Uncle Sawhorse's Garlic Hot Sauce

I have finally decide to get off my ass and start making my garlic hot sauce for sale at local farmers markets. I have been making hot sauce for awhile now as presents to my friends who, in turn, have encouraged me to make more of it and sell it.

Uncle Sawhorse's Garlic Hot Sauce is made with red thai chili peppers, white vinegar, kosher salt, tomatoes, and of course garlic...lots and lots of garlic.

The taste has been described as a "BANG" of garlic followed by a wave of medium heat...never taking away from the taste of the meat. Hot sauce should never overpower the taste of meat...it should enhance it.

Grilled Top Sirloin Steak

Top Sirloin is one of my favourite steaks to grill. It is big and very beefy, but also tender. The c0st of top sirloin versus tenderloin makes it a great purchase to feeding a group of people.

The key to grilling a top sirloin is a thick cut and high heat. I like to use 1 1/2" thick 32 oz full slices of sirloin at 550 degrees farenheit.

a generous dry rub of cracked pepper and ground sea salt with a drizzle of of olive oil on each side is the best and most basic way to prepare the steak.

4-5 minutes at 3/4 of an inch above direct heat before flipping and then 3-4 minutes on the other side should give you a nice rare steak with plenty of bark ( the charring of the steak ).

If you prefer medium rare try moving the steak to indirect heat for about 2 minutes before flipping and then put back over direct heat and follow the process.

Remember there are different cuts of sirloin so make sure you ask your butcher for "Top Sirloin".

Barbecued Ham

There is nothing quite like the smell of ham being cooked on the barbecue. I like to use a picnic shoulder ham for 2 reasons, the first is its inexpensive, the second is because of the amount of fat that melts into the meat...remember fat = taste.

I use indirect heat in a charcoal kettle at about 300F and 20 minutes a pound. While the coals or charwood is getting ready i score the top of the rind in a checkerboard pattern and place the ham in a bbq roasting pan and add enough apple juice and beer to cover the bottom of the pan.

As I put the ham on the grill i add soaked wood chunks to the coals for smoke flavouring. I like to use a spritzer bottle filled with apple juice, liquid smoke, and chipolte hot sauce to keep the ham moist every 1/2 hour

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Barbecue vs Grilling

I am a fan of both methods of cooking and find the words are interchangeable with each other, but lets look at the difference:

The word barbecue is used to define a method of cooking, the food that is cooked, and the gathering that eats the food.... its a great verb and noun. People barbecue on the barbecue, while others eat barbecue at a barbecue. One word to describe so many things.

True barbecuing is the act of cooking meat at low temperatures for several hours over indirect heat. This process results in the meat becoming more tender and tasty as the natural juices have time to disperse throughout the meat. Examples of barbequed meat are ribs, roasts, hams, and whole chickens.

Grilling is the act of cooking meat at high temperatures for a short period of time usually directly over the heat. Hamburgers, hotdogs, sausages, and steaks are grilled.

So simply put grilling is "hot and fast" and barbecuing is "low and slow".