Free Johnsonville Brats T-Shirt - Tailgate Season 2009

We love grilled brats around here, and my favorite brand is Johnsonville. They don't try to make and sell everything under the sun. Johnsville sells sausages - period. And, darn good sausages.

Grilling bratswurth (or bratsworth) is very simple, but the type of sausage you buy does make a difference in terms of how you grill your brats. If you're not sure how to grill brats, then check out my Grilled Brats Guide.

It's always nice to be styling when grilling at home or when tailgating at a ballgames or NASCAR race, so start saving your Johnsonville labels. If you collect four proofs of purchase, you can mail those in for a Free Johnsonville T-Shirt. Details on the deal are in the right hand corner currently.

Get yourself a free t-shirt and enjoy some tasty grilled brats. That's a real win-win!

Rib Eye Steak on the Weber Kettle Grill with Steak Fries and Salad

The kid and I had an evening to ourselves, so I decided to toss some rib eye steaks on the Weber grill. Honestly, it's hard to beat a Weber 22 inch charcoal grill for taste, and Weber grills are very forgiving. You have more head space, good ventilation, and nice control with the top and bottom vents.

Some folks don't use charcoal, becauce it's harder to start, control, and to clean up the grill. But, if you buy a chimney starter, then you'll have red hot coals in less than 10 minutes. Honestly, I can't believe I ever DIDN'T use a chimney starter. As far as control, Weber grills are much easier to use than most, and almost everyone can master charcoal grilling with a Weber. Clean up on a gas grill can be rather messy too, although some models like the Big Red by Char Broil are self cleaning. Personally, I can deal with a little mess to get that great charcoal taste.

I grill our steaks to medium or a tad to medium well with the tips here in my Grilled Steak Guide. They turn out perfect every time. Well, I did burn the steaks once when I got sidetracked hanging clothes on the clothesline. Not a good plan - that. But, if I watch, even a little bit, I never have any problems with the Weber.

As for the steak fries, they can be done on the grill. They work best packed in tin foil with butter. Cheese can be added to for those who like cheese fries. But, I did these in the oven, since I was tired. They are the Food Lion brand French fries. I wasn't sure how they'd taste, but they were just as good as they look. I find a lot of the Food Lion brand products to be solid. We especially like the cubed hash browns grilled.

I cheated on the salad. Just bought a bag. Very easy. And, salad always goes great with steak.

It's often tempting to just heat up a pizza or something when it's just me and my 16-year-old, but a grilled steak dinner like this one doesn't take much longer than a heat and eat meal - and sure does taste better.

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Grilled Apple Jack Chicken at Blue Ribbon Diner in Mebane, NC

Today we took my son back to college, and we stopped at Blue Ribbon Diner in Mebane, North Carolina. It's right off I40 and about 20 to 30 minutes from UNC-Chapel Hill. If you're headed up I40 from Greensboro to Chapel Hill, you get off the Mebane exit and then turn left. The restaurant is about 1/3 mile on the left. And, they have a sign on the highway too. It's easy to find.


The original Blue Ribbon Diner is in Burlington which is a little further South of Chapel Hill. Business was so good at that restaurant that the two men who opened up Blue Ribbon decided to open the second location.

Jennifer, our waitress who was absolutely terrific, told us that she used to eat at Blue Ribbon when she was a kid. "It got hot standing outside in line," she told us. And, she's glad they opened up a second diner so that they can feed all the folks looking for a delicious diner meal.


Although, Blue Ribbon is called a diner, it's heavy on the burgers, hot dogs, and chicken sandwiches with the specialty being the grilled chicken sandwich (more about that later). They also sell a lot of the "Dirty Dog" which is a big weiner with chili, cheese, bacon and slaw. The guys thought that sounded good and may order the big hot dog next time.

