Rock & Roll BBQ

They might not be considered ‘fine dining’ but I would take a well made corn dog over much of what I have eaten that has been called ‘fine dining’. The corn dog has been around a long time and there is a reason for it…they are awesome! Here is my appetizer take on a classic. I break a lot of my rules on this one. They are easy and we let someone else do some of the work.

ROCK AND ROLL BBQ’S CORNIES

6-8 Precooked Chicken Sausages, cut in half
1/2 cup plus 3 T all-purpose Flour, divided
8 cups Canola Oil
1 1/2 cup Cornmeal
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Sugar
1 tsp Granulated Garlic
1 tsp Granualted Onion
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp or so of Cayenne
2 Eggs
1 1/3 cup Buttermilk

1. Put 3 T of flour on a plate.

2. Insert a skewer into each sausage piece.

3. Roll sausages in the flour to coat, shake off the excess flour.

4. Heat the oil to 350 in a pot over medium-high heat.

5. While this is heating up whisk together Cornmeal, 1/2 cup Flour, 2 T Canola Oil, Baking Powder, Sugar, Baking Soda, Cayenne, Garlic, Onion, and 3/4 tsp Salt in a bowl.

6. Add eggs and whisk really well. Whisk in Buttermilk really well. Make the batter smooth and awesome.

7. Transfer some of the batter to a cup and fill it almost to the top. Dip three dogs into batter [one at a time] into the glass and coat.

8. Fry! Turn occasionally until the batter is cooked through and golden-brown all over [3 minutes-ish].

9. Transfer corn dogs to paper towels to drain off excess oil.

10. Refill the glass and repeat all steps until all dogs have been rocked out.

11. That is it! Easy as pie and delicious. Enjoy!

I have spent a bunch of time down in the Caribbean and this doesn’t totally honor the traditions of that amazing place but it does a great job of reinforcing the great flavors and still keeps it pretty healthy. Eating, wandering, and MX riding down there were some of the most memorable times I have ever had on my own. If my girlfriend would agree to move there you would never see me again!

Mojo Pork Tenderloin

2-3 pound pork tenderloin
4 large sweet onions

MARINADE:
1/2 cup olive oil
8 garlic cloves, mince
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1/3 cup water
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

DIRECTIONS:
Marinade…
-In a pan heat the olive oil, garlic, and cumin. Let the mixure simmer for 2-3 minutes.
-Stir in the remaining ingredients [other than the cilantro] and bring to a boil. Immediately remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cilantro after 20 minutes.
-Pour marinade in a large Ziploc bag and add the pork. Push out the air and marinate in your fridge for 24 hours.

Pork…
-After 24 hours go ahead and remove the pork from marinade and reserve marinade for later use.
-Preheat the grill to high heat. When your grill is heated up turn one burner off.
-Sear the tenderloin on all sides.
-Once you have some good color on the tenderloin put it over the area of your grill that has the burner off or if you don’t have that option go to the top rack with it. Let it sit there until it comes to a temp of medium rare. The very inside of the tenderloin should be pink, YES PINK. If it’s not a little pink you over cooked it. You are looking for a center temp of 145. I cook mine less but the government says 145 is proper. This technique could take 14 minutes to 25 minutes depending on your grill. In a big old Viking with 5 burners it’s 14 minutes and on the top rack of a Charbroil Home Depot special it could be 10 minutes longer.

Onions…
Slice the onions into thick slices and spray with a little bit of oil. Grill onions when the pork is almost done so that they finish at the same time. Grill for around 5 minutes per side over direct heat while the pork in finishing, so start while your pork is slow cooking!

Sauce…Take remaining marinade and bring it to a boil in a sauce pan. Immediately reduce the heat to low and let it simmer for 6-8 minutes to thicken.

Once you pull the pork off the grill let it rest for at least 8 minutes before slicing! This is essential friends. Slice the pork into 1/2 inch slices and lay out nicely on a platter. Pour a line of sauce down the middle of your tenderloin…make it pretty. You can garnish with citrus or fresh cilantro. This is a bright flavor, use a white platter and colorful fruit.

It’s a BBQ Salestravaganza! Over in the store we have a great sale with BBQ sauces and t-shirts together but if you have enough sauce and just want a shirt with the fork logo on the front center chest this deal is for you. The shirts are my personal favorite t-shirts for summer. They are printed on Tultex shirts which are lightweight and awesome. I am only selling 20 for the low low price of $9.99 w/ free shipping. You are losing money if you don’t buy one!
 

My favorite kind of BBQ is Carolina Style. In the North they really like red sauces but in the South they like a vinegary mustard sauce. I feel like mustard makes the flavor of pork really shine. I use mustard as a glue for all my rubs when I am BBQ’in. When I say “Mustard” I mean the cheapest yellow mustard you can find. I use the cheapest white bread for sandwiches too, not because I am frugal, but because I like tradition and I like things tasting the way they are supposed to taste.

This recipe is my base. Depending on the crowd or the occasion I customize this sauce to give it a little more character. Either top your pulled pork with this sauce or toss it in with the pulled pork prior to serving. The key to this sauce is the simmer time. Help this sauce develop flavors and thicken up a bit by making sure you reduce it a bit.

The Ingredients:

2 cups Cheap Yellow Mustard
1/3 cup Sugar
1/4 cup Brown Sugar
3/4 cup Cider Vinegar
1/4 cup Water
1 T Chili Powder, I like ground Guajillo Pepper but any dark powder will work
2 tsp Black Pepper
1 tsp ground Cayenne Pepper
1 tsp Soy Sauce
3 T Unsalted Butter

Directions:

Mix everything up except the butter in a sauce pan. Simmer for 30 minutes. Stir in the butter and simmer for 10 more minutes.

I found this guy’s page while thinking up future projects. I like this design a lot of novice welders like me.
55-gallon drum smoker | design & make.