On Mon, 01 Jun 2009 22:39:32 -0500, Janet Wilder
> wrote:

>Desideria wrote:
>> Y'all know I'm a grilling newbie, and I purchased Steven Raichlen's
>> "How to Grill" book because it was my impression that his books are
>> highly recommended.
>>
>> I'll agree that his how-to techniques are helpful. But does anyone
>> else find his recipes a bit over-fussed-with?
>>
>> For instance, the first thing I made with his recipes was hamburgers
>> with garlic butter inside, so you've got a fat burger with something
>> in the center. Admittedly, my garlic butter was only about
>> half-frozen, but when I put them on the grill I had terrible flareups,
>> to the point where the outsides were black and the insides were still
>> raw--and that was quite a bit after the time that Steven said to cook
>> them on each side.
>>
>> Today I tried his basic (?) chicken breast recipe. Calls for
>> sprinkling sea or kosher salt, cracked peppercorns and hot pepper
>> flakes on both sides of each breast, then pressing chopped garlic and
>> chopped rosemary onto each, then marinating them for 30 to 60 minutes
>> in lemon juice and olive oil.
>>
>> Again, I made a mistake in cooking them today instead of yesterday, so
>> they marinated for a bit less than 24 hours--but until now, I always
>> found that the more marinating, the better. I grilled the breasts and
>> tried some, and I can't even taste the chicken, much less the
>> smoke!!!! The flavor is so intense that I have to eat slices of the
>> breasts in salad to be able to handle them.
>>
>> What's the opinion here? Am I causing these problems myself, or are
>> Raichlen's recipes too zesty for even a zest-lover like myself?
>
>
>I think those cookbook writing chefs have to make fussy recipes because
>their publishers don't think anyone will buy the books if the recipes
>aren't fussy.
>
>One of the most flavorful ways to grill a chicken breast is to shake a
>bit of granulated garlic on it and paint it up with some good quality
>Dijon mustard. Grill it over medium heat, slice and eat. It can't get
>much simpler than that, but who would pay for a recipe like that in a
>fancy cookbook written by a so-called grilling guru?
>
>Get the picture? Good. Now go grill something simple and enjoy yourself.
>
>JMTCW

Thanks, Janet. I'll try this one. :-)


Desideria