Hungry?

[BigD]

I'll pay good money for a meal if I cannot replicate what they are doing. Its gotta be a different experience. My favorites are any of those Brazilian Steakhouses where they slice all the meat onto your plate at your table, and The Melting Pot (fondue). I can't do either of those at home.

But, to drop 80 buck on a T-bone at a normal restaurant that I could buy myself for $18 at the store and grill on my grill? No thanks.

We have experienced Brazilian Steakhouses twice. The first time it was just me and my wife. The second time we decided to treat our entire family which consisted of seven of us. When the bill came I gulped as the waiter handed it to me. When I looked at the bill I realized that it was less than half of what it should have been. I caught the waiters attention and pointed out the error. He said no sir one of the managers said to bill you for half of the normal cost. Upon wanting to thank the manager the waiter pointed him out and we were surprised to find that we knew him and his family from when we lived in Georgia. Needless to say we profusely expressed our gratitude to him and were also very generous with our tip. Pay it forward as they say.

 

[BigD]

"Agreed. I can make a better steak at home in my cast iron than any restaurant I've had."

There you have it!!! When the football team makes the playoff this year everyone to Chickenlounge's place to celebrate and cheer on Kirk and the boys!!!

 

[NorthKCHawk]

We have experienced Brazilian Steakhouses twice. The first time it was just me and my wife. The second time we decided to treat our entire family which consisted of seven of us. When the bill came I gulped as the waiter handed it to me. When I looked at the bill I realized that it was less than half of what it should have been. I caught the waiters attention and pointed out the error. He said no sir one of the managers said to bill you for half of the normal cost. Upon wanting to thank the manager the waiter pointed him out and we were surprised to find that we knew him and his family from when we lived in Georgia. Needless to say we profusely expressed our gratitude to him and were also very generous with our tip. Pay it forward as they say.

Love that story

 

[Fryowa]

The pork is definitely better at Fareway than HV or other places. Been doing ground pork for burgers more than beef!

It is Fareway and Aldi for us for some time now. Used to get all my beef at a butcher in Cuba City Wisconsin (Northside Hawk knows exactly of who I am speaking of), but save for the really special occasion, rib eyes and t-bones are few and far between now…..

HyVee meat absolutely sucks. No way am I buying a 3/4" ribeye or 1" NY strip. Years ago when they started doing that I asked the counter guy if he could cut me a 1 1/2" strip and he told me he couldn't because they don't cut meat anymore. Steaks/roasts/loins all come in precut from a central plant and they just package it. Went straight to Fareway and they not only had 1 1/2" steaks already cut, but they'd cut you a custom size any thickness you want. When it comes to anything behind a meat counter, Fareway FTW.

Pro tip, if you haven't had one of their stuffed chicken grillers they're frickin awesome and they go on sale once a month already vac sealed. I buy about 8 of them at a time and throw 'em in the freezer.

 

[Fryowa]

Agreed. I can make a better steak at home in my cast iron than any restaurant I've had.

10-4. Cast iron for steak and pork chops is the best method out there. I bought the cheapest sous vide machine Amazon had thinking I'd replace it with a nicer one if I liked cooking with it, but the thing will not die and works great.

I throw two frozen, vac sealed steaks in that thing when I leave for work at 125 degrees, when I get home 9 hours later I put the cast iron on medium high, throw in some oil/butter/crushed garlic cloves/thyme, and in about 10 minutes I have perfectly done steaks with the most amazing seared crust you've ever had. Pork chops same thing.

 

[Northside Hawk]

The pork is definitely better at Fareway than HV or other places. Been doing ground pork for burgers more than beef!

It is Fareway and Aldi for us for some time now. Used to get all my beef at a butcher in Cuba City Wisconsin (Northside Hawk knows exactly of who I am speaking of), but save for the really special occasion, rib eyes and t-bones are few and far between now…..

Weber's. He would haul his huge trailer grill to local track meets and after the concession stand closed would fire up the barbie.

