Fresh Hot Pepper Sauce

Dave DeWitt Recipes Leave a Comment

Use as a topping for soups and noodles, or as a refreshing salad dressing. Store leftovers in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator. The sauce will stay fresh for weeks if refrigerated.

Ingredients

  • 5 garlic cloves

  • 10 hot red Korean peppers, coarsely chopped (or 1 cup hot red pepper flakes)

  • 3 tablespoons salted shrimp (Available at Korean food markets)

  • 12 cup rice wine or vermouth

  • 1/4 cup sesame oil

  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil

Instructions

Mash the garlic well with a mortar and pestle. Add the peppers and pound into a paste. Transfer mixture to a bowl and add the remaining ingredients. With a wooden spoon, mix into a coarse paste.

Roasted Hot Peppers in Soy Sauce

Dave DeWitt Recipes Leave a Comment

This sauce will stay fresh for at least 1 week. Serve as an accompaniment to Korean grilled meat dishes.

Ingredients

  • 4 Korean hot green peppers or jalapeño peppers

  • 4 Korean hot red peppers or other hot red peppers

  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce

  • 1 tablespoon rice wine or vermouth

  • 1 green onion, white and pale green part only, finely minced

  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed and finely chopped

  • 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

  • 1 walnut half, finely chopped

  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil

  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

Wash the hot peppers and pat dry. Roast the peppers under a broiler or on the stovetop until all sides are broiled and blistered, but not charred. Discard the stems and chop peppers crosswise into 1/4-inch rounds, seeds and all.

In a small bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well. Store leftovers in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator.

Calypso Grilled Mango

Dave DeWitt Leave a Comment

Grilling caramelizes the sugar and honey in the sauce, making the fruit sweeter. This is obviously a dessert, but it can be served as a side dish to barbecued ribs, poultry, or fish.

Ingredients

Mangoes, Vanilla Ice Cream, Coconut, Rum, Habanero

Instructions

Mango

Grilling caramelizes the sugar and honey in the sauce, making the fruit sweeter. This is obviously a dessert, but it can be served as a side dish to barbecued ribs, poultry, or fish. Other firm fruits will work, such as peaches or pineapple, but make sure that they are slightly under ripe. It is difficult to grill ripe fruit.

  • Rum and Habanero Sauce

  • 1/4 cup butter

  • 2 teaspoons honey

  • 2 tablespoons orange juice, fresh preferred

  • 1/2 teaspoon lime juice, fresh preferred

  • 1 teaspoon orange zest

  • 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground habanero chile

The Mangoes

  • 2 mangoes, slightly under ripe

  • Vanilla ice cream

  • Toasted shredded coconut

  • Chopped macadamia nuts

Prepare the sauce by combining the ingredients in a saucepan and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. Remove and cool

Peel the mangoes and remove the flesh by cutting away from the seed on the flat side of each fruit. You should have 2 large slices of fruit from each mango.

Brush the mango slices with some of the sauce and let stand for 5 minutes. Oil a clean grill, place the mango slices in a grill basket, and grill over a low fire until lightly browned and glazed, turning often, basting with the sauce. The grilling should take about 4 to 6 minutes.

To serve, sprinkle the coconut over 4 serving plates, place a mango slice and a scoop of ice cream over the coconut, drizzle remaining sauce over all, and top with the macadamia nuts.

Yield: 4 servings

Heat Scale: Mild

Grilled Corn with African Nitir Kebe

Dave DeWitt Recipes Leave a Comment

Nitir kebe is Ethiopian spiced butter that is an ingredient in many that country’s dishes. It certainly gives an exotic twist to a summertime favorite in the U.S.A.

Ingredients

Butter, Corn, African Bird Peppers, Ginger

Instructions

Grilled Corn

Nitir kebe is Ethiopian spiced butter that is an ingredient in many that country’s dishes. It certainly gives an exotic twist to a summertime favorite in the U.S.A. Be sure to buy ears with some of the stalk attached for a great handle. The spiced butter freezes easily.

Nitir Kebe

  • 1 pound unsalted butter

  • 1 tablespoon crushed African bird peppers, or substitute chiltepins, pequins, or ground cayenne chile

  • 2 shallots, minced

  • 2 cloves garlic, minced

  • 1 tablespoon grated ginger

  • 1 teaspoon ground cloves

  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • 1 teaspoon ground cardamon

  • 1.5 teaspoon ground turmeric

  • 4 ears corn, husks and stalks attached

Allow the butter to soften at room temperature and beat in all the ingredients for the nitir kebe. Let sit for an hour to blend the flavors.

Remove any dried, brownish husks from the corn. Pull back, but don’t remove completely the husks and remove the silk. Soak the ears in cold water for 30 minutes to prevent the husks from burning.

Brush some of the butter on each of the ears and pull the husks back up over the ears and secure with string or a strip of corn husk.

Place on grill over a low fire, fairly far from the heat, and grill, turning often, for about 15 minutes. It’s a good idea to have a spray bottle with water handy in case the husks start to burn.

Yield: 4 servings

Heat Scale: Hot

Tuscan Devil Chicken

Dave DeWitt Recipes Leave a Comment

In Italian, this chicken is called pollo alla diavolo because of the addition of crushed red peperoncini chiles, the same kind that is sprinkled on pizzas to liven them up. Traditionally the chickens are split before grilling, but you can use a rotisserie if you wish–it just takes longer to cook. Adding rosemary branches to the fire makes a very aromatic smoke.

Ingredients

For the Chicken:

  • 1 4-pound chicken

For the Devil Marinade:

  • 2/3 cup dry red wine such as Chianti

  • 1/3 cup olive oil

  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice, fresh preferred

  • 11/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary or 11/2 teaspoons dried

  • 11/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage or 11/2 teaspoons dried

  • 2 teaspoons crushed red chile, pequin for hot, New Mexican for mild

  • 2 cloves garlic

  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions

Using poultry shears, or a heavy knife, cut down both sides of the backbone to cut the chicken in half. Remove the backbone and place the chicken on a cutting board skin side up. Press hard on the breastbone to break it and flatten the bird.

In a bowl, whisk together the marinade ingredients. Coat the chicken with the marinade, place in a plastic bag, and marinate for 2 hours in the refrigerator.

Lightly oil a clean grill surface. Remove the chicken and place the remaining marinade in a small saucepan and simmer for 20 minutes. Place chicken on the grill, skin side down and weight down with a cast iron skillet so the chicken remains flat. Grill for 15 to 20 minutes per side, basting frequently with the marinade until the juices run clear when pierced with a fork, or when the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F.

Using a cleaver, chop the split chicken halves into quarters.