This weekend makes the ‘official’ arrival of summer. The folks at Cargill Beef have supplied some timely and terrific tips to get our grills ready to go for the weekend. Mine is fired up and I’m grilling a versatile new recipe with beef from Sam’s Club.
We’ve also got a GIVEAWAY! Courtesy of Cargill Beef and Sam’s Club! Shout out in the comments below what you’re grilling this weekend or your favorite food cooked on the grill. You’ll automatically be eligible to win one of FIVE $25 Sam’s Club gift cards! Winners will be announced Saturday morning. NOTE: It may take a while for your comment to show up, but don’t worry. 🙂
During the summer, my husband and I grill almost every night. We love it, and a side benefit of it is we aren’t heating up the house by using the oven. (Saving money is a beautiful thing.)
With Memorial Day weekend coming, it’s time to get our grill ready for the summer and get grilling!
1. Check the Hose: Considering your grill may have been sitting for many months without being used, take a few minutes to give it a once-over before you press ignite. Specifically, if you have a gas grill, check the hose from your propane to your burners and make sure it’s intact and clean. If there’s any buildup on the hose, be sure to clean it off before starting your grill. If the hose has any holes or any signs of being torn, it’s worth the few bucks to just replace it.
We bought our grill new just last year, so a quick look shows that all my hoses are in good shape.
2. Give It a Quick Cleaning: If you have a gas grill, take the grates out and give everything a good scrub down. You can use a wire brush and a damp cloth to get the job done. Soap isn’t recommended. It can linger and it’s tough to wash off. Also, don’t forget to run your grilling tools through the dishwasher before that first cookout.
I store most of my grilling supplies in a galvanized bucket with a lid near my grill. It keeps them handy, dry and clean. I like having everything contained nearby but not cluttered.
It’s a great time to take inventory of your grilling supplies as you load them in the dishwasher. Somehow, I was just down to an oversize spatula and tongs; the rest of my grilling supplies have disappeared. I’m guessing they migrated to our RV. 😉
Jot down on your list anything you might need to pick up the next time you’re at the store. One of my pet peeves is to go to use something and not having it!
3. Clean Out Your Grease Trap: Before grilling season starts, be sure to pull out the grease trap below your grill and dump out any grease and grime from last year. For easy cleanup next year, line your grease trap with some sturdy aluminum foil.
This is what my grease trap looked like. Ewwww, gross! This was actually dangerous! It’s hard to tell by this picture, but the large dark lump actually stood up pretty high; it could have easily caught fire when I was burning off food residue and the grill temp was really HOT.
So, I wiped it out and ran it through the dishwasher.
Much better!
4. Test Run Before Cooking: Before you get to cooking, turn on your grill, light it up and let it burn for a few minutes. Watch it to make sure all the burners are firing and there are no leaks.
Now you’ve done this, all systems are set to go and your grill is ready for summer!
Steak is a favorite treat of ours, so I’m grilling some terrific T-bones. If you’re needing some Beef-spiration, there are tons of recipes here. That’s where this recipe came from. 🙂
Did you know that all meat sold at Sam’s Club is fresh, never frozen? Me neither! Together, these big beautiful T-bones weighed almost 4 pounds.
Beef Steak with Colorful Peppers
Ingredients
2 beef T-bone steaks from Sam’s Club
2 small bell peppers, quartered
Parsley Pesto:
½ cup packed fresh Italian parsley leaves
4 large cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
1. Place pesto ingredients in food processor or blender container. Cover; process until parsley is finely chopped, stopping and scraping side of bowl as needed. 2. Spread pesto generously on both sides of beef steaks and bell peppers. Place steaks and peppers on grid over medium, ash-covered coals. Grill, covered, 11 to 16 minutes (over medium heat on preheated gas grill, 15 to 19 minutes) for medium rare (145°F) to medium (160°F) doneness and until peppers are tender, turning occasionally. 3. Remove bones; carve steaks into slices. Season with salt and pepper, as desired. Serve beef with peppers.
This is my kind of recipe: easy, normal everyday ingredients and simply scrumptious! I am a really good cook, but I am not a great cook. If I look at over-complicated recipes, I begin to hear bumblebees in my head.
One note about the parsley: there was no Italian parsley to be found this week, a hazard of living in a rural area. Don’t worry, you can use regular parsley and it’s still delicious!
I grilled one steak very rare and left it whole for my husband. He’s working late so it will be a special treat for his dinner.
The other I sliced as the recipe called for; it was terrific and husband-approved (he sneaked home for a taste after I texted him a picture.) If cooked rare, you can re-heat with eggs for breakfast (YUM!) or put it on a salad.
Now, go forth and grill! And have a safe and happy Memorial Day weekend, folks.
Cheers!
UPDATE: Giveaway winners are: Hayley, Weesie, Lynn, Jenny and Peggy. Thanks for playing everybody, I appreciate it!
