The Leader • Saturday, June 29, 2019 • Page 1B
Backyard BBQ: Area grilling enthusiast shares secrets Zarah Parker Managing Editor
There’s nothing like getting in the backyard and grilling or smoking meat to take William Bibb’s mind off his job in the oil and gas industry. Bibb and his wife, Cherie, who live in Oak Forest, were raised in the south. Bibb grew up in Baytown and his wife is from Louisiana, which for them meant food played a central part in fellowship with friends and family. “Pretty much everything we grew up doing revolved around not only great food but preparing that good food with the ones you love and enjoy being around,� Bibb said. “That being said, I love entertaining and grilling for our friends and family because I feel like I’ve taken that tradition and kept it going.� The running family joke is that Cherie married him because her father and Bibb are just alike when it comes to going over the top when they cook for others. They both have a lot of tools -- or “toys� as Bibb calls them – and always cook much more than is needed. “Him and I have the same fear when hosting people, not having enough of anything for our guests,� Bibb said. “The
result is that we always cook way too much but our guests get to go home with a lot of leftovers.� For Bibb, part of cherishing that tradition of building memories around food is being able to pass on grilling knowledge to other people. Bibb said the more people he has hovering around the pit bonding and taking notes while he cooks, the better. “I love it when I’m cooking for a group of people and they ask questions on what I’m doing and trying to learn the how and why of the process,� Bibb said. “It’s even better when they send you (pictures) of what they put together with your advice at their own homes.� Anytime of the year is a good time to get the backyard and grill, according to Bibb. It doesn’t need to be a holiday such as the Fourth of July. “There are a lot of Fridays where all the neighbors have had a grueling week and we all gather at our house to grill good food, have a cocktail and watch the Astros on the patio,� Bibb said. “Just a couple of weeks ago was one of our neighbor’s birthday and she is a fan of my smoked baby back ribs, so we had several neighbors over and had a Sunday dinner to celebrate her birthday.� An avid hunter, Bibb’s favorite type of meat to grill or smoke is wild game. He
Contributed photo Oak Forest resident and grilling enthusiast William Bibb grills chicken to perfection.
loves having people over that may be wary of trying certain meats, such as white-tailed deer, duck, geese, Sandhill crane or whatever else he might have in his freezer at that time, and then watching their reaction when they try it for the first time and end up loving it. Bibb said a close second to wild game is grilling steak. Over the years he’s discovered new techniques to get a better result. The first technique is to go to your local meat market and ask them to cut a 3- to 4-pound piece of prime loin and trim it. Then season the meat with fresh-cracked salt and pepper and let it rest and warm up until it’s close to room temperature. Get your grill as hot as you can and sear
the steak, rotating it to get all sides. Once the salt and pepper develop a crust, put the steak on a cooler part of grill for the remainder of the cooking time. Once the steak gets to about 118 degrees, take it off and let it rest for about 10 minutes before handling. “You will have the perfect medium rare filet and because it’s prime grade it melts in your mouth,� Bibb said. The second technique that Bibb has is similar to how many steakhouses cook steaks. First, buy the cut you prefer of prime-grade individual steaks and let them rest to room temperature, then season them with fresh-cracked salt and pepper. Next, on an outdoor burner heat a black cast iron skillet as hot as you can and place butter and a sprig of
fresh rosemary in it. Once the butter is hot, place the steaks in the skillet and leave it alone for 3-4 minutes depending on their thickness. Then flip the steaks to the other side and, while cooking, use a spoon to baste steaks with the butter mixture for 3-4 minutes. Cook it to medium rare and then pull it off the heat and let the steak rest 10 minutes. “This process of using a blazing-hot skillet sears the steak to trap the juices into the meat and the butter adds a lot of flavor,� Bibb said. The type of grill or smoker he uses depends on how he wants to cook that day. For easy or quick grilling, he’ll use a standard six-burner propane grill he got from Lowe’s that has a sear station. “My charcoal Weber is used when I have time to get the coals right and all because I think everything tastes better cooked on charcoal compared to propane,� Bibb said. When he has all day and is cooking a lot of meat, he’ll use his large custom smoker. This summer he has plans to have people over and cook a whole pig in it. In that smoker, which cooks by an offset fire box, Bibb prefers fruit woods like apple or cherry mixed with oak or hickory. “Then for days like today, when the wife and I want to sit on the patio to watch the Astros and relax, I have a Masterbuilt electric smoker,� Bibb
said. “(It’s) pretty much a set it and forget it smoker that burns real, not pellets, wood chips.� And once a year, in the spirit of bringing people together with a table of good food, Bibb and three friends host a “Wild Game Meat Sweats� cookout. They do this to clean their freezers out prior to the upcoming fall hunting season. Around 75-125 people will come to the cookout to catch up and enjoy the food. While Bibb doesn’t compete in any formal competitions, because he worries it might take the fun out of it, he has taken part in friendly cookoffs with friends. One of them was a venison chili cook-off that had 10 teams participate. There was a judging system, but Bibb said everyone was distracted by having so much fun that they didn’t worry about voting, so a winner was never picked. “The first time I boiled crawfish for Cherie’s family wasn’t a completion but it felt like it was,� Bibb said. “I was boiling for born-and-bred Louisiana natives that have boiled all their life and I had only been boiling for a couple of years. Cherie loves my crawfish, but I knew I had to impress my in-laws. It almost felt like a test of whether I was worthy or not. The outcome was thankfully really good and I really do enjoy boiling for them now.�
