Our first stop is Mo Gridders, a 35 foot long food truck in the heart of the Bronx in New York City. Serving up almost 3 pounds of prime BBQ ribs a serving and smoked for 6 hours beforehand to get just right, this place is for serious meat lovers. We then roll on into Baton Rouge, Louisiana where the Go Ya Ya truck makes us go gaga over their amazing crepes. Austin, Texas is our next stop for the East Side King trailer serving up highly admired, asian inspired delights such as their Tori Meshi, a deep fried chicken thigh in a sweet and spicy sauce. Last up is the Barbie Burgers truck in Nashville Tennessee, where a real doll serves up classic burgers and shakes out of her huge pink 50's style trailer.
It's time to get your grill on as five Food Network all-stars gather by the waterside in South Beach to fire up the barbecue and share their favorite grilling recipes. Bobby Flay, Giada De Laurentiis, Paula Deen, Alton Brown, and Tyler Florence deliver a menu of mouthwatering dishes while also sharing laughs, swapping stories, and frolicking by the pool. And once the smoke clears, the all-stars sit down to a dazzling feast perfectly suited to their slice of South Beach paradise.
In a battle of the grills, authentic fajitas go head-to-head with down home brisket. Best friends Michael Christie, a caterer in La Crescenta, Calif., and John Dourisboure, a marketing manager from Burbank, Calif., travel around California educating and serving BBQ to the community but are ready to have their own TexMex restaurant called Texas Fajita Co. Wylie, Texas husband-and-wife team Michael Hunt, a forklift salesperson, and Katie Hunt, a food service sales representative, have been together through a lot of personal struggles but hope to overcome those by creating their dream traditional Texas BBQ restaurant called The Garage.
Jack wants to have an intimate dinner party and asks Frederic for some recipes that won't keep her chained to the stove. Jack learns the recipes for Chili Rubbed Pork Tenderloin with Creamed Corn.
Episode Guide
Below you’ll find a helpful episode guide for cooking along with Frederic and Jack, as well as tips and recipe rescues.
Equipment List:
Broiler pan
Aluminum foil
Tongs
Chef’s knife
Cutting board
Dry measuring cups
Medium skillet with lid
Liquid measuring cup
Measuring spoons
Instant-read thermometer
Wooden spoon
Carving knife
Pepper mill
Medium bowl
Tips:Broiling:
Broiling is a dry-heat cooking method where the food is placed directly under and very close to the radiant heat source above it. The food cooks more quickly since it is so close to the heat source.
You can adjust the racks in your oven to position them 3 – 4 inches from the broiler.
Watch foods carefully while broiling; the food is so close to the heat that it can easily start to burn.
Dry rubs:
A dry rub can be made from a combination of any of your favorite spices and dried herbs.
Dry rubs act like marinades in that they flavor the food, but they don’t require any time to marinate since the rub sticks to the food. Therefore, they are a quick solution to enhancing the flavor of different meats.
Selecting corn:
Choose corn with bright green, snugly fitting husks, and golden silk. Stems should be green and moist, not woody.
Kernels should look plump and milky, come all the way to the ear’s tip, and the rows should be tightly spaced.
Avoid ears with blackened, opened and tattered husks, and those with black silks.
Try to purchase corn that has just been picked. Corn is best cooked and served on the day it is bought, but if you must store it, keep it in the refrigerator with the husks on.
The peak season for fresh corn is May through September.
Recipe Rescues:The exterior of the pork is burned – Slice off the burnt areas, and then carve as usual.
The pork is too dried out – Add a little broth or other cooking liquid to the pan with the pork, cover it with a lid or foil, and then let it steam to re-moisten the interior.
Corn is unripe – You can still cook with it, but add a little sugar during cooking to make up for the lack of natural sugar.
Creamed corn is not thick enough – Make a slurry out of cornstarch and cold water, and then add 1 – 2 tablespoons of it to the corn mixture. Stir to evenly incorporate the slurry, and continue cooking for several minutes to get rid of the starchy taste.
Creamed corn is too salty – Add more cream, and more corn if you have it.
Even cutting the tree is a party when friends gather at a Christmas tree farm for a warm and cozy meal by the fire of cioppino, roasted garlic bread, hot peppermint chocolate and Christmas cookies. Turn a Christmas chore into a unique celebration!
GamePlan
Day Before Party:
Cook sugar, blend with whipped egg whites, and assemble dough for Torrone, allow to mix in mixer for 15 minutes.
