Dinner: Smoked Pork Hock

Smoked pork hock, again from Old Country Meats And Deli. The smoked hock is already fully cooked (it's basically a ham, right?), roasted gently in the oven for an hour at 325° then served. Pare the rind off with a sharp knife and dig in!

Breakfast Of Gorillas: Chorizo And Espresso

Chrorizo from Old Country Meats And Deli, served with Dijon mustard and fresh-ground Espresso.

The sausages were pan-seared on medium heat for 8 minutes a side so that they were cooked through but still juicy.

Bacon Ends

5lbs of bacon ends for $7. You can't lose!

Surprisingly little known, despite the hurricane of hype and mania surrounding the whole bacon meme on the Internet, bacon ends are the trimmings left over from when a slab of smoked pork has been run through the slicer.

Because they're trimmings they're considered scraps, which is preposterous when you look at the big thick chunks of meat and fat that you'll find in a package of bacon ends. Sometimes you'll end up with a veritable BACON STEAK. If that's not the Holy Grail of bacon, The Gorilla doesn't know what is.

The good news is that because they're considered scraps, grocery stores sell them CHEAP. The bad news is that bargain hunters know this and you have to get to the store pretty early before someone else cleans out the meat counter.

How does it taste? Like bacon, obviously. Yummy!

T-Bone Steak

24 1/2oz t-bone steak. Brushed with olive oil and seasoned with dried roasted red pepper seasoning. Served with a glass of Merlot.

Preheat BBQ on high to at least 500° F. Slap steak on rack above flame and sear for 1 minute on each side. Turn heat down to low and move steak to upper rack. Let broil 3 minutes per side, or more/less depending on your preference.

Brushing with oil and searing the steak on high is the key to getting attractive grill marks and, more importantly caramelizing that yummy beef fat.

Bison Cross Rib Roast Seasoned With Mountain Spice

a 5lb bison cross rib roast seasoned with Mountain Spice and cooked on the BBQ for 1.5hours at 275° F. Served with a roasted onion and a glass of Merlot

Slow low heat is crucial for a delicate lean meat like bison in order to keep it tender. Too much heat and it turns to leather.

The roast sat for a day in extra virgin olive oil with a generous dry rub of Mountain Spice on it.


Here's the recipe for Mountain Spince. It is said to be the creation of Chef Michael Mandato at Jasper Park Lodge.

1/4 cup crushed juniper berries
1/4 cup crushed black peppercorns
1/4 cup crushed sun dried blueberries
1/2 cup coarse salt
1/4 cup toasted and crushed coriander seeds

Mix all ingredients well, store in an airtight container until needed.

If you don't have a spice grinder, you're probably going to want to get one. A burr-type coffee grinder purposed solely for spices is also good.