Grilling chops: Flay, Raichlen share expertise
By Marty Meitus, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Barry Gutierrez/Rocky Mountain News
Food Network's Bobby Flay prepares Blue Cheese Burgers, Nacho Burgers and Texas Burgers.
Perhaps it's a nod to the increased interest in grilling, but over the past few years the
Food & Wine Classic has included demonstrations by not one but two grilling gurus: Bobby Flay, Food Network favorite and author of the new
Grill It!, and Steven Raichlen, author of numerous grilling cookbooks and star of a public television show on barbecuing. He has established the Barbecue University cooking school at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs.
Each master of the grill has recipes and techniques well-suited to the home cook.
Practical Tips Picked Up at Grilling Seminars
From Steven Raichlen:
* If what you're grilling is thinner than the palm of your hand, leave the grill lid up. If it's thicker, close the lid.
* Grill corn without the husk. Pull the husk back to form a handle and tie it with a piece of the husk. Otherwise you're steaming the corn in the husk. Lay the "handle" on a piece of foil laid on top of the grill.
From Bobby Flay:
* When making hamburgers, don't use lean chopped meat. You'd save calories but sacrifice flavor. "Save the calories on something else. Buy 80 percent (lean)."
* To get the hamburger to be even thickness on the grill, make a thumb indentation in the middle. While cooking, the middle will puff up and be even with the sides, without having to flatten the patty with a spatula, which causes the juices to drain out.
* Add spices on top of the hamburger as a rub and layer the ingredients on top. "You must melt the cheese all the way - cover it - or you haven't made the perfect burger."
* Use only a soft hamburger bun. If you use an artisanal roll, the meat falls apart when you bite into it. "The key to sandwiches is flavor and texture. Everything should work together - you may have a little crunch, but you want (the whole sandwich to be) soft and chewy."
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