Place prepped and tin foil wrapped garlic in the oven to roast for Roasted Garlic Bread.
Finish dough for Torrone, pan it and refrigerate overnight.
Remove garlic from the oven, mash into paste and mix into a butter. Refrigerate.
2 Hour Before Party:
Begin broth and sear fish and scallops for Cioppino, allow to broth to simmer without fish for 30 minutes.
1/2 Hour Before Party:
Add fresh herbs to Cioppino, sear and remove clams, crabs and shrimp.
Mix and heat up mulled wine, pour into a pre-heated thermos.
Mix hot chocolate, pour into pre-heated thermos.
Place Schnapps, two thermos’, bread, garlic butter, Torrone, Cioppino broth, and seared fish into a preheated cooler to transport.
At Party:
Serve hot cocktails.
Grill garlic for Roasted Garlic Bread.
Reheat Cioppino broth.
Take out softened jalapeno chilies from broth and mash into a garnish.
Spread Grilled bread with garlic butter, allow it to melt and serve.
Add fish and shellfish back into Cioppino, simmer for one minute and serve.
Slice up Torrone, eat and enjoy.
Wine Recommendation
Gargiulo Vineyards Merlot
Emeril travels to Orlando's next-door neighbor, Kissimmee. He begins the "Kissimmee" episode at "Reunion Wyndham Grand Golf & Spa Resort". "Reunion" is one of the premier tourist destinations in Kissimmee, especially for golfers. It's the only place in the world with an Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicholas, and Tom Watson designed golf course on the same property. They have a pretty good restaurant on property as well. It's named "Eleven" and after touring the resort Emeril will meet with Executive Chef Etienne Jehl to sample some of his signature dishes. Emeril's next stop is the Lakeside Grill at the Bohemian Hotel in Celebration. It's a boutique hotel with and Emeril will meet with a chef he mentored at his restaurants in New Orleans. Emeril will get to sample some of the chef's signature dishes and see how he's developed over the years. Next up, Emeril will visit the top-rated, and locals favorite, Mexican restaurant in Kissimmee for some authentic Mexican food. Emeril ends the episode by preparing a dish inspired by his visits to Kissimmee, Fried Catfish Po'boys.
With help from Frederic, Jack learns how to make the ultimate comfort food, Pot Roast with Roasted Vegetables.
Episode Guide
Below you’ll find a helpful episode guide for cooking along with Frederic and Jack, as well as tips and recipe rescues.
Equipment List:
Pepper mill
Large Dutch oven with lid
Measuring spoons
Tongs
Cutting board
Chef’s knife
Can opener
Dry measuring cups
Liquid measuring cup
Sheet pan
Aluminum foil
Ladle
Vegetable peeler
Instant-read thermometer
Wooden spoon
Carving knife
Tips:Cuts of meat for a pot roast:
Pot-roasting is all about taking large cuts of cheap, tough meat and turning them tender, flavorful and succulent.
A moist, tender pot roast starts with choosing the proper cut of beef. You are looking for something that is well-marbled with fat and connective tissue. Cuts from the shoulder are ideally suited for the job.
Ideal cuts of meat for a pot roast include: beef chuck roast, 7-bone blade roast, beef bottom round rump roast, and beef chuck top blade boneless roast Boneless (also known as top chuck roast).
Searing:
Searing is a very high-heat, fast cooking method used to brown the exterior of the meat and produce a nice crisp crust.
Searing adds flavor to meat and seals in the juices.
Tenting and resting meat:
Tent meat to keep it warm while resting, but don’t let foil touch meat, as this affects crust and does not give it the room it needs to rest.
Meat needs to rest so that the juices redistribute throughout the piece of meat. If you cut into the meat immediately, you lose at least half of its juices.
Cooking with red wine:
Do not cook with any wine that you would not drink.
Choose a dry red wine, with some body and depth.
Zinfandels yield smooth, full-bodied sauces.
Cote du Rhones and Cabernet Sauvignons are also good choices for pot-roasting.
Recipe Rescues:If the roast sticks to the pan when searing - Use tongs to carefully lift meat and turn it. Next time, use a little more oil, and make sure heat is at least medium-high.If the sauce is not thick enough - Make a slurry of 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 2 tablespoons cold water, add it to the sauce, and bring it to a boil.If your vegetables are mushy - They are overcooked. Mash or puree them and serve. Next time, make sure oven temperature is high (450 degrees F), and roast until just caramelized and tender.