ArcaMax

Clean Grillin’

We hope you enjoy this previously published Zola recipe and column!

I’ve never been that fond of the grill. I think I can trace it back to when I was about 20 years old. I bought a charcoal grill that came in a box. I had to put it together. Even with perfectly clear directions, it still took me five hours to get that thing ready to cook a hotdog. It wasn’t the most expensive grill so it didn’t last more than one summer either. I was so disappointed.

I’ve always had a healthy respect and even a fear of propane. Now that we have a gas grill I’m never the one to change the tank. I leave that to my husband.

Some people grill out all year round. I used to be that kind of person. When I lived in Madison, Wisconsin, we had our grill on a big, concrete back porch. It was easy to buzz out the back door to grill a steak. You could stay warm and cozy and just bolt out to turn the steak at the proper moment.

Ever since I was a little kid I remember the day that the grill got cleaned was a big, dirty deal. Now I realize you really shouldn’t wait for a big day to clean the grill. It should be done much more often than that. But as a kid I can remember my mom getting out the bucket, the big rubber gloves, a hose and cleaner. I think she used oven cleaner on the grates. I can still conjure up that smell and see the grit and grease and goo. There was lots of grunting involved in cleaning the grill. It was all a big YUK.

So now that we are all trying to be more “green” and not use things like smelly chemicals on the grill, I thought I’d do a little research on grill cleaning. I found a couple of You Tube clips that had some neat grill cleaning advice.

One of these has hints for when you’re the chosen one to do the grilling at a party but you’re not at your own house. Or maybe you’re using a public grill in a park.

Another one is done by our Chicago buddy Lou Manfredini. He’s pretty famous in the "do-it-yourselfer" world. He owns an Ace Hardware store in the Chicago suburbs, and is their spokesman. He does a Saturday morning “Mr. Fix It” show that I try to listen to as I drive around doing my errands. I learn a lot from Lou.

So now that we’re in the peak of the grilling season I hope these things give you the incentive to take good care of your grill. I know I’m going to do a better job with mine.

Grilled Romaine

This is a Z2 (ZReduction) recipe. Okay, don’t freak on me. Grilled romaine is really good and tastes better than it looks. The folks on the ZTeam were skeptical but have since become converts. Impress your guests with something they’ve probably never had before and it’s done in 5 short minutes on your grill.

Servings: Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 heads of romaine lettuce, cleaned and cut in half lengthwise. (get the smaller ones since each person will be eating half of a head)
½ tsp of onion powder
½ tsp of garlic powder
½ tsp of oregano (or you can use other dried herbs or mixtures; even meat rubs will lend a fun flavor)
Grating of sea salt and pepper
Drizzle of balsamic vinegar

Instructions:

Preheat your grill.

Lay the lettuce head halves on a cookie sheet flat side up.

Lightly spray with olive oil spray. Sprinkle on the onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, sea salt and pepper. Let sit for five minutes for the flavors to sink in.

Put on your clean grill flat-side down. Grill over medium coals for about 5 minutes or until you have nice grill marks and the lettuce is warm. You don’t need to turn it over. You are just warming it and lightly crisping the one side.

Put the Romaine on a plate and drizzle with the balsamic vinegar as your dressing. Light drizzle will do it.

Serving Suggestions:

I serve these with juicy burgers and tomato slices. Don’t eat the bottom of the stem. That part is bitter but it’s good to leave it on because it holds all of the leaves together.

Enjoy!
Cheers,
Zola