The wife had a particularly good day at work, so we decided to celebrate at Trio Grill. I ordered a sunset in Brazil cocktail. It was pretty dang good. I don’t think I’ve ever had a cocktail that wasn’t excellent at Trio.
I ordered the rack of lamb. Its cooked Sous-vide to your liking, and then finished on the grill. I wouldn’t say this is my favorite meal, but its pretty far up there. I’ve had it at least four times now. Each time I go to Trio, I try to branch out, but then I starting thinking about how good the lamb is… The fried brussels sprouts are an excellent compliment. My wife opted for the waygu flat iron topped with foraged mushrooms. Also amazing.
Trio also has an outdoor cigar lounge, but it was a little humid out this evening. When I went for the opening, I did enjoy a nice stick and a few drinks, so I can definitely recommend Trio as one of the few places in the area to enjoy a stogie.
If you’re in the Merrifield area, give Trio a try.
by rsiv withAfter getting back from Cuba, I stumbled across a recipe for Hemingway’s favorite burger. Its pretty involved by current American backyard grilling standards. Even though I don’t have someone to fry one up for me, I was excited to give one a try. I invited some friends over, poured some Spanish wine, and got cookin’.
My interpretation of the original document, recipe linked above, and a few other sources provided below (I doubled the recipe to make Hemingway sized burgers):
1 lb lean ground beef
2 oz. sliced ham, minced
⅓ cup dry red wine
¼ cup grated cheddar
2 tbsp. capers, drained
2 tbsp. grated tart apple
1 tbsp. minced parsley
1½ tsp. ground sage
1½ tsp. India relish
½ tsp. Beau Monde seasoning
2 cloves garlic, minced garlic, minced
2 small scallions, minced
1 egg, beaten
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
If a recipe calls for 1 teaspoon Mei Yen Powder, use 2/3 tsp of the dry recipe (above) mixed with 1/8 tsp of soy sauce.
While I fixed up the burgers, Ryry made HW and me a julep. If you’re looking to be more authentic, maybe try a Hemingway Tom Collins.
The burgers turned out great. I highly recommend the recipe. To celebrate our success, we broke out the pipes, and had some real talk.
More info here and full recipe here, and another blogger recreated the burger here.
If you liked this post, search, “Hemingway” in my search bar to find more posts about his writing, recipes, and my trip to his house in Cuba.
***UPDATE:
After talking with Ryry and HW about how to improve when I fried up the leftovers, I tried toasting the bun in butter in the pan, and then spreading a little mayo on the bun. It was a marked improvement, and definitely worth trying, after trying the authentic version.
by rsiv withAfter the US v Portugal match, I had a lot of leftovers, both as far as food goes, and in the World Cooler ™. I enjoyed the beer and kebabs for lunch throughout the week. I was also turned on to Girard’s Champagne salad dressing. Definitely give it a try.
I took a few lunch breaks in the hot tub during the world cup. Its only once every four years, and my leisure time is about to be severely compromised, so who can blame me?
It was cool enough one night to enjoy some al fresco dining. Later in the week, we watched US v Germany at a fairly new bar, BJ’s Brewhouse in Tysons. The food was just ok, but the beer was decent, and the TVs were huge.
My grill gave out after 6 years of service, and was not able to be repaired. My dad had a grill he wasn’t using, since he just got a new one. I hired some day laborers to load and unload it from my truck, and get it up on my porch. Here is a mini-guide to hiring day laborers, based on my lessons learned: First and foremost, safety first. I kept pepper spray in my pocket, despite being able-bodied and in my prime. I’d also bring a buddy if possible. Negotiate time and cost up front. I made the mistake of only suggesting an hourly rate. When the laborers found out how brief the work was, they were not happy, as they were pulled away from other potential employers who would have bigger jobs. I think things would have gone more smoothly if I explained exactly what we were doing, and about how long it would take. I over-estimated the time it would take, and they demanded payment for the duration of my estimation. Essentially, I paid them for an hour, despite only utilizing their services for 30 minutes. That was no big deal for me, but could be problematic for you if you’re spending more/on a tight budget. Bring water. I had some water in my truck, and they were very appreciative. Hide your valuables. I went through the truck, and removed anything of value from the seat backs, door containers, center console, etc. All the guys I hired seemed very nice and honest, but better safe than sorry. Have cash. Also have the amount you expect to pay out ready, so you don’t have to fumble around in your wallet for it. Finally, bone up on some spanish. I managed to learn/remember how to say, twenty dollars an hour, inside the truck, the grill, and thank you. Google translate will help you if you forget.
