MAD MEAT GENIUS

MAD MEAT GENIUS
Chilebrown at home

Friday, November 27, 2009

MAD MEAT GENIUS BBQ GRILL


Have you ordered your ' Mad Meat Genius Grill today. This is a custom grill made by the 'Huntington Company. They are a company in New York City. Huntington custom grills makes a custom grill to your order.They take a very thick piece of steel and turn their magic into anything you would like. We ordered a grill with the 'Mad Meat Genius' logo. Two months later we have a huge piece of cutom steel cut with our design that will last a life time.

The instructions say to treat this massive piece of steel like a cast iron pan.We washed and dried our grill. We then rubbed oil all over it. A fire was built in the Weber barbeque. The 'MMG' grill was set over a small fire of charcoal. The soon to be 'black iron' was coated with a thin coat of oil. Once the charcoal fire was set. the grill was secured and left until the fire burned down. You know this is important. If you cure steel correctly you will have a non stick utensil. This utensil just so happens to be a custom rig with a Mad Meat Genius twist.


We let the fire burn down to a lonely ash.The grill cooled a.couple of hours. Later another charcoal fire was started. Once we had charcoals going we checked the "Spare the Air" website. If you burn in your fire place or start a barbecue you may be subject t0 a 400 dollar fine "Whoops!: We did check the "Spare the Air? day website first, because our tax dollars have been allocated to a bureaucracy that.(Whoa, I am sorry).

We took some bacon and cured our new grill. This is going to be one fun cooking utensil!!!!!

IT IS ALL ABOUT THE GRAVY/STUFFING


Chilebrown has just set a record for eating gravy and stuffing. Dinner was delicious. I tried to use some restraint on my food consumption. I only had two helpings of everything to begin the food marathon. The turkey was nice and the pies were sweet, but I live for the stuffing. A quick nap on the couch was in order. It helped that the Oakland Raiders stunk up Cowboys stadium. A quick refresh and all of a sudden I was hungry again. A fast trip to the Chilebrown Ice cave and a huge mound of stuffing and gravy was found. This stuffing is special to me. It is comfort food to the top level. Home made bread is an important ingredient. Vegetables, Italian sausage, water chestnuts and spices round out this bread pudding of Love.


Chilebrown's Thanksgiving Stuffing

  1. Home made Bread (Cook 5 days beforehand. Slice into cubes two days before)
  2. 1 onion chopped
  3. 4 cloves garlic chopped
  4. 2 celery stalks chopped
  5. 1 can whole water chestnuts chopped into large chunks
  6. 3 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
  7. 2 tablespoons fresh chopped sage
  8. salt and pepper
  9. 1 cube of butter
  10. 1 red bell pepper chopped
  11. 1 pound of Italian sausage (cooked and cooled)
  12. 3/4 pound mushrooms chopped
  13. warm chicken stock

Saute the onions, garlic, peppers and celery with cube of butter in pan. Cook for about 10 minutes. Take a large bowl and combine all the rest of the ingredients except chicken stock. Gradually add chicken stock stirring until a moist mixture is achieved. Place stuffing into turkey cavities. If you have left over stuffing place into pan and bake in oven. Bake until there is a crispy outer crust and heated through entirely. Cook bird as directed in oven or bbq. Serve with buckets of gravy


It is all about the stuffing. I wish we did not have to wait to next Thanksgiving for more stuffing. I think I am going to eat some more stuffing. The couch is looking a little lonely.


Sunflower in November


Wednesday, November 25, 2009

HAPPY THANKSGIVING


To all friends and family, You are the best. Let's eat too much and enjoy the day.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

SUCKLEBUSTERS FRESH SALSA FIXINS


Summer is over. The tomatoes have come and gone. The days of fresh salsa are only a fond memory on the taste buds of my mind. What is a Chile Freak supposed to do? Today SuckleBusters has come to the rescue. They have a packaged salsa that is so easy to make, it is scary. Open a can of diced tomatoes, add water, Sucklebusters, and give it a stir. Let rest in a refrigerator or in my case, the Chilebrown Ice Cave, for 30 minutes. ‘Quick and Easy’, just like the package says. I love salsa, so let’s give it a try.

The ingredients are few and simple. Onion, peppers, cilantro, garlic, lime powder, and salt are the same ingredients that I use for my pico de gallo. The only difference is these ingredients are dehydrated and I use fresh.

