Tag: Grilling

Hawaiian Chicken Skewers

This is adapted from a Pioneer Woman recipe. She made it using mini skewers as an appetizer, but I’ve mostly made it as a main course on full-size skewers. It’s fun for a Hawaiian luau date night or summer grilling. We’ve cooked it on the stove top, in an electric skillet, and on a grill. You don’t even necessarily need skewers–it can just be chunks like a stir fry. It does have a tiny bit of heat from the chili flakes, but you can leave them out if you prefer. Also, if you want the easiest recipe, refer to the original Pioneer Woman recipe that uses thick teriyaki sauce. I wanted this to be gluten free from the start, so I made my own.

If you’re making it gluten free, make sure to use a gluten free soy sauce like La Choy or a tamari.

Make it a meal with:

Hawaiian Chicken Skewers

  • Servings: about 15 large skewers
  • Difficulty: medium
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A bit time-consuming, but great as a main course or appetizer, warm or room temperature.

Ingredients

Sauce:

  • 1/3 c. Soy Sauce (or tamari or gluten free soy sauce like La Choy)
  • 1/2 c. Water
  • 1/2 c. Orange Juice
  • 4 tsp. Minced Garlic
  • 1/2 tsp. Ginger
  • 1/4 c. Brown Sugar
  • 1/4 tsp. Red Pepper Flakes
  • Juice of Half a Lime
  • 2 Tbsp. Corn Starch mixed with 2 Tbsp. Water

Skewers:

  • Wooden Skewers, large or mini (optionally soaked in water to prevent burning)
  • 1 20 oz. can Pineapple Chunks
  • 2 Large Red Bell Peppers, cut into squares about the size of pineapple chunks
  • About 2.25 lb. Chicken, cut into chunks about the size of pineapple chunks
  • Olive Oil for pan
  • Sliced Green Onions (optional)

Directions

For the sauce: Mix all ingredients in a sauce pan and heat until it simmers and thickens.

For the skewers: Thread a piece of chicken onto a skewer, leave a small gap so the heat can surround each piece, then thread a piece of bell pepper, then leave a small gap, then thread a piece of pineapple. Repeat until the skewer is filled. Drizzle a small amount of sauce on one side of the skewer, being careful not to touch the skewers and cross contaminate the sauce with raw meat juice. Heat a heavy pan on medium-high heat and add olive oil to heat. Place the skewers, sauce-side down and grill about 3 minutes per side until the chicken is no longer pink in the middle. Remove to a platter and brush on remaining sauce. Optionally sprinkle green onions on top. Serve warm or room temperature.


Chili Lime Corn

We actually went looking for this recipe because Disneyland often has delicious-smelling corn on the cob. I can’t remember if we ever actually tried the corn at Disneyland, haha, but we found this recipe on Food Network and adapted it. Since then, we’ve made it a lot over the years.

You can top frozen corn with just the flavorings after microwaving (obviously it’s not 100% the same). And sometimes we’ll be short on time and we’ll boil the corn cobs beforehand and then grill for just a few moments–but the best flavor comes from letting the corn grill from raw. The original recipe called for grilling the ears in the husk, but we didn’t have good results with that–so we went to aluminum foil. And you generally only need one lime for this recipe if it’s large enough and juicy enough.

Sometimes the flavor is very subtle, so we’ve sometimes doubled the butter mixture for the corn. You spread it on with a spoon or pastry brush. Here’s what it looks like with a single batch:

And this one is naturally gluten free.

Make it a meal with:

Chili Lime Corn

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: easy-medium
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Delicious flavors, but it usually takes longer to make than I think. Double batch for more flavor.

Ingredients

  • 4 Tbsp. Butter, at room temperature (you can melt if you’re in a hurry)

  • 1 1/2 tsp. Lime Zest

  • 1 Tbsp. Lime Juice

  • 1 tsp. Chili Powder

  • 1/4 tsp. Dried Minced Garlic

  • 1 tsp. Salt

  • 1/2 tsp. Pepper

  • 4 Ears of Corn, husked
  • (Aluminum foil for wrapping)

Directions

Preheat grill to medium. In a small bowl, combine butter, lime zest, juice, chili powder, garlic, salt, and pepper and set aside. Tear off a piece of foil for each ear of corn. Place an ear of corn on the foil, then spread butter mixture evenly on corn with a spoon or pastry brush. Wrap each ear in foil tightly, to keep juices in. Grill for 15-20 minutes, turning every 5 minutes.


Pork Ribs

Man, pork ribs are amazing when they’re so tender that they fall off the bone. This recipe is very simple but very delicious–haha, and not very specific in terms of measurements. Of course these can be a little greasy, so you may want to serve it with something light.

And luckily this one is naturally gluten free as long as the rub and BBQ sauce don’t have gluten (which most don’t have gluten anyway). Also, you may want to use a dedicated gluten free brush when you’re brushing on the sauce, since gluten can be trapped in the bristles.

Make it a meal with:

Pork Ribs

  • Servings: varies
  • Difficulty: easy-medium
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Amazing, especially when tender.

Ingredients

  • Pork Back Ribs
  • Rib Rub (like Famous Dave’s)
  • BBQ Sauce

Directions

Using a knife or spoon, pull the silver skin off the ribs. Rub a small amount of rib rub all over (not too much or it will be overwhelming), then wrap the ribs in foil and cook at 275° for 4 hours or until tender. Then remove at least the top layer of foil (carefully–there may be lots of hot juice), brush on BBQ sauce, and broil or grill for a few minutes until the sauce caramelizes.


Steaks

Of course the real answer when cooking steaks is to cook them until their internal temperature reaches your target temperature (like 135 for medium rare because the temperature will raise another 5-10 degrees as it sits). We’ve tried marinating steaks, but really when you have good beef, you don’t want the amazing beef flavor being overwhelmed by marinade. Save the marinade for a cheap cut of beef, and just stick with Canadian steak seasoning.

And of course these are naturally gluten free.

Make it a meal with:

Steaks

  • Servings: varies
  • Difficulty: easy
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Nice and simple.

Ingredients

  • Beef or pork steaks (almost any variety)
  • Canadian steak seasoning

Directions

Preheat the grill on medium high. For diamond pattern, grill 2 minutes, then turn 45 degrees. Then grill 2 more minutes and flip over. Do the same thing on the other side–grill 2 minutes, then turn 45 degrees and grill 2 more minutes. The target temperature for medium rare for beef is 135, and pork should reach 145. Let rest 5-10 minutes before serving.


Lemon Chicken

This recipe came from Aunt LaRee, and it’s wonderful for grilling. You can also broil it in your oven if you don’t want to fire up the grill. Take note that the chicken needs to marinate for 4 hours, though.

And this one is naturally gluten free.

Make it a meal with:

Lemon Chicken

  • Servings: 6?
  • Difficulty: easy
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Easy, flavorful, and great for grilling. Remember to marinate 4 hours.

Ingredients

  • ¾ c. Oil
  • ¾ c. Lemon Juice
  • 1 Tbsp. Garlic Salt
  • 2 tsp. Onion Powder
  • 2 tsp. Basil
  • Chicken Breasts or pieces

Directions

Mix all ingredients in gallon bag. Marinate 4 hours. Then place chicken on grill and heat until grill reaches 350°. Then reduce heat to low. Grill (or broil) for 3-6 minutes on each side (or more, depending on thickness of chicken) until internal temperature reaches 165°. 15-20 minutes for bone-in.