What? Hot dogs in a fresh tomato salad? Well, that’s how my mom got me to eat tomatoes when I was a kid. I didn’t really like tomatoes then, but I was more than happy to sit down with a bowl of this hot dog tomato salad.
The key for me was to eat everything BUT the hot dogs first. This left the best part, hot dogs sitting in a great vinegary and oniony dressing. The dogs would soak up a bit of the vinegar and taste unlike any hot dog I’d ever had. Add strangely enough, I would drink up the remaining dressing. Odd, huh?
This Is A Childhood Favorite Of Mine
As much as it might sound a little odd, this is a great salad. You can leave out the hot dogs if you like, but I highly recommend adding them. Believe it or not, hot dogs and tomatoes go great together!
What? Hot dogs in a fresh tomato salad? Well, that’s how my mom got me to eat tomatoes when I was a kid. I didn’t really like tomatoes then, but I was more than happy to sit down with a bowl of this hot dog tomato salad.
Wow, what a great sandwich. You know something is great when you both bite into it at the same time, then look up at each other, and smile. No one has to say a word. You know it. It’s the best sausage sandwich you’ve ever had. This cedar-planked sausage sandwich is it.
Perfectly Tasty Juicy Sausage
First, the Polish sausage is so tender and juicy, with just a hint of cedar. Then, there’s the sweet kraut that is full of caramelized onion flavor and also a hint of cedar. And finally, the kicker, the Sriracha mustard sauce brings the heat and seals the deal. This cedar-planked sausage sandwich is fantastic.
A Hint Of Cedar
This was the first time I’d cooked sausages on cedar. I know some folks don’t like the aroma or flavor of cedar, but I’ve found that if you don’t over char the planks it’s not that overwhelming, adding that little something different to every dish you cook on it. I love it.
Wow, what a great sandwich. You know something is great when you both bite into them at the same time, then look up at each other, and smile. You don’t have to say a word. You know it. It’s the best sausage sandwich you’ve ever had. This cedar-planked sausage sandwich is it.
Soak cedar planks in water for at least 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large sauce pan over medium-high heat.
Stir in the sugar and let dissolve.
Add the onions, stir often, and caramelize, about 20 minutes. Do not rush them.
Add in the kraut, stir and let simmer 5-10 minutes.
Fire up your grill. Place the planks over the fire and let them get lightly charred on one side.
Flip planks and add the sausages and kraut.
Grill until the sausages are fully cooked, 15-20 minutes.
Lightly toast the buns, if desired. Top with the cooked sausages, kraut mixture, and a healthy serving of Sriracha mustard sauce. Add top bun and serve.
Notes
Feel free to substitute your favorite kind of sausage.
I grilled up a great batch of cedar-planked spicy shrimp the other day. They were perfect in a big Cobb salad. I didn’t want a wimpy dressing to tone down the kick from the shrimp. Since avocados were in season and on sale, I grabbed a few ripe ones and made this incredibly easy spicy avocado salad dressing.
Refreshingly Delicious
This spicy avocado salad dressing is reminiscent of guacamole. In fact, it’s thick enough that you can also use it as a spread on sandwiches or wraps, or even as a dip for chips or vegetables. If you find it to be too thick you can thin it with some milk or buttermilk. Or just add a bit more sour cream.
You can leave out the jalapeno if you like and still have a great dressing that won’t scare your non-heat-loving friends off.
Check out my new site, Dress My Salad, for more great salad dressing ideas!
These little sauce dipping cups are great for serving salad dressings. They keep me from over-dressing my salads, which is something I’m prone to do since I’m a dressing-aholic. They’re easy to clean up, too. And they’re also great for dipping nuggets, tenders or even chicken wings.
I love making and eating Cobb salads, specially in the summer when there are so many great ingredients to choose from. Check out my smoked chicken Cobb and my southwestern Cobb salads. They are all great!
Place all but the salt and pepper into a blender and pulse until smooth.
Season with salt and pepper and pulse a few more times.
If you have any leftover dressing place it in a container and place a piece of plastic wrap directly over it, contacting the dressing without any gaps.
I normally smoke whole, bone-in turkey breasts on my smoker. Sometimes bone-in breasts are a little hard to find, so that’s when I grab a few frozen boneless breasts from Butterball instead. In fact, lucky me, they were on sale last week, so I grabbed six (I smoked three, and kept the other three in the freezer for later use). It really doesn’t get much easier than these Cajun smoked Boneless turkey breasts. You don’t have to worry about them drying out since they are already ‘pumped’. That is, they have already been injected with a brining solution. And they stay tender too.
