Grills Just Wanna Have Fun

On the Grill. Make it right. Make it great.

Make sure your beef makes the grade. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspects and grades all US beef. These grades are your best indicator of the tenderness, juiciness, and flavor of the beef you purchase. Are you ready for the best? PRIME BEEF is the grade you're looking for, then. Only 2% of beef in the US is classified as Prime. It's known for its slightly abundant marbling. Most Prime beef is sent to restaurants or hotels, but you can inquire at your local butcher shop or make friends with a rancher to get prime access to this top grade.

Certified Angus Beef is not an official USDA grade, but it is a trademarked designation reserved for only 7 out of 100 cattle that meet the strict standards for texture, firmness, and marbling. CHOICE is the second USDA grade and the most widely available. This grade of beef has small or moderate amounts of marbling and the cattle are fairly young. For grilling, buy Choice beef, whenever possible.

Choose your store wisely, too. While most of us get all of our meat from our favorite grocery stores, if you are looking for the good stuff, hit up your local butcher shop for prime cuts, special cuts, and more flavorful offerings, including aged beef. As a second choice, you'd be surprised at how many warehouse clubs have access to excellent cuts of beef.

Know when to stop! Doneness is a a matter of personal taste, of course, but little taste and few nutrients are gained from charred or overcooked beef. In our recipes, we find our sweet spot for medium rare beef, which has an internal temperature ranging from 145-160 degrees F. If you're going for the lower end of that range at 145, take your beef off the grill at an internal temp of 135. Carry-over cooking allows the beef to continue rising in temperature for up to 10 degrees as the meat rests. The larger the cuts, the higher the temp will rise.

Go against the grain. Beef muscle is made of longer, often tougher fibers. Cutting across these fibers when you slice the beef will produce more tender bites, especially useful information when it comes to skirt steaks, flank stakes, and bottom sirloin.

We've said before that searing is not about keeping juices in--that's a cooking myth. But, it contributes to the caramelization of beef and gives it extraordinary flavor. It adds the pleasing texture, color, and flavor we all crave with that great finished piece of beef. Go for it. But, before you do any of that, let your beef stand at room temp before you throw it on the grill. And don't salt it right away. Allow your steaks and burgers to rest after grilling them. They'll reabsorb all the great juices and give you and your guests the perfect bite, every time.

When you grill, trim fat from around the edges of your steaks but leave about 1/4 inch for flavor. Get the cooking grate on your grill searing and sizzling hot before you put the steaks on.

Spicy Rib-Eye Steaks with Tomato Chutney

These steaks have amazing flavor and is the griller's ultimate steak experience. Make the chutney a few days in advance to let all the flavors marry.

FOR THE RUB

2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon light brown sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

4 Rib-eye beef steaks, about 3/4 lbs each and 1 inch thick

FOR THE CHUTNEY

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup finely chopped yellow onion
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 (14-ounce) can diced tomato, with juice
3 sun-dried tomatoes halves (oil packed), cut into small pieces
2 teaspoons light brown sugar
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

TO MAKE THE RUB In a small bowl thoroughly mix the rub ingredients. Reserve 1 tablespoon for the chutney. Coat both sides of the steaks with the remaining rub. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours.

TO MAKE THE CHUTNEY: In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more, stirring occasionally. Add the reserved 1 tablespoon of the rub and stir to blend. Add the canned tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, and brown sugar. Stir and bring to a boil over high heat, breaking up the tomatoes with the side of a spoon. Reduce heat and simmer until almost all of the liquid has evaporated, 20 to 30 minutes. Add the remaining chutney ingredients stir and simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 5 minutes more. Allow the mixture to cool slightly, then puree in a food processor. Transfer to a small serving bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate. Allow the chutney to come to room temperature before serving.

Allow the steaks to stand at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes before grilling. Grill over Direct High heat until the internal temperature reaches 145°F for medium rare, 8 to 10 minutes, turning once halfway through grilling time. Remove from the grill and allow to rest about 5 minutes. Serve warm with the chutney on the side.

FLAVOR TIP!

