barbecue 101

Ahead of a potential April snowfall, we thought it would be a good idea to squeeze in another bbq night. Tonight, it was pork chops, oriental-style. These were not your ordinary pork chops, but bone-in, thick-cut chops that we found on sale this past weekend. An hour of marinating was all that was needed before throwing them on the grill.

The marinade was made with plenty of sliced garlic, some oyster sauce, soy sauce, minced ginger, ground szechuan pepper and a dash of toasted sesame oil.

I'd like to think that the one thing I can be relied upon in the kitchen is being in charge of the barbecue duties. I've got it down to a science. Name your meat, veggie or seafood, and I can grill it to perfection.

Now, the trick to grilling a thick cut of meat is to preheat the grill at medium-high for about 5-10 minutes. When you throw the meat onto the grill, resist all temptation to push down on the meat or play around with it. For pork chops of this thickness, I cranked up the grill to high heat and broiled the meat for about 8 minutes with the lid closed. Then, I flipped the chops over and grilled for another 5 minutes. That's it. No pressing on the meat, moving them around or playing around with the heat level. You want juiciness and a perfectly charred exterior. Finally, always make sure to let your meat rest for a couple of minutes before digging in to help redistribute the juices.

A crisp romaine salad on the side made this a great summer-inspired Wednesday meal.