was mussels, haddock, shrimp, smoked chicken and chorizo.

The recipe wasn’t complicated. I started with 4-5 lbs of whole shrimp. i cleaned the shrimp then put the shells and heads in a pot, covered with water and simmered for 30 minutes. The broth went into a skillet to simmer, and the seafood was cooked in the broth, just short of being done.

In paella pans, I sauteed (in each) a medium diced onion and 3 cloves of garlic, then added 3 cups of paella (short grain) rice and 6 cups of the shrimp broth (with added water to make 6 cups). I added diced tomato, saffron that had been soaking in water (1/2 tsp to 1 tbsp water), and the meat/seafood. I loosely covered the pans with foil and put them on my Big Green Egg at 300 degrees for about 25 minutes each. The grill had some hickory wood in it, which added a nice smokiness without overpowering.

The first paella had to go back on, as the original recipe called for 15 minutes, which wasn’t enough.

After eating, we started opening the wines, starting with the reds. There were no really spectacular wines, though several of the reds were very good. However, the consensus was that the whites were, in general, weak. I’d not really heard of great Spanish whites, but it was still worth trying them.

One of our friends also brought a cream sherry to try. However, I don’t think anyone liked it.

Next year’s theme is already being thought up… We’re already looking forward to it!

Urp, sorry. Saul's Restaurant & Deli has been open since 1986, doesn't seem too terribly long. But for anyone to has enjoyed the faire, it feels as though it's been a lifetime. My mother frequented it so often that if anyone she knew would come to eat, the waitresses would send home cookies for her. My sister and her husband Meathead go all the time, I'm sometimes in tow, pried from underneath from my rock.

It's a little on the large side for a "deli", but perfect for a restaurant. Saul's has gone out of their way since the beginning to bring their customers not only an excellent Jewish Deli, but also the best in local, sustainable and organic ingredients. In-house made pastrami? Yup. In-house made pickles? Yup. In-house made tons of other goodies? You bet!

Your grandmother would be grins from ear to ear to be served their, "Chicken in a pot." A home-made chicken soup that contains it all, and about half the size of the Titanic. One of my favorite parts though is their policy about NOT trimming the fat off their pastrami brisket. Pretty cool, eh?

To be perfectly honest though, the reason I go back is the fact is that the quality of their ground beef is so high they can offer their burgers cooked rare. That's right, rare.

The burger is so perfect, so wonderful. It's served on an Acme bun, resting by itself. Next to it lay nestled good leaf lettuce, thin red onion and tomatoes so read they hurt your eyes. You can order cheese and/or pastrami as a topping, I chose pastrami this time. Sure you can get real french fries, potato salad or whatever. I find they detract from the burger. When cooked rare, I suggest you do not lay it down. Once you hold it how you want, eat it. The juices are the one you want in your mouth, not on your plate.

I love Saul's, as do many. If you're looking for destination burger and pastrami, Saul's is the place to seek. After your meal, you're left to wander Berkeley's Gourmet Ghetto with The Cheese Board and Chez Panisse and many others.

Saul's Restaurant & Deli
1475 Shattuck Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94709
510-848-DELI

Biggles

I hope everyone else is having a great weekend… I’m still catching up on some reviews and cooking.

The box of samples I got was interesting; not only were the vials labeled well, but the packaging explained each sample nicely. In full disclosure, I was sent these samples, free of charge, to review, but with no guarantee of a positive review. Being a Scotch drinker, I wasn’t going to pass it up!

The samples I received were all single malts, but aged differently and in different types of casks:

• The Dalmore 12 Year Old, aged in 50% Oloroso sherry casks and 50% American white oak casks.
• The Dalmore Gran Reserva, derived from a combination of 60% sherry-aged single malt and 40% American white oak-aged single malt, from 10 to 15 years aged.
• The Dalmore 15 Year Old, crafted from wood infused with three rare Sherries from world-renowned Gonzalez-Byass—Apostoles, Amoroso and Matusalem.
• The Dalmore King Alexander III, a mix of single malt aged in six different wine barrels.

To do this review, I asked a friend of mine to come over to help out, and we compared notes as we tasted.

Here are the results!

The Dalmore 12 year old:

There was a caramel taste to this, especially up front, along with citrus. On the finish, there was a bit of anise. This was surprisingly sweet for a 12 year old. There was just a touch of burn right up front, but it didn’t last beyond the first taste. Overall, a very drinkable 12 year old Scotch whisky that I think would mix very well with Drambuie for a great Rusty Nail.