In diner tradition, Blue Ribbon has blue plate specials ranging from chicken fried steak to homestyle meatloaf. Sunday is the day for chicken pie, and if I had not eaten so much barbecue over the winter and put on a few pounds, I would have loved to have tried that with the two Southern sides. I saw some of the sides go by, and they looked great. They included traditional dishes like mashed potatoes, fried okra, pinto beans, and blackeyed peas. Yum.

I'd also note that most of the sandwich plates came with unlimited french fries. I had plenty, but that might be good news for those with big appetites. They're kind of thick steak fries with a bit of crinkle. Ours were piping hot and nice and crisp.


Here's a fried chicken sandwich. I tried a bite of that. Very tasty. And, the toppings (lettuce and tomato - although you could get gravy on there if you wanted) were super fresh. The tomato looked like local home grown, and the lettuce appeared to be fresh off a full head of iceburg.


I had to try the diner specialty - the grilled chicken sandwich. Jennifer told me that it had a fabulous apple jack sauce on it and that the chicken was sweet but not over the top. She was absolutely right. The balance was perfect. Plus, the chicken was moist and juicy. It was one of the best grilled chicken sandwiches I've ever had at a restaurant. I usually grill chicken at home.

If you're ever on I40 between Greensboro and Raleigh, then check out the Blue Ribbon Diner. Or, take a side trip and check it out. The grilled chicken sandwich is out of this world, and the other meals passing by looked great too.


After that fun lunch, we headed on to UNC-Chapel Hill where I helped the kid move his stuff up to the 10th floor of Morrison. There are more people in his dorm than in our home town. He does have a good view of the trees which will make him feel more at home I hope, and he has a suite with 6 roommates and a living room.

Grilled Burgers and Hot Dogs at the Woodleaf, NC Tomato Festival

Today I went to the Woodleaf, North Carolina Tomato Festival at Unity Presbyterian Church. They've had the festival for quite a while now, but this is the first time I'd had a chance to go.


They had tomato sandwiches (of course). Sadly, I am one Southern girl who does not like tomato sandwiches.

One year, my Dad had a bumper crop of tomatoes. Mom declared that we would eat tomato sandwiches all summer and made us all big, drippy tomato sandwiches slathered with mayonnaise. If there's one thing I like less than tomato sandwiches, it's tomato sandwiches with mayo. The bread gets all soggy which I think is my main problem.

I did the logical thing and buried my sandwich under the pecan tree.

The next year, Mom was trying to figure out why a tomato plant grew under the pecan tree. I think that was God's way of telling me something, but I never did get a taste for tomato sandwiches.

But, I will eat tomatoes plain or on burgers or something.


Lucky for me, they had grilled burgers and hot dogs at the festival. They were cranking those out with the help of College Barbecue of Salisbury, NC which is one of my favorite places to eat especially for breakfast.


At the festival, they had fresh produce from Wetmore Farm and also some homemade jams and jellies. I was wanting to get some sweet potato butter, but Carol hadn't made any up yet. So, I'll have to wait on that. I've only had apple butter, so I'm looking forward to trying the sweet potato butter which another lady told me tastes like sweet potato pie.

The Woodleaf Tomato Festival is a small town festival, and I really do mean small town. You head out Woodleaf-Barber Road and then they have some parking in a field near the church. In addition to the food, they have entertainment, crafts, play areas for the kids, and a yard sale.


Here's my mom and step-dad with a giant tomato (-:

Barbecue Master Slips Off to See Julie & Julia

I took myself to see Julie & Julia today at the theatre, since the boys are off on vacation. Although I bribed the younger one to go see Mamma Mia (mainly because all the hot high school girls were there to watch it), Julie & Julia was a "no go" with the guys.

There's been quite a bit of buzz about Julie & Julia, but if you've not heard about it . . . it's a film about a young married girl in New York who decided to cook all the recipes in Julia Child's and blog about her one-year adventure. So, the film is all about food and cooking and these two true stories. There's romance too. And, I would attest that it is definately a chick flick, although some of the older women had talked a couple of older gentlemen to attend the showing today.

