July 16, 2025 • 38 mins
Chef Ann Milneck from Red Stick Spice reveals how to transform inexpensive cuts of meat into flavorful grilled masterpieces through proper techniques and seasoning approaches.
• Chuck steak can rival expensive cuts when using the "reverse searing" method - cooking low and slow before finishing on a blazing hot grill
• Early salting (dry brining) is crucial for all proteins - use 1 teaspoon per pound at least a few hours before cooking
• Always let meat come to room temperature before grilling - cold protein on a hot grill leads to uneven cooking
• Sirloin offers excellent value when properly prepared - try slicing it for Latin-seasoned tacos or grilling it whole
• Handle burger meat gently and create three indentations in the center to prevent shrinking
• Smoked paprika and smoked olive oil add authentic smoky flavor without needing wood chips
• Ground chicken is an overlooked, affordable protein that works well for sliders and tacos
• A quality digital instant-read thermometer is worth the investment to prevent overcooking
• Buy spices in bulk quantities to save money - only purchase what you'll use in six months
Visit Red Stick Spice for cooking classes where you'll learn techniques you can actually replicate at home, with recipes designed for everyday cooking.
Have an idea for a show or a question for Kim? Send us a text message
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Welcome to Money Matters, the podcast that
focuses on how to use the moneyyou have, make the money you
need and save the money you want.
Now here is your host, ms Kim.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Chapman, welcome to another edition of Money Matters
.
It is the summer and that meanswe want to go outside and grill
and grilling.
Well, you think about steaksand ribs.
It can get a little bitexpensive, but are there some
low budget ways that we cangrill and not break the bank?
Well, guess what we're going tofind out today.
(00:33):
Joining me again is ourreturning guest, ms Ann Milnick,
owner and chef of Red StickSpice.
How are you, ann?
I'm very well, thank you.
So glad to have you come backand join us.
Have you been outside?
Have you been grilling?
Speaker 3 (00:47):
Late in the evening when it's not heat index of 107.
Exactly, yeah, really reallyhot, but still a great quick way
to get dinner on the table.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
You know, when I think of grilling, I like to
think of steaks.
I mean, as a matter of fact, myoldest called me yesterday and
wanted to buy a new cast ironskillet so he can grill steaks.
But steaks can be expensive,especially if you want to get
out every weekend and reallyenjoy having that grill.
So I want to talk a little bitabout those less expensive cuts
of meat in terms of how can weactually kind of spice them up,
(01:21):
flavor them, keep them juicy andtasting as good as a nice thick
ribeye.
So let's start there.
What are some of those lesserexpensive cuts that we might
want to consider?
Speaker 3 (01:32):
So two come to mind.
One is a chuck steak.
So we think of chuck a lot oftimes as a well, chuck is a
great.
Chuck roast is a great potroast and we all know that takes
many, many hours to get thereor you could speed it up in an
instant pot, but a chuck roasttakes a long time to get tender.
(01:54):
But there's a way to approach achuck roast.
You need it, you need itbutchered in a particular way
and you approach it like a steak, and we do it in our date night
cooking classes.
And you approach it like asteak and we do it in our date
night cooking classes and itends up being a really flavorful
cut of meat.
When you think about steak,everyone likes a filet mignon,
but actually a filet mignon isyour least flavorful cut of
(02:18):
steak.
The more connective tissue andthe more fat in the cut of steak
, the more flavor you havetissue and the more fat in the
cut of steak, the more flavoryou have.
But the more connective tissueyou have, the more opportunities
to that when it's overcooked,then you're going to do a lot of
chewing.
Exactly so we approach thechuck like a steak, but we do a
(02:38):
very specific method and it'scalled reverse searing.
So that chuck steak.
First of all, when you look atit, you're going to see ribbons
of connective tissue and it'sgoing to be sort of in sections.
So all those sections want tocome apart.
That's what comes apart whenyou cook it as a pot roast.
(02:58):
So because they all want tocome apart, the first thing you
want to do is truss it.
So you're going to take a pieceof butcher twine and you're
going to tie it around the edgeto just hold it in place.
Then you're going to cook it lowand slow in the oven.
So I know we're going to get toseasoning in a moment, but this
cut of meat you will have wantto have seasoned first of all
(03:19):
generously and second, early aday before, if you can do it.
That cut of meat, thatpre-season cut of meat, is going
to go into a very low oven 175or 200 degrees and I know
everyone's thinking what is shetalking about and you're going
to cook it to an internal tempof right at 135.
(03:41):
And when you take it out of theoven it's going to be hideous.
It's going to be a cooked pieceof meat that doesn't have any
of that beautiful brownie on itand have that.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
Ruth Chris on the sizzling skillet appeal.
Speaker 3 (03:55):
That's the next part.
So then you're going to go toyour grill and you're going to
get it blazing hot, hot that'sblazing hot, hot and get some
fat on the exterior of thatpre-baked, that pre-roasted meat
and then you're going to searit on both sides and you're
(04:17):
going to get a beautiful browncrust on the outside.
And when you carve, the otherpart of reverse searing is
there's no resting.
You can just carve that cut ofmeat.
We know we talk a lot aboutresting meat, no reason to rest.
So then you're going to untrustit and you're going to look at
all those sections and you'regoing to treat them all as a
separate section.
So you're going to look for thegrain and you're going to carve
against the grain and we carveit like you would slice thick
(04:44):
slices of like a ribeye and weshingle it on the plate and in
the class we teach a couple ofsauces and then we serve it with
a sauce and it is flavorful, itis beautifully browned on the
outside and it is a veryinexpensive cut of meat.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
Got me mouthwatering already.
So you talked about getting iton a really hot grill.
So would that be better with agas grill, or does it matter gas
or charcoal?
Speaker 3 (05:05):
It doesn't matter as long as you can get it really
hot.
So when I do this at home andthat reverse searing goes really
quickly so you're sub fourminutes with the final sear.
So I have a gas grill and I getit up to close to 500 degrees
and the oil on the outside ofthe meat plus that, because it's
(05:28):
very, very hot, you're notgoing to have an issue with it
sticking.
It's going to go really fast.
But yeah, I get that grillreally blazing hot.
Probably easier to do with agas grill, but for folks who are
really skilled with charcoalgrills, I'm sure they can do it
as well.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Oh, sounds good.
Yeah, so let's talk about thatmarinade.
Speaker 3 (05:48):
So early salting, early seasoning, dry brining,
all mean the same thing.
Different food outlets andchefs use different terminology,
but it all means the same thingand it's really really
important for almost every pieceof protein that you cook.
It's really really importantfor almost every piece of
protein that you cook.
The ones you don't early saltis seafood, but other than that
(06:09):
I early salt everything.
So the rule around earlysalting is typically a teaspoon
(06:31):
per pound.
The larger the cut and the moreconnective tissue in the cut
and of course bones, the earlieryou salt.
So, for example, boneless,skinless chicken breast noon to
cook it at 5 pm.
Okay, thanksgiving turkeyMonday to cook it on Thursday.
So think of it that way.
So I went from boneless,skinless chicken breast to a
bone-in 14-pound bird and so Itook my early salting days in
(06:52):
advance.
So filet mignon that morningnoon, rib eye the night before,
if you can, especially if it's abone-in rib eye, and that chuck
steak I just talked about,definitely the day before the.
Uh.
So a teaspoon per pound so youcan just do salt and then,
closer to cooking time, then getyour flavors on there, get,
(07:14):
choose your favorite grillingblend or like mix one up with
some paprika and granulatedonion, granulated garlic, you
know, or you can early salt witha blend that has a salt content
.
So many of our blends aremarked in the store which ones
have and don't have salt.
(07:34):
So a salted spice blend.
I go just a little moreheavy-handed in the one teaspoon
and get it on both sides.
A lot of customers ask me thatall the time Do I season both
sides of the chicken?
We eat both sides of thechicken, so we're going to
season both sides of the chicken, that's funny.
So get it seasoned, get it inthe fridge and the next part of
(08:01):
sort of our rules around cookingprotein.