This season, while grilling for family, friends, or just for yourself, take a chance to enhance the flavor of the foods you prepare by adding some smoking woods to your fire or smoker box.

Try hickory or mesquite for a traditional taste, apple or cherry for a slightly sweet and fruity flavor, or maple for a mild, slightly sweet accent. Wine barrel chips (available at gourmet shops) will add a sultry, wine-smoked flavor, while grape vines add a fruity and aromatic element. Soak wood chunks and grape vines for an hour, and soak chips for a half hour. Shake off the excess water; place chunks on the coals or chips in the smoker box. Add a handful (more or less to taste) every hour or two.

Burger Brilliance

The Inside Tips: Keep all your ingredients very cold until they get right on the grill. When fat warms up, it ends up all over your hands and not in the burger, where it belongs, for maximum flavor.

Form your patties with a slight dimple in the center to avoid the "meatball syndrome." The dimple will keep the patty's shape while you're grilling. Break down and get an honest-to-god meat thermometer. 130 for medium rare burgers, 140 for pink, 150 for medium well, and 160 for well done. Season liberally with pepper, the fresher the better. Don't mix salt into your ground beef! Save the salt until the patties are formed and right as you put them on the grill. Handle the patties as little as possible with your hands--don't warm up the beef until it's on the grill. You don't need a lot of "stuff" in your beef patty--the more you add, the more you mess around with the ground beef and we've already established that's not good. When you select a great quality and grade ground beef, you really don't need to add to it other than your seasoning.

Make sure the grate is searing hot when you put the burgers on. For gas grillers, get the grate up to 500 degrees F. For charcoal grillers, wait until the coals are slightly ashed over, then distribute them equally, close the lid and wait for about 5 minutes before adding your burgers.

Don't take your burgers off the grill and put them all on a platter. Slide them directly off the grate and right on to the bun, instead.

BLUE-CHEESE BURGERS WITH SPICY CELERY SLAW

FOR THE BURGERS:

1 1/2 pounds ground beef chuck (80% lean)
2 teaspoons gorgonzola cheese, roquefort cheese, or other blue-veined cheese
freshly ground black pepper

FOR THE SLAW:

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon minced jalapeño pepper, with seeds
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups very thinly sliced celery
1 cup very thinly sliced red onion

4 hamburger buns

TO PREPARE THE BURGERS: Shape the meat into four equal-sized balls. Divide the cheese into four equal-sized pieces. With your forefinger, make a dimple into the center of each ball of meat and insert a piece of cheese. Gently press the meat into patties of equal size and thickness (about 3/4 inch thick). Season both sides of the patties with pepper. Place the patties on a platter, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to grill.

TO MAKE THE SLAW: In a medium bowl whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, jalapeno, sugar, salt, and pepper. Add the celery and onion toss to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Grill the patties over Direct Medium heat until the internal temperature reaches 160°F for medium, 8 to 10 minutes, turning once halfway through grilling time. During the last 30 seconds, grill the buns over Direct Medium heat until lightly toasted.

Serve the burgers hot on the toasted buns. Pile the slaw on top of the burgers or serve on the side.

Pork Rib Perfection Every Time

Before you do anything, remove the membrane from the back of your slab of ribs. Some grillers prefer par-boiling ribs before putting them on the grill to cook, but we don't. When you boil ribs, you boil out the flavor along with the fat and that results in tough, chewy and dry ribs off the grill later on. If you do what we say and remove the membrane and cook them properly, the fat will come off slowly and leave the flavor and tenderness that you want. Cook your ribs slow and low--steady, low heat at 250 to 275 degrees and be patient.

If your sauce contains any sugar, don't brush it on until the last 10 minutes of cooking. Sugar burns quickly.

FLAVOR TIP!

This season, while grilling for family, friends, or just for yourself, take a chance to enhance the flavor of the foods you prepare by adding some smoking woods to your fire or smoker box.

