Sunday Dinner - 4 August 2008

When I woke up on Saturday I still hadn't decided what was on the menu for this weeks Sunday Dinner. I have been busy working on the new whippy dip for Midland and I really haven't given it much thought. I also knew on Sunday I would get out of bed around 6:30 am and not finish the drawings for the whippy dip until later that night. That is the way it always is because I never get the answers I need until the eleventh hour and I am left trying to finish everything in one weekend.

Imagine my surprise and delight when the wife came into my office and said "Honey will you make me this this weekend?" She had picked out one the simplest meals there is for cooking on the grill. What was it you ask? Take a look........

Ribeye steaks marinated in bourbon.

It is not very often we get steak around here but when I saw what she picked out I thought that will be perfect for Sunday because I knew I wouldn't have all day to prepare our Sunday Dinner. My only requirement for this Sunday was she had to make the salad to go with it. It wasn't a problem because she had a salad or two from here latest Taste of Home magazine she wanted to try.

With all that being said let's get started.

Here are this weeks supporting cast for this weeks Sunday Dinner episode.....


Well actually these are the ingredients for the marinade this week. I know, I know, if you are paying attention you will notice that is a bottle of whiskey in the picture. The reason why is because that is what I had. Besides what the hell is the difference between whiskey and bourbon anyway? I have told you before my distaste for Jack Danial's but for some reason it really works good in marinades for beef products.

Once all ingredients are mixed together the marinade will look like this........


Now here is the star of our show this week.........


Ribeye steaks, my favorite of all he steak family. When I buy it I always buy it with the bone in.

Next put the steaks in the marinade and let sit in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. About a half hour before grilling take the steaks out and let them come up to room temperature.

While this is happening it is time to soak some wood chips and this weeks choice is.........

Now what else do you think I would use when JD is the main player in the marinade?

If you have been following my post in this blog all summer you now know what time it is. It is time to "FIRE UP THE GRILL!!!!!!!"

You have to use enough charcoal to get the grill good and hot because we are after those picture taking grill marks on the steaks. You know the marks, the ones where there is no doubt that baby has been cooked on the grill.

While the grill is getting hot it is time to prepare the steaks.....


You may be wondering why are the steaks sitting on paper towels? Well this my friend is how you get those picture taking grill marks. To get the grill marks the meat has to be completely dry of any moisture. While the steaks are coming up to room temperature I pat them dry at least 3 different times.

I brush oil on the steaks and season with the ingredients you see in the picture. once this is done it's out to the grill. I put in the water soaked wood chips an slap the steaks on the grill and close the lid.

Oh how I love to see the smoke coming out of the grill. That smoke equals flavor you just can't get on the stove or in the oven.

I let the steaks cook about 4 minutes on a side......

....until medium rare, at least for me. Medium rare for me is 130 degree internal temperature. The wife likes hers more towards medium so I cook hers to about 136 to 137 degrees.

After cooking this is what I am left with.............


Mmmm, so good. I think it deserves 5 out of 5 forks. I am telling you if you ever open up a steak restaurant you will have to turn people away if you make this steak with this marinade, it is simply that good. This is as good as any steak you will ever find in the best of steak houses. This is the other reason I don't order steak at restaurants because it is one item I think I can do better than they can.

One more look.....

You gotta love those grille marks.

If you decide to try this make sure the steak you use is at least 1 to 1-1/4" thick. The thicker the steak the easier to cook. And I should also mention this will work just as good on new york steaks, porterhouses, and t-bones. Like I have said before use what you like and like what you use. This applies to everything except Jack Daniels.