There's nothing worse than apiece of cold protein hitting a
hot pan.
So you need that protein tocome out of the fridge minimum
30 minutes prior.
Again, the larger the protein,the longer it needs to be out of
the fridge for the chill tocome off.
So boneless, skinless chickenbreast 20 to 30 minutes my
(08:22):
Thanksgiving turkey it's on thecounter an hour before.
Speaker 2 (08:23):
So a bowl of skinless chicken breast 20 to 30 minutes
my Thanksgiving turkey it's onthe counter an hour before I
actually learned that trick byaccident had some steak sitting
out on the counter that I wasgoing to put on the grill,
because I was.
You know, I'd take it from therefrigerator, I'd marinate it,
but I'd take it from therefrigerator and stick it on the
grill.
And just one day it sat thatout on the counter, probably
because I just took longer thanI thought to get outside and
(08:44):
stick it on the grill and I justrealized such a tremendous
difference and I was like it isa huge, huge difference when
that piece of meat is cold andyou're going for a very specific
internal temperature.
Speaker 3 (09:00):
My husband is very picky about a medium steak.
It is really hard to get thereproperly when it's trying to
deal with the cold inside andit's cooking from the outside.
It's really difficult to getthere with a cold piece of
protein.
So letting that protein sit atroom temperature before you cook
it is really really important.
(09:21):
Early salting, dry brining,early seasoning, whatever you
want to call it benefits you inmultiple ways your protein is
going to cook faster, it's goingto cook more evenly and your
browning is going to be moresignificant.
So that beautiful brown colorthat is the color of flavor
that's going to be better andmore even and more significant
(09:46):
because of early salting.
Early salting is even if you,when I buy ground beef and I
don't know what it's going to beyet I don't know if it's going
to be a burger, a meatloaf ortacos all I do is salt it.
If I don't know what thatground beef is going to be in a
day or two, all I do is salt itand it's in a bowl in my fridge
(10:07):
and then when I decide that it'sgoing to be taco flavored or
savory for a meatloaf, it's just.
Everything is better about thatprotein because you early
salted it.
Speaker 2 (10:16):
Oh, very good tips.
So we talked about that chucksteak.
What else?
What are some other inexpensivecuts of meat that we can easily
turn into something reallyflavorful and delicious without
breaking the bank?
Speaker 3 (10:29):
So the word you want to look for when you're at the
meat case and it gets confusingbecause butchers and grocery
stores use different terminologyfor the same cut, but the word
you want to look for is sirloinno-transcript.
(11:31):
So one of my favorite ways totake sirloin is to pre-cut it
raw against the grain, season itwith Latin seasonings, saute it
.
Then throw in bell pepper andonion and saute that, top it
with a melty cheese and use thatfor tacos.
(11:52):
So that's one great approach tosirloin.
Another would be on the grill toleave it whole early, salt it
and then sear it.
And you're going to sear itquickly.
You're going to have your grillhot and you're going to sear it
on one side and get a beautifulbrown crust.
Flip it, maybe lower your heata little bit so that it doesn't
overcook and let it cook to yourinternal temperature, probably
(12:15):
150 or so.
In that instance you do wantthat piece of meat to rest and
then you carve it against thegrain.
You could serve it as tacos,you could just serve it
alongside some mashed potatoes.
But a sirloin is a reallyinexpensive cut.
You just have to know whatyou're asking for from the
(12:36):
butcher and know that when itsays sirloin steak, you probably
wouldn't be satisfied treatingthat as like a ribeye, because
it's not going to cook up thesame Exactly.
Speaker 2 (12:48):
So everybody loves a good burger on the grill right.
So how can we make just a basicpack of brown meat into a
really good burger?
Speaker 3 (13:00):
So that early salting is really important.
And when you think about thefat content in that meat, a
higher fat content is going toget you a much more flavorful
burger.
A higher fat content is goingto get you a much more flavorful
burger.
And that ground beef can handlea lot of big punchy flavors.
So you can do things like ashawarma seasoning.
(13:20):
Or one thing that's reallypopular for burgers in our shop
is a coffee barbecue rub.
Really, that's coffee and justpepper, chilies and pepper and
paprika and just tons and tonsof flavor and a spice blend.
But a burger can handle that.
I would never put shawarmaseasoning or barbacoa seasoning
or coffee barbecue rub on afilet mignon, but I would
(13:43):
definitely put it in a burger.
And so that pack of ground,that pack of ground beef, think
of it as this blank canvas forbig, big flavors.
Another thing you want to makesure you have are lots of
condiments, really simple saucesand quick pickled onions and
(14:03):
things like that ready fordressing the burgers.
I think that when we teachthings like that in our teaching
kitchen, it's just that lightbulb moment where people are
like, oh, I could have this inmy fridge ready to go and make a
burger so much more interestingthan just a burger.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
So I have to ask, because of course we're talking
about trying to stretch yourdollar and when you're in your
kitchen you make this huge bigpatty, you stick it on the grill
and you come back a littlewhile later and then it looks
like a little biscuit.
Stick it on the grill and youcome back a little while later
and then it looks like a littlebiscuit and I can remember
somewhere seeing oh, if you puta little thumbprint in the
middle is, is there any truth tothat?
Yeah, or what should we bedoing?
Speaker 3 (14:40):
okay.
So the first thing you need tobe doing is handling it gently.
Okay, so your patty should notbe.
You shouldn't be working themeat like a meatball, you should
be using a gentle touch.
My patties aren't pretty on theedges, they're kind of ragged.
It resembles a burger, but it'sdefinitely not one of those
(15:03):
perfectly formed burgers.
And then I take three fingersand I just poke on the inside,
not through, but make a goodindentation.
So three and not just onelittle thumbprint Right.
Speaker 2 (15:10):
I make three indentations and that good
indentation, so three and notjust one little thumbprint.
Speaker 3 (15:12):
Right, I make three indentations and that will help
it.
So if you think about a pattythat's been worked and worked
and worked and that edge isreally refined, it when it, when
it it's going to shrink.
It's the nature of the fat inthat meat and the liquid in that
meat it's got to go away, right, so it's going to shrink.
(15:33):
But if it's been bound by aperfect edge, it doesn't have
anywhere to go.
So then when it's a littleragged it stays more flat, and I
think that a lot of people maketheir burgers too thick.
I think thinner burgers are makefor a better cookbook at the
(15:55):
end and actually stretches fromedge to edge on your bun, fits
on the bun, whereas this littlebitty patty on the center of the
bun.
But paying attention to the fatcontent and not overworking the
meat is really, reallyimportant.
Breadcrumbs or no breadcrumbs,that's up to you.
(16:16):
My mother always did it, butshe was stretching every bit of
food we had in our home.
I'm not a fan, but definitely,if that works for you, add the
breadcrumbs.
So definitely, if that worksfor you, add the breadcrumbs.
Speaker 2 (16:32):
So it seems like we've got a little theme here
going all the things Kim didwrong in the kitchen.
Like hey we're putting coldmeat on the grill.
We're only putting onefingerprint into the burger.
What are some other commonmistakes that we can make in the
kitchen that can really takeaway from stretching our food or
even just having a really goodflavor?
Speaker 3 (17:01):
I think when a cut of meat is large, I find that
cooks struggle because they'vegot this maybe gigantic piece of
meat in a skillet or on thegrill and looking at that and
you know, think about what yourend result is going to be.
But there's nothing wrong withtaking that sirloin flap and
cutting it into sections.
Or taking that chuck roast thatI talked about earlier and
cutting it and making twosmaller ones.
(17:23):
I find that that struggle withthat large, large piece of
protein is what ends upfrustrating folks.
That large, large piece ofprotein is what ends up
frustrating folks and then theydon't want to try it again
because that was some money thatthey spent on that and it's
gone.
So, taking your chicken andspatchcocking it you know where
you cut out the backbone and youflatten it things taking those
(17:47):
pieces of protein and makingthem more manageable, even if
you have to cook in batches, Ifind helps folks.
