The Weekend Gourmet » red meat

Tsunami Tri-Tip with Tangy Garlic Bread

admin — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 18:29:08 +0000

Recently, some friends invited us over for a casual supper. We were greeted by the warm ambiance of Karl & Gina’s tropical home, near Kailua Beach. We started with light pupus, including cheese and fruit, as well as having some of my favorite Smoked Ahi Spread.

Karl and Gina proceeded to serve up a delicious spread which included Grilled Tri-Trip, Garlic Bread and a crisp green salad. Simple, fresh and tasty. And the champagne wasn’t bad either! Needless to say, it was a very enjoyable evening, with great food, old friends and fun conversation. My husband and I immediately decided that this was a meal we would replicate at home. And the opportunity arose soon enough.

Yesterday, the Hawaiian islands were expecting a tsunami. You may have heard about it on the news – one of the reprecussions of the tragic, recent 8.8 earthquake in Chile. Both my husband (who was busy working at his job with the Marines and Homeland Defense) and I had an extremely stressful day, as we evacuated our home in Kailua and prepared for the worst.

Fortunately, the tsunami never arrived and the Hawaiian islands were spared. We were all incredibly relieved and decided to celebrate with a great meal on the grill. And so the Tsunami Tri-Tip evolved.

Tsunami Tri-Tip is quick, easy and tasty. The Harissa and Montreal Seasoning give it a little spice. Karl still gets credit, though I am not sure what he uses for his rub. This is how we make it:

Tsunami Tri-Tip

1- Approx. 1.5 pound Trip Trip Roast

1/4 Cup Montreal Seasoning

Harissa Paste (pick up at any gourmet food store and many grocery stores)

Rub Harissa paste all over meat, use as much a you need to very lightly cover all the meat, about 1 oz. If you like more spice, add a little more. Harissa contains chili, and spices like coriander and caraway, among other ingredients, so use with care.

Spread Montreal Seasoning on a plate and dip the meat in the seasoning, so that it sticks to the meat. This can be done a few hours to a day in advance. If you do this in advance, wrap the meat in plastic wrap after the rub is applied and refrigerate.

Preheat grill on high. When the grill reaches about 400 degrees put the meat on, and turn down heat to Medium. Close grill lid. Cook to desired doneness, approx. 7 minutes on one side. Flip and cook 7 minutes in the other side.

Slice Tsunami Tri-Tip and serve pupu style (in bite-sized medallions).

Tangy Garlic Bread

1 Large, Soft, French loaf
1 Stick, Salted Butter
1/2 cup Shaved Parmesan Cheese
6 Cloves Fresh Garlic,
(smashed well and diced or sent through a garlic press)

Turn oven on Low Broil. If your oven does not have this setting, make sure your oven rack is pretty far away from the broiler flame and watch the bread closely while cooking, because it will very quickly burn.

Mix butter and garlic together. Cut loaf in half, lengthwise, separating top and bottom. Put back together and cut loaf again, across the top, into 2 or 3 pieces, depending upon how long the bread is. You want it to fit on the baking sheet. Spread butter mixture on bread. Sprinkle top with shaved Parmesan Cheese.

Toast in oven until slightly browned at edges and butter and cheese are melted.

Serve Tsunami Tri-Tip with Tangy Garlic Bread, and a crisp green salad. Feel free to make sandwiches with the meat and bread. Enjoy!!

Filet Mignon, Pupu-Style with Baked Garlic and Gorgonzola Sauce

admin — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 02:31:11 +0000

I served this Pupu (Appetizer) on New Year’s Eve 2009 for a special treat for my family and friends, Tom and Holly, who were joining us. I had already pre-prepared my entree, Seafood Gratin, and it was ready to go in the oven. So, I could get started on the Filet Mignon Pupu.

Serving a filet as a Pupu is a more economical great way to give everyone a taste of a great cut of meat, with delicious flavor. Count on about 1 filet for every two people. This recipe can also be used to serve Filet Mignon as an entree. My husband and guests swooned over this recipe. Definitely a keeper.

Filet Mignon Pupu-Style with Baked Garlic & Gorgonzola Sauce

Serves 8
Filet
4 – 4-6 oz Filet Mignon Steaks
Extra-virgin Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper
1 Tbsp finely chopped Rosemary
4 large cloves baked garlic
4 pats butter

Baked Garlic

2 heads of Garlic
Cut top of head of garlic
Drizzle with olive oil
Bake is small oven-proof dish at 400 for about 25 minutes. Let cool.
Remove 4 large cloves from one of the heads for the Filet Mignon recipe, and save the rest to serve with and spread on a fresh French Baguette.

