Cooking, grilling, baking recipes and more the Average Joe Way!

What’s for Dinner???

September 24, 2008 | Articles | By: Average Joe

Do you get asked the same question every day? What’s for Dinner? What's for Dinner? I know I do. Do you have the answer most of the time?

I usually try and plan out at least a few meals each week. However there are those busy weeks where it is just to hard to plan out all of the meals. Having a plan certainly makes life easier when making dinner. What I usually try to do is sit down on Sunday and check out all of the local supermarket ads. See where the best deals are and go to that supermarket and get some meals for the week. I usually look for a meat that is on sale and then plan a dinner around that. This week pork chops were on sale so I am planning on making pork chops this week with a potato.

When you have a meal plan you are more likely to end up making dinner at home and not falling into the dining out trap. So take some time once a week and make a meal plan. Then go to the grocery store and get everything you need to make your dinners!

Good luck!

Popularity: 7% [?]

Comments: -

The Wal-Mart Grill Stand Off!

September 22, 2008 | Articles | By: Average Joe

For the past couple months I have been in a stand off with Walmart. They have a Brinkmann gas grill that I really want. But they just won’t lower the price to that next level. It was $298 and they lowered it to $268 a couple of months ago. I have been expecting them to lower it even more but they just won’t budge! So the stand off continues.

They still have quite a few of them in stock at two local Walmarts so I feel I can continue to wait until they mark them down again. Maybe it is just because I live in Florida and there isn’t as much of a grilling season down here so they don’t mark them down as fast. Can’t figure it out but I would of expected it to come down a little bit more in price. When it does I will be there to strike and pick up a brand new grill. My old Kenmore grill is on its last leg. So hopefully it will be soon.

Come on where is the little Walmart price slashing dot when you need him!

Popularity: 8% [?]

Comments: -

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

August 12, 2008 | Pork, Recipes | By: Average Joe

Do you like pulled pork but don’t like going through the trouble of smoking it for hours and hours? Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

Perhaps you don’t have a smoker or the patience for smoking food. Well then this is the recipe for you it is easy to make fall of the bone, tender pulled pork. So easy that you will be making it all the time and your friends will think that you are a BBQ expert.

You just need a few ingredients, a pork shoulder or boston butt, some BBQ sauce and a slow cooker. With those things you will be on your way to making your very own pulled pork.

Ingredients • 3 to 4 pound bone in pork shoulder • 1 bottle barbeque sauce • 2 cloves of garlic • 1 onion • Water Items used to make this recipe • Slow Cooker (Crock Pot) • Knife • Cutting Board
Recipe
1. This is very simple. First cut up your onion and garlic. Spread out about half of your cut up onion and garlic on the bottom of the slow cooker.
2. Next take your pork shoulder and place it into the slow cooker. 3. Now it is time to put your BBQ sauce into the slow cooker, along with the rest of your onions and garlic. 4. Finally fill up the rest of the slow cooker with water til it almost covers your pork shoulder.
5. Place the lid onto the slow cooker and let it cook on low for about 6 to 8 hours. You will know your pork is ready to go when it starts to become tender and has shrunk up like the picture.
Once it has finished cooking you just need to remove the pork shoulder from the slow cooker and begin pulling the pork apart. Now you can make yourself a nice pulled pork sandwich. Enjoy!

Popularity: 10% [?]

Comments: -

Easy Grilled Salmon

May 29, 2008 | Fish, Grilling, Recipes | By: Average Joe

This past Memorial Day weekend I wanted to grill up something different that I have never done on the grill before. Grilled Salmon Salmon was on sale so I decided to give that a try on the grill.

I wanted a simple recipe so I decided on a just 3 ingredients garlic, butter, and Old Bay Seasoning. I have always been afraid to grill salmon, but it turns out that if you leave the skin on it is really simple to grill. It only takes about 10 to 12 minutes.

From now on I will be grilling my Salmon, it was very flavorful and super moist. I was unable to stop eating it.

Ingredients • 2 pounds of Salmon, skin on • 2 cloves of garlic • Butter • Old Bay Seasoning Items used to make this recipe • Gas Grill • Spatula • Knife • Garlic Press • Oil
Recipe
1. This is very simple. First spread some butter onto each Salmon Fillet. 2. Next press some garlic onto each fillet. 3. Finally, sprinkle on some Old Bay Seasoning. That’s it pretty easy!
4. Now you want to have your grill at medium high heat. Make sure your grill grates are oiled well. Now place your Salmon on the grill and close the lid. It should take about 10 to 12 minutes to grill your Salmon. But you can check for doneness by taking the temperature of each fillet. They should be at 140 degrees, and flake easily with a fork.
Mmmm, there we go some perfectly grilled Salmon! Super moist and tasty! Enjoy!