When we explain that in cookingclasses, that helps folks a lot
.
Speaker 2 (17:58):
So to add chips or not to add chips?
Obviously, you know there'sthis theory out there that hey,
if you get you some goodmesquite chips or these
different woods, but thosethings it can be expensive.
So what are some inexpensivetips that you can achieve those
great rich flavors withouthaving to break the bank and buy
those chips?
Speaker 3 (18:28):
Yeah, so smoky flavors are are all part of the
grilling that I'm doing now.
My goal with grilling right nowis to do it as late in the
evening as possible and to getit in and out of there as
quickly as possible.
So smoking isn't part of thatformula.
Speaker 2 (18:41):
Because that's just going to prolong.
Speaker 3 (18:43):
Exactly so.
Bringing smoky flavors throughspice blends and ingredients is
another way to get deliciousflavors.
So I would say, when you go tomy shop and you look at our
grilling blends, 100% of themhave a smoked component, and
that smoked component is comingfrom smoked paprika.
So paprika is a ground chilipepper and Hungarian paprika is
(19:11):
from Hungary, Spanish paprika isfrom Spain and either one of
them could be smoked.
So they make that paprika andthey put it in a cold smoker and
it develops that chiliessentially cooks a little bit
and develops the smoky flavorand it is absolutely delicious.
It is not an artificial flavor.
This isn't liquid smoke.
It's not an artificial flavor.
(19:31):
It's a beautiful thing thathappens to a chili when you
smoke it.
So that would be one way to getthere.
The other thing that we sell inthe shop is smoked olive oil
and it is fantastic.
Speaker 2 (19:46):
I don't think I've seen that one.
Speaker 3 (19:47):
Yeah, olive oil is put in a cold smoker and they
smoke it.
So obviously it's a veryspecific flavor and it's for
very specific things.
But to get that smoky flavoronto, if you're just throwing
some chicken on the grill oreven in in your burgers, smoked
olive oil, would be a great wayto get there.
Oh, I'll be over today.
(20:46):
Yeah, so you mentioned you knowyou want to cook late in the
evening and you want to be ableto do it really really quick Get
what was left behind beforepeople say oh, and then work
backwards from that very highheat.
So you might need that highheat essentially, or you can
back it off.
The other thing, if you're ableto do it, is create zones, so a
cooler zone.
So my grill has three burnersand so I can create a cooler
(21:08):
zone and then a hotter zone.
So managing your heat, I cancreate a cooler zone and then a
hotter zone, so managing yourheat.
You know, when I went toculinary school, the first thing
they told us on the first dayis 90% of a chef's job is
managing heat, and that is 100%true.
That is your job in the kitchenor at the grill is just
understanding heat and managingheat.
So you're managing heat by,first of all, not putting a cold
piece of protein on the grill,but you're managing heat with
(21:31):
the knobs or the movement of thecharcoal of the grill.
So creating zones is reallyreally helpful.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
So what are some budget-friendly recipes that?
You know we've talked a littlebit about steak, but what else
can we use?
Again, especially for barbecues, you usually have large
gatherings.
The neighbors are coming overbecause they smell it down the
street.
So how can we, you know,continue to have fun, enjoy food
, but keep those costs down.
Speaker 3 (21:57):
So buying big packs of chicken thighs is a really
affordable way to approachchicken.
Of course, breaking down awhole chicken is the number one
way, but then you end up withsome pieces.
Speaker 2 (22:13):
Several pieces.
Speaker 3 (22:14):
Yeah.
So those big packs of thighs ordrumsticks are affordable and
are smart.
The darker the poultry, thedork or the meat, the less
chance of it drying out.
It's hard to be unsuccessfulwith chicken thighs, so that
(22:36):
would be one way to get there.
With ground beef, make sliders.
So sliders are trendy right now.
Everybody loves them and aslong as you have some other
hearty sides, you've gone from apound of ground beef serving
four people to a pound of groundbeef serving eight people with
(22:56):
sliders.
And sliders don't have to be onslider buns, they can be on
dinner rolls.
So if you like those Hawaiianrolls, a slider is perfect on
that and those are really fun.
And if you think about, theremight be members of your family
who would have left half thatburger behind on their plate, or
children who don't want a wholeburger.
A slider is a great approach tostretching that ground beef.
Speaker 2 (23:21):
So let's talk a little bit about marinades,
thinking about those everydayhousehold items that we have.
How can we make a really good,flavorful marinade and what are
the keys to having that perfecttime?
I know you talked about theweight of the meat, but I know
sometimes you can over-marinatesomething.
Speaker 3 (23:37):
Sure.
So acid in a marinade isessentially denaturing, breaking
down the proteins and, to adegree, cooking them.
So if you think about a cevichefor seafood now seafood's a
small, delicate piece of proteinso that acid can cook it pretty
quickly Within hours you canhave cooked shellfish just from
(24:02):
the acid from a ceviche.
So you want to think about that.
So you want to think about that.
Now it's also a really goodthing because denaturing or
breaking down that exterior andsort of pre-cooking to a degree,
the exterior of that meat, isgoing to help you have a
(24:22):
flavorful and tender piece ofmeat.
So for me, wet marinating isreally for poultry and pork.
I can't think of a red meatthat I wet marinate.
Now a lot of people want to sayshe's wrong.
I do it all the time.
But for me, pork and chicken,especially a boneless, skinless
(24:43):
chicken breast, really benefitfrom a wet marinade, benefit
from a wet marinade.
And so you want to think fat,which is oil, acid and flavor,
when you think about a marinade.
So your acid can come fromvinegar, it could come from
fruit juice, but your acid in afruit juice is pretty low.
I'm talking about like a cartonfruit juice, an orange juice,
(25:07):
then your acid from fresh citruswould have more acidity in it.
So a lemon juice with someolive oil and garlic and
seasonings and maybe some mincedonion and some herbs would be a
great marinade for boneless,skinless chicken breast.
(25:28):
Do that in the morning andyou'll notice when you remove it
at 5 pm or 7 pm when you go togrill.
It's going to look pale whiteon the outside.
That's the acidity has goneafter that protein and
essentially it's changed it, butit's essentially cooking it.
Then you want to make sure thatwet marinade is mostly removed.
(25:55):
You don't have to wipe it off,but you definitely want to lift
it from that liquid because youwant to think about that liquid
hitting a very hot grill.
You're going to make a ton ofsteam and steaming is not what
we want to do on the grill.
We want golden brown situationhappening.
The other thing I would sayabout wet marinades is I don't
(26:17):
use them.
I don't meaning after I'vemarinated.
I don't turn that into a sauce.
I don't use it to.
I suppose you could use it tobaste during the cooking process
, but I don't serve it as asauce, nor do I cook it to
create a sauce Strictly as amarinade.
It's the marinade, so it goesaway.
(26:38):
For me, that's a food safetyissue for me, just thinking
about that poultry or porkthat's been sitting in that
liquid.
So I don't use them for serving.
So I don't use them for serving.
But yeah, the main pork chopthat's been wet, marinated and
then grilled absolutelydelicious.
It really helps that when youthink about a boneless, skinless
(27:00):
chicken breast or some of yourpork cuts, these areloin so they
benefit from the breaking downfrom the acid of that marinade.
What are some good techniquesto keep your meat nice and moist
(27:23):
and juicy while it's on thegrill?
That internal temperature needsto get to having a good
thermometer for you to so thatyou know when you're there and
you don't overcook it.
That's the main thing, ismanaging your heat and not
putting a cold piece of proteinon a hot grill.
Speaker 2 (27:39):
So time is money, Good cliche.
You know you get home in theafternoon and you want a good
cut of tenderized meat, but youdon't have time to marinate for
hours and get it there.
What are some of thoseshortcuts, you know, aside from
maybe just pounding with a meatcleaver?
Speaker 3 (27:56):
So tenderizing with elbow grease is helpful.
I would say, if I got home andI hadn't done any early salting
or any preparation of that meat,the first thing I would do is
carve it.
