So Many Dishes

No, I’m not splitting atoms or putting anyone in danger. The title just means that I cooked dinner on our grill, which we’ve nicknamed the nuclear reactor.

How the grill got that name is an interesting story. For Christmas of 2020, Ben and Alice decided they were going to go together for a gift for Ken and me. Alice asked what we would like, and, at first, Ken and I just shrugged. There wasn’t anything we needed. And then Ken said, “we could use a new grill.”

We’d never grilled as much as many people do in Florida, but we’ve always had a grill. We stuck to cooking with charcoal, and had a series of kettle styles grills. Despite everyone telling us of the convenience of a gas grill, we stubbornly stuck with old-school charcoal. We just figured that the kids would get us another kettle grill.

Oh, no! Ben took charge of the purchase, and ordered a combination gas and charcoal behemoth!

We knew we were in for something different when the Amazon delivery driver knocked on our door and asked where we wanted him to put the container, since it weighed well over 100 pounds. We opened the box to discover that this was an “assembly required” gift.

As I recall, the directions said that it would take two hours to assemble the grill. Two days was more like it. There were a couple of cuts on sharp metal edges, and not a little profanity. At some point in the process, Ken said, “I feel like I’m putting together a nuclear reactor.” That was it; the grill had its moniker.

Ben and his family came a week or two later, and he went with us to get a tank of propane and give us pointers on grilling with gas. One meal cooked over gas, and we were converted. The charcoal side of the grill has never been used.

We had originally planned to grill steaks tomorrow, but the forecast is for rain and thunderstorms. Definitely not grilling weather. So we changed plans and cooked on the grill last evening.

Carne asada translates as “grilled meat,” and there are many recipes for the dish. The essential idea is to marinate thin steak in a citrus and garlic based marinade, then grill at high heat. Flank steak or skirt steak is most common, but I had sirloin cap steaks that worked perfectly.

I used to recipe from South Beach Diet Taste of Summer cookbook, but really, this isn’t a recipe. I juiced two limes, added two garlic cloves that I had minced, plus salt and pepper. I let the beef marinate in the mixture for just 20 minutes, at room temperature, before grilling. I used my instant-read thermometer to check the internal temperature, and removed the steaks when they reached 130 degrees, then let them rest for about 5 minutes. They were a perfect medium rare. The recipe calls for serving them with grilled red onion slices (I drizzled a little olive oil over them before putting them on the grill), avocado slices, and fresh salsa. I made some refried beans for a side. Normally, I would also have made some yellow rice, but we had a loaf of rosemary focaccia, so i served that. It tasted good, but the rice would definitely have been a better fit. Still, it was a delicious dinner, and a great Friday night.

Happy eating!