Gorgonzola Sauce

1 Large Shallot (diced)
2 Cups Beef Stock
1 Tsp finely diced Rosemary
1 Cup Dry Sherry or Madiera Wine
1/4 Cup Dry Red Wine
4 oz Crumbled Gorgonzola Cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 Tbsp Butter

Cooking the Steaks – This is a FOOLPROOF way to cook Filet Mignon

Preheat oven to 375.

Salt and pepper all sides of 4 Filet Mignon steaks (4-6 oz each)
Heat 2 Tbsp olive oil in stainless steel or enameled cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking.

Add steaks to pan. Sear each side for 3 minutes, flipping with tongs.

Remove steaks and place on baking sheet.
Bake steaks in oven for 8 minutes (med rare) – set timer. Start making Gorgonzola Sauce with same pan used to sear steaks (see below).

When timer goes off, remove baking sheet, leave oven on. Flip steaks.
Smash a baked garlic clove (see Baked Garlic, above) on each filet and spread with butter knife. Sprinkle each steak with a about 1/2 tsp of rosemary, and top with a pat of butter.
Return steaks to oven. Bake for an additional 8 minutes (med rare) – set timer. Go back to making sauce.

When timer goes off, remove steaks from oven. Let rest for a few minutes, while finishing up Sauce.

Save any accumulated juices and add to Gorgonzola Sauce.

Slice and serve Pupu-Style with Gorzonzola Dipping Sauce, French Bread & Baked Garlic OR
Serve Filets individually, as entrees, in a pool of Gorgonzola Sauce or with a Gorgonzola Sauce drizzle.

Preparing Gorgonzola Sauce

In same skillet used for searing steaks, which should still have some olive oil remaining, saute shallot and 1 tps rosemary for 2-3 minutes, over medium-high heat, until shallots are slightly translucent. There should be some accumulated brown bits from the steaks. Add the sherry or madiera, and red wine. Deglaze pan and reduce liquid to about 1/2, stirring with a wire whisk. Add 1 Tbsp butter, stirring to melt. Add 1 cup beef stock, reducing again to about 1/2. Add another Tbsp of butter. Continue stirring. Add 2d up of the beef stock, reduce again to about 1/2.

Add gorzonzola cheese crumbles, stirring with a whisk until melted and blended. Add any available drippings from cooked filets.
Reduce sauce, if necessary, until slightly thickened. It will still be a bit runny. Add salt and pepper to taste. Use as dipping sauce or drizzle on meat.

Herbed Garlic-Horseradish Crusted Prime Rib

admin — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 07:06:16 +0000

This year we spent Christmas on Oahu. Just had a small gathering with a few of our friends and neighbors. We missed our extended family, but it was still one of the best Christmas seasons ever. People in Hawaii are suprisingly festive, despite a lack of cold weather, and there are many events for the entire month. Most, if not all, of the holiday traditions on the mainland are followed here in Hawaii. Especially when it comes to food.

Nothing says Christmas Dinner more, to me, than Prime Rib. I have nothing against turkey or ham, but these are my favorites only for Thanksgiving. Something a little more special is perfect for Christmas. Delicious, savory, satisfying … just as good for left overs. Prime Rib on Christmas has become a tradition in our home and one well worth continuing. When you taste this recipe, I think you will agree!

Christmas Dinner – Island Style!!

Herbed Garlic-Horseradish Crusted Prime Rib

1 – 5 lb boneless standing rib roast (cooking instructions are the same for a bone-in roast)
6 Medium Bunches of Fresh Herbs: rosemary, thyme, sage, tarragon
2 TBSP Chopped Rosemary
2 heads Baked Garlic
Sea Salt
Pepper
1 4 oz Jar prepared Horseradish
1 Stick Butter
2 Boxes Beef Broth

Make Crust for Meat:
Cut top 1/2 inch off of two garlic heads, drizzle with olive oil and then bake 2 heads Garlic at 350 degrees for about 40-45 minutes, until soft. Can be done in advance. Let cool. Squeeze the insides of each clove of baked garlic into food processor bowl. You should have around 30-40 cloves of garlic. Cream garlic together with prepared horseradish and 2 TBSP fresh chopped rosemary.

Sear Meat:
Before cooking, pat roast completely dry. This well help the meat sear. Liberally salt and pepper all sides of the roast. Heat 2 tbs olive oil on med-high heat in heavy stainless steel or cast iron skillet. Place roast in heavy pan and sear each side (all sides) for about minutes each, until browned. Remove meat. Deglaze pan with 1/2 cup red wine. Remove liquid and bits and reserve for later.

