Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

This is a really simple pulled pork recipe...light on ingredients and easy to make.  I love to cook this, then mix it with the Carolina Gold BBQ sauce from Trader Joes, and serve it over oven-roasted sweet potatoes.  The perfect combo- seriously amazing.

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

From Allrecipes

1 (2 pound) pork tenderloin

1 (12 oz.) root beer

1 bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce

Place the pork tenderloin in a slow cooker; pour the root beer over the meat. Cover and cook on low until well cooked and the pork shreds easily, 6 to 7 hours. Note: the actual length of time may vary according to individual slow cooker. Drain well. Stir in barbecue sauce. Serve over hamburger buns or roasted sweet or regular Idaho potatoes.  My favorite way to roast potatoes is this one.

Grilled Lime Coconut Chicken with Coconut Rice

This was dee-licious. Seriously one of the best meals I've had in a while. And the flavors were just so original and different. Definitely a guest-worthy meal:).

Grilled Lime Coconut Chicken with Coconut Rice
from Mel's Kitchen Cafe 

Ingredients

Chicken and Marinade/Sauce:
• 3 tablespoons oil
• Zest and juice of 1 lime
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons curry powder
• 1/2 cup canned coconut milk, light or regular
• pinch cayenne pepper
• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts (see note above)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• Fresh limes, cut into wedges
Coconut Rice:
• 1 cup jasmine rice
• 1 cup canned coconut milk, light or regular
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 
  

Directions

1. In a large liquid measuring cup or medium bowl, whisk together the oil, lime zest, lime juice, cumin, coriander, soy sauce, salt, sugar, curry powder, coconut milk, and cayenne pepper. Place the chicken in a large ziploc bag and pour the marinade over the chicken. Seal the bag and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 8 hours.
2. For the coconut rice, bring the rice, coconut milk, water and salt to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Cover, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15-16 minutes until the liquid is mostly evaporated. remove from the heat and let stand for 10 minutes before fluffing with a fork and serving.
3. Preheat a charcoal or gas grill (see note above if not grilling) to medium-high heat. Grill the chicken for 6-7 minutes per side (actual time will depend on the thickness of the chicken). While the chicken is cooking, pour the marinade into a small or medium saucepan. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil and boil for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Place the grilled chicken on a serving platter or plate. Drizzle with sauce (reserve the remaining sauce to serve separately) and sprinkle fresh cilantro over the top. Serve with lime wedges and additional sauce.

Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken

 Pic courtesy of Six Sisters Stuff

We had this for dinner a couple nights ago and it was a real winner. I love grilling b/c it can be done pretty last minute and this was a little different twist on BBQ chicken.


Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken Recipe
from Six Sisters Stuff
Serves 4

 Ingredients:
1/2 cup of any whole grain mustard (I just used regular old French's mustard)
1/2 cup of honey
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
1 garlic clove, smashed and minced
 1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Preparation: Whisk all ingredients in a small bowl. Reserve 4 tablespoons of sauce and then pour the remaining honey mustard mixture over the chicken, toss and cover with plastic wrap and let it sit for about 30-45 minutes at room temperature. Preheat the grill on medium-medium high heat, grill chicken for about 6 to 7 minutes per side or until chicken is done. Pour the reserved honey-mustard sauce over chicken and let rest under foil for about 5 minutes. Serve.

Grilled Honey Chicken Kebabs

 


We're on a major kebab kick lately. We have them at least weekly here. I love them b/c the chicken pieces are small, so they cook quickly and they're really flavorful. Anyway, I made these last night and here I am posting them already, so they are THAT good.
I got the recipe from Mel's Kitchen Cafe and she grilled them up with veggie skewers as well and I'll include her instructions on those. I didn't make them b/c my family doesn't eat cooked veggies:(. Just FYI: I halved the marinade amount b/c I didn't make the veggies skewers.

Grilled Honey Chicken Kebabs
from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1/3 cup vegetable or canola oil
• 2 1/2 pounds chicken breasts, cubed
• 2 red bell peppers, cored, seeded and cut into large pieces
• 1 large red onion, cut into large pieces
• 8 ounces white button mushrooms, stemmed
• 2-3 cups fresh pineapple chunks

Directions

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, honey, pepper, garlic and oil. Measure out 1/4 cup marinade and place in a covered container in the refrigerator to use for grilling. Place the cubed chicken in a large ziploc bag and the vegetables in another ziploc bag. Pour half of the remaining marinade over the chicken and the other half over the vegetables. Seal the bags and refrigerate for at least 2 hours (can be refrigerated up to 24 hours).
2. If using wooden skewers, soak them in water 30 minutes prior to cooking. Thread the chicken pieces onto skewers and alternate the veggies/fruit on separate skewers.
3. Preheat a grill to medium heat and grill the skewers, flipping every couple of minutes, until the chicken is cooked through (about 7-10 minutes total, depending on the heat of your grill and size of the chicken pieces). The vegetable skewers only need a few minutes per side. Use the reserved marinade to brush over the chicken and veggies during the final minutes of cooking. Serve immediately.

Huli Huli Chicken

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BBQ Chicken Pizza

I LOVE this pizza, and you can be creative with it.  This is what I used:

Your favorite pizza crust (I copied the homemade one from Our Best Bites)
Your favorite BBQ sauce
Cilantro
Grilled Red onion slices (saute in butter on the stove)
Gouda cheese
Mozzarella cheese
Cooked, diced chicken marinated in BBQ sauce

Spread BBQ sauce on the pizza dough.  (I usually cook my dough slightly before this step so it isn't doughy.)  Add chicken, onion, cilantro, and cheese.  Feel free to layer as you like, the more you get on there, the better.  Bake according to pizza dough directions and savor the deliciousness!

Pat's Baked Beans

Pic courtesy of allrecipes.com

I LOVE baked beans- love, love, love 'em. I'm not talking about the open and pour canned ones, but the real, homemade ones. They are my favorite thing about BBQ's. So, when we were invited to Christian's work BBQ for Pioneer Day last weekend, I decided I'd try and whip up a batch to bring. I went to my go-to place for basic recipes like this: allrecipes.com and found the highest and most-rated recipe for baked beans. Let me just tell ya, if you want a way to make perfectly healthy beans into a nice, gooey, sweet, and tangy confection, you must try these at your next BBQ.

Pat's Baked Beans
adapted from allrecipes.com

• 8 slices bacon
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 (16 ounce) cans pinto beans
• 1 (16 ounce) cans great Northern beans, drained
• 1 (16 ounce) can baked beans
• 1 (16 ounce) can red kidney beans, drained
• 3/4 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, reserving 2 tablespoons of drippings, crumble and set aside in a large bowl. Cook the onion and garlic in the reserved drippings until onion is tender; drain excess grease and transfer to the bowl with the bacon.
3. To the bacon and onions add pinto beans, northern beans, baked beans, and kidney beans. Stir in ketchup, molasses, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, mustard and black pepper. Mix well and transfer to a 9x12 inch casserole dish.
4. Cover and bake in preheated oven for 1 hour.