Beef | Grilladelic

Whitney is a journalism major and typically is the “interviewer” and not the “interviewee”. So Grilladelic is more than happy to flip the script and put Whitney front-and-center. Straight from the heartland, a Grilladelic profile of the Missouri Beef Council’s Whitney Wallace!

Tell everyone a little about your organization?

Every time farmers sell cattle, they pay $1 per head to fund the beef checkoff. This money is used to fund research to improve everything in the beef industry from genetics to make beef more lean, to finding better ways to handle animals while providing the care to keep them comfortable and safe. And, to educate people about beef- including how to cook different cuts and to create new recipes.

What would be in your grilling or tailgating arsenal? Are you a charcoal or gas person?

I sway toward charcoal for that smoky flavor and the coveted grill marks, but convenience has made me use a gas grill. Growing up, my parents used gas grills for most occasions, but with an empty nest (and per Mom’s request) Dad has gone back to his charcoal ways. That means every trip home is even better because I get burgers and steaks done the charcoal way! In fact, I’m visiting them on the farm this weekend and looking forward to some beef on the charcoal grill!

What is your “go-to” recipe for grilling or barbecue?

I’m a kabob girl at heart. To me, they’re the perfect combination of fresh veggies and a great flavored steak. Here’s my simple go-to recipe:

1 pound top sirloin, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 red onion 1 red or green pepper
2 cups pineapple
Pepper
Garlic Powder

1. Cut peppers and onions into 1 inch pieces before coating with Italian dressing in a bowl. In a separate bowl, sprinkle garlic and pepper on cubed beef.

2. Thread the beef, veggies and pineapple onto skewers. I usually keep the veggies and fruit on separate skewers from the beef that way I can cook them for different amounts of time. It saves you from crispy onions because you can move the onions to indirect heat and allow the beef to continue cooking.

3. Grill the kabobs to your liking, I do about 8 to 10 minutes for medium-rare to medium doneness; turning occasionally.

4. Once everything is cooked, you can just use a large bowl and take all the goodies off the skewers. If you have picky eaters you can use separate bowls for each ingredient and let them choose what items to put on their plate!

5. Enjoy!

This is my favorite meal on the grill because it pairs great beef with the crunch and flavor of great veggies, too. I also like that all the work is done on the grill and I don’t have to manage the grill while I’m also worrying about veggies or another side dish on the stove!

I love them so much I usually double the recipe to cook enough kabobs that I have leftovers ready for lunch during the week. After the meal, I just portion out the right amount of beef and the grilled veggies into plastic baggies or containers so I can heat them up for a flavorful and nutritious meal during busy work days! I’m pretty picky about leftovers, so it’s saying a lot that I love reheating these!

Even my business cards have a picture of beef kabobs because I’m obsessed with them!

Describe a perfect party: beginning with the music and ending with dessert.

I love the smell of charcoal on the grill, so that ought to be the beginning of all perfect parties! Otherwise, I just enjoy being outside and sampling new recipes on the grill. I tend to be creative in the kitchen, which can be a lot of fun. My friends are used to me saying “this is the first time I’ve made this, so we’ll just have to see how it turns out.” Luckily we have fun and enjoy the food with good company.

If I named a favorite song to describe the perfect grilling party, it would totally be “Cheeseburger in Paradise!” One of my favorite grilling parties was with my family over the Fourth of July. We decided to make “Star-Spangled Cheeseburgers” and the kids totally loved helping cut out the star-shaped cheese slices. Having something fun like that always makes a backyard party better! We also play with bubbles and sidewalk chalk a lot while the food is cooking.

For my grown-up cookouts, I love making new cocktails to try with friends. Right now I have a sangria recipe I want to try, so I’m planning to whip that up next week for a get-together I’m hosting with friends.

What are some of your favorite, specialty products (besides beef) from Missouri?