Popularity: 10% [?]

Comments: 1

Memorial Day Weekend BBQ Recipes

May 22, 2008 | Articles | By: Average Joe

Memorial Day weekend is the official start to the BBQ season. Here are some good BBQ recipes to try out over the weekend! I know I will be working on a few new grilling recipes this weekend, to put on the site. Have a nice weekend and don’t forget to pay tribute to our fallen heros.

Baby Back Ribs any one??

Baby Back Ribs - Indirect Grilling Method

Smoked Baby Back Ribs - 2-1-1 Method

Or how about a Beer Can Chicken!!!

Beer Can Chicken

Can’t forget about the Shish Kabobs!

Chicken Shish Kabobs

And last but not least, New York Strip Steak!

Grilled New York Strip Steak with Steak Rub

Go get the grill ready for a work out over the weekend!

Popularity: 8% [?]

Comments: -

Smoked Baby Back Ribs - 2-1-1 Method

May 20, 2008 | Grilling, Pork, Recipes | By: Average Joe

How about some Smoked Baby Back Ribs! If you like your ribs tender and sticky then this is the recipe for you. For this recipe I used my horizontal smoker, Smoke Baby Back Ribs the Char-Griller Smokin Pro and the 2-1-1 method for smoking ribs. You might of heard of the 3-2-1 method which is good for cooking spare ribs, they take a bit longer to cook, however for baby back ribs we only need the 2-1-1 method. The 2-1-1 method refers to the cooking times in hours for each part of the method. You want to keep your cooking temperature around 225 degrees through out this process.

2 - Cook ribs uncovered for 2 hours with smoke and heat.

1 - Wrap ribs in foil and return to the smoker and cook for 1 hour, with just heat. No need for smoke after this point. This part will steam the ribs and make them very tender.

1 - Remove the ribs from the foil and then return to the smoker to cook with just heat for 1 hour. So the ribs can continue to cook and firm up so they are not to mushy.

Ingredients • 3 racks of Baby Back Ribs • 1 bottle of your favorite BBQ Sauce • Dry Rub Used the below Rub for this Recipe Kansas City Style Rib Rub • 1/2 cup brown sugar • 1/4 cup paprika • 1 tablespoon black pepper • 1 tablespoon salt • 1 tablespoon chili powder • 1 tablespoon garlic powder • 1 tablespoon onion powder • 1 teaspoon cayenne	Items used to make this recipe • Large Serving Platter • Smoker • Knife • Cutting Board • Tongs • Paper Towels • Charcoal • Hickory Wood Chunks
Recipe
1. First of all we need to prepare our ribs. So remove them from the packaging one at a time and next we need to peel the membrane off the back of the ribs. 2. Peeling the membrane off the ribs is an important step that you do not want to skip. You will need a couple of things to do this, a sharp knife and some paper towels. 3. With the tip of your knife you want to get under the membrane covering the back of the ribs and pull it up a bit. It is sometimes easiest to try right next to one of the ribs. I always check around the rib and see if there is already a section of the membrane that has started to pull off.
4. Once you have a piece of the membrane pulled from the bone. Take a paper towel and grab the membrane and pull it off. If you are lucky you can get the whole thing at once. But that is unlikely to happen. Keep working on it until you get all of the membrane off.
5. Next you will need to mix up your rib rub. You can use the Kansas City style rib rub that I have listed above or you could purchase a rib rub from your local super market. I always make the one above and make extra and store it in an old mayonaise jar. That way I won’t have to do it next time. Once you have your rub mixed together begin rubbing it into the surface of your baby back ribs. You can apply some to both sides of the rib.
6. Now it is time to get our smoker ready to go. You will want to start your charcoal and when it has ashed over transfer them to the side fire box of your horizontal smoker. This is when a chimney starter comes in handy. you can start the coals in the chimney starter and when they are ready just dump them into your side fire box.
7. Once your smoker has reached temperature which is 225 degrees. Then place your baby back ribs onto the grill as shown. You want to maintain the temperature at 225 degrees for the entire cooking process.
8. Now it is time to add in the smoke. Open up the side fire box and throw on some hickory chunks to start the smoke process.
9. For these baby back ribs we are doing the 2-1-1 method. So we cook the ribs uncovered with smoke for the first 2 hours. Then wrap the baby back ribs in aluminum foil and let them cook for 1 hour. This method makes the ribs really tender. After the 1 hour of cooking them in the foil remove them from the foil and let them cook on the grill for 1 more hour. After the end of the 4th hour the ribs should be ready to go. You can check for doneness by how much the ribs have pulled back off of the bone. You want it to be at least a half inch or so.
10. If you like your ribs sticky then in the last 30 minutes the ribs are on the grill you can choose to sauce them with your favorite BBQ sauce.
There we go some great Smoked Tender Sticky Baby Back Ribs! Be sure to have some extra napkins on hand, you will need them. Enjoy!