It’s So Easy!
I just rub them down with my favorite rub or seasoning, let them sit in the fridge overnight, then toss them on my smoker for a few hours. No basting is needed, no injecting, no nothing. They’re done when they hit 165 F.
Perfect Turkey
I chopped two of the Cajun smoked boneless turkey breasts into cubes for use on salads. This turkey is perfect on salads. I divide the chunks up among 5 or so containers. Any time I want salads for lunch for a few days in a row, I grab one out of the freezer the night before. The next day I’m chowing down on a great smoky turkey salad.
I prefer to use fruit or nut woods when I smoke unless I want a heavier smoke flavor. Pecan, apple or cherry are my favorites. I used pecan for these turkeys.
I thin-sliced the remaining breast for use on sandwiches. My copycat of Applebee’s Clubhouse Grille and copycat of Denny’s club sandwich were fantastic!
It really doesn’t get much easier than these Cajun smoked Boneless turkey breasts. You don’t have to worry about them drying out and they are super tender to boot!
Hot dogs should never get boring. I make them often, especially during the nicer weather months of the year. Fortunately, it takes very little effort to transform a normal dog into something fantastic. These Stroganoff hot dogs combine grilled onions and mushrooms with a creamy sauce and fresh toppings. For easy outdoor cooking, cook the onions and mushrooms on the same grill you cook the dogs on, using a vegetable basket or griddle.
No Boring Hot Dogs Here
A nice Italian sausage or bratwurst can be substituted for hot dogs for an even more amazing dish. But using a regular, good ole dog will still make for an outstanding Stroganoff hot dog!
If you prefer to make your dogs in the air fryer, go for it! No matter how you cook them, try my little ‘trick’ for hot dog greatness. Cut a shallow slit down one edge of the dog before cooking. As it cooks, the dog will open up slightly. When you put it on the bun, put it in cut-side up. That’ll give the toppings a place to settle into instead of sliding off!
I’ve been on a cedar-planking cooking theme lately. I rather enjoy the flavor and aroma that grilled cedar produces. Cooking on cedar planks takes not much longer than cooking directly on the grill grates, and well, it looks cool. To mix things up, I have also been known to cook on maple planks. I needed some spicy shrimp for a Cobb salad I was going to serve for dinner the other night. Shrimp are so easy and fast to grill.
Nice And Spicy
These cedar-planked spicy grilled shrimp came out perfect, with plenty of spice (I added much more cayenne than the recipe states. If you like heat like I do, you should add more too!) and a beautiful color.
You can chill these cedar-planked spicy grilled shrimp for salads or shrimp cocktail, or serve them hot off the grill as a great main dish.
Shrimp are so easy and fast to grill. These cedar-planked spicy grilled shrimp came out perfect, with plenty of spice (I added much more cayenne than the recipe states. If you like heat like I do, you should add more too!) and a beautiful color.
Note: This recipe was developed using the Char-Broil Big Easy Oil-Less Fryer. If you are cooking using the Char-Broil Smoker-Roaster Grill you should cook with the lid open and the temperature set to High. You might also need to adjust the cooking time.
I don’t have to have my arm twisted to make and eat crab legs. Ever. I love them. So whenever wild-caught Alaskan king crab is on sale, I grab some legs and claws. My wife’s not such a big fan of crab (well, she is a fan of the crab meat, it’s the sight of the crab appendages that doesn’t appeal to her), so I saved these crab legs made on the Char-Broil Big Easy for my own mid-week lunch.
Fast. And Crazy Good.
You can’t find something easier and more delicious than Crab Legs on the Char-Broil Big Easy. The legs from the grocery store were pre-cooked, but frozen, so I let them thaw overnight in the fridge. Cook time on the Big Easy was almost nothing. In no time I was enjoying fabulous roasted crab legs. You can use this same approach with snow crab legs, but expect a much quicker cooking time.
I don’t have to have my arm twisted to make and eat crab legs. Ever. I love them. So whenever wild-caught Alaskan king crab is on sale, I grab some legs and claws.
3poundscrab legsand claws, cooked (if frozen, thaw overnight in the fridge first). I used Alaskan King Crab. You can use snow crab too, but you might want to shorten the cooking time.
Note: If your legs are too long to fit in the Big Easy basket, just take a sharp knife and split them.
Fire up your Big Easy.
Squeeze a little lemon juice into some olive oil and brush the legs and claws.
Place legs and claws in the Big Easy basket along with the remaining lemons (halved first).
