Friends, customers and grilling enthusiasts,

Welcome to the May, 2007 issue of Hot Off the Grill! Memorial Day weekend, and the "official" kickoff to the grilling season, is upon us. This month we have created appetizer, main course, and drink recipes inspired by the "south of the border" flavors from our friends at Frontera Grill and perfect for the warm days ahead.

Please share your recipes, stories and photos with us by emailing hotg@kalamazoogourmet.com.

Hot Off The Grill! Archive

May 2007
Inside This Issue...

Congratulations to Frontera Grill

Out is In

Popularity of Outdoor Kitchens on the Rise

Recipes for the Grill

Tequila Shrimp with Fire-Roasted Chile Salsa

Chicken Skillet Tacos

Recipes for the Martini Bar

Iguana Fresco Margarita

We Want To Hear From You

About Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet

Contact Us

1-800-868-1699

Hot Off The Grill! Email

Customer Service Email

Sales Email

Congratulations to Rick and Deann Bayless and Frontera Grill

Frontera Grill is celebrating its 20th year. There couldn't be a more appropriate year to receive the coveted "Outstanding Restaurant" award from the James Beard Foundation.

If you live in the Chicago area or plan on visiting, we highly recommend dinner at Frontera Grill or Topolobampo.

Don't forget to watch Mexico — One Plate at a Time on PBS, where you can see the Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet Hybrid Grill in action, and check out Rick's Tips for Quick-Grilling Ten Great Foods on www.KalamazooGourmet.com.

Out is In The popularity of outdoor cooking and entertaining is exploding. It is estimated by Standpoint Market Research that 1.2 million homes will install a fully-functional outdoor kitchen this year, more than doubling the number of homes boasting this outdoor room as part of their livable square footage. According to a December survey by the American Society of Landscape Architects, outdoor kitchens are among the most popular spaces being designed for residential clients. “Homeowners are requesting landscape architects design complete outdoor rooms, such as kitchens and bars, for entertaining.“ In recognition of this trend, Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet is sponsoring the 2007 Oasis Award, the first ever nationwide competition for outdoor kitchen design. The competition is open to all professional designers and architects. Winning designs will be published in Garden Design magazine. Please visit www.OasisAward.com for more information and entry details.

Tequila Shrimp with Fire-Roasted Chile Salsa

The bright flavors of tequila and lime compliment the roasted chiles in this great party appetizer. The recipe makes an abundance of salsa, so you can also serve it with chips and the tacos (see next recipe).

NOTE: Peron chiles are quite hot. Make the salsa with one or two chiles depending on how spicy you want the end result to be. The flavor and appearance of these chiles are reminiscent of a habanero, but with a bit less heat. They are also commonly called Manzano chiles and referred to as “el mas picante de los picantes” (the hottest of the hot). Peron chiles are unique in that the seeds are black.

Author:	Russ Faulk, Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet
Servings:	6
Ingredients:	2 pounds shrimp, shelled and de-veined with the tails left on. Use between 20-count and 8-count shrimp.
	1/2 cup tequila
	1/2 cup fresh lime juice
	1/4 cup olive oil
	1 teaspoon salt
	Salsa:
	4 large, ripe tomatoes, stems cut out
	3 anaheim chiles
	1 or 2 ripe (yellow) peron chile(s)
	1 knob onion
	1 red bell pepper
	1 poblano chile
	1 head garlic
	About one handful fresh cilantro, chopped
	Fresh-squeezed juice from about 1 1/2 limes
	About 1 teaspoon salt
	Hickory or mesquite wood
	Tortilla chips (optional)

For the Salsa: Setup the grill for indirect cooking at about 500 degrees. Use hickory or mesquite wood chunks in your Kalamazoo Hybrid Grill, or use wood chips in your gas grill.

Cut the top off the garlic head for roasting. Cut the root tip off the knob onion. Place the tomatoes, anaheims, peron(s), onion, bell pepper, poblano and garlic on the grill in the indirect cooking zone and cook with the hood closed for about 45 minutes, keeping the smoke strong. Turn the chiles, onion and bell pepper occasionally so that they roast evenly. Leave the tomatoes and garlic with the cut-side-up for the entire cooking time. The bulb of the knob onion and the garlic should be golden brown to deep brown without char. The pepper and chiles will be mostly black.

Remove all the food from the grill. Place the pepper and chiles in a bowl and cover with a plate. Let everything rest until it is cool enough to handle. Once cool, peel the skin off the tomatoes. Remove the outer dry layer from the knob onion and discard most or all of the green part. Coarsely chop. Use a knife to scrape the charred skin off the pepper and the chiles. Discard the skins and all the seeds. Squeeze the roasted garlic out of the peel.

Place the tomatoes, pepper, chiles, onion and roasted garlic in a blender. Preserve as much of the liquid from the tomatoes as possible. Blend well, but not to a point of being totally smooth. Stir in the cilantro, the juice of one half lime and about 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Taste, and add more lime juice and salt as needed.

NOTE: The salsa can be prepared from several hours to one day ahead.

SUGGESTION: For more texture, chop all ingredients and skip the blender.

For the Shrimp: For shrimp that are 10-count or fewer, partially butterfly them to help them cook through without becoming tough. Combine the fist five ingredients in a non-reactive bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Use the shorter time for smaller shrimp and the longer time for larger shrimp. If you are not ready to cook the shrimp immediately at the end of the marinating time, remove the shrimp from the marinade and keep refrigerated.

Prepare the grill for direct grilling over high heat, about 500 degrees. Also setup a cooler "safety zone" for any shrimps that give you a problem. Grill the shrimp, turning as few times as possible until done. The deepest part of the slice down the back where they were de-veined will just be turning opaque when it is time to remove them from the grill.