 

[Fryowa]

Weber's. He would haul his huge trailer grill to local track meets and after the concession stand closed would fire up the barbie.

I think I'm the only human being in the state of Iowa who enjoys going to track meets and having a food truck at one would be amazing. But I get the need for fundraising with nachos and hotdogs.

 

[Fryowa]

On the topic of frugality, one thing HyVee does do right that they can't screw up is they have about 3 sales per summer of full pork loins. All you need is a kitchen knife and some freezer bags (vac sealer is a nice bonus but not needed) and you can get about sixteen 1 1/4" boneless pork chops out of one for about $0.79 a piece.

Don't pay the labor for someone to cut the loins up and re-package them.

 

[Northside Hawk]

I think I'm the only human being in the state of Iowa who enjoys going to track meets and having a food truck at one would be amazing. But I get the need for fundraising with nachos and hotdogs.

The biggest southwest Wisconsin track meet in terms of schools is the Sparky Reynolds in Boscobel. Usually the Friday of mother's day weekend which allowed for a late night. Twenty five schools give or take. And Jim Weber would have his portable grill and whip up,the burgers, dogs, brats, and pork and chicken tenderloins/breasts. It wasn't unusual for cars and trucks to turn on their headlights to illuminate the shot put finals, while the 4X400 would wrap up well after 11pm.

State track in LaCrosse (which starts tomorrow) is a veritable zoo with people lining up as early as 7am to ensure getting seats by the finish line. Lots of fond memories on and off the track in LaCrosse over the years.

While Weber Meats is in Cuba City, they ironically use Hauber/Brand out of Dickeyville for football games which is just as good. Pizza supplied by Brian "Gooch" Lucey and his Greenhouse bar and grill in Kieler.

 

[BigD]

There you have it!!! When the football team makes the playoff this year everyone to Chickenlounge's place to celebrate and cheer on Kirk and the boys!!!

The real question is............. A1 sauce or Heinz 57? Something tells that several of you have grandpa's special recipe............... I mean it is steak and the only thing I love more is my Hawkeyes!!! .......... checking over my shoulder to make sure my wife doesn't read that last comment.

 

[Northside Hawk]

The real question is............. A1 sauce or Heinz 57? Something tells that several of you have grandpa's special recipe............... I mean it is steak and the only thing I love more is my Hawkeyes!!! .......... checking over my shoulder to make sure my wife doesn't read that last comment.

A good steak needs neither. But when needed I prefer A1.

 

[BigD]

A good steak needs neither. But when needed I prefer A1.

Let me guess........... medium rare?

 

[Chickenlounge]

The real question is............. A1 sauce or Heinz 57? Something tells that several of you have grandpa's special recipe............... I mean it is steak and the only thing I love more is my Hawkeyes!!! .......... checking over my shoulder to make sure my wife doesn't read that last comment.

If you bring that crap to my house i'll throw it in the pool.

The only time I use sauce is when there are leftovers after a couple days, and it has just started to dry out. Then I'll add a bit.

Oh, but a drizzle of Heinz 57 on a baked potato is the only way to fly...

 

[SwirlinLingerie]

10-4. Cast iron for steak and pork chops is the best method out there. I bought the cheapest sous vide machine Amazon had thinking I'd replace it with a nicer one if I liked cooking with it, but the thing will not die and works great.

I throw two frozen, vac sealed steaks in that thing when I leave for work at 125 degrees, when I get home 9 hours later I put the cast iron on medium high, throw in some oil/butter/crushed garlic cloves/thyme, and in about 10 minutes I have perfectly done steaks with the most amazing seared crust you've ever had. Pork chops same thing.

Smoke detectors go off every time? I love cooking steak that way, too, but set 'em off every time.

 

[SwirlinLingerie]

The biggest southwest Wisconsin track meet in terms of schools is the Sparky Reynolds in Boscobel. Usually the Friday of mother's day weekend which allowed for a late night. Twenty five schools give or take. And Jim Weber would have his portable grill and whip up,the burgers, dogs, brats, and pork and chicken tenderloins/breasts. It wasn't unusual for cars and trucks to turn on their headlights to illuminate the shot put finals, while the 4X400 would wrap up well after 11pm.