For this recipe I used the Char-Griller Smokin Pro, you can check it out at Amazon.com. I highly recommend the Char-Griller Smokin Pro. It is a great smoker to start out with.

Popularity: 36% [?]

Comments: 3

Do you get your Grocery Store Ads Online?

May 15, 2008 | General | By: Average Joe

I know there are various ways that people can recieve their grocery store Ads, so this week I ask the question:

How do you receive your grocery store Ads?

Do you get them in the Mail?

Do you get them in the Newspapper?

Do you have to go into the Store?

Or do you get them on the Internet?

Not until last year did I even realize that grocery stores put there Ads online. This past year I have been looking up my grocery store ads on the Internet. It is easy and I don’t have to get my hands all black from the newspaper Ads. One of the local supermarket chains around us doesn’t distribute their Ads in the mail like two of the other local stores. So I am forced to get my Publix grocery ad online.

Here is a list of some of the stores in my area that offer online Ads.

Publix

Sweetbay

Winn Dixie

What stores in your area offer their weekly Ads online?

Popularity: unranked [?]

Comments: -

Chicken Shish Kabobs

May 9, 2008 | Chicken, Grilling, Recipes | By: Average Joe

It is time to add some color to your grill with some Chicken Shish Kabobs! A shish kabob is typically a skewer of meat and vegetables that is grilled. The fun part about Shish Kabobs is that you can make them with just about any meat or vegetable. From bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, steak, and chicken. For these Shish Kabobs I went with some chicken for the meat and a colorful array of vegetables including red, green, and purple bell peppers, and some onion. I love to eat grilled vegetables they taste very good. Read below how I made this recipe but get creative with how you want to make your Shish Kabobs!

Ingredients • 4 - 5 pounds of Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast • 1 Large Green Pepper • 2 Small Red Peppers • 2 Small Purple Peppers • 2 Spanish Onions • 2 Bottle of Lawry’s Louisiana Red Pepper Marinade (you can use any marinating sauce you would like, anything from teriyaki, Italian dressing…) Items used to make this recipe • Metal Skewers or Wood Skewers • Large Platter • Knife • Cutting Board • Grill Wok • 2 Zip Lock bags
Recipe
1. OK get ready for some prepwork. First cut up your chicken breat into bite size chunks and throw them into a zip lock bag. Then pour in enough marinade to cover all of the chicken. Place in the fridge to marinate. 2. Next cut up your bell peppers and onions into small pieces about 1 inch by 1 inch in size. Then place all of your vegetables into a zip lock bag and pour in your marinade to cover the vegetables. Place your chicken and vegetables in the fridge to marinate for at least 30 minutes. I let mine marinate over night cause I really like when the flavor soaks in.
3. After your vegetables and chicken are done marinating it is time to start kabobing them. You can do this any way that you would like but I normally do a two different vegetables and then a piece of chicken. So on and so on. Another option if you have a grill wok is to just throw them in your wok and cook everything up that way. That will save you time from having to kabob everything which can be time consuming. For this recipe I did it both ways.
4. Now you have to just grill everything up. Be sure to turn your Shish Kabobs ever now and then so that they cook evenly. On the right side of the grill you can see that I am using the grill wok. It is a major time saver. Just be sure to move everything around in the wok so that everything will cook evenly. To make sure your chicken is cooked properly you can cut open a few pieces and make sure there is no pink on the inside.
Here we go you just need to de-kabob and start eating! This is one of my favorite meals to eat cause it is fairly good for you and it is supper tasty. I really like grilled peppers on the grill. Enjoy!

Popularity: 24% [?]

Comments: -

Beer Can Chicken

May 2, 2008 | Chicken, Grilling, Recipes | By: Average Joe

Are you ready to have some Juicy and Moist Chicken? Well then give this Beer Can Chicken Recipe a try. Sometimes also known as drunken chicken, this recipe incorporates a few things to basically steam the chicken from the inside out. Making for a moist chicken which is always good! You just need a gas grill for this recipe or you could also use a charcoal grill. We basically just need to cook it using indirect heat for about 2 to 3 hours.

