[Jim]

There is no denying that cooking outside holds some primeval allure. Man (or woman, if we must... just kidding) and nature. Being outside brings us closer to the origins of the food for which we are about to incinerate. Whilst this cook is neither a farmer nor a hunter, being amongst the shrubbery and some rather aggressive squirrels grounds me in my natural surrounds. There are the bugs to dodge, birds from which to guard the “to be grilled” and the sweltering heat to escape.
Cooking outside is not without its challenges; not the trivial, age-old query of “which is better, gas or charcoal?” nor “how do I keep the shrimp from falling through the grates?” faux pas. Rather, what should we grill, without transgressing the tired ol’ burgers route? Mind you, burgers are quite tasty on a well-stoked grill, however, not everyday. There are, after all, more flavors than vanilla.
I offer the marriage of two over used and oft misused ingredients, straight from the natural surrounds from which you stand, for your consideration, conjugating their immeasurable flavors in one wholesome dish.

½ Cup, blended oil; spare the expensive stuff, we are just going to burn it up anyhow
2 Tablespoons, Chopped, fresh garlic
4 Large, portabella mushrooms caps, brushed free of… the stuff in which they grow
½ Cup, pesto… I surrender to the fact that we will not all be making our pesto for this dish, but it is well worth the marginal amount of labor. If you are buying, spend the bucks for the best pesto you can buy; you did save some currency by using the cheap oil!

With white-hot coals, already ashed over in the grill, mix the oil and garlic in a rather large bowl. Quickly coat the mushrooms in the oil mixture, allowing the excess to run off into the bowl. Do not soak, marinate or otherwise submerge the mushrooms; they will become sponges, only to loosen their grip on the soaked-up oil over the roaring fire, at which time your charbroiled forehead will loosen its grip on your eyebrows. Place the mushrooms, ‘gill’ side down. Depending on the heat of the fire, allow to cook about 3-4 minutes. Just before flipping over, brush with generous amounts of pesto. Turn over and repeat the process. Remove to a platter or individual plates and garnish with whatever 4 or two legged specimens you happen to have roasting over the fire.

The loving relationship between the almost passé portabella mushroom and really good pesto is magical. The herbaceous flavor of the basil, the nuttiness of the toasting garlic and smackerel of cheese in the pesto just go well together with the profoundly earthy flavor of the oversized fungus. For your next outing, forage among the verdant and pungent and leave the ribs in the freezer until next week. The reward is outlandish and there is no carnivorous guilt. If you must dowse your meal in protein, perhaps a slice or two of fresh mozzarella to the underbelly of the mushroom cap to satisfy your craving. Happy hunting.

What's on your grill?

[kthull]

Nothing better than some fresh swordfish steaks, patted well with a mixture of olive oil, fresh squeezed lemon, sugar, parsley and salt & pepper. Heaven on a grill.

Also fun is to pick veggies straight from the garden, slice them up and brush with EVO and give a shot of salt, pepper and oregano.

But for me, grilling is all year long...even if I have to dig out the grill from the snowdrifts!

[Peachcreek]

I grilled leeks, zuchinnis, red peppers and an eggplant the weekend before last. Made a dip out of the eggplant, soaked the sliced zuchs and leeks in a marinade of water, soy sauce, marmelade, and a little bottled vinegrette dressing. Used those as my side dishes and did the steaks on the stove. This last week we had friends over and I grilled chicken wings and a porkloin. Everything turned out great. My favorite of all that were the the leeks.

[Chefkell]

I love the grill as well...outside is KING!

I am a Hunter and Fisherman...so fullfilling of the above stated "primevil allure" that I cook Venison and fish all through the seasons.

I'm pretty conervative with the wild game on the grill, but I have a soft spot for the Floribean/Mexican/ Sothwest flavors on the fish side.

Recent vaca. just south of Daytona and #60 of King mackerel with 40 friends ( and many that just stopped in for the party!)
Here's how that went...

1 Bottle Tequila (for the chef of course )
15 Limes, juice a plenty
10 Jalapenos, seeded
2 quarts neutral oil
3 bunches cilantro
1 handfull of corriander
Salt and pepper

Dumped it all in a blender ( I may have splashed a little Tequila in there ), Poured it on the fish and wrapped it in foil, 2 charcoal grills and just loaded them up.

Simple and easy and darn tasty. I wouldn't order These fish for the restaurant as their kinda oily, but less than 4 hrs out of the water and we ate 2 fish "ceviched"!

Now I'm back in Windy chilly Michigan

[Jock]

I like the Portabella mushroom idea. I brush my mushrooms (sans gills) with oil infused with chopped rosemary and a little S&P.
While they are grilling (about 5 minutes per side depending on thier size) I prepare some mayo with garlic, chopped rosemary and pepper. Arugula instead of lettuce. Sooo good.

Jock

[Mezzaluna]

I just bought a kebab gadget that I've been hunting for years. It's two metal disks you put on your BBQ spit, and hook on the 6 kebab skewers. The rotisserie turns the skewers so I don't have to, and they don't stick to the grates. I lost only one mushroom.

I took turkey tenderloins and removed the tough tendon. Then I cut the meat into 1 inch chunks and marinated them briefly in lemon, olive oil, garlic and herbs de provence with some extra rosemary thrown in. I also dunked some mushrooms and green peppers in the marinade, skewered everything, and let 'er rip. 23 minutes later: juicy turkey kebabs.

Grilled leeks! That sounds really good, Peachcreek. Do you split them or leave them whole? I've got a taste for grilled eggplant, too. I sense a veggie grill-feast coming on!

I rarely use my stove in the summer. We have a gas grill (anathema to some, I know!) and it's very handy to come in after work, fire it up and get dinner done in 30 minutes.

[Peachcreek]

What I did:
I trimmed the green leaves to where they join together, and the root bits off the root end and then split them in half lengthwise. Not cutting the root end off kept the leek together when I turned it. I let it soak in the orange vinegrette and grilled them on the upper shelf of a drum-style gas bbq. The heat was set to a little over medium. I put the leeks cut-side up so a little of the marinade was trapped in the layers. I marked them with a criss-cross and then turned them over cut side down to lightly mark and finish. I took them off the grill and held them till dinnertime in a little of the reserved marinade to keep them from drying out. They were great that night and the next-day leftovers even better. The next time I grill I will do some extra leeks for the days after. Try them they are great!

[chiffonade]

Veggies. Lots and lots of veggies. I also bone cornish hens and grill them. Turkey burgers. Pork Chops. Sausage - Good Italian Sausage.

[mstevens]

Beef Satay

1 lb beef round steak, cut into 3/4 by 2 inch strips

Marinade:
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1 oz dry sherry
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground chipotle pepper (optional)
4 cloves garlic, minced
handful of finely chopped green onion

Peanut dipping sauce:
1/3 c natural peanut butter
1/4 c soy sauce
1/4 c rice vinegar
1 minced tsp garlic
1/2 minced tsp fresh ginger
2 T sugar
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 T sesame oil
1/4 c peanut oil

1. In a food processor or blender, puree all ingredients except oils with 1/4 cup soy sauce.

2. Slowly add the oil into the feed tube in a thin stream, mixing only until they are mixed. Do not over mix.

3. Chill and use when needed. Sauce keeps up to two weeks.

Prep:

Marinate beef strips for 1/2 to 1 hour.

Place on skewars

grill on medium heat for 12 to 15 minutes, turning occasionally.

Baste with leftover marinade when turning.

Do not baste for the last 5 minutes of cooking


Serve with the peanut sauce for dipping.