So if it were a piece ofsirloin, I would cut that into
(28:19):
smaller pieces, because I amgoing to salt it and season it
for as much time as I do have,and what I want to do is I want
to increase that surface area sothat way the seasoning gets on
more parts of the meat, becauseI've cut it and then you know.
So then I have some decisionsto make.
So now I've carved it, what isthis going to be?
Well, it's probably going toget carved and put it into like
(28:39):
pita for a wrap or taco or atortilla for tacos.
But that would be.
I would start thinking aboutsurface area and how can I
quickly get that seasoning intothat piece of protein?
And the most important thingyou can do is cut it and get it
into smaller pieces.
Speaker 2 (28:58):
Any kid friendly recipes.
You know, because kids lovegrill things, you know that we
could just throw on thereinexpensive, that they would
love to be able to just, youknow, snack and eat on while
they're playing outside.
Speaker 3 (29:08):
So again back to those sliders is, kids love
those.
There's a TikTok, a TikToksmash burger that's on a corn
tortilla, that where you spreadthe ground beef on a corn
tortilla and you cook it on thetortilla side first and as it's
(29:30):
cooking on the tortilla side themeat is cooking and then you
flip it and finish cooking itand then you fold it with the
tortilla on the exterior and soit's like a burger in a tortilla
.
And when one of our instructorspitched this I was like I have
no faith in this recipe and itwas the favorite thing in the
class, so that's a really funone.
(29:51):
The other thing and not justfor kids, for anyone, I think an
overlooked protein that'saffordable is ground chicken and
it's delicious, it cooksquickly, it's more of a blank
canvas than ground beef and canreally be a great way to get
protein in inexpensively, has alittle bit less fat and that's
(30:13):
another one that could besauteed as taco meat for kids or
made into a slider.
But ground chicken and it mightbe for those with sort of
texture issues it's a differenttexture.
You treat it like ground beefbut it's a different texture and
it's definitely a milder flavorand it might fit the bill for
(30:33):
some who might start having sometexture issues around ground
beef.
My youngest did.
There was a period of time whenshe couldn't do it and I
remember she was OK with groundchicken.
Speaker 2 (30:45):
So are there any cooking tools that may be, you
know, to start off a littlepricey, but worth the investment
in the long run because it willsave you money time and time
again.
Speaker 3 (30:55):
A digital instant read thermometer.
So the one we sell is in the$80 range and people say what
are you talking about?
It is one of the best $80investments you will make.
First of all, the company thatwe carry backs the product so
you don't have to worry about itbreaking.
They're going to replace it.
But a one to two second instantread thermometer meaning you
(31:18):
get your result in one to twoseconds is one of the best tools
you can have in your kitchenand for grilling it is really,
really essential.
So that is going to give youyour internal temps.
That's going to keep you fromovercooking and drying out that
piece of meat.
So that is definitely the besttool you can have for grilling.
Speaker 2 (31:40):
So you offer a ton of different variety of cooking
classes for every level.
But for somebody who's outthere listening and thinking
about a cooking class, whetherthey're an expert or not, what
are some of the biggest benefitssomebody can walk away from a
cooking one of your cookingclasses.
Speaker 3 (31:56):
The main thing is that when you come to a cooking
class, we're trained chefs so weknow what we're talking about.
But we make sure we definitelywant recipes that are
interesting, that maybe youhaven't tried before, that have
what I call like word appeal,like when you read the
(32:17):
description, you're like, oh,that sounds really interesting.
But we never want you to leaveand go well, that was
interesting, I'll never do thatagain.
They are do.
They are definitely recipesthat you can and will make again
at home.
We don't want to have you leavewith a packet of recipes where
you're like I don't know whereto get these ingredients.
(32:37):
I'll never do this.
What was the name of thattechnique?
He taught he used his $20 chefword and I don't know what that
means.
That doesn't happen.
It is definitely broken down,because the main thing we want
is for you to come back in andtell us that you made that
recipe at home.
So you get a minimum of eightrecipes when you leave.
(32:58):
You cook one of the recipes thatnight, but you get the recipe
packet for all of the recipesand we make sure that we're
teaching things that you want tomake again, and all through the
class one of the biggest partsfor us for teaching, because we
teach classes three or fournights a week.
That's a lot to prep, and so weknow what can be pre-prepped
(33:25):
and what can't, and so we spenda lot of time explaining this is
what you want to make the daybefore.
This is what you want to havetucked in the fridge.
If you make this, it holds for14 days in the fridge.
You can have that ready A lotof pre-prep information, because
the way our time is so consumedthese days, we know that
(33:46):
getting home and cooking is notas easy as it sounds.
So we want to make sure.
Speaker 2 (33:50):
TV makes it look glamorous Exactly.
Speaker 3 (33:52):
Exactly, we want to make sure you have tools in your
tool belt so that you can havesome things pre-prepped and
other things you make on the daywhen you go to cook.
Speaker 2 (34:02):
And one of the things that I absolutely love about
Red Stick Spice is you knowwe're talking about these
different recipes and techniques.
You know somebody may think, oh, it's a little expensive.
But talk about how they cancome into your shop and, if they
want to try one of these spices, that they don't have to spend
$10 on a bottle that they may ormay not ever use again.
Speaker 3 (34:20):
Right.
So we sell in bulk.
So it's at its core.
We sell by weight.
Of course we have spice jars ifyou need one.
But let's say you can buy asmuch or as little as you like.
So let's say there's a spicecake you make at Thanksgiving.
You make it one time a year andyou don't use the cardamom or
(34:42):
the allspice in that spice cakeany other time.
There's no reason for you tohave a bottle of cardamom, a jar
of cardamom in your cabinet andhave to buy a fresh one every
year.
No reason.
So people come in and we get ita lot at Thanksgiving.
People come in with theirrecipe and they literally buy a
(35:03):
teaspoon of this spice, atablespoon of that spice.
We weigh it.
Some of these are 85 centpurchases.
But that's what we are at ourcore.
Can you get jars of spices?
Absolutely.
And when you do bring us back ajar, it doesn't have to be our
jar, it can be any jar.
We give you a 15% discount forbringing in a container because
(35:23):
packaging is.
The biggest impact on mybusiness is jars and bags and
labels.
So anytime you bring us thatpackaging you get a discount
because it saves us so much.
So there's no reason to have aspice cabinet stocked with
spices.
What should be stocked in yourspice cabinet is what you're
going to use and use up in thenext six months.
Speaker 2 (35:45):
Absolutely.
That's why I like to say justlove it.
So that way you can try anyspice, and there are tons of
them.
You can really really spice upyour barbecue, spice up anything
you're doing.
Any last final tips, or yourbest tip for us for summer
grilling other than stayhydrated and stay inside, if you
can.
Speaker 3 (36:02):
Yeah, stay hydrated, stay inside, for sure.
But when you just I would saythat early salting, that pulling
the meat from the fridge, thatunderstanding where you're going
with what that meat's going tobecome, how you're carving it,
all of that is all.
When you take all of that, it'sjust a plan, so just kind of
(36:28):
have that game plan ready beforeyou turn the grill on and
things will be better.
Speaker 2 (36:30):
We'll do this again in the fall, when it's a little
bit cooler.
We'll be outside in the kitchen, outside and do some of that
and do some real demonstrationsand then, of course, the best
part we'll be tasting itafterwards.
And thanks again for comingback and sharing your expertise
with our listeners.
Speaker 3 (36:43):
Always a pleasure, thank you.
Speaker 1 (36:47):
It's time for Blueprint Building Blocks Small
changes that lead to bigfinancial wins.
Let's stack up for success.
Speaker 2 (36:57):
Know your cuts of meat.
Cheaper cuts like chuck flankand chicken thighs can be just
as flavorable, if not more, whenprepared correctly.
You want to season early.
You want to season early.
Marinating or seasoning atleast a few hours ahead, or
maybe even overnight, allowsthose flavors to absorb and
tenderize those tougher cuts ofmeat.
And then, of course, you wantto use the right spices.