As I was watching the movie, I wondered how our life would be if I'd taken up French cooking rather than outdoor cooking. As the mom of two boys, I frankly can't imagine it. They get a tad nervous about squash, unless I bread and Southern fry it. Also, I can't imagine cooking (especially grilling) wearing a string of pearls, although I do have a nice set from my Granny. Nope. Makes much more sense to put on a Harley t-shirt and tennis shoes.

I sure did enjoy the movie. It was fun to see a girlie movie for a change. I thought about some of those great dishes, but I ended up with chicken on the grill. Hard to beat that though.

A Great Six Foot Table for Outdoor Barbecues or Inside Too

When we have big barbecue parties here at the house, table space is always an issue. We have a small outdoor table, a little camp table, and then the grills have side spaces to work. But, all the spaces are small. It's not like you can put a full spread out on any of those.

Our workaround has been to borrow a table from the church and then return it (of course). You'll see a church table at my son's graduation luau above. Now, that's a good sturdy table and something I have been needing.

The issue has been space though. Like many folks, I do not live in a mansion. Finding space for a 6 foot table is a problem.

Fortunately I won a contest at Solutions. This was back when Mug Root Beer gave me some prizes for readers for Father's Day. I was googling up "contest" and "giveaway" and looking for my Mug contest. Forgive me. I just can't help myself. I get excited about my blog and was excited to have the contest and prizes for folks who stop by Barbecue Master. It was while googling that I saw that Solutions had a Father's Day contest too.

Hum. I thought, "Well, I'm having fun with the contest on my bbq blog. I'm sure Solutions will enjoy more stories." I'm generally not lucky at all. But, I thought I'd enter for the fun of it and to support another site hosting an online reader contest.

Well, what do you know?

I WON!

I had not been familiar with Solutions but had looked around when I entered. I knew they had some cool stuff (including grill accessories), so I was all pumped up about $200 in shopping.

I am not a fast shopper at all, so I spent several hours looking at the items at Solutions. One of the first things that went on my list was a six foot table that folded to 3 foot. Oh yes. That sounded perfect for my outdoor parties. It would take a few weeks longer, and it was $5 extra on shipping. I pressed the button and hoped that it would be as great as I thought it would be.



Here's the folding table from the Solutions web site. I do need to snap a photo the next time we are set up in the yard.

First off, I would note that it is a very sturdy table and heavy. I can handle it (and it does have a carry handle when it's folded too), but it's not flimsy. That's good, because a table used outdoors gets pretty rough handling sometimes.

The table looks more white in the photo, but it's actually a gray color. It does not show dirt like I thought it might. Also it's some type of resin I think, so it wipes off better than the old church tables which seem to be some type of fake wood on top and do stain if you're not careful.

The best part, of course, is that that table folds in half. So, it's just three feet wide for storing. I find it fits behind a chair in the game room which is kind of a square type chair. It could go a number of places in my house with it only being 3 feet when folded, but it just really fits perfect behind the chair.

I was really excited with the table and the other items I got when I won the contest at Solutions.com. The other things I got were one of the garden hoses that curls so does not get kinked (and we have not kinked it yet), a long handled grill brush (nice quality and bristles do not fall out like some barbecue brushes), and a measuring cup thing where you pour in the pot licker like when you cook down a chicken and then the grease goes up and you can pour out broth that is healthier.

The one item that I wanted and why it took so long to decide was the brownie pan. It was made kind of like a maze so that the brownie pieces were all basically edge pieces. Now, you will only understand that if you are a brownie fan who loves the edges and especially the corner pieces. The pan was pretty expensive, and I had the other things on my list too. So, I had to decide what I most wanted. I know my homemade brownies would be super in this pan, but they are great in a regular pan as well.