State track in LaCrosse (which starts tomorrow) is a veritable zoo with people lining up as early as 7am to ensure getting seats by the finish line. Lots of fond memories on and off the track in LaCrosse over the years.

While Weber Meats is in Cuba City, they ironically use Hauber/Brand out of Dickeyville for football games which is just as good. Pizza supplied by Brian "Gooch" Lucey and his Greenhouse bar and grill in Kieler.

It's really too bad track is such a spring sport in the upper Midwest. The absolute best weather of the year for racing (and watching) would be evening meets in mid-June to early-July....lots of daylight, the lights eventually coming on, no wind, warm....perfect track weather.

Throw in some food being grilled, some music piped in before each race (or a live pep band)....now you are talking.

 

[BigD]

If you bring that crap to my house i'll throw it in the pool.

The only time I use sauce is when there are leftovers after a couple days, and it has just started to dry out. Then I'll add a bit.

Oh, but a drizzle of Heinz 57 on a baked potato is the only way to fly...

How about I bring some local politicians over so you can throw them in the pool also……….lol. Chuck has been around too long. I remember when he first ran and I thought who is the young guy that looks like a dork.

Hmmmmm??? Steak? Chuck??? Chuck Roast? It is almost 100 pm here in Provo and I have t had breakfast nor lunch yet.

Not to get too deep into politics here but isn’t Chuck one of the politicians who signed a contract with America to have term limits?? I guess he meant life terms.

 

[Fryowa]

Smoke detectors go off every time? I love cooking steak that way, too, but set 'em off every time.

If I do it on the stove it does.

I have one of those outdoor turkey fryer burners that hooks up to a grill tank so most of the time I take them outside and do it on the back patio quick. Doesn’t take long.

That burner is super handy, I use it for that and to fry fish outside. Never a great idea to deep fry in your house unless you want it to smell like Hardees for three days.

 

[Fryowa]

Throw in some food being grilled, some music piped in before each race (or a live pep band)....now you are talking.

I think music should be played continuously at all track meets. Even during races.

Our school always goes to the USD high school indoor meet in Vermillion in April, and there’s about four million schools there to try and get an early meet under their belts. Takes all day, 9:30 am till about 6 pm. They pipe music over the PA the entire time and it at least makes it bearable. You can still hear and understand the announcer.

 

[Chickenlounge]

How about I bring some local politicians over so you can throw them in the pool also……….lol. Chuck has been around too long. I remember when he first ran and I thought who is the young guy that looks like a dork.

Hmmmmm??? Steak? Chuck??? Chuck Roast? It is almost 100 pm here in Provo and I have t had breakfast nor lunch yet.

Not to get too deep into politics here but isn’t Chuck one of the politicians who signed a contract with America to have term limits?? I guess he meant life terms.

Only if you bring cement shoes for those politicians as well.

 

[Chickenlounge]

Smoke detectors go off every time? I love cooking steak that way, too, but set 'em off every time.

Mine used to. I put in a vent hood so they usually don't go off now.

My process: (assuming steaks are already seasoned, lightly oiled, and near room temp)
Preheat oven to 450 with the cast iron inside.
After I'm sure the cast iron is really hot, pull it out and put it on a burner on high.
Place steaks in the cast iron for 90 seconds on one side.
Flip and put back in the oven for 6-8 minutes depending on thickness.
Pull out and remove from cast iron immediately and let rest for 10 minutes or so.
Slice and enjoy.

I used to do the sous vide, but I've found that this process is perfect nearly every time. I do like the sous vide for tougher cuts. I've done a couple chuck roasts in the sous vide for 24 hrs, then shredded and put in the crock pot with some BBQ sauce and onions, and had shredded bbq beef. That was damn good, and perfect for a large crowd at the tailgate.

I'll probably try cast iron steaks on the grill this summer and see how that works.

Edit: dammit...now I'm hungry