My favorite place to get Missouri-made products is at the AgriMissouri booth at the Missouri State Fair. They have everything from jalapeño pepper jelly and hot mustard to salsa and other great seasonings and sauces. They also promote their items online at: http://www.agrimissouri.com/.

My all-time favorite Missouri brand is Ott salad dressing. It is a family favorite because it is produced in my Dad’s hometown of Carthage, Missouri. The “Original Famous Dressing” has a sweet flavor and is a great addition to salsa to make the best taco salad dressing!

Another thing I love in our state is the great local wines we have. Most people are surprised to learn that Missouri has nearly 100 wineries. I’ve gotten to tour several of these and I’m so impressed with the grape varieties and wines we can produce here in the Show-Me State. I toured a winery in New Zealand last winter and recognized a lot of the same practices we share with them. As a Missouri native, I’m proud to know we’re producing wines that can compete with some of the more well-known wine regions in the world. To me, Missouri wine is a great compliment to beef. My two favorite wines come from Les Bourgeois located on the Missouri River and St. James Winery which is in the southeastern part of the state. They’re both family owned and have GREAT selections to choose from!

What are the essential tools you would recommend that should be in every grillmasters arsenal?

I am very strict about food safety and if you ask anyone who has been in the kitchen with me they’ll confirm that. I remember both of my parents being very conscious of food safety as I was growing up, but in recent years it seems I’ve even gotten to be more strict than they ever were. I definitely knew the “two hour” rule long before I even learned how to multiply. And for the record, leaving food out creates multiplication of bacteria, so it’s just not smart! So if you hadn’t already guessed it, I’m a firm believer in meat thermometers. Cooking meats to the proper internal temperatures can eliminate potential bacteria, so why not use one?

I also use tongs when grilling because meat forks pierce the meat and can cause the steak or meat to lose moisture.

What is your perspective on the “buy local” movement? Do you promote local farms and the “farm to fork” movement? Why or why not?

Our population is more and more curious about the food we eat because less than 2% of us are from a farm. That’s why we work with a variety of farmers and ranchers to help educate consumers about food production from “farm to fork.” We host what we call Pasture-to Plate panels where Missouri farmers and ranchers talk about the daily responsibilities they have in caring for their land and animals. No matter what label is on the food you buy, you can rest assured the farmer who produced that food is dedicated to food safety and quality. These farmers are feeding their families with the same food we’re eating, which is exactly why they care about the food we eat.

What is your website?

Our website is: www.mobeef.org but we have daily updates on our blog www.missouribeefcouncil.com, so that is sometimes more helpful for folks if they’re wanting to learn new things, on a more regular basis! As you can see, the blog posts come from real people and they’re always about topics that matter to other real people, in other words we strive for relevancy! We’re proud that everyone on our team grew up on a family farm, so animal care and land stewardship is something we believe in 100 percent. This personal experience is crucial as we help educate others about farms and where our food comes from, but we do our best to introduce our audience to a variety of Missouri farmers because they’re the ones working 365 days a year to put the food on our tables. Because farmers and ranchers are so dedicated to their jobs, they make my job easy and so very enjoyable!

Any additional information, pictures or stories you would like to share?

I have a love for food. It’s one that likely started as the result of a grandmother who could toss unmeasured ingredients into a pot, pan, or bowl and end up with the most delicious meal. Or maybe it’s from my need to be creative, and since I wasn’t good at art my creativity had to come in the form of recipes. My original kitchen creations aren’t always successful, but it’s really exciting to try new things.

One great thing about my job is that I not only love cooking with beef, for the flavors and emotional feelings of lighting up the grill, but also because of the health benefits. How cool is it that there are 29 different lean cuts of beef to choose from? Not only that, but all beef is an excellent or good source of nine essential nutrients. Ever heard the phrase, beef gives you ZIP? That stands for zinc, iron, and protein, all of which beef is an excellent source.

I live an active lifestyle! My nights usually include Zumba classes, Jazzercise or a hike in Rock Bridge State Park . If it weren’t for the beef on my plate, I wouldn’t be getting the lean protein I need to be physically active.

