Summers and grilling go together like peas and carrots, or any other pair that is just right in all ways possible – maybe caveman & fire? :D. Spending an afternoon around the grill is imperative in the summertime, and better yet when you’re surrounded by friends and/or family. Of course, firing up the grill doesn’t have to be for a grand blow-out. Grilling is our favorite way of cooking in the warmer months – which luckily, in Southern California, is most of the year.
The downside to most store-bought, pre-made BBQ or grilled meats is the quality of the meat and the ingredients of the sauces or marinades. You’ve got to be extra careful, looking out for corn syrup-laced sauces, soybean oil-based marinades and of course, subpar meats.
Haven’t you wished you could have a handbook to grilling with a paleo focus to avoid all these pitfalls? Well, Tony Federico has teamed up with Chef James Phelan to create just the thing with the book Paleo Grilling: A Modern Caveman’s Guide to Cooking with Fire.
There is a difference in ‘barbecuing’ and ‘grilling’ – It’s true that some of my folks back in Alabama would be quick to correct you if you said you were “barbecuing burgers” – you’re grilling…barbecue is based on smoking! There are some great little knowledge bombs in the beginning of the book – it covers the history of cooking with fire, how to use a charcoal chimney starter, what each type of grill/smoker provides and even illustrations of the types of cuts from various animals.
The recipes look so good in this book – I’m a sucker for anything grilled, not just meats or seafood – but also fruits! The book covers everything on your menu from drinks & appetizers, soups and veggies to big cuts of meat – and of course – sauces, rubs & marinades! The recipes involve using the whole animal, nose-to-tail. I’m such a firm believer in using all of parts of the animal that you can. It’s the greatest respect you can give to the animal that nourishes your body.
How about a look inside this book? Well, we’ve been given the A-OK to share a recipe with you! BUT you can’t have a recipe without meat to cook!! So, we’ve teamed up with our good friends TX Bar Organics to giveaway not only a copy of Paleo Grilling but a $50 gift card to our favorite Grass Fed Beef Supplier at Tx Bar Organics as well! To enter, head over to our Instagram page and look for our giveaway post. You’re not gonna want to miss out so get over there now!
You can buy Paleo Grilling on Amazon now!
- 1/2 lb (226.8 g) ground sirloin
- 1/2 lb (226.8 g) ground chuck
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon (3 g) garlic, minced
- ½ medium white onion, minced
- Fresh ground black pepper
- Sea salt
- Iceberg lettuce for “buns”
- ]1 head of iceberg lettuce
- 8 slices bacon
- 2 eggs
- ½ medium white onion, thinly sliced
- ½ cup (118 ml) “bread and butter” pickles
- 2 tablespoons (30ml) Paleo Mayo
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) yellow mustard
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) Ketchup
- In a large bowl, combine the ground sirloin, ground chuck, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, and minced onion. Crack in a generous amount of fresh black pepper and season with a good pinch of sea salt. Combine the mixture well and form into two patties.
- Get your grill nice and hot and, using a cast iron skillet, fry up the strips of bacon until they are crispy. Remove the bacon and use the bacon fat to fry the sliced onions. The onions should take about 20 minutes to get really caramelized, so you can cook your burgers during this time.
- Cook the burgers on direct high heat. Whatever you do, don’t press on them with your spatula. Pressing on burgers only squeezes out the juice which is a stupid thing to do if you want a juicy burger. Flip the burgers after 4-5 minutes and cook for an additional 4-5 minutes or less if you want them on the rare side.
- When the burgers are done cooking, put them on a plate to rest. The reason for this is the same as for resting a steak, it lets all the juices redistribute into the meat, keeping them from immediately running out when you take your first bite. Remove the caramelized onions from the skillet and use the remaining fat in the pan to fry up the eggs.
- Prepare the “buns” by cutting the head of lettuce in half, removing several layers of the largest leaves. A single layer of lettuce will wilt and won’t hold up to the heat and heft of the burger, so use several more layers than you think you need. Place a piece of parchment paper down and put a stack of iceberg lettuce leaves on top of it. Put down the burger patty and dress with Paleo Mayo, Ketchup, and mustard. Add pickles and bacon on top of the condiments, saving the fried egg for the very top. Cap the burger with another stack of iceberg lettuce leaves. Use the parchment paper to wrap the burger up, folding the paper first from the bottom and then from the sides. Repeat this process for the second burger and high five your dining partner. Start eating and don’t look back until you’ve destroyed all the evidence.
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