That was my super fun splurge at Solutions.com. I'm sure glad I saw the contest and entered. Everything I got on the prize shopping trip was great and especially the barbecue table which will also be perfect for the Christmas morning brunch I host every year. We were getting really crowded on that as well, so a table will be just the thing for that as well as our outdoor fun.

Playboy.com Names Top 10 Barbecue Joints for 2009

Pork Shoulders Smoking in Durham, NC

I noticed a restaurant claiming to be in Playboy's top 10 for barbecue restaurants, so I had to go check that out. Sure enough. Playboy.com does have a list of barbecue joints across the nation.

Hum. I don't think I'd go to a barbecue restaurant looking for naked women (or anywhere else for that matter), and I don't know that I'd go with Playboy for my restaurant advice. Then again, they do have some excellent articles. I first discovered that when they ran the interview with President Jimmy Carter where he said that he had lusted in his heart. I guess I was in middle or high school, but I managed to get a look at that article, since it caused quite a stir at the time. That's kind of funny, I guess, given that it seemed more shocking at that time than the Clinton scandal did for this generation.

In any case, the list does span the map which probably annoys most anyone who is big on barbecue. Why? Barbecue varies greatly depending on the area of the country. Ribs in Kansas, beef in Texas, and pork in North Carolina are very different. It makes for a strange list as far as lists go. But, at least, they did define barbecue as being something other than cooked over gas or electric (meaning wood or perhaps charcoal I gather).

The only North Carolina barbecue joint to make the cut is Wilber's out of Goldsboro which makes me wonder if the writer tried out the barbecue joints or just picked one well known bbq place from the state. I'm not saying Wilber's isn't great. I'm just wondering how it was deemed the very best across the entire state. There's a tiny blurb about the number of sandwiches sold. Perhaps the list was based on volume of sales. Hard to tell.

I'd say, "Go out and try any of the restaurants listed if you're in the state where you see one." They appear to be the well known barbeque places that you can find listed online over and over. So, you're likely to get a good meal. If you're looking for the hole in the wall or mom & pop bbq places known mostly to locals, then you will not find those in Playboy. After all, you can tell those girls do not eat much barbecue or they would not be so thin.

Feel free to add your favorite barbecue joint in the comments.

Wink's Barbecue & Seafood - Salisbury, NC

I've been checking out some of my old favorite barbecue joints as well as some new ones for my Yes You Can Grill web site. You can grill all the time, but it is nice to take a break from time to time and let someone else do the work. That's especially true of slow smoked North Carolina barbecue.

North Carolina barbecue is pork, and it varies depending on whether you're on the coast (east) or piedmont (Lexington style). The main difference is that east is whole hog with vinegar sauce and piedmont is shoulders with a little tomato (ketchup etc) in a vinegar based sauce (also thin and spicy like the east but with a little red color).


Yesterday we were at Wink's which is a favorite here in Salisbury, NC. It's been around a long time. I remember when Wink's was over near the motel on Innes St. They moved over to a bigger spot on Faith Road just past Lowe's off I85.

They have been and stir are wood burners. They slow cook the pork out back. You can look and see the big wood pile and the pit. That's what we call real barbecue here in NC, and it's getting harder to find it done the old fashioned way but well worth it.


They have a lot of good old Southern side dishes to go with the barbecue at Wink's. My boys always go for the fries, but okra is my favorite when it's done right. It's done right at Wink's. Yum.


Portions are generous at Wink's, but if you have room, they have homemade desserts. You can see here that they have the classic Southern sweets. I need to go one day and just get dessert as I always get too full on the barbecue to have dessert.

For more on Wink's, see my Wink's review and more photos. I'm also adding more barbecue restaurants - mostly in North Carolina for now but branching out as I travel more and can get reviews written up.

Be sure to tip me off to any favorite barbecue joints in your neck of the woods. I'm always on the look out for great BBQ.

