Spring is a good time for changes. Here on the water the winter birds are beginning to flock in preparation for their return to Northern areas and the mated pair of bald eagles have returned to the tall tree on the hill and are making ready their nest for new life.  The river otters are making all kinds of racket at night – I guess they are playing cards – and the spring bulbs I planted in containers on the dock are nearly ready to bloom.

For the past seven summers I’ve lived here on the water and just had a wonderful time.  I’ve made new friends that I hope to know for the rest of my life and enjoyed some moments of pure bliss when the light reflected off the water and warmed me to my soul. Over the years I’ve had the great pleasure of living in many different areas of our country; the midwest, farm country, Texas, beach communities in Southern California and back home here in the northwest.  In my travels I’ve met some wonderful folks and feel truly blessed by these experiences.  As I get ready to start a new chapter in my life – I’m looking forward to visiting with you and getting to know how you enjoy those times you are cooking food for friends and family on your grills and smokers.

There are so many great cooks among our readers – from those of you who are truly new to the entire experience to those who always take a moment to share their ideas and learned lessons with me (they are so polite as to not say “CB you dummy!”) and help me expand my skills.

I invite you to join me in learning and sharing your thoughts, ideas, recipes and experiences this Spring and Summer.  Let’s get outside on the deck, in the back yard, at the shore or in the mountains and let’s fix great barbecue, grill amazing meals and let’s really have fun doing it!

Looking forward to sharing with you.  Thanks.  – CB

Souvlaki-Style Chicken Skewers Click HERE

Grocery Store Ad Specials Part 4: Great Take-Out Food Flavors for Made at Home Prices

In the city where I live there are coffee shops on nearly every corner. And just about everyone who lives here has an opinion about what qualifies as the “best” coffee; where to get it and what it should contain. Standing in line to order a regular cup of coffee most any day of the week I hear a mesmerizing assortment of requests. As person after person rolls off this list of ingredients to add, short-shot, half-half, etc. I think to myself…”Uh, can they really tell the difference?” The most confusing for me are the new names the owners have bestowed upon the size of cups you order. Seems you can’t order a small, medium or large. It’s a demi, tall and Vente. Just what the heck is a Vente? I always thought a Vente was a window vent on pre-1970’s passenger cars. (drum rim shot please)

Bento-Style Grilled Chicken with Brocoli & Green Beans over Brown Rice

In addition to coffee shops springing up on nearly every corner, the city features a wide variety of Asian inspired “Quick Food” restaurants. They first appeared near the university and college campuses and appealed to students because they were cheap. They spread to small independent storefronts in the downtown area where the regular folks without expense account lunches took to them. Today, in addition to the mom & pop shops that continue to flourish, there are multi-store chains offering a variety of hot Chinese or Thai food in a buffet-style. What seems to be the most popular is an inexpensive dish that’s come to be commonly called “Bento.”

I first had a Bento box lunch at a little street stand in Portland, OR. An employee of my favorite butcher shop was fascinated with Japanese culture and traveled there often. He got the permission of the owners of the shop to set up a gas grill in front of the shop and sell skewers of grilled beef, chicken and pork over a mound of steamed rice. I think it was a dollar per skewer and an extra buck for 2 scoops of rice. I became addicted to this particular vendor and would drive out of my way to be in that area of town during lunch time. I even took several of my clients there on sunny days, which surprised fellahs who were used to being entertained at restaurants with table cloths.

This week on one of my many exciting trips to the grocery stores on my route there was a demonstration of bento at the kiosk because family packs of chicken are on special. I tried the sample and it was plain awful. Too sweet, the chicken was fried – not grilled and the rice was wet and sloppy. So I picked up a couple of packages of chicken breasts (bone in) that were on sale and 5 lb. sack of brown rice and headed home to my grill.

I rinsed the chicken breasts and patted them dry, placing them on a plate to come up to room temp (about 20 mins.) Meanwhile I warmed up the grill to high, cleaned the grates (I do this after grilling and before I begin – just my thing) then rinsed and soaked the brown rice before putting in my cooker. To make the sauce I used a 1/2 cup of low salt soy sauce, 3 Tbsp of brown sugar, 1/2 tsp each of hot sauce and fresh ground ginger.

Get The Recipe Click Here with suggestions on grilling the chicken breast to get the colorful sear marks on the outside while staying moist on the inside.

To my way of thinking the primary reason I grill, barbecue and smoke meat is to get that unique flavor that comes with each technique. I just love the way a steak tastes when it is properly grilled on high heat – seared on the outside with a salty crust and medium-rare on the inside, all juicy and tender. When I barbecue I love the way a pork roast will get that wonderful glaze on the outside of the meat that only comes with slow cooking. And a smoked chicken skin is a thing of beauty as well as tasty and crispy!

