Beer with dinner.

With the holidays on us I thought I might talk this time about beer. Not so much the act of drinking it to hide from the family mess in the house but rather as it would be paired with food.   Much like wine, beer has many complex flavors hidden deep inside that little bottle.

  Think for a moment about that turkey and stuffing your making.   It has lots of herbs and butter in there. To balance it out you could pick a sweeter red wine or you could pick a Barley wine. The big bolder flavors of the barley will cut the fat of all that wonderful butter in the turkey and be mild with the herbs. The trick here is the herbs and Hops the bitter herb used with the beer will help bring the whole thing together.   Another good one would be a Trappist Ale like Chimay. Not hoppy but a very easy flavor that is wonderful with Turkey, trout or a big roast beast!

  Having Ham? Well think about the rich flavor of a Porter or Stout.  That sweet glazed ham can send your taste buds into a coma with something a little bold.  Don't like the dark beers? Try a Pale Ale.  Ham can take the hoppy flavor. By the way next time you have oysters reach for the Porter too. It has a way with the salty sweet flavor.

Hope this gives an idea or two. So go out there and stuff yourself silly but don't forget the beer!

 

Q Joint.

    It's time perhaps to talk about the fact that, We are a Q joint.  Desert Magnolia BBQ is no hi class place like the big chain down the street, We are a joint.  Where I come from there are the nice places down the street that you go because its someones birthday and you need a place that can sit 25.  Then there are places you go because your in Memphis and the place is well known all over the country, and, you just have to know what the hubub is about.  Then there is the place that you go to when you need your Q fix, the Q joint you found by accident.  There almost always hidden and the way you find them is either, by accident, or a local lets you in on it. The place that makes your mouth water when you think about it.

The Q joint is what it is, and does what it does, and most people like it that way; a few don't and well you can't please everybody, but for the most part the food is what you are craving, not the scenery.

 When you come in look up. The menu is on the wall in chalk (if they have one) where you will order and pick up your food. Feel free to take your time and look but it's pretty easy:  Pick a meat or two, sandwich or plate, and sides. Trust me, its all good - if it wasn't it wouldn't be on the menu. a Q joint is just too small to keep something up there that doesn't sell.  Most first timers go for the Pulled pork and beans. This seems to be the universal way to judge a BBQ place.  The people in the know go for the Ribs. For the big eaters there is the sampler and here you get a bit of most of it. Either way don't stress, it will take a trip or two to try the entire menu, but thats about it.

Just keep in mind that Q joints only cook so much at a time. So if you need 5 slabs of ribs for Friday afternoon you might want to call on Thursday and make sure we have them for you.  After you order, the sauce is on the table behind you. Try more than one if you like. Your welcome to sit down if you can find a spot. If you by yourself its nice to offer to share a table, after all you might make a new friend.

   At Desert Magnolia, we are nothing big to look at and kinda hard to find, but like most people you will be back to our little garage, hidden on the back of an office building, in the back of a Technology park on the opposite end of town than the other restauraunts. Thats just what Q is.

New Menu

So I want to start off saying don't worry its all still up there, but, next time you come in it might look a little different thats all.
The sandwich section is now a single price regardless of meat: $3.00 for a regular size and $5.00 for a large. Also, you can get any sandwich in a combo with a side and drink for $2.25 more.

Now in a plate you choose your meat and get 2 sides with cornbread or roll! One meat or two meats for the same price you have always paid just easier to order. This is where the 3 rib plate is now!
If you want more ribs we still have the half and full slab alone or as a plate with two sides and roll or cornbread.  

We have changed up the sampler so the 4 meats are chef's choice, and 3 sides of you choice - this gets you our best stuff of the day. This way it doesn't have to be the same thing all the time for you. Of course your welcome to request something be on there, or, let us know if there is something you just don't like so we keep it off your plate.

  Coming soon will be soup and a side of the day. Also each day we will have a Special of the Day that will be set. Still working on the menu list for this but it will be up on Facebook and listed on Twitter each day same as we have been doing. Don't expect this to be just a menu item on sale. It will be something truly special that we will do just for that day and just till its gone.

So come in and check out the easy to read menu and keep an eye out for those soups and specialties they will be here before you know it!

Smoke on the Hill

Saturday October 1st found me waking up at about 1 am. I asked my wife why it is we seem to do most of our camping in a Parking lot. The only answer I got was, "Is the fire going?"   Cook offs are a lot of fun, and a lot of work.

Its a lot easier to cook and feed 200, than it is the 6 judges that I have to wow in one or two bites.  Why 2 bites you say? Ever eat 6 ribs, 6 chicken thighs, pulled pork and brisket from 6 competitors, and not die of a heart attack?  Me either.   Prep starts on Wednesday with chicken. That only takes 2 hours to trim and prep 12 uniform chicken thighs.  Thursday is Brisket day, thats quick trim it down and remove the fat. Friday is the fun day. All I have to do is trim ribs and pork butt, make 4 sauces, 3 rubs and get all the stuff like tables, wood and the rest of a 2 page list loaded up in the truck, oh yeah and serve customers.  