(37:19):
Affordable doesn't mean bland.
Use bold spice blends with saltacids like vinegar or citrus,
and herbs to enhance your flavor.
And then, of course, grill.
Smart, Slow and indirect heatworks best for those tougher
cuts of meats.
Don't rush it.
Low and slow keeps that meatjuicy and tender.
Speaker 1 (37:40):
That's a wrap on today's Blueprint Building
Blocks.
Stay on track with yourfinancial journey.
Subscribe to the Money Matterspodcast and visit
neighborsfcuorg slash financialwellness for more tools to help
you build a strong financialfuture.
Welcome to Money Matters, the podcast that
focuses on how to use the moneyyou have, make the money you
need and save the money you want.
Now here is your host, ms Kim.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Chapman, welcome to another edition of Money Matters
.
It is the summer and that meanswe want to go outside and grill
and grilling.
Well, you think about steaksand ribs.
It can get a little bitexpensive, but are there some
low budget ways that we cangrill and not break the bank?
Well, guess what we're going tofind out today.
(00:33):
Joining me again is ourreturning guest, ms Ann Milnick,
owner and chef of Red StickSpice.
How are you, ann?
I'm very well, thank you.
So glad to have you come backand join us.
Have you been outside?
Have you been grilling?
Speaker 3 (00:47):
Late in the evening when it's not heat index of 107.
Exactly, yeah, really reallyhot, but still a great quick way
to get dinner on the table.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
You know, when I think of grilling, I like to
think of steaks.
I mean, as a matter of fact, myoldest called me yesterday and
wanted to buy a new cast ironskillet so he can grill steaks.
But steaks can be expensive,especially if you want to get
out every weekend and reallyenjoy having that grill.
So I want to talk a little bitabout those less expensive cuts
of meat in terms of how can weactually kind of spice them up,
(01:21):
flavor them, keep them juicy andtasting as good as a nice thick
ribeye.
So let's start there.
What are some of those lesserexpensive cuts that we might
want to consider?
Speaker 3 (01:32):
So two come to mind.
One is a chuck steak.
So we think of chuck a lot oftimes as a well, chuck is a
great.
Chuck roast is a great potroast and we all know that takes
many, many hours to get thereor you could speed it up in an
instant pot, but a chuck roasttakes a long time to get tender.
(01:54):
But there's a way to approach achuck roast.
You need it, you need itbutchered in a particular way
and you approach it like a steak, and we do it in our date night
cooking classes.
And you approach it like asteak and we do it in our date
night cooking classes and itends up being a really flavorful
cut of meat.
When you think about steak,everyone likes a filet mignon,
but actually a filet mignon isyour least flavorful cut of
(02:18):
steak.
The more connective tissue andthe more fat in the cut of steak
, the more flavor you havetissue and the more fat in the
cut of steak, the more flavoryou have.
But the more connective tissueyou have, the more opportunities
to that when it's overcooked,then you're going to do a lot of
chewing.
Exactly so we approach thechuck like a steak, but we do a
(02:38):
very specific method and it'scalled reverse searing.
So that chuck steak.
First of all, when you look atit, you're going to see ribbons
of connective tissue and it'sgoing to be sort of in sections.
So all those sections want tocome apart.
That's what comes apart whenyou cook it as a pot roast.
(02:58):
So because they all want tocome apart, the first thing you
want to do is truss it.
So you're going to take a pieceof butcher twine and you're
going to tie it around the edgeto just hold it in place.
Then you're going to cook it lowand slow in the oven.
So I know we're going to get toseasoning in a moment, but this
cut of meat you will have wantto have seasoned first of all
(03:19):
generously and second, early aday before, if you can do it.
That cut of meat, thatpre-season cut of meat, is going
to go into a very low oven 175or 200 degrees and I know
everyone's thinking what is shetalking about and you're going
to cook it to an internal tempof right at 135.
(03:41):
And when you take it out of theoven it's going to be hideous.
It's going to be a cooked pieceof meat that doesn't have any
of that beautiful brownie on itand have that.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
Ruth Chris on the sizzling skillet appeal.
Speaker 3 (03:55):
That's the next part.
So then you're going to go toyour grill and you're going to
get it blazing hot, hot that'sblazing hot, hot and get some
fat on the exterior of thatpre-baked, that pre-roasted meat
and then you're going to searit on both sides and you're
(04:17):
going to get a beautiful browncrust on the outside.
And when you carve, the otherpart of reverse searing is
there's no resting.
You can just carve that cut ofmeat.
We know we talk a lot aboutresting meat, no reason to rest.
So then you're going to untrustit and you're going to look at
all those sections and you'regoing to treat them all as a
separate section.
So you're going to look for thegrain and you're going to carve
against the grain and we carveit like you would slice thick
(04:44):
slices of like a ribeye and weshingle it on the plate and in
the class we teach a couple ofsauces and then we serve it with
a sauce and it is flavorful, itis beautifully browned on the
outside and it is a veryinexpensive cut of meat.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
Got me mouthwatering already.
So you talked about getting iton a really hot grill.
So would that be better with agas grill, or does it matter gas
or charcoal?
Speaker 3 (05:05):
It doesn't matter as long as you can get it really
hot.
So when I do this at home andthat reverse searing goes really
quickly so you're sub fourminutes with the final sear.
So I have a gas grill and I getit up to close to 500 degrees
and the oil on the outside ofthe meat plus that, because it's
(05:28):
very, very hot, you're notgoing to have an issue with it
sticking.
It's going to go really fast.
But yeah, I get that grillreally blazing hot.
Probably easier to do with agas grill, but for folks who are
really skilled with charcoalgrills, I'm sure they can do it
as well.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Oh, sounds good.
Yeah, so let's talk about thatmarinade.
Speaker 3 (05:48):
So early salting, early seasoning, dry brining,
all mean the same thing.
Different food outlets andchefs use different terminology,
but it all means the same thingand it's really really
important for almost every pieceof protein that you cook.
It's really really importantfor almost every piece of
protein that you cook.
The ones you don't early saltis seafood, but other than that
(06:09):
I early salt everything.
So the rule around earlysalting is typically a teaspoon
(06:31):
per pound.
The larger the cut and the moreconnective tissue in the cut
and of course bones, the earlieryou salt.
So, for example, boneless,skinless chicken breast noon to
cook it at 5 pm.
Okay, thanksgiving turkeyMonday to cook it on Thursday.
So think of it that way.
So I went from boneless,skinless chicken breast to a
bone-in 14-pound bird and so Itook my early salting days in
(06:52):
advance.
So filet mignon that morningnoon, rib eye the night before,
if you can, especially if it's abone-in rib eye, and that chuck
steak I just talked about,definitely the day before the.
Uh.
So a teaspoon per pound so youcan just do salt and then,
closer to cooking time, then getyour flavors on there, get,
(07:14):
choose your favorite grillingblend or like mix one up with
some paprika and granulatedonion, granulated garlic, you
know, or you can early salt witha blend that has a salt content
.
So many of our blends aremarked in the store which ones
have and don't have salt.
(07:34):
So a salted spice blend.
I go just a little moreheavy-handed in the one teaspoon
and get it on both sides.
A lot of customers ask me thatall the time Do I season both
sides of the chicken?
We eat both sides of thechicken, so we're going to
season both sides of the chicken, that's funny.
So get it seasoned, get it inthe fridge and the next part of
(08:01):
sort of our rules around cookingprotein.
There's nothing worse than apiece of cold protein hitting a
hot pan.
So you need that protein tocome out of the fridge minimum
30 minutes prior.
Again, the larger the protein,the longer it needs to be out of
the fridge for the chill tocome off.
So boneless, skinless chickenbreast 20 to 30 minutes my
(08:22):
Thanksgiving turkey it's on thecounter an hour before.
Speaker 2 (08:23):
So a bowl of skinless chicken breast 20 to 30 minutes
my Thanksgiving turkey it's onthe counter an hour before I
actually learned that trick byaccident had some steak sitting
out on the counter that I wasgoing to put on the grill,
because I was.