Options aplenty when buying grills Types of
By Zarah Parker zarah@theleadernews.com
Looking for a grill to buy is a lot like buying a new car. You go in having an idea of what you want, but can leave with something completely different. And just like cars, there are lots of grills from which to choose as you prepare took cook outside for the Fourth of July or a Saturday afternoon. Two area businesses, BBQ Pits by Klose and Tru-Lite Gas Products, specialize in grills and smokers. With so many options, all grills generally fall into five different categorizes. The most prominent is gas grills. Since this type of grill is quick to reach optimal heat temperatures, quick to cool off and easier to clean, it tends to be most popular with the causal outdoor cooker. There are also a few variations of the gas grill. The freestanding gas grill can be easily transported, making it a more convenient option. A built-in gas grill is smaller, making it ideal for those who might not have the space for a standard grill. Plus, its flexibility in design is best for people putting together an outdoor kitchen. Then there are natural gas grills, which are usually powered by the same gas line from inside your home. But the efficiency of gas grills comes with a price. While they heat up quicker, they don’t get as hot as charcoal grills, and the meat will carry less of the smoky flavor that many people enjoy in a grilled meat or vegetable. There also are charcoal grills. They are ideal for people with more time, because the coals should be allowed to burn for about 30 minutes. But a little more time, along with added wood chips to burn with the coals, will give the meat the smoky flavor you find in barbecue. Just like with the gas grills, there are a few variations of charcoal grills. A charcoal kettle grill is smaller and easier to transport, making it a good choice for
Outside Cavatore’s Italian Restaurant
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44% Charcoal 64% Gas Percentages represent types of grill ownership among 1,145 U.S. consumers in 2017. Total exceeds 100 percent because some respondents owned multiple types. Sources: Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association, statista.com
on-the-go cookouts. A Kamado grill is a modern version of the Japanese cooking urn that is versatile. It can used to grill or to bake pizza and breads. Kamado grills can also be included in the ceramic grill group. These are good for retaining heat because the air flow is limited, which tends to make the meat juicer. However, ceramic grills can be pricey and usually weigh more. A Big Green Egg (BGE) is a ceramic grill with a variety of uses. You can grill, smoke, roast and bake with it. “We are BGE enthusiasts,� area resident Ashley Miller said. “We love BGE because we have the ability to control the temperature high, low without having to continually monitor.� Electric grills are typically simple to use as long as you have a power outlet nearby. This type of grill is for anyone without the space to operate a gas or charcoal grill, such as an apartment dweller or people who don’t want to deal with much upkeep.
Wood-fire grills are another group. Some of these are sold as open grills with no hood. They’re a favorite among people who love using different types of wood. From oak, hickory and maple to pecan, apple and cherry, the smoke from the wood will seep into your food. A favorite of area resident Brooke Jackson is peach wood, especially if it’s used for smoking. “It really puts a sweet smoky flavor and is good on any meat,� Jackson said. Local resident Matthew Finnegan is a fan of this style of grill and has a Santa Maria grill, which is usually sold as a charcoal grill, but is customized to be a woodfire grill. If you are looking for a grill to make your backyard the hot spot of the summer, remember that the best grill for you is one that will fit your lifestyle -- just like a car. If you have a big family, you probably want an SUV instead of a sports car.
Review: Good Dog cooks up great take on American classic By Zarah Parker zarah@theleadernews.com
Good Dog Houston serves gourmet hot dogs in a little house in the Heights on Studewood Street, which is charming in and of itself. The dachshund might be its mascot on the logo, but walking up the front porch steps of Good Dog, I was met with a tabby cat lazing about. I didn’t mind having to walk by it to get to the door. The cat never moved an inch. Inside the tables were full of people already enjoying their hot dogs and even the bar seating was half taken. There was more room on the front porch and back patios and, luckily, it wasn’t raining. Now I had never had a fancy hot dog. Actually, I don’t think I had ever even ordered a hot dog from a restaurant. When I saw how many op-
8am - 12pm p
Photo by Zarah Parker The Guac-A-Dog is a unique and tasty option at Good Dog Houston.
tions Good Dog had, I was at a loss over what to choose. They all sounded interesting, with toppings I never would have thought to put on a hot dog. The menu also had more than hot dog options. It included a chicken sandwich, salads and soups.
But you don’t go to Good Dog for anything other than a hot dog, at least not on your first visit. So I walked up to the ordering counter and asked the cashier what the most popular dogs were. She turned out See Good Dog, P. 2B
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