Try hickory or mesquite for a traditional taste, apple or cherry for a slightly sweet and fruity flavor, or maple for a mild, slightly sweet accent. Wine barrel chips (available at gourmet shops) will add a sultry, wine-smoked flavor, while grape vines add a fruity and aromatic element. Soak wood chunks and grape vines for an hour, and soak chips for a half hour. Shake off the excess water; place chunks on the coals or chips in the smoker box. Add a handful (more or less to taste) every hour or two.

Country-Style Pork Ribs with Red Wine Vinegar Sauce

FOR THE SAUCE:

1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup ketchup
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco hot pepper sauce
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
4 pounds country-style pork ribs (8 ribs), trimmed of excess fat
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
Hickory chunks or chips soaked in water for at least 30 minutes

TO MAKE THE SAUCE: In a medium saucepan combine the sauce ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature. Pour some of the sauce into a small bowl to use for basting the ribs.

Allow the ribs to stand at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes before grilling. Season with salt and pepper. Follow the grill's instructions for using wood chunks. Grill over Indirect Medium heat until the meat is very tender, 1 to 1 1/4 hours, turning once halfway through grilling time. During the last 20 minutes of grilling time, baste with the small bowl of sauce. Serve warm with the remaining sauce on the side. Serves 4.

Positively Perfect Grilled Poultry

Keep it clean--wash your hands with plenty of soap and water before and after handling chicken. Wash all utensils, carving boards, work surfaces and sponges that come into contact with raw chicken with hot soapy water and rinse well. Poultry also has a short shelf life so keep it refrigerated when you're thawing it out or marinating it before grilling. Chicken is considered done when the juices run clear, but get an instant-read thermometer and when inserted into the meatiest part of the cut, the temp should read 180 degrees--but make sure the thermometer isn't touching bone.

For the grill, trim the fat before grilling. Fat from chicken renders quickly so prevent a flare-up. You only need to flip your chicken if you're using boneless cuts. Otherwise, grill bone side down and skin side up. If you want all your chicken parts to finish cooking at the same time, place the thighs and legs on the grill first, then the breast halves and wings about ten minutes later.

TEQUILA-ORANGE CHICKEN BREASTS

FOR THE MARINADE:

1/2 cup tightly packed fresh mint
1/2 cup tightly packed fresh Italian parsley leaves with some stems
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
2 tablespoons tequila
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic (medium), crushed
2 teaspoons minced jalapeño peppers, without seeds
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground chili powder
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

4 boneless chicken breasts halves (with skin), about 6 ounces each

TO MAKE THE MARINADE: In a food processor combine the marinade ingredients and process until smooth.

Rinse the chicken breasts under cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Place in a large, resealable plastic bag and pour in the marinade. Press the air out of the bag and seal tightly. Turn the bag to distribute the marinade, place in a bowl, and refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours, turning occasionally.

Remove the chicken breasts from the bag and reserve the marinade. Pour the marinade into a small saucepan, bring to a boil over high heat, and boil for 1 full minute.

Grill the breasts, skin side down, over Direct Medium heat until the meat is firm and the juices run clear, 8 to 12 minutes, turning and basting with the marinade once halfway through grilling time. Serve warm.

Sides & Cocktails

As much as we absolutely love a traditional potato salad, we've got something worth your consideration to change it up a bit this summer. And we can't leave out one of our favorites from Chef Vivian Howard of "A Chef's Life"--her Grilled Corn with Ginger Bacon Butter. Ready?

Grilled Blue Cheese and Bacon Potato Salad

Grilling these potatoes gives the potato salad a smoky flavor that adds such a beautiful depth of flavor. Grilling them in the packet makes it easy and makes clean up a snap.

3 pounds baby red potatoes, cut in half
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar*
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 cup thinly sliced red onion
4 ounces crumbled blue cheese
6 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled

1. Preheat grill to 350° to 400° (medium-high) heat. Place potatoes in a single layer in center of a large piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil. Drizzle with olive oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bring up foil sides over potatoes; double fold top and side edges to seal, making 1 large packet.

2. Grill potatoes, in foil packet, covered with grill lid, 15 minutes on each side. Remove packet from grill. Carefully open packet, using tongs, and let potatoes cool 5 minutes.