You know, I'd take it from therefrigerator, I'd marinate it,
but I'd take it from therefrigerator and stick it on the
grill.
And just one day it sat thatout on the counter, probably
because I just took longer thanI thought to get outside and
(08:44):
stick it on the grill and I justrealized such a tremendous
difference and I was like it isa huge, huge difference when
that piece of meat is cold andyou're going for a very specific
internal temperature.
Speaker 3 (09:00):
My husband is very picky about a medium steak.
It is really hard to get thereproperly when it's trying to
deal with the cold inside andit's cooking from the outside.
It's really difficult to getthere with a cold piece of
protein.
So letting that protein sit atroom temperature before you cook
it is really really important.
(09:21):
Early salting, dry brining,early seasoning, whatever you
want to call it benefits you inmultiple ways your protein is
going to cook faster, it's goingto cook more evenly and your
browning is going to be moresignificant.
So that beautiful brown colorthat is the color of flavor
that's going to be better andmore even and more significant
(09:46):
because of early salting.
Early salting is even if you,when I buy ground beef and I
don't know what it's going to beyet I don't know if it's going
to be a burger, a meatloaf ortacos all I do is salt it.
If I don't know what thatground beef is going to be in a
day or two, all I do is salt itand it's in a bowl in my fridge
(10:07):
and then when I decide that it'sgoing to be taco flavored or
savory for a meatloaf, it's just.
Everything is better about thatprotein because you early
salted it.
Speaker 2 (10:16):
Oh, very good tips.
So we talked about that chucksteak.
What else?
What are some other inexpensivecuts of meat that we can easily
turn into something reallyflavorful and delicious without
breaking the bank?
Speaker 3 (10:29):
So the word you want to look for when you're at the
meat case and it gets confusingbecause butchers and grocery
stores use different terminologyfor the same cut, but the word
you want to look for is sirloinno-transcript.
(11:31):
So one of my favorite ways totake sirloin is to pre-cut it
raw against the grain, season itwith Latin seasonings, saute it
.
Then throw in bell pepper andonion and saute that, top it
with a melty cheese and use thatfor tacos.
(11:52):
So that's one great approach tosirloin.
Another would be on the grill toleave it whole early, salt it
and then sear it.
And you're going to sear itquickly.
You're going to have your grillhot and you're going to sear it
on one side and get a beautifulbrown crust.
Flip it, maybe lower your heata little bit so that it doesn't
overcook and let it cook to yourinternal temperature, probably
(12:15):
150 or so.
In that instance you do wantthat piece of meat to rest and
then you carve it against thegrain.
You could serve it as tacos,you could just serve it
alongside some mashed potatoes.
But a sirloin is a reallyinexpensive cut.
You just have to know whatyou're asking for from the
(12:36):
butcher and know that when itsays sirloin steak, you probably
wouldn't be satisfied treatingthat as like a ribeye, because
it's not going to cook up thesame Exactly.
Speaker 2 (12:48):
So everybody loves a good burger on the grill right.
So how can we make just a basicpack of brown meat into a
really good burger?
Speaker 3 (13:00):
So that early salting is really important.
And when you think about thefat content in that meat, a
higher fat content is going toget you a much more flavorful
burger.
A higher fat content is goingto get you a much more flavorful
burger.
And that ground beef can handlea lot of big punchy flavors.
So you can do things like ashawarma seasoning.
(13:20):
Or one thing that's reallypopular for burgers in our shop
is a coffee barbecue rub.
Really, that's coffee and justpepper, chilies and pepper and
paprika and just tons and tonsof flavor and a spice blend.
But a burger can handle that.
I would never put shawarmaseasoning or barbacoa seasoning
or coffee barbecue rub on afilet mignon, but I would
(13:43):
definitely put it in a burger.
And so that pack of ground,that pack of ground beef, think
of it as this blank canvas forbig, big flavors.
Another thing you want to makesure you have are lots of
condiments, really simple saucesand quick pickled onions and
(14:03):
things like that ready fordressing the burgers.
I think that when we teachthings like that in our teaching
kitchen, it's just that lightbulb moment where people are
like, oh, I could have this inmy fridge ready to go and make a
burger so much more interestingthan just a burger.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
So I have to ask, because of course we're talking
about trying to stretch yourdollar and when you're in your
kitchen you make this huge bigpatty, you stick it on the grill
and you come back a littlewhile later and then it looks
like a little biscuit.
Stick it on the grill and youcome back a little while later
and then it looks like a littlebiscuit and I can remember
somewhere seeing oh, if you puta little thumbprint in the
middle is, is there any truth tothat?
Yeah, or what should we bedoing?
Speaker 3 (14:40):
okay.
So the first thing you need tobe doing is handling it gently.
Okay, so your patty should notbe.
You shouldn't be working themeat like a meatball, you should
be using a gentle touch.
My patties aren't pretty on theedges, they're kind of ragged.
It resembles a burger, but it'sdefinitely not one of those
(15:03):
perfectly formed burgers.
And then I take three fingersand I just poke on the inside,
not through, but make a goodindentation.
So three and not just onelittle thumbprint Right.
Speaker 2 (15:10):
I make three indentations and that good
indentation, so three and notjust one little thumbprint.
Speaker 3 (15:12):
Right, I make three indentations and that will help
it.
So if you think about a pattythat's been worked and worked
and worked and that edge isreally refined, it when it, when
it it's going to shrink.
It's the nature of the fat inthat meat and the liquid in that
meat it's got to go away, right, so it's going to shrink.
(15:33):
But if it's been bound by aperfect edge, it doesn't have
anywhere to go.
So then when it's a littleragged it stays more flat, and I
think that a lot of people maketheir burgers too thick.
I think thinner burgers are makefor a better cookbook at the
(15:55):
end and actually stretches fromedge to edge on your bun, fits
on the bun, whereas this littlebitty patty on the center of the
bun.
But paying attention to the fatcontent and not overworking the
meat is really, reallyimportant.
Breadcrumbs or no breadcrumbs,that's up to you.
(16:16):
My mother always did it, butshe was stretching every bit of
food we had in our home.
I'm not a fan, but definitely,if that works for you, add the
breadcrumbs.
So definitely, if that worksfor you, add the breadcrumbs.
Speaker 2 (16:32):
So it seems like we've got a little theme here
going all the things Kim didwrong in the kitchen.
Like hey we're putting coldmeat on the grill.
We're only putting onefingerprint into the burger.
What are some other commonmistakes that we can make in the
kitchen that can really takeaway from stretching our food or
even just having a really goodflavor?
Speaker 3 (17:01):
I think when a cut of meat is large, I find that
cooks struggle because they'vegot this maybe gigantic piece of
meat in a skillet or on thegrill and looking at that and
you know, think about what yourend result is going to be.
But there's nothing wrong withtaking that sirloin flap and
cutting it into sections.
Or taking that chuck roast thatI talked about earlier and
cutting it and making twosmaller ones.
(17:23):
I find that that struggle withthat large, large piece of
protein is what ends upfrustrating folks.
That large, large piece ofprotein is what ends up
frustrating folks and then theydon't want to try it again
because that was some money thatthey spent on that and it's
gone.
So, taking your chicken andspatchcocking it you know where
you cut out the backbone and youflatten it things taking those
(17:47):
pieces of protein and makingthem more manageable, even if
you have to cook in batches, Ifind helps folks.
When we explain that in cookingclasses, that helps folks a lot
.
Speaker 2 (17:58):
So to add chips or not to add chips?
Obviously, you know there'sthis theory out there that hey,
if you get you some goodmesquite chips or these
different woods, but thosethings it can be expensive.
So what are some inexpensivetips that you can achieve those
great rich flavors withouthaving to break the bank and buy
those chips?
Speaker 3 (18:28):
Yeah, so smoky flavors are are all part of the
grilling that I'm doing now.
My goal with grilling right nowis to do it as late in the
evening as possible and to getit in and out of there as
quickly as possible.