The dried ingredients have a pungent fresh aroma. Once the salsa has rested and rehydrated for 30 minutes a very pleasant lime/citrus smell will grab your senses. You can smell the cilantro too. I need to find some chips and dig in right away.

Wow, this salsa taste just like summer. Sucklebusters has mixed and balanced a winning combination of spices and vegetables. It would be no surprise if this bowl of salsa was devoured faster than the time to make it. I have only one small complaint. This is one MILD salsa. There is no detectable heat. There is a pepper flavor, but not even a tickle of heat.

We tried this salsa with some tortilla chips. It tasted great. The citrus seasoning gives it a fresh flavor. Luckily there was a little left for some quesadillas. Once again, this salsa brings back the memories of summer. Sucklebusters makes a great salsa mix that is easy to make and easier to devour. You only need to add your own heat if you are a Chilehead like me.

Sunday, November 22, 2009

KRAMER KNIVES ON THE NEWS

In case you missed the Morning News today, a segment about Bob Kramer and his knives was aired. Below you can watch and learn about this 'Master Bladesmith'. Ms. Goofy and I met Bob and toured his facility. We proudly own a set of his originals. It has taken awhile to collect them, but it is worth it. You can view a couple of the knives here. Be sure to sharpen your knives and get ready for Turkey Day.

Saturday, November 21, 2009

BARBEQUED CRAB CAKES



The first of the sweet Dungeness Crabs have been plucked from their watery homes. They have been harvested and sent to our local fishmonger. Chilebrown rushed down to the 'International Market' to get some of these crusty crustaceans. Barbequed crab cakes were the quest. This was the first weekend since the commercial season has started. The price was a whopping 3.99/pound for live crab. My baby weighed in at a little under two pounds. That is a little small for the first of the season.



We rushed Crusty home and gave him a 10 minute bath in rolling, boiling, scalding, salted water. We removed the suit of armor and formed the crab into cakes. We used a recipe like this. A mesquite fire was built. It had just finished raining and the air was clear and brisk. Building the bbq fire had a soothing vibe, like the calm after the storm. A trusty black iron warrior was called in to battle, to tame this ring of this fire. A plunge in a hot butter bath was all these beautiful cakes needed.



We love our Dungeness crab. It is so sweet and delicious. A hint of smokiness is what the barbeque added. We will be enjoying crab for the next couple of months. Oh Yeah!

Thursday, November 19, 2009

CHILE PEPPER CALENDAR

Do you have your Chile Pepper Calendar for 2010? Larry Noggle from Peppahead.com grows a dozen peppers, and more, in his 'Chile Patch'. He then takes some killer photos. Some recipes are added with useful chile information to make a calendar. All his peppers are grown in San Rafael California. Larry is one dedicated Chilehead. The weather has turned cold and he drives around Marin County with Chile plants in his car to keep them warm and safe.

You can purchase a calendar at several Farmers Markets or from his Website. Peppahead has lots of great stuff for the Chilehead on your Christmas list.
Marin Farmers Market: Sunday's
Santa Rosa Farmers Market: Saturdays


Wednesday, November 18, 2009

BULL DOG BBQ & STEAKHOUSE


A lot has happened in the last 4 years. Four years ago Ms. Goofy and I visited Bull Dog BBQ in Martinez California. I wrote a review for my good friend Doctor Biggles. This was one of my first attempts at reviewing. ‘Mad Meat Genius’ was only a small flicker of light in my cranium region. Now, Ms. Goofy and I are certified KCBS (Kansas City Barbeque Society) barbeque judges. I have written for several blogs and been having a very fun ride reviewing bacon, hot and barbeque sauces. My taste in barbeque has not changed. The way I look at barbeque has become a little more critical. Barbeque at competition level is a chance to sample some of the best of the best. There are certain things that you look for in the perfect rib. Is it cooked correctly? How is it presented? How does it taste? Each rib is judged individually. Once you judge a rib you move on to the next competitor. You do not compare one competitor against another. Every judge has their own personal taste preference. With that said, My BBQ restaurant reviews will be different than 4 years ago. I will look at the establishment as a whole package. How was the service, food (BBQ & side dishes), beverages, and atmosphere? We visited Bulldog BBQ six months ago and again this last weekend.


