This Grill is on Fire
It’s the season of outdoor grilling, brought to you by the licking flames that make food taste better.
Without a fire, of course, there is no smoke. But some fires are smokier than others. Those grillers who prefer the convenience and precision found in the knobs of a gas grill probably won’t get their share of that airborne blend of aromatic oxidized particulates. Grillers who build an actual fire, meanwhile, can find themselves with more smoke than they know what to do with.
And then there is the question of what to put on the grill. You can make an argument for many ingredients that are exceptional on the grill, and I won’t argue. But I have a formula that’s applicable anywhere produce and meats are sold, a four-part trifecta of corn, zucchini, green chile and meat — or similar meaty element. These ingredients not only go great together, but each enhances the flavors of the other participants, through their smoke signals.
Even on a gas grill, corn husks will burn, zucchini skins will blacken, green chile skins will blister and flavor the atmosphere, as the meat drips grease onto the flames, enhancing the smoke seasonings. I prefer the built fire, but to each their own. As the smoke rises to your blinking face, enjoy the most savory aromatherapy a set of nostrils could embrace. Put the lid down and let the smoke build up, pushing those flavors into the food.
The Recipes
Remove butter from the fridge and let it soften. Season meat with olive oil, salt, pepper and pressed garlic.
Trim each ear by pulling about an inch of husk from tip to base, exposing a stripe of kernels. Place the ears on the grill with that stripe facing up, followed by the zucchini and green chile.
As the kernels shrink and brown in the dry heat, they concentrate their flavor, while bathing them in smoke from their own husks. After about 20 minutes without turning, the corn will be nicely browned and smoked.
The green chile, whether its from Hatch, Anaheim, your backyard or local farmstead, is the soul of the grill, in part because it adds the best smoke. If you can’t find any decent specimen of the elongated Hatch varieties, some big jalapeños will always do the trick. Grill and turn until they are blistered and blackened all around, but not burned.
Unless the zucchini is really big I’ll cook it whole, turning it until the outside is charred and the inside is soft. Cut into rounds before serving.
While the vegetables are grilling, prepare the following corn sauce.
Corn Sauce
Quantities are per ear of corn, adjusted for the fact that it will also be used on meat, zuke, and pepper.
1 tablespoon softened butter
1 tablespoon mayo
2 teaspoons pressed or minced garlic
1 teaspoon red chile powder, your choice of heat
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
Salt and pepper to taste
Smear it all together, like a mayonnaise-ey compound butter.
When it’s nearly time to eat, add the meat to the grill and find a chill spot for the corn, and flip the corn so the exposed stripe of kernels faces down for a few minutes of final extra browning. Pull the ears off the grill and wait impatiently until they are cool enough to touch and not burn yourself.
I like to rotate steaks on the same side for a few minutes before flipping them. This gives the meat a pleasing hashmark pattern. And again on the other side a few minutes before serving.
Burger also works well in the trifecta, preferably cheeseburger, accompanied by bun, ketchup, tomatoes, pickles, onions and all that.
When eating green chile or jalapeño, start with a nibble of the tip to figure out if it’s a hot one. If it is, carefully remove the seeds, and consume responsibly. If the chile is not hot you can eat it whole, peel, seeds and all.
Here is a typical sequence for eating this meal. Start with a bite of meat or protein-like item, followed by a sip of wine if appropriate. While chewing meat, use a piece of green chile as a spoon with which to smear corn sauce onto the corn, and then bite the corn, chewing together with meat and hopefully wine. Then add the green chile to your mouth, followed by a slice of zucchini, and chew it all together. Enjoy the harmony of the fire-licked flavors colliding in your lips. Followed, if appropriate, by another more sips.