So smoking isn't part of thatformula.
Speaker 2 (18:41):
Because that's just going to prolong.
Speaker 3 (18:43):
Exactly so.
Bringing smoky flavors throughspice blends and ingredients is
another way to get deliciousflavors.
So I would say, when you go tomy shop and you look at our
grilling blends, 100% of themhave a smoked component, and
that smoked component is comingfrom smoked paprika.
So paprika is a ground chilipepper and Hungarian paprika is
(19:11):
from Hungary, Spanish paprika isfrom Spain and either one of
them could be smoked.
So they make that paprika andthey put it in a cold smoker and
it develops that chiliessentially cooks a little bit
and develops the smoky flavorand it is absolutely delicious.
It is not an artificial flavor.
This isn't liquid smoke.
It's not an artificial flavor.
(19:31):
It's a beautiful thing thathappens to a chili when you
smoke it.
So that would be one way to getthere.
The other thing that we sell inthe shop is smoked olive oil
and it is fantastic.
Speaker 2 (19:46):
I don't think I've seen that one.
Speaker 3 (19:47):
Yeah, olive oil is put in a cold smoker and they
smoke it.
So obviously it's a veryspecific flavor and it's for
very specific things.
But to get that smoky flavoronto, if you're just throwing
some chicken on the grill oreven in in your burgers, smoked
olive oil, would be a great wayto get there.
Oh, I'll be over today.
(20:46):
Yeah, so you mentioned you knowyou want to cook late in the
evening and you want to be ableto do it really really quick Get
what was left behind beforepeople say oh, and then work
backwards from that very highheat.
So you might need that highheat essentially, or you can
back it off.
The other thing, if you're ableto do it, is create zones, so a
cooler zone.
So my grill has three burnersand so I can create a cooler
(21:08):
zone and then a hotter zone.
So managing your heat, I cancreate a cooler zone and then a
hotter zone, so managing yourheat.
You know, when I went toculinary school, the first thing
they told us on the first dayis 90% of a chef's job is
managing heat, and that is 100%true.
That is your job in the kitchenor at the grill is just
understanding heat and managingheat.
So you're managing heat by,first of all, not putting a cold
piece of protein on the grill,but you're managing heat with
(21:31):
the knobs or the movement of thecharcoal of the grill.
So creating zones is reallyreally helpful.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
So what are some budget-friendly recipes that?
You know we've talked a littlebit about steak, but what else
can we use?
Again, especially for barbecues, you usually have large
gatherings.
The neighbors are coming overbecause they smell it down the
street.
So how can we, you know,continue to have fun, enjoy food
, but keep those costs down.
Speaker 3 (21:57):
So buying big packs of chicken thighs is a really
affordable way to approachchicken.
Of course, breaking down awhole chicken is the number one
way, but then you end up withsome pieces.
Speaker 2 (22:13):
Several pieces.
Speaker 3 (22:14):
Yeah.
So those big packs of thighs ordrumsticks are affordable and
are smart.
The darker the poultry, thedork or the meat, the less
chance of it drying out.
It's hard to be unsuccessfulwith chicken thighs, so that
(22:36):
would be one way to get there.
With ground beef, make sliders.
So sliders are trendy right now.
Everybody loves them and aslong as you have some other
hearty sides, you've gone from apound of ground beef serving
four people to a pound of groundbeef serving eight people with
(22:56):
sliders.
And sliders don't have to be onslider buns, they can be on
dinner rolls.
So if you like those Hawaiianrolls, a slider is perfect on
that and those are really fun.
And if you think about, theremight be members of your family
who would have left half thatburger behind on their plate, or
children who don't want a wholeburger.
A slider is a great approach tostretching that ground beef.
Speaker 2 (23:21):
So let's talk a little bit about marinades,
thinking about those everydayhousehold items that we have.
How can we make a really good,flavorful marinade and what are
the keys to having that perfecttime?
I know you talked about theweight of the meat, but I know
sometimes you can over-marinatesomething.
Speaker 3 (23:37):
Sure.
So acid in a marinade isessentially denaturing, breaking
down the proteins and, to adegree, cooking them.
So if you think about a cevichefor seafood now seafood's a
small, delicate piece of proteinso that acid can cook it pretty
quickly Within hours you canhave cooked shellfish just from
(24:02):
the acid from a ceviche.
So you want to think about that.
So you want to think about that.
Now it's also a really goodthing because denaturing or
breaking down that exterior andsort of pre-cooking to a degree,
the exterior of that meat, isgoing to help you have a
(24:22):
flavorful and tender piece ofmeat.
So for me, wet marinating isreally for poultry and pork.
I can't think of a red meatthat I wet marinate.
Now a lot of people want to sayshe's wrong.
I do it all the time.
But for me, pork and chicken,especially a boneless, skinless
(24:43):
chicken breast, really benefitfrom a wet marinade, benefit
from a wet marinade.
And so you want to think fat,which is oil, acid and flavor,
when you think about a marinade.
So your acid can come fromvinegar, it could come from
fruit juice, but your acid in afruit juice is pretty low.
I'm talking about like a cartonfruit juice, an orange juice,
(25:07):
then your acid from fresh citruswould have more acidity in it.
So a lemon juice with someolive oil and garlic and
seasonings and maybe some mincedonion and some herbs would be a
great marinade for boneless,skinless chicken breast.
(25:28):
Do that in the morning andyou'll notice when you remove it
at 5 pm or 7 pm when you go togrill.
It's going to look pale whiteon the outside.
That's the acidity has goneafter that protein and
essentially it's changed it, butit's essentially cooking it.
Then you want to make sure thatwet marinade is mostly removed.
(25:55):
You don't have to wipe it off,but you definitely want to lift
it from that liquid because youwant to think about that liquid
hitting a very hot grill.
You're going to make a ton ofsteam and steaming is not what
we want to do on the grill.
We want golden brown situationhappening.
The other thing I would sayabout wet marinades is I don't
(26:17):
use them.
I don't meaning after I'vemarinated.
I don't turn that into a sauce.
I don't use it to.
I suppose you could use it tobaste during the cooking process
, but I don't serve it as asauce, nor do I cook it to
create a sauce Strictly as amarinade.
It's the marinade, so it goesaway.
(26:38):
For me, that's a food safetyissue for me, just thinking
about that poultry or porkthat's been sitting in that
liquid.
So I don't use them for serving.
So I don't use them for serving.
But yeah, the main pork chopthat's been wet, marinated and
then grilled absolutelydelicious.
It really helps that when youthink about a boneless, skinless
(27:00):
chicken breast or some of yourpork cuts, these areloin so they
benefit from the breaking downfrom the acid of that marinade.
What are some good techniquesto keep your meat nice and moist
(27:23):
and juicy while it's on thegrill?
That internal temperature needsto get to having a good
thermometer for you to so thatyou know when you're there and
you don't overcook it.
That's the main thing, ismanaging your heat and not
putting a cold piece of proteinon a hot grill.
Speaker 2 (27:39):
So time is money, Good cliche.
You know you get home in theafternoon and you want a good
cut of tenderized meat, but youdon't have time to marinate for
hours and get it there.
What are some of thoseshortcuts, you know, aside from
maybe just pounding with a meatcleaver?
Speaker 3 (27:56):
So tenderizing with elbow grease is helpful.
I would say, if I got home andI hadn't done any early salting
or any preparation of that meat,the first thing I would do is
carve it.
So if it were a piece ofsirloin, I would cut that into
(28:19):
smaller pieces, because I amgoing to salt it and season it
for as much time as I do have,and what I want to do is I want
to increase that surface area sothat way the seasoning gets on
more parts of the meat, becauseI've cut it and then you know.
So then I have some decisionsto make.
So now I've carved it, what isthis going to be?
Well, it's probably going toget carved and put it into like
(28:39):
pita for a wrap or taco or atortilla for tacos.
But that would be.
I would start thinking aboutsurface area and how can I
quickly get that seasoning intothat piece of protein?