After moving the grill, its gotten lots of good use. We broke her in with some steaks, and later made nachos and fish tacos.
We also went to a baby shower. I loaded up my tables, tent, and chairs, and we hit the road. The ladies stayed at the house and did God knows what, while the dudes went to Adventure Brewing Company in F-rock. Kenny Powers made an appearance. After the shower, we went to my buddy’s house to meet his new lady friend.
Wendell made another great breakfast (despite his opinion), I made some great drinks, and the new lady made a great impression. Unfortunately, Winn-Dixie whipped up another batch of fresh unseeded fried jalapenos with siracha dipping sauce… Burn out my tumtum once, shame on you. Burn out my tumtum twice (more like a whole mess of times, pun intended)…
Then for the USA v Belgium game we went to Mad Fox Brewing in FCC. We got there about an hour and a half early, and it was pretty empty. We were able to leisurely order a sampler, and wait for the game to start. The place started to fill up as it got close to kickoff. It was a great place to watch the game, but unfortunately, the match was a heartbreaker. We were so sad about being 2 down that we went home before the end, and caught the Green goal in extra time at our house. We almost wished we hadn’t left until time finally ran out with us still down a goal. I really thought we could win that one, and we were a plenty good enough team. The only thing I have to look forward to now (despite lots of good matches left), is my #2 team, Argentina, taking on Belgium this weekend. Hopefully, we can get some revenge. Soccer does seem to be catching on a little in the mainstream which is pretty cool. My generation is the first to really play soccer on a large scale, or be able to watch soccer regularly on TV. Back when my dad started coaching my soccer team, he had to go to a library to get books on soccer to learn the game (pre interwebs, pre soccer on tv, at least 6 years before DC United was founded). It will be exciting to see soccer advance, and hopefully, it will result in a World Cup win in my lifetime.
by rsiv withI invited some friends over to my parents place for the USA v. Portugal match. I bought the fixins for some drinks, and some kebabs, and tivo’d the matches just to be safe.
We decided to start with a glass of Madiera, light up a cigar, and retire to the hot tub.
It was a beautiful day, and not overly hot. I grabbed a grilling beer from the World Cooler, and got the grill hot.
The food turned out great. Then it was time to watch the game. I fixed up some white port and tonic, cut a few lemons, and we turned on the projector. It was an awesome game, and despite the group’s small size, but perhaps because of the group’s predilection for booze, it was a very enthusiastic viewing. We all went pretty bananas for the US goals.
by rsiv withI’ve been busy enjoying the weather, and the lead up to the World Cup. The other day, my boy RyRy told me about instacart, and how they just teamed up with Magruders (Magrubers for Ry). I can now get home delivery of booze from the best liquor store in DC, which is a game changer (and very dangerous for my wallet and health). I gave it a try the day I found out about it, and was sipping the best gin and tonic I’ve ever had just a few short hours later.
We watched my home video footage of Cuba the other night, and enjoyed some Cuban-ish sandwiches, mojitos, and cuba libres.
I also had steak, stogie, and sauce night over at RyRy’s. For the uninitiated (which is everyone who is not in my inner circle as we invented it), S^3 is when you get the guys (and sometimes gals) together to grill out and enjoy life. Ryan hosted, and made some killer pork chops. I fashioned some extra julep straws, and brought the julep fixings. The mason jar has some mixed berry moonshine. Now call up your buds and have your own S^3.
We also went to another Nats game. Go Nats!
by rsiv withI went to total wine to get some beer for Father’s Day, and ending up getting just about enough beer to fill a World Cooler (trademark me) to get us through all the games until Sunday. I had a Brazilian beer (Xingu, a delicious black lager), and then some tequila (shown above) for the first two games. The first game I got to watch with my dad was Spain v. Netherlands. What a game. Then, instead of beer, we went with Sauv Blanc for Chile v. Australia. The choice in drinks had more to do with convenience/taste preference than which team we were rooting for.
After a break for some La Caraqueña and a caipirinha, and a trip to the butcher for some 100 day dry aged bone-in ribeye, we got back to soccer.
I added some more ice to the World Cooler, and then gave my dad some of his Father’s Day presents.
