206a Scott Meroney's Butcher's Blog at Sonoma & Glen Ellen Markets

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Category - Recipes
Posted - 06/26/2012 08:55am BBQ Ribs Basics
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Kansas City is the place where Barbecue traditions meet. Here you will find a whole host of great eating places like Arthur Bryant's that started as a road side BBQ joint during the depression and has since become one of America's greatest rib joints. In Kansas City ribs are serious business. Here they are slow smoked with a spicy rub and served up with a thick, under your nails barbecue sauce.

First thing, start with a good rack of ribs. Actually start with two. One never seems enough. Once you get the hang of it you can move up to ten, twenty, enough to please the crowd that will gather.

Prepare ribs by washing racks and pealing membrane from the bone side. To remove the membrane, slip a sharp knife under the membrane at one end of the rack and pealing back enough to get a good grip. Try using a paper towel to hold the membrane, then pull. You might need a little practice, but you'll get the hang of it. If you are planning on hanging the rack of ribs on a hook, don't remove the membrane. Once the ribs are prepared, evenly coat with the rub and let sit. You can refrigerate overnight or let sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes while you get the smoker ready.

Basting is an option to making ribs. On one hand it will add more flavor to your ribs and can help keep them moist. On the other you can wash off the rub you've already applied. By using a baste (sometimes called a mop) that contains the seasonings of the rub you already used you will enhance the flavor without washing away the flavor you've already added. The mustard in this recipe thickens the baste and holds the seasonings to the ribs.

Only add sauces at the very end of the cooking process or after you have removed the ribs from the smoker. Sauces can cause burning or excessive caramelization to foods. I will typically remove the ribs, cut them up and then add the sauce. You might also want to put the sauce on the side for people to add as they see fit. Of course sugar burns at 265 degrees F. (129 degrees C.), generally above smoking temperatures, but it is best to leave sauces to the end either way. 297c

Category - Recipe
Posted - 08/29/2011 01:50pm Grilled Ground Lamb Kebabs with Fresh Hot-Pepper Paste
An awesome lamb dish for your end-of-summer barbecue:

1 1/4 pounds ground lamb
    3/4 cup finely chopped onion
    1/2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
    1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
    4 garlic cloves, minced
    3/4 teaspoon salt
    1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
    1/2 teaspoon paprika
    1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
    12 bamboo skewers

    Olive oil
    Warm pita bread
    Fresh Hot-Pepper Paste*

Combine lamb, onion, parsley, cilantro garlic, salt, pepper, paprika, and cayenne in large bowl and mix well. (Can be prepared 6 hours ahead. Cover and refrigerate.) Place bamboo skewers in shallow dish. Cover with cold water and let stand at least 1 hour.

Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Drain skewers. Form generous 1/4 cup lamb mixture into 3-inch-ling sausage around center of 1 bamboo skewer. Repeat with remaining lamb mixture and skewers. Brush lamb kebabs with oil. Grill kebabs until brown and cooked through, turning frequently, about 12 minutes. Serve in warm pita bread with Fresh Hot-Pepper Paste.

*Fresh Hot-Pepper Paste

       1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
    1 cup chopped fresh parsley
    1/4 cup chopped seeded fresh red serrano or red jalapeño chilies
    1/4 cup water
    1/4 cup olive oil
    1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
    1 teaspoon salt
    1 teaspoon ground black pepper
    1 teaspoon ground cumin

Combine all ingredients in processor and blend until very finely chopped. (Can be prepared 1 week ahead. Refrigerate in covered container.)


Combine all ingredients in processor and blend until very finely chopped. (Can be prepared 1 week ahead. Refrigerate in covered container.)

Combine all ingredients in processor and blend until very finely chopped. (Can be prepared 1 week ahead. Refrigerate in covered container.)

Category - Recipe
Posted - 08/15/2011 10:18am TEXAS STYLE BBQ BRISKET

Here's a great recipe for Texas-style
barbecued brisket!

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Love brisket but afraid to cook it? Well, now you don't have to be, thanks to Steven Raichlen and his updated cookbook, “The Barbecue! Bible 10th Anniversary Edition.” The noted chef and television host shares his recipe for a juicy and tender Texas-style barbecued brisket and grilled corn. So get your appetite ready for a delicious dish!

 

About the chef: When Steven Raichlen isn't in the kitchen making delicious dishes, he's writing cookbooks. He is the author of 28 books, including the "Barbecue! Bible" cookbook series. Raichlen is also the host of two television cooking shows.

Recipe: Texas-style barbecued brisket

Pork may be the preferred barbecue east of the Mississippi (think of the pork shoulder of the Carolinas and the ribs of Kansas City and Memphis), but in Texas beef is king — especially beef brisket, which comes moist and smoky and tender enough to cut with a fork. (Not that any self-respecting Texas barbecue buff would use a fork.) Barbecued brisket is simultaneously one of the easiest and most challenging recipes in the world of barbecue. Easy because it requires only one main ingredient: brisket (even the rub is optional). Challenging because pit masters spend years learning the right combination of smoke (lots), heat (low), and time (measured in half days rather than hours) to transform one of the toughest, most ornery parts of the steer into tender, meaty perfection.