And the most important thingyou can do is cut it and get it
into smaller pieces.
Speaker 2 (28:58):
Any kid friendly recipes.
You know, because kids lovegrill things, you know that we
could just throw on thereinexpensive, that they would
love to be able to just, youknow, snack and eat on while
they're playing outside.
Speaker 3 (29:08):
So again back to those sliders is, kids love
those.
There's a TikTok, a TikToksmash burger that's on a corn
tortilla, that where you spreadthe ground beef on a corn
tortilla and you cook it on thetortilla side first and as it's
(29:30):
cooking on the tortilla side themeat is cooking and then you
flip it and finish cooking itand then you fold it with the
tortilla on the exterior and soit's like a burger in a tortilla
.
And when one of our instructorspitched this I was like I have
no faith in this recipe and itwas the favorite thing in the
class, so that's a really funone.
(29:51):
The other thing and not justfor kids, for anyone, I think an
overlooked protein that'saffordable is ground chicken and
it's delicious, it cooksquickly, it's more of a blank
canvas than ground beef and canreally be a great way to get
protein in inexpensively, has alittle bit less fat and that's
(30:13):
another one that could besauteed as taco meat for kids or
made into a slider.
But ground chicken and it mightbe for those with sort of
texture issues it's a differenttexture.
You treat it like ground beefbut it's a different texture and
it's definitely a milder flavorand it might fit the bill for
(30:33):
some who might start having sometexture issues around ground
beef.
My youngest did.
There was a period of time whenshe couldn't do it and I
remember she was OK with groundchicken.
Speaker 2 (30:45):
So are there any cooking tools that may be, you
know, to start off a littlepricey, but worth the investment
in the long run because it willsave you money time and time
again.
Speaker 3 (30:55):
A digital instant read thermometer.
So the one we sell is in the$80 range and people say what
are you talking about?
It is one of the best $80investments you will make.
First of all, the company thatwe carry backs the product so
you don't have to worry about itbreaking.
They're going to replace it.
But a one to two second instantread thermometer meaning you
(31:18):
get your result in one to twoseconds is one of the best tools
you can have in your kitchenand for grilling it is really,
really essential.
So that is going to give youyour internal temps.
That's going to keep you fromovercooking and drying out that
piece of meat.
So that is definitely the besttool you can have for grilling.
Speaker 2 (31:40):
So you offer a ton of different variety of cooking
classes for every level.
But for somebody who's outthere listening and thinking
about a cooking class, whetherthey're an expert or not, what
are some of the biggest benefitssomebody can walk away from a
cooking one of your cookingclasses.
Speaker 3 (31:56):
The main thing is that when you come to a cooking
class, we're trained chefs so weknow what we're talking about.
But we make sure we definitelywant recipes that are
interesting, that maybe youhaven't tried before, that have
what I call like word appeal,like when you read the
(32:17):
description, you're like, oh,that sounds really interesting.
But we never want you to leaveand go well, that was
interesting, I'll never do thatagain.
They are do.
They are definitely recipesthat you can and will make again
at home.
We don't want to have you leavewith a packet of recipes where
you're like I don't know whereto get these ingredients.
(32:37):
I'll never do this.
What was the name of thattechnique?
He taught he used his $20 chefword and I don't know what that
means.
That doesn't happen.
It is definitely broken down,because the main thing we want
is for you to come back in andtell us that you made that
recipe at home.
So you get a minimum of eightrecipes when you leave.
(32:58):
You cook one of the recipes thatnight, but you get the recipe
packet for all of the recipesand we make sure that we're
teaching things that you want tomake again, and all through the
class one of the biggest partsfor us for teaching, because we
teach classes three or fournights a week.
That's a lot to prep, and so weknow what can be pre-prepped
(33:25):
and what can't, and so we spenda lot of time explaining this is
what you want to make the daybefore.
This is what you want to havetucked in the fridge.
If you make this, it holds for14 days in the fridge.
You can have that ready A lotof pre-prep information, because
the way our time is so consumedthese days, we know that
(33:46):
getting home and cooking is notas easy as it sounds.
So we want to make sure.
Speaker 2 (33:50):
TV makes it look glamorous Exactly.
Speaker 3 (33:52):
Exactly, we want to make sure you have tools in your
tool belt so that you can havesome things pre-prepped and
other things you make on the daywhen you go to cook.
Speaker 2 (34:02):
And one of the things that I absolutely love about
Red Stick Spice is you knowwe're talking about these
different recipes and techniques.
You know somebody may think, oh, it's a little expensive.
But talk about how they cancome into your shop and, if they
want to try one of these spices, that they don't have to spend
$10 on a bottle that they may ormay not ever use again.
Speaker 3 (34:20):
Right.
So we sell in bulk.
So it's at its core.
We sell by weight.
Of course we have spice jars ifyou need one.
But let's say you can buy asmuch or as little as you like.
So let's say there's a spicecake you make at Thanksgiving.
You make it one time a year andyou don't use the cardamom or
(34:42):
the allspice in that spice cakeany other time.
There's no reason for you tohave a bottle of cardamom, a jar
of cardamom in your cabinet andhave to buy a fresh one every
year.
No reason.
So people come in and we get ita lot at Thanksgiving.
People come in with theirrecipe and they literally buy a
(35:03):
teaspoon of this spice, atablespoon of that spice.
We weigh it.
Some of these are 85 centpurchases.
But that's what we are at ourcore.
Can you get jars of spices?
Absolutely.
And when you do bring us back ajar, it doesn't have to be our
jar, it can be any jar.
We give you a 15% discount forbringing in a container because
(35:23):
packaging is.
The biggest impact on mybusiness is jars and bags and
labels.
So anytime you bring us thatpackaging you get a discount
because it saves us so much.
So there's no reason to have aspice cabinet stocked with
spices.
What should be stocked in yourspice cabinet is what you're
going to use and use up in thenext six months.
Speaker 2 (35:45):
Absolutely.
That's why I like to say justlove it.
So that way you can try anyspice, and there are tons of
them.
You can really really spice upyour barbecue, spice up anything
you're doing.
Any last final tips, or yourbest tip for us for summer
grilling other than stayhydrated and stay inside, if you
can.
Speaker 3 (36:02):
Yeah, stay hydrated, stay inside, for sure.
But when you just I would saythat early salting, that pulling
the meat from the fridge, thatunderstanding where you're going
with what that meat's going tobecome, how you're carving it,
all of that is all.
When you take all of that, it'sjust a plan, so just kind of
(36:28):
have that game plan ready beforeyou turn the grill on and
things will be better.
Speaker 2 (36:30):
We'll do this again in the fall, when it's a little
bit cooler.
We'll be outside in the kitchen, outside and do some of that
and do some real demonstrationsand then, of course, the best
part we'll be tasting itafterwards.
And thanks again for comingback and sharing your expertise
with our listeners.
Speaker 3 (36:43):
Always a pleasure, thank you.
Speaker 1 (36:47):
It's time for Blueprint Building Blocks Small
changes that lead to bigfinancial wins.
Let's stack up for success.
Speaker 2 (36:57):
Know your cuts of meat.
Cheaper cuts like chuck flankand chicken thighs can be just
as flavorable, if not more, whenprepared correctly.
You want to season early.
You want to season early.
Marinating or seasoning atleast a few hours ahead, or
maybe even overnight, allowsthose flavors to absorb and
tenderize those tougher cuts ofmeat.
And then, of course, you wantto use the right spices.
(37:19):
Affordable doesn't mean bland.
Use bold spice blends with saltacids like vinegar or citrus,
and herbs to enhance your flavor.
And then, of course, grill.
Smart, Slow and indirect heatworks best for those tougher
cuts of meats.
Don't rush it.
Low and slow keeps that meatjuicy and tender.
Speaker 1 (37:40):
That's a wrap on today's Blueprint Building
Blocks.
Stay on track with yourfinancial journey.
Subscribe to the Money Matterspodcast and visit
neighborsfcuorg slash financialwellness for more tools to help
you build a strong financialfuture.
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