Three Meals A Day

Happy Father’s Day.  Since we had such a fabulous meal, I figured I would take some time to post about it!  The scene was amazing, the Chef’s Garden at Crystal Springs. What a beautiful venue.  It is an enormous covered pergola with an outdoor kitchen surrounded by the most spectacular kitchen gardens that are absolutely loaded with everything imaginable.  The lunch was a pre-fixe BBQ provided by Hometown BBQ with a beer pairing by Coney Island Brewing Co.

Pit-Master Billy Durney and Chef Anthony Bucco smashed it! Fresh vegetables and smoked beets with prosciutto as an appetizer paired with a really crisp IPA.

The main was jerked chicken paired with an awesome pilsner and a beef rib paired with an amber ale. The chicken was juicy and well flavored, the rib had an unbelievable bark on it. The kind of bark that literally crunches when you chew.

The pairings were absolutely delicious. All in all we had an awesome day together. But enough about my meal, lets get your gears grinding on how you can prepare something like this on your own!

The first step in the right direction is understanding the cuts of beef.  Take a look at the awesome chart below.This is a sure fire way to help you not feel like a dope at the butcher counter.

The chart is really helpful in determining cut, cost and cooking method.  My recommendation (since it is summer) is to work with the grill.  Really great ribs are an art form, and so is smoking.  We can cover that at another time. A workable piece of meat to start with is skirt steak.  Any thin cut of meat has to be cooked quickly without being overdone… visit this site for a great tutorial.  The man knows what he is talking about. The goal is to get the grill ripping hot, cook the steak without being over done, let it rest and slice it correctly!  Here is an easy Skirt Steak recipe that will make you look like a genius at the grill.  Add a Charred Vegetable Salad and you have got yourself a meal. Finally, don’t be afraid to pick beer or wine that people have not had.  Spare me the “Summer Shandy” and hit me with something cool like a delicious Kolsch style beer or my favorite a really dry rose.