I'm Just Here for the Food_ Version 2.0 - Alton Brown [28]
Application: Grilling by indirect heat
Just as you begin to fire up the grill, set the sweet potatoes on the grate, away from the heat. (You want to cook them indirectly or they’ll be burned on the outside and raw in the middle.) Cook the potatoes for about 1 hour, turning them occasionally, until done; they should give to the pressure of your tongs. Cut a couple of small slits in the peel of the banana to allow steam to escape and grill it until the peel is black and the inside soft. In a small saucepan, heat the coconut milk and butter. Peel the skin from the potatoes and the banana and put them in a mixing bowl. Pour in some of the coconut milk mixture and mash with a potato masher, adding more liquid as needed. Season with salt and white pepper.
Yield: 4 servings
Software:
4 small sweet potatoes
1 banana
1 cup coconut milk
2 tablespoons butter
Kosher salt
Freshly ground white pepper
Hardware:
Tongs
Small saucepan
Mixing bowl
Potato masher
Grilled Romaine
Application: Grilling by direct heat
Heat up a charcoal grill. Quarter the romaine lengthwise so that the root keeps each piece together. Lightly coat with oil and season with salt and pepper. Mix together the capers, mustard, and vinegar. Lay the romaine on the grill, directly over the heat. Turn, with tongs, every few seconds until it begins to char and wilt (total grill time is about 1 minute). Remove to serving plates and spoon the vinegar mixture over each. Serve warm.
Yield: 4 servings
Software:
1 head romaine lettuce
Olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground
black pepper
1 tablespoon capers
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
½ cup apple cider vinegar
Hardware:
Tongs
Mixing bowl
Broiling
In the United States, broiling is grilling inverted: fire up, food down. Broiling is hands-down my favorite cooking method. I broil asparagus, I broil just about every type of meat you can imagine. I broil shrimp. I’ve broiled marshmallows. I like this method because it gives you 75 percent of what you get from grilling. Since fat’s not dripping down onto flame you don’t have to fight flame-ups. You also don’t get some of the flavors that come from the gaseous portion of combustion—smoke for instance. You also don’t get convection, so don’t be surprised if broiling a piece of meat takes a little longer than grilling it. Then again, since broiling takes place in the oven, we have a lot less opportunity to pick at it, turn it prematurely and get in the way in general. Still it’s way easier to broil asparagus than to grill it. (Gravity, you know.)
HOW TO MAKE PEOPLE THINK YOU GRILLED WHEN YOU DIDN’T
You’re going to need a couple of cast-iron grill grates for this—the ones with the really wide bars. If your grill didn’t come with this type of grate, drop by your local grill shop and buy a set. You’ll need to cure them just as you would a cast-iron skillet.
Place the oven rack in the next-to-the-top position. Place two grill grates on a lipped cookie sheet or a half sheet pan and slide them into the oven.
Fire up your broiler and give the grates about ten minutes to absorb plenty of heat. If you’ve got an electric broiler, give them a little more time.
While the grates heat, lubricate your meat well on both sides with oil of your choice, and then season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Let the meat sit at room temperature while grates heat.
Carefully slide the oven rack out, take aim and position your meat toward one end of the grate—presentation side down. (This is a trick the pros use: always start with your prettiest side down so that it will face up on the plate.)
When the meat is ready to turn, pull out the oven rack and, using tongs, flip the food over to the front of the grate. (See illustration.) Finish cooking to desired doneness.
Marinated Flank Steak
Because of its shape and tissue structure, flank steak