Place basket in the Big Easy and cook for 6 minutes. Larger legs or more legs might take longer. I pulled a small leg out after 6 minutes for a quick test and found it to be perfect.
Serve hot with the roasted lemons and clarified butter for dipping.
Notes
Be careful removing the crab legs from the Big Easy, they and the basket will be hot to the touch!
I’m finding that stuffed mushrooms are becoming more and more a regular part of my grill outs. They’re incredibly easy to make, and you can stuff them with just about anything, from in-season fresh vegetables to pork chorizo. You can cook these cedar-planked chorizo portobellos directly on the grill. The filling has a great spiciness to it, reminiscent of a southwestern Sloppy Joe with a creamy cheese topping and a little hint of cilantro.
Great As Main Dishes. And As Side Dishes.
I used large mushrooms when I made these cedar-planked chorizo portobellos. Our local grocery store sells them in 2- and 4-packs as ‘grill caps’. They’re the perfect size for 2 or 4 people each, depending on what you use for stuffing. People often buy them and use them as meat substitutes in burgers.
I don’t like to over-char my cedar planks, which increases the aroma and flavor of the cedar. I like just a hint of cedar. Just something different.
You can cook these cedar-planked chorizo portobellos directly on the grill. The filling has a great spiciness to it, reminiscent of a southwestern Sloppy Joe with a creamy cheese topping and a little hint of cilantro.
Fire up your grill for direct and indirect cooking.
Meanwhile, lightly brush the mushrooms on both sides with oil.
Place on grill, gill-side up, over direct heat for 3 minutes. Remove and let cool slightly while the plank continues to soak.
Transfer portobellos to the plank.
Spoon pork chorizo stuffing into mushroom tops.
Place on grill over indirect heat and cook for 15 minutes. Check often to make sure the plank doesn’t catch fire. If it does, just blow on it or spritz it with a little water to extinguish.
Add the cheese and cook another 5 minutes or until melted.
Sprinkle with chopped cilantro and serve.
Notes
Add a little diced jalapeno to the stuffing mixture for a nice kick!
I was hankerin’ for some tender, almost-fall-off-the-bone smoked ribs, and lo and behold, spareribs were on sale at our grocery store. So I grabbed a few racks, trimmed them up St. Louis-style and started contemplating how I was going to cook them. Normally, it means an overnight rub down with some Memphis rib rub, then onto my Weber Smokey Mountain smoker using the 3-2-1 cooking method. This time, I decided to try a copycat of Famous Dave’s rib rub (the one they use in the restaurants for making their totally outstanding ribs) and cook the ribs low-and-slow for 6 hours.
The Perfect Rib Rub
This copycat Famous Dave’s rib rub is outstanding. It has a little heat, a little sweet, and a little saltiness. And celery seeds, which I think are just about required in any rub. And just a hint of cloves, which I don’t think I’ve seen in a rub before. I ended up liking the flavor from them much more than I thought I would. It’s amazingly complex, and oh so good.
Although I sauced my ribs, I easily could’ve eaten them ‘dry’, without sauce. I cannot wait to use this same rub on a pork butt in the very near future. With just one cook it has become my go-to rub.
This copycat Famous Dave’s rib rub is outstanding. It has a little heat, a little sweet, and a little saltiness. And celery seeds, which I think are just about required in any rub.
Note: This recipe was developed using the Char-Broil Big Easy Oil-Less Fryer. If you are cooking using the Char-Broil Smoker-Roaster Grill you should cook with the lid open and the temperature set to High. You might also need to adjust the cooking time.
Warning: The term ‘sticky’ is a tremendous understatement when it comes to describing these Wicked Sticky wings made on the Char-Broil Big Easy. Think sticky molasses, and then think stickier. Don’t spill the sauce (like someone I know might have done) or you will be cleaning counter tops and sinks and what-not for days. Trust me. Now, on to the wings…
These wings are crazy good. Wicked heat. Sticky sweet. I made them crispy style on my Char-Broil Big Easy, but you can make them anyway you like, from smoking them to deep frying them. It’s the sauce that shines here, and boy is it messy great. Wicked sticky wings are called that for a reason.
I went simple with the dipping sauce for these wings. Just straight-out-of-the-bottle chilled Ranch dressing. Nothing fancy, just something to offset the kick of the sauce just a bit.
These wings are crazy good. Wicked heat. Sticky sweet. It’s the sauce that shines here, and boy is it messy great. Wicked sticky wings are called that for a reason.