Cooking Out in Faith, NC for the 4th of July 2009

Faith, NC has a yearly 4th of July festival, and the entire town gets in the spirit. When ride through to the festival or to visit friends, you'll see lots of patriotic decorations and lots of cook outs.

I stopped by this one which was at full tilt when we were leaving the festival. They thought I was an old buddy but couldn't place my name (-: So, I had to confess that I was a blogger and wanted to see if I could chat and take a few photos.


The blonde lady lives right on Main Street in Faith, so she is the yearly cook out host. She does all the set up and provides the place to party, and everyone else brings the food. The guys do the grilling. Now, that's the way to do a cook out with everyone pitching in.

It looked like they were grilling hot dogs and hamburgers when I was visiting, and you can never go wrong with those. Yum!

I also gave them one of my Yes You Can Grill cards, so maybe next year they'll try out some Grill Girl ideas too.


The guys were getting the truck on down the road from the parking lot, so I had to say good bye to these friendly Faith, NC grillers. I'll look for them again next year and give a wave and see if they remember me.

Faith, North Carolina 4th of July Festival

As many years as I have lived in this area, I've never made it out to the Faith, North Carolina 4th of July festival. It's a week long event kind of like a county fair and with entertainment, contests (like the Apple Ugly eating contest), Faith Idol singing, and fireworks to wrap the week.


I'll probably crank up the grill later tonight, but the Faith NC Festival had plenty of good grilled good. There were loads of hot dogs and hamburgers at different booths. I would have to recommend this delicious grilled corn too. For the young ladies, I might add that the grill chef is a cutie as well. Just in case you didn't notice - which you probably did.

If you want to make your own grilled corn on the cob, then check out my grilled corn recipes at Yes You Can Grill. It really is easy to make.


The curly fries also looked great. I try to stay away from those, since the doc said to watch that fried food. But, yum, those are good. That's one of those things you save up for as a treat when you have high cholesterol.


I was thinking not to get on the swings after eating carnival food. I learned that early on. I also learned not to get cotton candy before visiting the cow barn, although Faith does not have a cow barn at the 4th of July festival. They did, however, have cotton candy.


Faith, NC puts on the biggest 4th of July party I know of, and I'm glad I went this year. I'll have to put that on the calendar, and since it's the week of the 4th, it ought to be easy enough to remember. They were having a good time down there, and it's only about 1/2 hour from my house. Heck. I wouldn't even need to crank up the grill. I could just go back later and get dinner too.

Happy 4th of July to all my readers (thanks) and to the good folks in Faith, NC who certainly were friendly and were very patriotic too for the 4th.

Lawry's 30 Minute Marinade Review - Mexican Chile & Lime

I've always liked Lawry's products. The boys are especially wild about the seasoning shake that's orange colored. They like that on almost anything.

When I saw that Lawry's had grill marinades out, I decided I'd better get a bottle and see what they were doing with marinades.

They had several different types of grill marinade, but I went with the Mexican Chile & Lime. I've always been a Mexican and Tex-Mex food fan.

When I took the lid off, yum. This stuff smells fabulous. You get a combo of tomatoes, lime, and just a little chile heat. It's heavenly smelling.



I was a little concerned about marinating in the Lawry's, since it's pretty thick. It must have more vinegar and less tomato and sugar though, because I didn't have any problems with burning, and I was grilling a pork loin (indirect heat on a Portable Kitchen grill).

As the pork loin cooked, I continued to mop with the marinade. Hum. I'm not sure I'd do that next time. I'd say the 30 minutes and on smaller cuts of meat like boneless chicken breasts or maybe shrimp would work out better. With the time cooking and the mopping, the marinade ended up being a little overpowering. And, that's was just on the outside and is in the photo.

Actually I liked the sauce. The boys weren't as keen on it. I think it's a good mixture and that this is just one where you want to use a light hand when marinating and probably avoid saucing other than for those who really like to do that. Just let them pour to taste as the flavors are strong on this marinade.