Here is my favorite Q & A from the article copied below:

Q: You say in the book food shouldn’t be too pretty. Why?

A: “I believe that you cook, and when it’s ready you just put in on the plate. Don’t touch it, don’t move it around. Cooking is a craft, it’s not an art. I don’t believe in decoration. (On my TV show) I only cook outside in beautiful places with fires and it’s very simple. I do it to fight this trend in the world of cooking of complicated recipes. I just have a couple of eggs in my pocket and I chop an onion on my knee and cook something on a stick.”

The best “Q” I have ever made or had…was “simple”

Simple in preparation. Simple in seasoning. Simple in sauce. Simple with fuels.

Give me a 7# brisket, salt, pepper, chile powder, lump charcoal, pecan wood, beef broth, Guinness, Big Ricks, Weber kettle and about 8-9 hours… and I will deliver some mighty fine eats.

Viva Argentina!

Q&A: Top Argentine chef Francis Mallman explains how to grill an entire cow

Nick Zieminski, Reuters Published: Tuesday, June 23, 2009

HandoutChef Francis Mallman.

NEW YORK • If you’re going to grill the Argentine way, it helps to have a hunger for meat, a big wood fire, and plenty of open space.

Patagonia will do.

Argentine chef Francis Mallmann, who runs three highly-regarded restaurants in Argentina and Uruguay, was raised in the Patagonia region and credits its culture and style for inspiring his cooking.

His television show airs across Latin America, and he may launch a program for U.S. audiences to help fight a trend toward overly complicated recipes.

Mallmann, who spoke with Reuters this month, aims to inspire American cooks with the simple, unpretentious food in his new cookbook, “Seven Fires: Grilling the Argentine Way.”

Q: Yours may be the only cookbook to include a recipe for grilling an entire cow. Who is your audience?

A: “The idea was to adapt all the Argentine ways of cooking into a home, where you can do these things in the backyard or a kitchen even if you don’t want to light a fire. You can still achieve good things on a stove, the burned orange with rosemary, burned tomato with oregano, the smashed beet with the goat cheese and garlic chips. You can’t do the cow inside.”

Q: What defines Argentine cooking?

A: “It has to do with our culture, our idiosyncrasies. We are a bleeding country, economically, socially, but there is a huge beauty in that adversity. That struggle makes you creative. That goes into cooking, into tango, into soccer.”

Q: Why is it often important to burn the food a little?

A: “I like the taste of burned. In some things it works really well, like with tomatoes or oranges. Lamb is good slightly charred. I don’t believe in harmony when you eat, I like contrasts. Charred meat has that bite, but there’s a boundary, it can’t be black.”

Q: You say in the book food shouldn’t be too pretty. Why?

Q: Is cooking never an art?

A: “Never. The only reason to eat and drink well is to have better conversations with peers. It’s arrogant to think that cooking is an art. It shouldn’t be like going to a cathedral.”

Q: What makes a good chimichurri sauce?

A: “There’s only one chimichurri. It’s like minestrone in Italy, it can change from town to town, but the basics are olive oil, salmuera, which is kind of a brine … red wine vinegar and fresh, chopped parsley and oregano. Once I saw pineapple chimichurri, strawberry chimichurri, I was horrified. That’s what happens with trends. A trend comes up and we destroy the culture. If you want to make it with strawberries, call it something else.”

Q: Are there certain ingredients you can’t do without?

A: “Very good salt, very good olive oil, very good red wine vinegar. With that you can do anything. Good sea salts have texture, they’re big, but when you bite them they fall apart. The best olive oils for me are the peppery ones.”

Q: How do you cook a complete cow?

A: “Very slowly, over 14, 16 hours. It’s not the most delicious thing, it’s a culture thing. You have 200 people at a party. some parts will be tasty and tender, some will be very tough. it’s not the best recipe in the book.”

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