The Dalmore Gran Reserva:

There was a nice bit of fire with the Gran Reserva, but more toward the back of the mouth. It didn’t burn so much as just add some spice and interest. This was smoother, calmer than the 12 year old, with an undertone of tobacco and a brandy-like feel. The finish had a bit of wood flavor with caramel. This was a nice whisky!

The Dalmore 15 Year Old:

The first thought that came to mind with the 15 year old was calm. This was very smooth, with sweet caramel. It was very soft, maybe too soft, laid back. If someone wanted a first whisky to try, though, this would be a good choice. For me, this didn’t offer enough taste to be of interest.

The Dalmore King Alexander III:

This is a $200 a bottle Scotch whisky, so I expected a lot out of this. The bouquet of this was very mild and pleasant, and very soft. The first taste brought out dark fruit, with a nice burn that grew from the front of the tongue toward the back, then went away. There were a lot of levels to this, and the mouthfeel was interesing; it seemed almost light, but syrupy and pleasant. The finish brought out dark chocolate and iodine. This is a whisky that brings out images of men sitting in a dark wood paneled library smoking cigars and enjoying whisky with a splash of water, speaking with accents so thick they’re barely understandable.

To complete my review, I tried the King Alexander III against my favorite whisky, Lagavulin. To be honest, both are great whiskies, but the styles are so different. Where the KAIII brings images of refined living spaces and expensive cigars, Lagavulin’s images include rocks sprayed by heavy surf in the North Sea and men in heavy waxed cotton jackets staying warm near a smoky fire. Where the Dalmore is sweet and smooth, the Lagavulin is masculine and rugged, but not harsh. Price not being considered, I’d personally go for the Lagavulin, but that’s just because the Islay whiskies are unbeatable in my book. But if someone pulled out a bottle of any of the Dalmore whiskies, especially the Gran Reserva or King Alexander III, I’d be a very happy guest!

And of the Dalmores I tried, the Gran Reserva is worth getting a bottle, immediately, if you want a great example of Highland single malt whisky.

(photo courtesy of the Baddish Group)

This is also posted in the Review section of Livefire.

Editor's note: Joe Bob and JLee continue on in their West Texas walkabout.

We had breakfast at Marathon Coffee Cafe. Um, huevos and such. NBD. Cozy joint. They serve Big Bend Coffee (roasted in Marfa) here. And they sell the beans. If you're camping or touring, and you have brought the 'proper' equipment, get your beans here. And make it yourself, the right way. Get everything else at French Co. Grocer, Hwy 90 & Avenue D. They got wi-fi, ice, beer and food and medicine and love.

We loaded up on stuff and headed to Big Bend Ranch State Park. Sorry no pictures. But I will tell y'all we saw many Daddy Long Legs with 6" leg spans. No kiddin. And we weren't drunk either.

French Grocer - Marathon, TX

JLee

Editor's Note: Yay, another fine post from JLee and Joe Bob's trip to West Texas. I like the part where you can see they're selling portable carport thingies as well as booze & ice. 600 bux?

We came across a few of these on this trip. Now, I've seen drive-up, window service liquor stores. These are drive-thru. You can load up cases and cases of stuff, and a whole lotta ice. I'm sure there's a story behind this way of doing business. I surely appreciate being able to just drive right into the store.

Jlee

Earlier this year I received an email from a large ad agency, a man wanted to know if I was interested in reviewing Butterball's new table-top deep fryer for turkeys. Hmm, free fryer and it's large enough for a turkey? Duh. We'd chatted via email a few times for over a year, wasn't just some nameless droid in a cubicle somewheres, actually had a personality and seemed to get Meathenge. Butterball's version of the Masterbilt turkey fryer wasn't out yet, was going to have to wait a few months, no big deal.

It finally arrived! Pretty darn large box, pretty darn large fryer. I opened it up and peered in. I looked, crooked muh hillbilly neck a bit and exclaimed, "Dang, no turkey is going to fit in that basket!" You see, I had a 5.2 lb chicken in the fridge and compared sizes, using just one eye ball. No way. I pulled and checked the instructions, up to about a 12 lb turkey, maybe 14. 11-12 lb was optimum, and it showed the little bird laying inside the basket. I wasn't seeing it in reality though.

