T-Bone Steak on the Griddle

We do not grocery shop on any type of regular schedule. Rather we cherry pick the sales to replenish fresh fruits/vegetables, certain dairy and dried food products and any in store specials. On average we spend $25 per week although there are some months we may only spend that amount. Both of us always check the meat sales but only buy if it is a good sale.

Yesterday my husband stopped at the grocery store to pick up green onions, spinach and celery. He is really good at getting only the items on his list but like me cannot pass up a good meat sale. T-bone steaks were on sale so he picked up 2 for dinner bringing his grand grocery total to $12.37 bringing our total grocery purchase for the week to $28.25. Toilet paper was on sale 30 rolls for $3.97 so he picked up 4 packages earlier in the week. Not bad eh?

T-bone Steaks

We buy beef on the hoof that includes steaks custom cut to 1 - inch thick. This is a great thickness for grilling but in my opinion a bit too thick for pan frying or cooking on the griddle. Store bought steaks are usually cut to ½ - inch or a bit thinner making them ideal for pan frying but making it easy to over cook them on the grill. Cooking a thinner steak so that it maintains that melt-in-your mouth tenderness can be a challenge so we borrowed an idea we have long used when cooking liver and that is to cook the steak with the onions. This method always works! The end result is a nice flavourable, very tender piece of meat.

Method: Peel and chop Spanish onion. Heat griddle to 185ºC/365ºF. Place two generous pats of butter on the griddle then pour the onion pieces onto the griddle. Allow to cook until just lightly caramelized. Push the onions to the sides. Place the steaks on the griddle then surround with onions. Cook the steaks 5 minutes each side. Remove from griddle. Serve with choice of sides and caramelized onions.

Cooking on Griddle Revisited

I have been steadily going through the freezers cooking at least one thing from the freezer for each dinner in preparation for the arrival of our bulk beef purchase this coming weekend. The cow goes to the abattoir on Thursday so with any luck we will be able to pick it up Saturday morning. Now, the biggest problem me being away for 2 weeks I am really juggling to free up freezer space. I cooked up the last of the Cowboy steaks in the freezer. I previously posted on Cowboy Steaks (here and here).

Cooking on Griddle

Cooking cowboy steaks on the griddle was nothing new. What I did for these steaks was a bit different. I decided to cook the entire meal on the griddle. In order to do this on the griddle the food was actually cooked almost in reverse order to what you would expect.

I prepared the vegetable side first that consisted of portabello mushrooms, zucchini and red onions on the griddle set to 180ºC (350ºF) and a little extra virgin olive oil (1). Once the vegetables started caramelize I added sliced baked potatoes and the steak (2). The steak was cooked to medium rare just when the vegetables were ready.

What really impresses me about using a griddle to cook a full meal is anyone can do it. It does not matter if you live in an apartment or it's the middle of winter you can have close to the taste of grilling without the smoke of an indoor grill. I have two indoor grills, one a stove cartridge and the other a tabletop model. Smoke is controlled on the stove by using the downdraft whereas smoke is controlled on the tabletop by adding water to the bottom reservoir. The griddle is different. You won't get anything more in the way of smoke than you would using large skillets. You have a bit more temperature control and less clean-up using the griddle.

Cowboy Steak Dinner

The griddle cooked meal came out perfectly! I really liked the way the potatoes crisped up just a bit. The vegetables were nicely caramelized and the steak wonderful. I added fresh sliced tomatoes that enhanced the flavour of the meal.

Cooking on an indoor griddle offers a few new possibilities. It will not replace an outdoor or indoor grill but it does do a nice job without much in the way of smoke. I think the best meats for this purpose are boneless, skinless chicken breast or lean boneless pork chops or lean boneless steak. I wouldn't suggest using any cuts of meat with bone in. I would recommend choosing vegetables like mushrooms, onions and zucchini instead of harder root vegetables unless they are pre-cooked and just need warming through with a little caramelization. Add a fresh vegetable side like a salad to round out the meal.

Enjoy!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2009

Cowboy Steaks Cooked on the Griddle

My husband is currently working some very long hours, leaving between 4 and 5 am daily and arriving home between 7 and 8 pm. There have been quite a few times that we eat dinner that late but right now by the time he gets home he doesn't feel like a big meal. What I've been doing is making dinner as normal then plating his up for his lunch. So his big meal is mid-day with a smaller meal when he gets home. I'm relying heavily on the freezers and pantries because growing season is just around the corner and our beef bought on the hoof will be ready soon. That means I need to clear space especially in the freezers. Wednesday night I cooked up a couple of cowboy steaks using the griddle.

Using the Griddle

I previously wrote about the cowboy steaks we bought to support a local group. Pan frying is actually recommended because these steaks are marinaded but they were good prepared that way. This time I decided to try using the George Forman Griddle we were gifted with. Yes I have an indoor grill cartridge for my stove and a tabletop indoor grill but I wanted to see exactly how the griddle would perform. I know it performs well for breakfast foods and making English muffins. The best way to test this is to see what else it can cook well!

The meal consisted of a cowboy steak with a side of sautéed onions and zucchini, nothing that could not have been prepared using a couple of frying pans. I set the griddle to 350ºF and added just a little olive oil. First on were the steaks followed by the onion slices and zucchini pieces.