Happy 4th of July and Be Sure to Get Your Grill Cranked Up

The 4th of July is the biggest grilling day of the year. Remember that it doesn't have to be fancy, although it can be fun to try out some new grilled or smoked foods.

If you're looking for some inspiration, check out my grill web site Yes You Can Gril. The quickest way to see if I have what you're looking for it to check out the site map. I try to add all new articles there, and I am adding all the time. I take requests too, so let me know if you don't find what you're looking for.


Have some fun stuff going to keep your guests busy. Now, it does depend on the age of course. But, the little ones always love homemade bubbles. Old fashioned flyswatters make mega mini bubbles.


YUM! We always have way more than we can eat family gatherings. That's OK. Leftovers are nice, and that means I don't have to cook later in the day.

What to Grill or Barbecue for the 4th of July

The 4th of July is the biggest grilling day of the year, and this year should be no exception. With the economy so bad, people are finding that it's much cheaper to vacation at home and also to do meals from scratch rather than buying all the heat-and-heat meals or drive through.

Simple and Traditional - Grilled Burgers and Dogs

If you're a new griller (go you!) or have a big group to feed, then I'd suggest hamburgers and hot dogs. It's hard to go wrong on those.

One tip I'd give is to buy the meat and hand pat the burgers. Better yet, if someone offers to give you a hand, put them to making up the burgers.



Want to keep it super simple? Then, add chips and have watermelon or other fruit for dessert.

Brats are Easy and Make a Nice 4th of July Meal

Some people avoid brats, because there's a lot of confusing information about how to grill brats. Are they raw or pre-cooked? Do you poke them or not? If you're just not sure, check out my basic Brats Guide at Yes You Can Grill.

Can't Go Wrong with Steak

Yes. It's expensive, but most stores run specials on steak for the 4th of July. If you have deep pockets or a smaller group, then by all means, stick that steak on the grill. But, be sure to do it right. See my basic Steak Grill Guide if you need a bursh up.

Lighten Up but Don't Feel Any Pain

If you've had overcooked chicken on the grill, then you may not be keen on that for your 4th of July grill out. But, chicken and be very moist and delicious off the grill.




Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts on the Grill

Grilled Chicken Legs

And, this is a fun one, but you probably don't want to try it for a large group, since it takes a while to cook and takes a lot of grill space.

Beer Butt Chicken

Don't Let Grilled Seafood Scare You Off

One the quickest and easiest things to do on the grill is seafood. A lot of folks think they can't do it. They're probably either never tried, or they cooked the seafood too long.




Basic Shrimp Grill Guide

Bacon Wrapped Shrimp on the Grill

Fresh Clams on the Barbecue Grill

Snow Crab Legs on the Barbie

Grilled Lobster

Mug Root Beer Cooler and BBQ Sauce Kit Contest Winners - June 2009

My sons are here with their Dad who enjoyed the Mug Root Beer sauce on ham and country style smoked pork ribs on the Traeger.


The guys drew the names for the contest before leaving for a week long kayaking trip on the coast.



Drum Roll please . . .

Here are the winners and entries. All the memories shared were fabulous, and you can see the full list and all the stories in the contest entry post.

Jan

My dad was a great griller in his day. At 92, he just supervises my brother who is a pretty fine griller himself as is his son in law. Grilling is a family tradition around here.

I remember my dad grilling tomatoes when my mother was in the hospital having my brother. That would have been over 60 years ago. His grill was homemade, of course, but served us well until we both went off to college.

Shaun

awesome idea for a contest. chef matt sent me. anways, i normally wouldn't consider nominating myself as the best griller. but boy do my kids do. there is nothing in the world ( next to taking them fishing) that my 4 boys, 9, 4(twins), and 2 love more than when dad (me) fires up the grill. they love the way i make them burgers and hotdogs in all different ways. mom even gets in on the action when i make her favorite chicken. tendy, juicy, and with the right spices. so thanks for coming up with this contest. thanks for letting me share my story.