The ball shown above generates power during play, and then can be used as a reading lamp after. For every one you buy, they donate one to kids who do not have power, and therefore, no light to read by at night. We kicked it around until we were sufficiently embarrassed, and then enjoyed some more matches and beer. On the actual day of Father’s Day, we started with some milky, opalescent, absinthe. We salted the steaks, and got the grill hot. France and Argentina had games that day, so the wine was flowing (La Albiceleste are my #2 team).
The steaks were insane, and good times were had by all. After Father’s Day, my boozing streak came to an end when I was at the dentist, and then working, while Germany played Portugal. I had some white port and tonic ready, but was too busy to enjoy any. I wish I’d seen and boozed though that game, but Nigeria v. Iran would have ruined the streak anyway. The wife and I were able to get to Laughing Man in DC for the American Outlaws viewing of USA v. Ghana. It was so much fun/so crazy, we might go back for USA v. Portugal.
by rsiv withA couple years ago, a friend of mine got a book about grilling. In it (link at the bottom), it suggested putting meat directly on the coals as a very (very) old school way of grilling steak. We tried it, and the steaks came out great. I don’t do it often, but my gas grill has a leak that I have yet to address, and I had some all natural charcoal left over from smoking, so I decided to clinch some steaks. I assume the term clinching comes from the fact that the coals stick (clinch) to the steak, even when turned. This is a great method for when your grill is broken, but its also great for camping, or even cooking in your fireplace.
I was at whole foods, so I got some dry aged beef. My wife is pregnant, so I started hers in the oven to ensure it was at least medium (doctor’s orders), while I threw my on raw, hoping for medium rare (or rarer).
When you clinch, you always get a good charred crust on the outside, even if the steak is still rare on the inside. This time, I ended up with medium rare in the center, more like medium on the ends, but it was good none the less. I also threw the lettuce directly on the coals for about 15 seconds per side, in order to get a little char on them as well.
I enjoyed a nice bottle of wine, and a custom rolled cigar from Cigar World in McLean. The weather was great, and the meal was delicious.
Edit:
Found a video, and the original book here. Don’t bother with all that hair dryer business. Keep it simple like I did.
by rsiv withAll I had on the agenda this Sunday was smoking some ribs. I woke up this morning to Sunderland v Cardiff on the DVR. This is the last game I’m able to watch this season, as I’ll be in Cuba with no internet access for the remaining three games. Sunderland is still at risk of relegation, but currently outside the relegation zone. If I was going to be in town, I would not miss a single second.
I bought my dad a smoker for xmas, and he said he wanted to have some ribs on Sunday. We’ve smoked before, but he wanted to see the process again so he could do it on his own. He had Nationals tickets on Sunday and couldn’t be there to see my process first hand, so I figured I’d write up the steps so he can read it in case he wants to smoke solo. I hope its of help to you as well. I’m no expert, but that means anyone can do it. Here are two more resources to get you going (click here and here).
A lot of people have been finding my site by searching for House of Cards related material. I figured I’d give this post a HOC slant to see if I can’t generate some more traffic. Frank Underwood is from SC, but the ribs hes seen eating look to be covered in a sweeter tomato based sauce not typical of his region. FU would more likely prefer South Carolina mustard based sauce or maybe even North Carolina vinegar based sauce (see link below for more detail). I’ll give y’all my NC style sauce recipe. I don’t like mustard sauce, but my wife loves it. I did find a good SC mustard sauce at the store, which my wife found to be delicious. Mostly, I’ll explain how to make your own Freddy’s ribs (spoiler alert), now that DIY is your only way to get them. I found a great resource on the details about Freddy’s ribs here.
This post contains instructions for a basic smoke with no preparation. I went shopping right before smoking. Nothing was brined, marinated, or required any extra time or effort. The prep time for the smoker and ribs was about 15 minutes total. My cook time was 4.5 hours, but as you’ll see below, its a leisurely 4.5. My goal with this post is to show everyone the easiest way to learn to smoke ribs. Once you get the basics down, the sky is the limit.
To start, you need to buy a Weber Smokey Mountain smoker (not the smallest one). Its the best of the best, and if you don’t believe me, do a little research and check the amazon reviews. I have a fraternity brother that does competition smoking, and the WSM is what he and his competitors use.
First we went to Balduccis to get the baby backs. I love a place with a real butcher.