So, while some folks really enjoy their barbecue with sauce – I think of the sauce as an accompanyment to the meat. A dip here or a drizzle there and I’m happy. And for goodness sakes there are so many different types of sauces! Depending upon where you live you may find regional favorites like vinegar-base, mustard-base, tomato-base, chili-base, shoyu-base and others.

Well this past week I read a recipe in the newspaper that called for a “lemon & fennel” sauce and it struck my fancy. I made the sauce from the recipe – tinkered with it to suit my tastes and then took a look at the grocery ads to see what was on special. I came up with two dishes that use the same sauce and can think of three of four more that might work for you to try. One uses grilled sea scallops and the other chicken breasts – both of which are on special this week at my local “national” grocery store chain. I think it would also work really well with a grilled pork chop!

CB’s EZ Grilled Sea Scallops with Lemon & Fennel Sauce

Click Here for the Recipe

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CB’s EZ Grilled Chicken Breast with Lemon & Fennel Sauce

Click Here for the Recipe.

I’ve been in Georgia for the past few days and have had the good fortune to spend time with some of the product managers at Char-Broil. Just for the record – these people are genuinely crazy about good barbecue! All I had to do was say: “So, where do you think I ought to go for some good barbecue?” and the conversation took off. Everyone passing by picked up on it and before I knew it there were about a dozen folks in the hallway debating the merits of vinegar vs. tomato vs. mustard vs. dry rub vs. no sauce vs. sauce-on-the-side vs. sauce-on-the-meat vs. chopped vs. sliced vs. pulled…..you get the picture.

I stood there smiling, knowing full well that I would be beneficiary of these debates – expecting to receive multiple generous offers to take me to their favorite restaurant to show me the “Best.” Oh boy – did it work. And that got me to thinking…what is the best? Well I’d like to offer up my opinion as: “The best is what you are proud to make and/or serve your family and friends!”

One of the proudest cooks I ran into at Char-Broil this week is Brad. For a lunch meeting on Monday he served up some of the best “roasted” turkey and baked sweet potatoes I’ve ever had. As to how he cooked them and the equipment he used I can’t say because when I asked he told me it was top secret and still under development. Hmmm. Mystery. Seems like all great barbecue is shrouded in mystery. All I can say is Brad (my new best friend) is someone with whom I will certainly share my top secret recipes and I’m certain he’ll dutifully observe the “best friends code” and divulge his top-secret grilling techniques with me! Another proud cook or should I say “proud of his wife” is Rob. For our lunch she provided the most delicious baked beans and corn bread pudding I have had. The good news is I have the recipes! – which I will be sharing with you in March.

This conversation and discussion about different barbecue and grilling styles got me to thinking. Where do you like to go for good barbecue? I’d like to hear from you about your favorite styles of barbecue and the places you go to eat. Please send me your thoughts about the “best,” a picture if you have it and the name with a description of the places you frequent. I’d like to write about these in the coming weeks. -CB

Last week I wrote how I make make decisions for dinner when I’m in the grocery store. Pretty much that is the case – although I do look through the grocery ads each week and am inspired by featured recipes in the paper – most often I make up my mind only when I see the cuts of meat or specials up close and personal.

This past week I experimented with modifications to an Asian Beef Stir Fry recipe. I grilled the steak to mark it, grilled the red peppers, and sauted the entire dish on the side burner of my grill. I made the brown rice indoors – only because I like the way it comes out in my rice cooker. I was plating up the dish and my friend Allison dropped by. (You’ll remember Allison as the pastry chef who provided the great dessert recipe and is working with me on some recipes for baking on the grill – I hope to have these new recipes ready soon.)

She said “What smells so delicious?” and I served her up a plate of this dish – she nearly inhaled it and said “That was wonderful!” Let me tell you – getting that kind of high praise from her is truly an occasion.

Get the recipe here. I hope you try this dish and then experiment with it to make it your own. I’ll enjoy hearing from you via email and post your comments below! - CB

I live in the Northwest and have lived previously in various parts of our country. I’ve also been fortunate to travel and visit many regions where I’ve delighted in the tastes of local cuisine. This week I’m visiting Columbus, Georgia the world-wide home to Char-Broil to get the 411 on the latest products. As I write this I’m hopeful to learn a great deal about the new products and confess I am also looking forward to tasting some delicious grilled, smoked and barbecued food prepared by the folks who design and make these grills. And I can’t wait!

In upcoming newsletters I’ll share with you what I learn about the new products for 2007 and I’ll also tell you about the food! -CB