Cowboy Steaks

Cooking these marinated steaks on the griddle was entirely different than cooking in a fry pan. I found the steaks caramelized better without losing much in the way of moisture. The onions even crisped up and caramelized better. The zucchini that was added last maintained its great green edging. In terms of taste this meal was a real winner hands down. The meat was cooked nicely to medium rare and the vegetables were nicely caramelized. It was a very nice meal.

In terms of energy usage the griddle used 1500 W per hour (18¢/hr) per hour compared to using the large burner at 2000 W (24¢/ hr) and the small burner at 1250 W (15¢/hr). For 18¢/hr I cooked a meal that would have cost me 39¢/hr to cook my conventional means. That's not a lot of saving but every time you can save on cooking costs it is one more way of reducing those food costs. Don't forget you are saving those all important kWh and every kWh does count!

The meal tasted great and I saved energy so what was the negative? There really wasn't a negative. In fact I enjoyed using the griddle so much for this purpose that I will likely choose it over the frypans in future. Clean-up was ever so easy so that was not a negative. However, I wiped down my back splashes simply because cooking this way will add a bit of a greasy film into the air that will settle on surfaces. This really is minor but still more than what you would get using splatter screens on a frypan.

English Muffins

If you have been reading this blog you will know that I strongly encourage making your own bread products. Surprisingly the main reason for do so is not economic although most homemade bread products are considerably less expensive than store bought. The main reason is a freshly made product that you control the ingredients. You don't need to worry about ingredients like artificial colourants or flavours, high fructose corn syrup or excess salt, fats and sugar. Using a few simple, inexpensive ingredients you can make a wide variety of delicious homemade breads.

Many folks are intimidated by making bread products like bagels, doughnuts, dinner rolls and English muffins. Monday I made a batch of English muffins for the coming week. Homemade English muffins will keep about 5 days and they can be frozen to use throughout the week as needed. There's no need to be intimidated. Remember the only thing that really sets an English muffin apart from other yeast breads is how it is cooked. The underlying principles of making yeast breads remain the same. Once you see how easy it is to make English muffins and how tasty they are you won't go back to store bought!

English muffins have their origins in Victorian England. They were made by the family baker from left over scraps of bread and biscuit doughs then fried on a hot griddle. The resulting light, crusty muffin was served the downstairs staff of Victorian England but they soon were requested by the upstairs family as well. English muffin factories soon appeared in England with the muffin man selling their wares. The peak of popularity for these muffins in England was the years before World War I however, they have gained popularity in North America.

There are several recipes for English muffins and I will post others as I make them. This recipe uses eggs so the muffins are rich and flavourful. The dough is kneaded until smooth and elastic (1). I remove the dough hook and cover the bowl with a damp T-towel (2) to allow the dough to double. The dough is then rolled out and cut with a wide mouth mason jar ring that I find is the perfect size. The rounds are placed on a baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal (3). Then the tops are wet and sprinkled with cornmeal and the rounds are covered to rise for 30 minutes.

English Muffins

The traditional way to cook English muffins is on an ungreased griddle. If you do not have a griddle you can use a cast iron fry pan which is what the original bakers would have used. English muffins can also be cooked on an indoor or outdoor grill. The cooking time is considerably shorter than the bake time for a loaf of bread. My husband loves these English muffins. They aren't just for breakfast either. Cut them in half and use as a base for quick individual pizzas or place a nice slice of your favourite cheese over a half then bake in the oven until the cheese is melted and slightly browned.

English Muffins

1 c milk
2 eggs, beaten
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp organic sugar
1 tsp sea salt
3 c unbleached flour*
2 tsp instant yeast

Warm milk to just warm. Beat eggs. Stir eggs and butter into the milk. Place dry ingredients in KitchenAid® or similar stand mixer bowl. Attach dough hook to mixer. Mix dry ingredients on speed 1 until well combined. With the mixer still on setting 1 slowly pour in the wet ingredients while continuing to mix. *Add small amounts of extra flour as needed until the dough cleans the side of the bowl. Knead on setting 1 until dough is smooth and elastic. Remove dough hook and cover with damp towel. Allow to proof until doubled. Roll out to ¼ - inch thick. Cut into 3 inch rounds. Place on a cornmeal sprinkled baking sheet. Brush the tops with water. Sprinkle cornmeal on the tops. Cover and let rise 30 minutes. Preheat ungreased griddle or grill to 175ºC (350ºF). Cook on each side 6 to 7 minutes or until lightly golden brown.

Yield: 20 muffins

Breakfast

I could not leave you without a picture of these wonderful English muffins. The eggs add a lovely richness to these muffins. Did you know that the best way to enjoy English muffins is to toast them? It's true! Toasting brings out the chewy and crunchy all at the same time with tantalizing your olfactory senses with their wonderful aroma.

Pictured is the homemade English muffin I enjoyed for breakfast. I lightly toasted it then spread on a little butter. Can you see those nice nooks and crannies? When cutting an English muffin turn it on its side then use a fork to poke holes around the perimeter. Break it apart and voila!