Using a smoker is much easier than you’d think. First you get some charcoal started in a chimney. I’m a proponent of the minion method, which basically just means you put the hot coals in the center of some cold charcoal, and let it burn from the inside out to keep the temperature constant throughout the smoke. When you add wood, I used apple and hickory, you don’t need to soak it. Just add 6-8 pieces for a 4-6 hour smoke. 4 hours is about all you need for ribs. I don’t even use a meat thermometer when I do ribs. Thats how easy it is, and how hard to mess up. I like to use some water in the water pan, but experts are pretty split on the issue. I get a good bark even with water, and it keeps things moist, so I don’t see any drawbacks (google for more info). Then you just put the middle and lid of the smoker back on, and you’re in business. The temp will creep up, and if you hold steady anywhere between 220 and 250 degrees, you’re golden. You adjust temp using the air vents. I start about about a quarter open, and slowly open them up until I’m in the smoke zone. You want to start by adjusting the top vent, and then if you have to, adjust the lower vents. Small adjustments are key.
Once the grill is set, you need to get the meat on. Plain mustard provides a great adhesive surface for a dry rub. The mustard really doesn’t change the flavor profile, so don’t worry about that. I do have a favorite rub, but I just found this one at the grocery store today. Stubbs is pretty easy to find, and it was pretty good. Once I got the dry rub on the ribs, I put them on a rack (optional), and started smoking them.
Next I started on a carolina style bbq sauce. I followed the previous link fairly loosely. I used about a cup and a half of apple cider vinegar, and another cup and a half of distilled white vinegar. Then I poured a little bbq sauce in. I also shook in some of the dry rub. Thats really all there was to it, and it turned out great. Once the flavors meld a little, it will be even better.
If anyone reading this thinks smoking ribs looks difficult, I’ve included the following to show you just had hard it really is… While smoking, I decided to compare Maker’s Mark to Virginia Gentleman. I poured a glass of each. I really had to concentrate to pick a favorite. They’re both very drinkable. The Maker’s is more complex, and has a slightly better nose. I really expected more of a difference between the two. I’ve never been a huge Maker’s fan. For mixing, I’m going with the gentleman. For drinking straight, see my other brown sauce posts for my favorites. I also had a Fuente Hemingway short story maduro. If you’re a cigar guy, you may know what I mean when I say sometimes a cigar is just on. Perfect age, humidity, etc. Everything was right with this one, and it was a wonderful smoke. Its one of my favorites.
Putting in a hard days work…
I enjoyed the spring day. But I did monitor the temp a few times. It was pretty easy with my remote display. I really can’t stress enough how easy it is to learn to use a smoker. Especially with ribs, you can get a good result your first time, and then really fine tune your abilities without much investment. Don’t be afraid to take it up as a new hobby.
My parents got home from the Nationals game, and my dad and I watched the Wizards in the playoffs on the DVR. Once the ribs had been on about 4 hours, I pulled them off, put them in tin foil, and dressed them. I put a store bought bbq sauce on one, butter, and dark brown sugar. On the other rack, I mopped on the homemade vinegar based sauce, added a little butter, and even a sprinkle of brown sugar. I topped it with another quick shake of the dry rub. Then I put them back on the smoker, and let it run a little hotter. After 30 minutes the sauces had caramelized, and the ribs looked amazing.
Carolina Style:
Store bought bbq:
Then we looked over the details about our upcoming trip to Cuba.
It was a great, relaxing day. I hope my instructions inspire you to give smoking a try. It really is easy. A lot of sites will overwhelm you with detail. Take it from me, you do not need to be detail oriented to make great ribs. I really think most people can turn out better ribs than most restaurants just by following my directions. Just check out some youtube videos, and my links, and you’ll be able to end up with some really amazing ribs.
by rsiv withOn Easter Sunday, we waited until day of to go get some steak. We struck out at the first two butchers we went to. Fortunately, Balduccis had plenty, and a real butcher on duty to cut our ribeyes to order.
The steak and wine was a big hit. I sabered some champagne, which didn’t work out as well as it generally does. I’d like to blame it on the bottle, but perhaps I was a little over zealous. Regardless, its the only way to open champagne.
by rsiv with
The wife went out to do some volunteering. I decided to light up the 2012 CA cigar of the year, the Fleur De Las Antillas Toro. I thought it was good, but not CA #1 of the year good. It had these bursts of white pepper I didn’t particularly enjoy, but the first and last third were very agreeable.
I said I’d grill up a T-Bone, so I figured why wait. I didn’t feel like standing out in the snow, so I threw it in the pan. Got a good sear on both sides, left it about rare, and just salted it, and shook a few peppers on it. I also made some creamed spinach with mushrooms, shallots, garlic, and onion. The t-bone was good, but it was no ribeye.
by rsiv with