Outside the dugout: What's cooking?

5220–

I agree with Lurk on the garlic shrimp, shrimp scampi, and shrimp and grits.

It wouldn’t be the panhandle if we didn’t fry some,. We also like to grill’em on skewers basted with real butter, garlic, real lemons squeezed, and dusted with Old Bay’s.

 

There’s no wrong shrimp recipe, but the type of shrimp does matter.

And who can forget

 

Actually yes we do have low country boils-I guess I wasn’t thinking it through when I typed my first response. Shrimp, andouille sausage, corn, and potatoes. For years we always used red potatoes but a couple of years ago we changed to the Yukon Gold potatoes.

Merritt’s Mill Pond here has the best crawfish too. Spring fed pond of clear water, the crawfish are practically purged when you catch them. We do re-purge them but it doesn’t take much time. It’s just a matter of taking the time to catch enough.

We set up two sawhorses and put a sheet of 3/4” pressure treated plywood on them to make our table then add the newspaper tablecloth on. It’s always an outside affair and it pairs extremely well with col’beers!

 

You guys are the best.

 

Probably one of my favorite dishes at home is our creamy Cajun shrimp over linguine. I also have a variation of that with shrimp & andouille over penne with a few tweaks. But we generally have that during the colder months. Simple to make but very tasty.

During the summer months, when the grill becomes your kitchen 3-5 nights a week, we love grilled shrimp, andouille and vegetables with chimichurri sauce… and go that route.

Also, I gotta have my shrimp & cheese grit fix every so often. Plus I can make plain old shrimp cocktail become a meal on nights where I don’t want to cook.

When you get right down to it …we probably eat shrimp as a main course meal 20-25 time a year. And it never disappoints, regardless of how it is prepared.

 

For tonight a meatball sub. Toasted roll, with a speckle of grilled onions, a dash of shredded parm, pinch of oregano and slices of provolone on top. Potato chips, a dill pickle spear and a cool Modelo.

 

I’ve got a pot of white chicken chili simmering on the stove for our supper tonight. The recipe calls for white Cannellini beans which we use but we like the flavor of mixing in black beans as well. Finely sliced jalapeños, Sargento Tex-Mex shredded cheese, and Tortilla scoops will be available on the side.

The weather remains very pleasant up here on the mountain. A high here today of 78* with the lows predicted to be in the low-mid 60’s.

The longnecks are ice cold, the wine is chilled, and tumblers of top shelf bourbon are available.

Life is good in Gator Nation!

 

As much as I love a fresh pot of chili, I do think that the chili-cheese dogs that follow are my favorite part of a pot of chili.

 

Ok, y’all got me yesterday talking about chili. 54* here this morning, so chili it is! Our bunch likes it served over a plate of white rice and topped with Sargento shredded sharp cheddar cheese.

You are correct, the dogs and buns were also picked up for the chili cheese dogs to follow.

Beautiful day here today with a high of 71*…..

The longnecks are ice cold and the wine is chilled.

Life is good in Gator Nation!

 

Great minds a guess. I have a pot of Texas beef chili simmering right now. Close to the hour 3 mark…and ready for the bean dump. I know Texans will tell you it’s illegal to put beans in their chili …but I just have to have it mine. As long as you don’t screw up the bean/meat ratio. For the toppings, I usually go with diced onion, cheese and crackers with your traditional ground meat chili. But when having a bowl o’ red I generally go Fritos & pickled jalapeños.

My intention was to make it a day in advance for game day and just have an egg or tuna salad sandwich or something for tonight… but I am weak. I might have a test run this evening.

 

Interesting. I never used your traditional chili as a topping for hot dogs. It just didn’t seem to match. I usually make a couple of batches of Michigan dog meat sauce separately and freeze them in smaller containers.

Michigan dog sauce is a bit thinner and not chunky and is a staple here in upstate NY. The Slattery’s, who owned a very popular hot dog stand outside of Detroit back in the 20s & 30s moved here and settled up near the Plattsburgh area, up in the north country. They brought their sauce with them and it became famous in the region. Now, there are countless Dog diners or road side dog stands throughout the Adirondack region. All with slightly different variations but really good nonetheless.

 

I’m with you on the BBQ. Not really a brisket guy. Love western Carolina style pork. I can go Memphis or KC with ribs.

 

I never liked your standard cole slaw, too sweet, and I don’t get those that put celery seeds in it. But I do have to have mayo as a part of the base but use vinegar to thin it out. Add some grind up onions & dill pickle, then sprinkle some red pepper flakes. And it has to be angel hair slaw. No carrots or purple napa cabbage. Just my preference.

I put a spoon full on my pulled pork sandwiches and also top my Michigan dogs with it often. It’s been our standard slaw in my family for cookouts and such.

Also, I have to have my potato salad as a side with my pulled pork.