That brings me back to Saturday at 1 am and lighting the fire. The easy part is cooking the meat. Keep the fire just so and spray, and wrap and do everything under the moon (it is 1 am ) to get as much flavor in to every bite of meat!   

 The camping

 2nd place Ribs

 3rd place Pork

In the end it all came out fun, and the ribs came out better than ever, pork was good too. Now i just have to figure out what they want out of brisket and chicken.  Who knows maybe I'm just to southern to cook beef well. 

Real Men Can Cook

So I get an email a few weeks ago asking if we would be willing to donate 50-100 bites of food for the Real Men Can Cook fund raiser for the Ogden YCC held at the Marriott. They only ask for you to do lunch or dinner. Of course we did both and a special thanks to my wife for helping roll the 300+ moink balls.     The event is VERY well run, and after 20 years you would expect that.   

Okay on to the Moink Balls. Here is the easy back yard version.  Start with a frozen meatball (of left overs from last night).  Cut one strip of bacon in half.  Wrap that around the meatball and stick with a toothpick.  Next your gona want to cook the bacon.  I suggest at least a grill but for those that cant have one the oven will do. Cook bacon until crisp. In a soup pot, ya know the one you almost never use cause it small, place about 1 cup of peach jelly and 1/2 a cup of pepper jelly( you can find it in the jelly section on the top self a lot of times).  Stir that until it mixes well and gets good and runny. This little mixture will cover about 12-18 Moink balls easy. Thats about it. Kinda easy, just toss and serve.

Is it just BBQ?

Do you just serve BBQ? Is a question I have been getting a lot. With winter coming up, we have been talking about this around here.  In the last week or so we have been working out a GoDealGo.com deal (kinda like groupon.com).  In talking to GoDealGo copywriters,  it has dawned on us that we have brought a little of the Desert side of our name into the menu and are not purely the Southern Magnolia we started out as. With things like BBQ Chicken Nachos as a favorite on the menu (seen above), and Pulled Pork Tacos and Stuffed Anaheim Peppers (coming this winter), it seems we are becoming a SouthWest meets SouthEast place without realizing it.  I promise that we will always have the Southern Pit Barbecue favorites on the menu; done right - low and slow (Sheesh, I cant survive without ribs).  We are also planning soup this Winter after it cools off.  So next time you get a chance come in - check our our "Southern Fusion" menu!

Blackberry Pork tenderloin

Hey everyone thought I would talk a little about Pork tenderloin today. This is a very nice cut of meat. When your looking for it, I like the unflavored. It comes in many different pre-marinades these days.  If nothing else teriyaki one will work for this too.   Tenderloin is very easy to cook, but I find a lot of people tend to overcook it and it gets tough.
   Grilled is my favorite way to have tenderloin.  Start by removing your tenderloin from the package, and wash it under cool water. Pat dry and slice it down the middle  like a hot dog bun.  A little bit of salt and pepper and grill it like you would a steak.  Cook to 145 degrees, or medium to medium well.

While the Tenderloin is on the grill, prepare the blackberry glaze  -

In a cup mix
1/4 cup Blackberry jelly
1 Tabl of balsamic Vin.
A pinch of salt
1 Tabl of Vodka (optional)

Brush this lovely mixture on your still hot tenderloin and place back on the grill to give the sugar a little time to work its magic and glaze the pork.

What you should end up with is a lovely bit of pork to eat as a steak or sliced on a bun. Either way your guests will enjoy every last bite.

What makes us different?

The other day I was asked what makes us different from other BBQ places around. I gave her the usual "We make everything from scratch and cook things a classic way."

Then I got to thinking what does make us different? Yes, we do cook things from scratch and yes, we do cook in a slow classic way, but its more than that.

I have lived in Missouri, Alabama, Georgia, Oregon, Washington and for a very short time, even in Califorina. A LOT of food has passed by my hands and under my nose but none has left a memory like the one from the first time I remeber having BBQ. At an old gas station in Kinnet Mo, painted red (even the locks), sitting at the well worn firmica blue counter with a choped and well sauced choped pork sandwich, fries and a coke. I can still rember the sweet rich taste of that first bite and I was hooked. Every time after that when we went to visit my Grandmother, we would have to go and have BBQ. The soul of a place gives it the taste. A cooker is a bit of steel, maybe some clay but when it comes down to it what your eating is the love that someone is putting into their art.

So what makes us different. I guess the short answer should be... love.

Now serving

As of 28 June 2011 we will OFFICIALLY be open for lunch take-out 5 days a week! Hours are M-T 11-5. and W-F 5- 7
Check out our flyer @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/64351616@N05/5862333754/