3. Whisk together mayonnaise and next 4 ingredients in a large bowl; add potatoes, tossing gently to coat. Stir in onion, blue cheese, and bacon.

Grilled Corn with Ginger Bacon Butter

1/2 lb salted butter (softened)
1/2 cup bacon fat
1/3 cup grated ginger (use a microplane)
3 garlic cloves (grated on the microplane)
zest of 3 limes (taken off with a microplane)
juice of 3 limes
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
Fresh corn (in the husk)

For the Butter: Combine all seven ingredients in a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix until it is evenly blended. Using a spatula, turn the butter onto wax or parchment paper and mold it into a log. Chill.

For the Corn: Shuck the corn removing all of the husk and silk. Preheat a grill (charcoal creates better flavor). Brush the corn on all sides with olive oil. Using tongs grill the corn on all sides until golden in some spots. The corn may pop so be careful. Once it looks delicious, transfer the corn to a platter, season it with a little salt and rub it all over with the ginger bacon butter.

A Summer Sangria Triple Threat

For us, summertime means enjoying a fresh sangria. Sangria is a simple beverage at heart--consisting of wine, chopped fruit, and a sweetener, and, sometimes, a little bit of brandy. Traditional sangria is blood red--no wonder since the name for the beverage derived from the term for "bloodletting" in Spanish.

Here, we're serving up three sangria recipes for you to enjoy this summer season. One is a traditional red sangria, one is made with Prosecco and limoncello, and the third is a sublime cucumber and lime concoction made with a Sauvignon Blanc. When this beverage is made with a sparkling white wine like Prosecco or with a white wine, it is called sangria blanca.

These recipes make about 10 servings, so if you're going to have company, you'll want to make more. But, seriously.

SANGRIA TRADITIONAL

1 750 milliliter bottle of dry red wine
1 cup of orange juice
1/4 cup of brandy
Agave nectar or sugar
Orange slices, halved
Lime slices, halved
Fresh strawberries
Fresh mango wedges
1 12 ounce can lemon-lime flavor carbonated beverage
Fresh mint leaves
Ice cubes

In a large glass or plastic pitcher stir together wine, orange juice, and brandy. If desired, sweeten to taste with agave nectar or sugar. If desired, add orange slices, lime slices, strawberries, and/or mango wedges. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

Just before serving, add carbonated beverage; stir gently. Serve over ice. If desired, garnish with mint.

MIXED-BERRY LIMONCELLO SANGRIA

Three different berries make this sweet-tart white sangria recipe three times as delicious. The colorful berries mingle with pink lemonade concentrate and a generous splash of limoncello for a refreshing twist.

1 cup fresh raspberries
1 cup halved strawberries
1/2 cup fresh blackberries
1 medium lemon, thinly sliced
1/2 12 ounce can frozen pink lemonade concentrate, thawed (3/4 cup)
1/2 cup (4 ounces) limoncello (lemon-flavored liqueur)
2 750 milliliter bottles Prosecco, chilled

In a large pitcher or glass jar combine raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, and lemon slices. Stir in lemonade concentrate and limoncello. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours to blend flavors.

Just before serving, add Prosecco. Serve in glasses over ice.

CUCUMBER SANGRIA

1 small honeydew melon
1 seedless cucumber, thinly sliced
1 lime, thinly sliced
12 fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup honey
1 750 milliliter bottle Sauvignon blanc, chilled
1 liter bottle carbonated water, chilled
Fresh mint sprigs or leaves

Cut the melon in half; remove and discard seeds and rind. Cut melon into thin slices. In a large pitcher* combine melon, cucumber, lime slices, and the 12 mint leaves. In a small bowl stir together lime juice and honey until combined; pour over melon mixture. Add wine, stirring gently. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours.

To serve, stir in carbonated water. Ladle or pour into glasses. If desired, garnish with additional mint.

And there you have it. We're dedicated to helping you learn more, be more, cook more, find more style in everything you do. From everyone here at Haven, we wish you a happy, celebratory, stylish and delicious summer season!