Ingredients • 1 - 4 pound or more Whole Chicken • 1 Can of beer • 1 Small Onion or Potato Basic Rub • 1/4 cup brown sugar • 1/4 cup paprika • 2 tablespoons black pepper • 2 tablespoons salt Items used to make this recipe • Can Opener • Beer Can Chicken Holder • Meat Thermometer • Baking Sheet or something to catch the juices	Kansas City Style Rib Rub • 1/2 cup brown sugar • 1/4 cup paprika • 1 tablespoon black pepper • 1 tablespoon salt • 1 tablespoon chili powder • 1 tablespoon garlic powder • 1 tablespoon onion powder • 1 teaspoon cayenne
Recipe
1. Preheat the grill for indirect heat. With a gas grill this is easy just turn on one side to medium. If you are using a charcoal grill you will have to move all of the coal to one side of the grill. 2. Next it is time to prep the chicken. Take your spice rub and sprinkle it over the chicken and begin to rub it in every where. You can even rub some underneath the chicken for a bit extra flavor. You can use either of the spice rubs I have provided above. Either the Kansas City style one for a bit of extra kick or the basic rub.
3. Now open up your can of beer and you only want it to be half full so drink half and enjoy. Next take a can opener and go around the edge of the can and open it up so that it is easier to pour in the rub. Pour in any remaining rub. 4. Now take the beer can and insert it into the cavity of the chicken. I used a beer can chicken stand that I got at Walmart for 4 dollars. It makes it easier and you don’t have to worry about the chicken tipping over. But if you do not have a stand just use the legs and the beer can to form a tripod to stabilize it. 5. Important step: After you have your chicken on the beer can remember to take your small onion or potato and stuff it in the top or neck area of the chicken. This will prevent the moisture from escaping.
6. Now take the chicken and place it on your baking sheet and place it on the grill over the side of the grill that is turned off. After about an hour rotate the chicken so that each side get done evenly.
7. It should take about 2 to 3 hours to cook your chicken. You can check to make sure it is done by placing your meat thermometer in the thigh of the chicken and it needs to be at 180 degrees.
There you go that is your Beer Can Chicken. Now be carefull when removing the can from the chicken remember the can and liquid inside will be hot. Once you have the can removed you can begin to carve up your chicken. Be prepared it will be juicy!!! Enjoy!

Popularity: unranked [?]

Comments: -

Grilled New York Strip Steak with Steak Rub

April 30, 2008 | Grilling, Recipes, Steak | By: Average Joe

Here is an easy recipe for making some great New York Strip Steaks on the grill. I usually marinate my steaks in Dales or Italian Dressing but this Steak Rub was so good that I think I will be using rubs for my steaks from now on.

Ingredients • 2 New York Strip Steaks • 1 Tablespoon Montreal Steak Seasoning • 1 Tablespoon Light Brown Sugar • 1 Teaspoon Onion Powder • 1/2 Teaspoon Oregano • Olive Oil Items used to make this recipe • 1 Mixing Bowl • Serving Platter • Plastic Wrap • Spatula and Fork
Recipe
1. Get out your mixing bowl and combine the four spices Montreal Steak Seasoning, light brown sugar, onion powder, and oregano. Mix them together well with a fork or a whisk.
2. Now place your steak on a serving platter or baking dish. Rub in the spices into the steaks and then place some olive oil over the rubbed in spices. Then flip the steaks over and repeat. 3. Wrap the steaks up with some plastic wrap and place them into the fridge and to marinate for at least 30 minutes. You could begin cooking them right away but if you marinate them some the flavors will really begin to take in the steak.
4. After the steaks have marinated it is time to do some grilling. Preheat the grill on high for about 10 minutes. Now when I grill I like to spread some olive oil onto the cooking grates so what ever I am cooking will not stick to the grill. 5. Grill your steak for 4 to 5 minutes on each side turning only once. Temperatures for steaks: Rare - 120 - 125 degrees Medium Rare - 125-140 degrees Medium / Medium Well - 145 - 155 degrees Well Done - 160 degrees Check out this site for more information on how to grill a steak.
That’s it a pretty easy recipe on how to make a great New York Strip steak. The wife made some Sweet Potato skillet fries to go with the steak for this meal. Sorry didn’t do a recipe for those but I will next time, cause they were very good. Enjoy!