Roast Meat:
Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees. Get out large roaster pan with rack. Spread garlic-horseradish mixture thickly on all sides of the seared meat with a spatula. Press and spread three bunches of herbs into bottom crust of roast. Lay roast on roasting rack. Press remaining three bunches of herbs into top and sides of roast. Place several pats of butter on top of herbs on roast. Pour in 1 box of beef stock and the reserved liquid from deglazing. This can all be done in advance, if desired, and the meat refrigerated overnight, but you MUST let roast come to room temperature prior to cooking (this may take up to 2 hours).

Make sure roast is at room temperature. Place roast in the oven. After 15 minutes, turn heat down to 325 degrees. Continue to cook. Cooking time will depend on exact weight of roast and doneness desired. You will need a meat thermometer to test. I recommend checking the internal temperature after 1 hour, no matter the size of the roast, just to check progress. Also, every 1/2 hour, check beef broth at bottom of pan to ensure that it has not dried up or burned. Continue to add more broth or water, if necessary, so that you have about an inch of liquid at all times.

When the roast reaches the desired doneness (temperature), remove from the oven. After you take the meat out, cover loosely with foil and let rest for 25-30 minutes, during which the meat will continue to cook a bit more.

For Rare meat, the thermometer should read 120-125 degrees, when inserted into the center at the thickest part of the roast, not touching any bone or fat. Medium-rare is 130-135 degrees. Medium, 140-145 degrees. Medium-Well, 150-155 degrees, Well-done, 160 degrees or more.

As an example, a 5 pound roast will take about 1 hr to 1 1/4 hrs total in the oven for Rare. A 10 pound roast will take about 2 to 2 1/4 hrs for Rare. Cooking times may vary greatly, so please use a thermometer. You do not want to ruin this gorgeous and expensive cut of meat.

Making the Jus:
Remove all the pan drippings from the roasting pan, combine with any juices which have settled from the resting roast. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, slightly thickening the liquid. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve with and drizzle over meat.

Meat Me In the Islands!

admin — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 17:35:54 +0000

Wasn’t I just saying that beef was enjoying a new renaissance? Particularly, here on the islands, where McDonald’s sausage patties & SPAM are considered by some locals to be gourmet delights. Well, that was an understatement. Apparently, all red fatty meats are in vogue – as evidenced by the hot, new & much blogged recipe, The Bacon Explosion. Watch out for heart attacks! Or maybe not, did you see recently, on Oprah, where David Zinczenko, the editor-in-chief of Men’s Health magazine and author of the book Eat This Not That for Kids said that regular bacon is a healthier alternative to turkey bacon? No? Well, I digress.

The Bacon Explosion is one of the most decadent things I have seen since the Turducken. (See below.) The Bacon Explosion is a recipe made famous by a team of Kansas City BBQ experts called Burnt Finger BBQ. An interesting-looking meatloaf-type dish, it consists of strips of bacon tightly woven into a square mat, which is seasoned and then rolled around a filling of ground Italian sausage and cooked bacon pieces. The 4 pound loaf is then transferred to a backyard smoker, and cooked for 2-3 hours, slathered in BBQ sauce. It is said to contain at least 5,000 calories and 500 grams of fat. This is a link to the original recipe.
http://www.bbqaddicts.com/blog/recipes/bacon-explosion/

I don’t think we have yet seen the full height of popularity possible in the islands for The Bacon Explosion dish. Once this catches on, I think it will remain as a local favorite.

The Turducken uses the same concept as The Bacon Explosion, but is made with fowl. Made popular in the 1980’s, “Turduckens” as they are called in the US, are seen most often in the Deep South and are usually cooked at Thanksgiving.

To make a Turducken, you start with a small deboned chicken and stuff it inside a deboned duck, which is then stuffed inside a partially de-boned turkey. TUR-DUCK-EN. Pretty clever. The inside of the chicken and any other remaining cavities can then be stuffed with a breadcrumb, vegetable or sausage stuffing. Turduckens have been commercially produced since 1985, by a specialty meats company in Louisiana.
Though relatively new in the US, “multi-bird” roasts have been around for a while. In fact, one royal feast in early 19th century France is said to have served a multi-bird roast (called a Rôti Sans Pareil, or “roast without equal”) including 17nested birds, with the tiniest one stuffed by a single olive! Oh my! And Bon Appétit!