Over the years, I’ve found that two things help above all: choosing the right cut of brisket —namely, untrimmed, with a thick sheath of fat — and then cooking the brisket in a shallow pan. The pan keeps the juices from dripping onto the fire and the meat from drying out, while allowing for the maximum smoke penetration from the top. A whole brisket (the sort cooked by a restaurant) weighs eighteen to twenty pounds. Here I call for a partially trimmed brisket — a cut weighing five to six pounds. Do not attempt to make this with a two-pound trimmed, fatless brisket; it will turn out much too dry. To achieve the requisite smoke flavor, you need to smoke the brisket in a charcoal grill — or in a smoker. A gas grill will not produce enough smoke.

Advance preparation: 4 to 8 hours for curing the meat (optional); also, allow yourself about 6 hours cooking time.

Special equipment: 6 cups hickory or mesquite chips or chunks, soaked for 1 hour in cold water to cover and drained.

Ingredients
  • 1 beef brisket (5 to 6 pounds), with a layer of fat at least 1/4 inch thick, preferably 1/2 inch thick
  • 1 tablespoon coarse salt (kosher or sea)
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
Preparation

1. Rinse the brisket under cold running water and blot it dry with paper towels.

2. Combine the salt, chili powder, sugar, pepper, and cumin in a bowl and toss with your fingers to mix. Rub the spice mixture on the brisket on all sides. If you have time, wrap the brisket in plastic and let it cure, in the refrigerator, for 4 to 8 hours (or even overnight), but don’t worry if you don’t have time for this — it will be plenty flavorful, even if you cook it right away.

3. Set up a charcoal grill for indirect grilling and preheat it to low. No drip pan is necessary for this recipe.

4. When ready to cook, toss 1½ cups of the wood chips on the coals (3/4 cup per side). Place the brisket, fat side up, in an aluminum foil pan (or make a pan with a double sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil). Place the pan in the center of the hot grate, away from the heat. Cover the grill.

5. Smoke cook the brisket until tender enough to shred with your fingers; 6 hours will likely do it, but it may take as long as 8 (the cooking time will depend on the size of the brisket and heat of the grill). Baste the brisket from time to time with the fat and juices that accumulate in the pan. You’ll need to add 10 to 12 fresh coals to each side every hour and toss more wood chips on the fresh coals; add about 3/4 cup chips per side every time you replenish the coals during the first 3 hours.

6. Remove the brisket pan from the grill and let rest for 15 minutes. Transfer the brisket to a cutting board and thinly slice it across the grain, using a sharp knife, electric knife, or cleaver. Transfer the sliced meat to a platter, pour the pan juices on top, and serve at once.

Recipe Copyrighted by Steven Raichlen, The Barbecue! Bible, 10th Anniversary Edition, Workman Publishing Company 2008.

Serving Size

Serves 10 to 12

267a

Category - BBQ,Recipes,Holiday
Posted - 05/13/2011 04:14pm Memorial Day BBQ

Dont forget to place your Memorial Day Weekend BBQ order with the meat department. We have the best selection of fresh meat, seafood, and poultry. Browse our Marinated meat section for the wine and garlic or bloody mary tri tips, marinated half chickens or chicken breasts. See below for a nice and easy BBQ chicken recipe. If you dont have the time to make the marinade, let us do it for you.

 

Original Recipe Yield 6 servings

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons ketchup
  • 6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or chicken legs or both

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, blend the Worcestershire sauce, Cajun seasoning, garlic powder, brown sugar, and ketchup. Place the chicken in the bowl, and coat thoroughly with the sauce mixture. Cover, and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.
  2. Heat an outdoor grill for medium heat, and lightly oil grate.
  3. Discard the marinade, and grill chicken 8to 10m inutes per side on the prepared grill, or until no longer pink and juices run clear.
 

Category - Recipe,Holiday
Posted - 05/06/2011 04:30pm Mother's Day Treat

Ingredients 1 pound jumbo or regular lump crabmeat 2 lemons, zest grated and juiced, plus juice for coating glass rims About 1 tablespoon mayonnaise (just enough to hold it together) About 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 12 asparagus stems, bottom halves chopped, tops left whole Seasoned salt 4 Swiss chard leaves, to serve 4 whole olives, for garnish 4 lemon slices, for garnish Water crackers or toast points, to serve.

Directions Just before serving, gently combine the crabmeat with the zest, juice, mayonnaise, mustard, and chopped asparagus stems; add seasoned salt, to taste. To serve: spread some seasoned salt onto a plate, rim the martini glasses with lemon juice, and dip them into the salt. Line each glass with a chard leaf and fill with the crab mixture. Garnish each martini with 3 asparagus spears, an olive, and a lemon slice. Serve with water crackers or toast points. Cook’s note: Don't put this together until the last minute.

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen Show: Paula's Home Cooking Episode: Garden Party

 

129e

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Scott Meroney
Meat Department Manager

Scott has grown up with us. He began working at Shone's Country Store as a courtesy clerk when he was 16. At 18 he moved on to the meat department at Glen Ellen Village Market while attending Sonoma State University. Upon his graduation with a major in business and finance, Scott became manager of the GEVM meat department. He has been meat department manager at Sonoma Market since 2006.

Scott enjoys having an active job and the interaction with people. He likes the people he works for and with. His fellow employees are friends and his customers are great.

Scott says he is not a gourmet cook, but likes to barbecue and he is more than happy to share his expertise with his customers. Another side to Scott not known by all, is his creative side. He plays bass in his band The Bodies, well-known in the Bay Area and beyond.


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