Rob

I guess my "grilling dad hero" for the weekend would be one of my longest-term friends (~35 years) Reggie Smyre ... This father's day weekend he drove all the way down to NC from PA to attend his daughter's high school graduation, and at the large family cookout afterwards (100+ people) the cook didn't show up, so he volunteered to do all the cooking ... this involved burgers & dogs, deep-fried fish, and shish-kabobs (with his own special sauce), grilled veggies & sweet potatoes, etc. He had 2 grills going, and a kettle of oil to deep fry the fish - he went through two bottles of gas!

So, if this one wins the drawing, send the cooler to Reggie please! :)

Jim

I nominate my oldest son, Jonathan.

After my good fortune to participate in the Weber TV ad campaign, they left the new weber gas grill that was used for filming. That was in addition to the new Weber grill of my choice per the original agreement with Weber. So, I gave him that "once used" grill.

He was delighted and began to expand/extend his repertoire beyond just grilling steaks and burgers. I had taught him the basics of high heat searing and the art of judging the various degrees beyond rare through well-done. That was the easy part.

He uses marinades and dry rubs well beyond hiw dad's experience level. He has the creativity to experiment and has hit some home runs.

One was a dry rub mixture of salt, pepper, paprika, fennel and garlic. Another was marinating beef tri tip overnight in Italian Dressing spiced up with Coleman's Dry Mustard!

So I am proud to say that he is not just a "chip off the old block," but has gone beyond his dad in the use of the grill.

However, he still can't do the low/slow, genuine smoked BBQ ribs or pork butt like his father!!! :)

Thanks for the opportunity to appear on your site!

Hondaray6

I'd nominate my son Buck for the Hot griller! He's a father of 3, weighs 240, stands 6'3" and is a pussycat- except when grilling! Stand back and drool he says! LOL He likes doing roasts on indirect heat for hours...and the smell is amazing. His fav is a garlic/butter rub that he came up with (can't share the recipe cause he won't)! He also says kabobs are for sissys...but he makes them just to get the kids to eat veggies! Dang I'm tickled I raised a great griller! Now all I have to do is the corn on the cob! WooHoo!


Congratulations and thanks to everyone for entering the contest. Thanks also to Mug Root Beer for providing the coolers and barbecue sauce sets to help celebrate Father's Day.

Last Call - Win a Free Mug Cooler and BBQ Sauce Pack (June 20, 2009)

Today is the last day to enter the Mug Root Beer Father's Day Contest. Just click to the giveaway page and leave a comment. That's it. Very simple.

Tomorrow, the boys will shake up the names, and their Dad will pull the five (5) lucky winners who will all get the cooler you see above along with a Mug apron and the ingredients to make a root beer barbecue sauce.

I'll post the winners once I email the ones the boys' Dad pulls and let them know. Don't you just hate to be the last to know when you win something (-: So, the emails first . . . then the winners go up.

If you've been reading along here at Barbecue Master (the title at the top clicks you to the newest content), then you'll see where I made up a batch of the barbecue sauce and had a grilled ham and country ribs.

Know someone who rocks the grill or just enjoys grilling? Or, does this describe you? Feel free to enter. You can nominate your father or any other special man or woman in your life.

The contest wraps up at midnight tonight (June 20, 2009). That's EST, since I'm in NC.

Again - here's the page to enter and GOOD LUCK!

Giveaway for Father's Day 2009 - Thanks to Mug Root Beer - Cooler and BBQ Sauce Supplies

Mug Root Beer generously offered five giveaway packs for readers of Barbecue Master. And, for the record, they didn't ask for anything in return (not even a link - although I'll provide one so readers can check out more recipes and also see where the gifts came from).

Above, you'll see the cooler, apron, and the ingredients for the Mug Root Beer barbecue sauce which is listed at Mug Root Beer (under the recipe link). It all fits in there neatly. I'd just been jumbling in the kit and getting ready to make up some root beer barbeque sauce.