Those of you who know, finding a turkey under 12 pounds is nigh impossible in the off season, this being not Thanksgiving. Birds that small are a special order and even then youse takes yer chances. So, over the next few weeks I stalked the local mega marts, searching for my tiny bird. I finally found one, just under 12 pounds. Set to the fridge to thaw for the next week.

I could have gone fancy here with a brine, herbs, bacon stuffing or whatever, but I wanted to do a test run and see what the scoop was. Once that's taken care of, then one can move on to some fancy steppin'. I got a real shocker on my next stop to my local grocery, 10 dollars a gallon for inexpensive cooking oil! And this cooker requires a full tub of oil, that's 2 gallons to deep fry a turkey. While that is a lot of oil, that's about 3 gallons less than the outdoor propane powered situations. Of course they'll do a 14 pounder with ease, I'm still not convinced this table-top model will do a 12. I had my turkey, I had 20 dollars worth of cooking oil and I had the time, it was deep fry turkey day!

Translation: It was Thursday night (a work night), after a week in the fridge it still wasn't thawed, it was dark out and I was having second thoughts about having 2 gallons of 375 degree oil on my counter and nobody around to call 911 for me. I'd just got over putting a burning ember hole in my left foot and the thought of deep frying myself wasn't making me feel very good. So, I called my sister and brother inlaw over.

30 minutes later they were here, the oil was at 375, the turkey was thawed (soaked it in cool tap water), then thoroughly dried inside and out. It was time. I've deep fried things quite a few times and know now that one wants to lower the food slowly, s-l-o-w-l-y. With the instructions in my left hand, I lowered the turkey with my right, set the timer for 48 minutes and closed the lid.

The fryer has a filtered lid, so while there was quite a bit of steam, the smell of cooking oil was really minimal. After the 48 minutes went by, this is what I got. Um, not a bad looking bird, eh?

As expected it was moist, juicy from one side to the other. The breast meat was a little over done, would cut the cooking time down to 40 minutes next time. I rarely have over done breast meat, so I was kinda shocked at that. Still more than perfectly edible and it was consumed right there in the kitchen.

One can probably guess the bird fit just fine in the basket, I would not recommend anything over 12 pounds though. It'd be stuffed too tightly in the basket and would not allow the oil to completely cover the bird, and this is what you want for the best possible golden brown results. The machine seems to be built well enough, everything removes easily for cleaning. It's got a drain pipe for the oil and it's large enough so you don't have to wait 20 minutes for all the oil, nor does it get clogged with bits. I left the machine on my counter for 2 days with the lid closed to see how smelly it might be and I have to say it was nearly undetectable. I did wake up the next morning with the Deep Fried Kitchen Smell, but it was easily dissipated with a few hours of open doors. No oil spray on cabinets, thank goodness. A cool feature I noticed while fumbling with the power cord, it's held on to the unit with magnets. Which means if something happens, all you have to do is give it a gentle whack and the power is separated from the unit. As for clean-up, the oil tub and basket fit in my dishwasher with the top rack removed. All in all, I give this fryer two greasy thumbs up.

I did notice the box and instructions boasted that you could also use this fry for steaming and boiling food. I haven't tried it, but I do know something about table-top fryers, once you use them as intended, they're a dedicated machine. Getting that fried oil smell out is near impossible and any steamed or boiled food would have a fried oil flavor, so I wouldn't actually plan on using it as such. You can try of course, but don't be surprised when your taters come out tasting like yer oil.

All that said and done, I'm not hip to the deep fried turkey thing. 20 dollars worth of oil, gone. While the clean-up was "easy", it's still a pain in the ass. And now I have 2 gallons of waste oil I have to drive down and dispose of properly at our local hazmat dumping site. No waste cooking oil can be put in our recycling bins. But Biggles, it was oh so tasty, isn't it worth it? Um, I like my turkey roasted in the oven, it's a personal thing.

If deep frying a turkey is something you want to try or something you enjoy regularly, this rig will do it and with far less oil than the larger outdoor method. It's safer too! No 911 call was made.

xo, Biggles

Author's note a day later: I understand I can filter and reuse the oil. The issue is that I wouldn't get around to using it for 3+ years. Annnd, just because I reuse the oil 2, 3, 4 times doesn't mean I still don't have to have it properly disposed of. Cheers!