Serve the shrimp hot with salsa for dipping.

Back to top

Chicken Skillet Tacos

We've been grilling tacos at our house nearly once a week since the weather turned nice, but there's been one problem: by the time I cut up the grilled ingredients and get ready to serve, the tacos are pretty near room temperature. For a solution, I turned to the trusty fajita pans. The cast iron keeps the hot taco fillings warm at the table. That's how this recipe for skillet tacos came about. You can use fajita pans or serve the tacos family style out of a large cast iron skillet.

Author:	Russ Faulk, Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet
Servings:	About 20 tacos serving 4 to 6 people
Ingredients:	Chicken:
	1 whole fryer chicken
	1 teaspoon cumin
	1 teaspoon dried ground oregano
	1 teaspoon sea salt
	1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
	1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic
	1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
	Fresh-squeezed juice of 1 lime
	Olive oil
	The rest of the filling:
	2 large, ripe tomatoes, stems cut out
	1 knob onion, root tip cut off
	1 peron chile, red (not fully ripe)
	1 head garlic, top cut off
	Up to 12 ounces queso fresco, cut into 1/2" cubes
	1/3 cup ground queso cotija
	Fresh-squeezed juice of one lime
	About 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
	Serving:
	Soft corn tortillas, about 5" diameter
	Crema Mexicana
	Salsa (see above recipe)
	Mesquite or hickory wood

Prepare the grill for indirect cooking at 500 degrees with wood smoke for flavor.

Butterfly the chicken by cutting out the backbone and cracking the breast so that the chicken will lay flat. Combine the dry spices in a small dish. Brush the chicken with olive oil and lime juice, both inside and out, then sprinkle all over with the spices.

Place the chicken, skin-side up, in the indirect cooking zone. Add the tomatoes, onion, garlic and chile to the indirect cooking zone. Close the grill hood and cook for about 35 minutes or until juices from the chicken thigh near the joint run clear. Maintain good smoke the entire time and rotate the onion and the chile occasionally.

When finished, remove all the food from the grill. Place a very lightly-oiled cast iron skillet (or fajita pans) on the grill to pre-heat in the indirect cooking zone.

Once the food has cooled enough to handle, de-bone the chicken and cut into small pieces.

Peel the tomatoes and dice to 1/2". Use a knife to scrape away any charred skin of the chile, discard the seeds and finely chop. Remove the outer layer of the onion and discard any greens that are burnt. Coarsely chop the onion. Squeeze the roasted garlic out of the peel and chop or mash.

Remove the skillet from the grill and combine into it the chicken, tomatoes, onion, garlic, chile and as much of the queso fresco as you like. Sprinkle the juice of one lime over the top and season with salt to taste. Top with the ground queso cotija.

Return the skillet to the grill over indirect heat and refresh the smoke. Heat the taco filling in the skillet until the liquids a bubbling and the edges of the top pieces are slightly browning from the smoke, about 10 minutes.

Prepare the tortillas, Mexican cream and salsa for serving at the table. When ready, bring out the hot skillet and place on a suitable trivet or hot pad. Assemble tacos family style right out of the skillet.

NOTE: This recipe is very flexible. Try adding or substituting your favorite ingredients. Halibut is a great substitute for the chicken, and fresh avocado pieces are a nice addition to the skillet. For a cheese that melts in the skillet, try Chihuahua or Spanish Manchego. Finally, if you look closely at the Tips for Quick-Grilling Ten Great Foods on our website, you will see links to a number of salsa recipes from Rick Bayless. Experiment and enjoy.

Back to top

Iguana Fresco Margarita
Author:	Russ Faulk, Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet
Servings:	2
Ingredients:	5 ounces honeydew juice
	4 ounces Reposado tequila
	1 ounce freshly-squeezed lime juice
	1/2 ounce agave nectar
	Ice
	2 lime slices

A Green Iguana is a margarita made with Midori melon liqueur. This drink trades the honeydew flavor of Midori for real, fresh honeydew juice. It is incredibly refreshing on a hot day.

If you don't have an electric juice extractor, you can still pretty easily get enough juice from a honeydew by hand. Cut the melon in half. Place a mesh strainer over a medium to large bowl. Spoon out or cut out large pieces of the melon, and use your hands to rub each melon piece into the mesh strainer, pressing it through to let the juice collect in the bowl. As the melon halves sit, juice will accumulate in the bottoms. Pour this juice into the bowl as well. One half of a ripe honeydew should yield enough juice using this method for 5 or 6 drinks.

Directions: Combine the honeydew juice, tequila, lime juice and agave nectar in a cocktail shaker. Stir until the nectar is dissolved. Taste test and adjust sweetness with either more lime juice or more agave nectar as needed. Add ice and shake vigorously for one minute. Strain into martini glasses and garnish with lime slices.

Back to top

We Want to Hear from You

As we continue our efforts to help you maximize the joy and satisfaction of your outdoor grilling and entertaining experience, we would love to know what you think:

• Share with us your favorite grilling recipes or outdoor gourmet entertaining tips.
• Provide us with pictures of your grill or grill setting.
• Tell us what you like most about your Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet product.
• Tell us which product features you would like to see added to or improved on our products.
• Let us know if there are any services Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet should offer.

Feel free to drop us a line at hotg@kalamazoogourmet.com with your thoughts on any of the above, or just to say hello.

Back to top

Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet
Bringing Gourmet Lifestyles Outdoors Since 1906™
www.KalamazooGourmet.com
1-800-868-1699
Copyright ©2005, Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet, LLC
Privacy Statement