If you haven't entered to win one of the Mug Root Beer cooler packs, be sure to check the giveaway entry post. The deadline is June 20, 2009. You can always make up the sauce on your own, but getting the ingredients plus a cooler to keep is a sweet deal.


I got all the ingredients out to make the Mug Root Beer barbecue sauce. As you can see, they combine quite a few ingredients to come up with a unique and tasty barbecue sauce. Also, the amounts are generous, so we've had extras with the boys enjoying glasses of root beer all day.


The base for the barbcue sauce is . . . root beer . . . of course. Root beer, for anyone who doesn't know, is a soft drink. The name comes from the fact that it looks like a dark ale. The flavor is sweet with a herbal kind of bite.

This is also a soft drink that does not have caffeine, and it's also gluten free.


Although there are a number of ingredients in the sauce, the recipe is simple. Simply put all the ingredients in a sauce pan and simmer for around 20 minutes or until the sauce is reduced. In other words, you steam it down a bit until it thickens a bit. Do note that this is not a real thick sauce. It's a little thicker than what we call a barbecue mop around here.


Today I cranked up the Traeger wood pellet smoker grill. I put a small Hormel ham on for earlier in the day and some ribs on for later. The ham was pre-cooked, so I just spritzed it with apple juice for moisture and then sauced it about 10 minutes on each side right near the end of the grilling time. All total, the ham smoked on medium for around an hour.

We had two very nice barbecue meals today - first ham and then country style pork ribs.

Grilled Dinner on the Portable Kitchen Grill - PK Barbecue Grill is a Top Rated Charcoal Grill

I've written about my Dad's great old grill and how it's still going strong years later. I really don't know when he got it or where. We just grew up with the PK cast aluminum grill, so I'd say it must be 35 to 40 years old.

I didn't think they "made them like they used to," and they didn't. Portable Kitchen was off the market for a long time. Then, Paul and Sarah James got tired of the poor quality grills and shopped yard sales and found an old PK grill.

The James family decided that there were people out there who did want to invest in quality instead of buying a new grill every year, so they talked to Meigs family and worked it out to put the PK grill back on the market.

My new Portable Kitchen grill above is the Sportsman model. My Dad's PK is called Executive and is a little bigger with the hinges on the back rather than the side. Otherwise the grills are alike other than the old one has mellowed to a dark gray and black with loads of use over the years.

Cast aluminum means that the grills are made in one big piece. When new and out of the stand, they look kind of like huge tin foiled wrapped baked potatoes.

While most grills are made of thin grade metal, the PKs are thick and heavy. Like cast iron, they retain the heat. But, they don't rust like cast iron. Yippee! That's a huge problem with most grills, and even my Dad's ancient PK grill shows no signs of rust.

With the heat retention and with wider grates, you can sear nicely on the PK grills and can also close the lid and adjust the dampers to smoke meats. Portable Kitchen grills really crank once they get going, so below you will see how I offset for dinner last night.

Offsetting the coals means just burning on one side. That gives me room to sear the steaks but a cooler area to finish them off and also to work on the side dishes.

This is the same set up you'd use to smoke meats on the Portable Kitchen grill, but you'd close the lid and have the vents closed most of the way.



Our dinner last night included rib eye steaks, grilled corn on the cob, and grilled hash browns and also Texas Toast which we put on right at the end, since it doesn't take much time at all to heat bread on a grill.



The hash browned potatoes went on early to get started, but we do start out with tin foil on top. They are basically steamed on the grill. The boys love them, so we do those pretty often.



We then put the marinated steak on the hot side of the grill to sear and had the grilled corn on the cob on the cooler end of the grill. Those were rotated once the steaks were seared on the outside and then finished off to medium.

It's hard to beat a PK. Portable Kitchen is one of the best charcoal grills on the market. I'm glad they brought it back.