Bulldog has changed owners since 4 years ago. Ralph & Gina Rangel are the new proprietors. The outside logo has changed. The Bulldog insignia is no longer present on the front window. The interior is inviting and warm. We grabbed a seat and our very friendly waitress came right away with utensils and menus. Some cold frosty beverages were in order. Bulldog has several beers on draught. The menu has the usual suspects for a BBQ joint. They do have grilled steaks and prime rib which I have not tried. One thing we noticed was the absence of cornbread. I seem to recall a wonderful corn muffin from a previous visit. Cornbread is usually a staple at BBQ joints. I wonder why it was taken off the menu. We were on a mission to try the BBQ. Ms. Goofy ordered the pulled pork sandwich and I ordered pork ribs. Our sides included cole slaw, macaroni salad and macaroni & cheese.


Pork Ribs: Now the barbeque judge emerges. We took a look at the ribs to critique the appearance. These ribs looked very average. They do not jump out and start the drooling process. A bite is taken for the taste. These ribs are slow cooked with a dry rub. The sauce is served on the side. The taste again is very average. The rub does not add or subtract from a fairly bland pork flavor. The smoke flavor was very minimal. Some sauce was applied and another bite was taken. The sauce has a sweet/vinegar tomato base. This was a big improvement but we wanted to eat ribs, not sauce. The texture bordered on a little overdone.


Pulled Pork Sandwich: The pulled pork meat was the best part of our meal. The appearance was very appetizing. The meat was a good mix of bark and center meat. The flavor of the meat was smoky and tender. The bark was a treat in itself. (Bark is the caramelized intensely flavored exterior of the pork) The texture was spot on for pulled pork. It was served on a lackluster plain roll.

Side Dishes: The macaroni salad and coleslaw was uninspired. They could have come out of a 5 gallon bucket from Costco. The macaroni and cheese was dry and not creamy at all. The side dishes were disappointing. There was no cornbread on the premise.

Bulldog BBQ is a clean, warm and inviting restaurant. It is a good place to grab a beer and watch a game. The owner and staff are very friendly and efficient. The food is pretty mediocre for a BBQ joint. The ribs were very average. The sides were uninspired and did not compliment the meat. The pulled pork was excellent but fell into an unexciting and dry roll. We did not feel the ‘Love’ with the food. To be fair we ate here 6 months earlier. Our visit was basically the same. We returned to review today on request from Meathenge. We did not try all the menu items. Dr. Biggles will do a follow up review to try some different menu offerings. Will we return? I would like to return and try a steak, but after today’s review, we probably will not be welcome.

Bulldog BBQ & Steakhouse

601 Main St

Martinez, CA 94553

(925) 335-9915

Monday, November 16, 2009

SUCKLEBUSTERS 'HOOCHIE MAMA BBQ RUB' & BBQ SAUCE


We are having a barbeque on this crisp and cold November day. We have invited SuckleBusters to the party. SuckleBusters is a hot sauce, spice and condiment company located in Texas. They have won the Chilepepper magazines fiery food award for their barbeque sauce. That is one smokin endorsement. Today they will have to pass muster with two certified barbeque judges, Ms. Goofy and myself, Chilebrown. We will rub down some chicken with SuckleBusters “Hoochie Mama BBQ Rub”. The chicken will be bathed in a fiery bath of smoke and heat from a mesquite fire. Sucklebusters claims that their products are ‘Bustin’ with flavor. They are made ‘Texas Style’. Texas Style means big and bold yet simple. We shall see. Let’s get cooking!.



Let’s start by rubbing down the bird with ‘Hoochie Mama Rub’. Paprika, sugar, salt, black pepper, chile powder, garlic, onion, celery, chipotle, cayenne are listed as ingredients. It had a nice fresh spice aroma. Ms. Goofy tried a little dab on her paw and whimpered, It tastes salty she barked. She noticed a hint of celery in the flavor. The heat was a little delayed. It was a little burn that originated in the back of her throat. The burn factor was not ‘burn the house down hot’. It was a little more of a subtle shout out from the peppers saying, ‘I am here’. The real taste test will be later after the chicken has been cooked. We rubbed the chicken and let it rest in the Chilebrown Ice cave for a couple of hours.

The chicken was cooked over a direct mesquite charcoal medium fire. The last 10 minutes we brushed on SuckleBusters BBQ Sauce. What are the secrets of this award winning sauce? Vinegar, water, brown sugar, tomato paste, cane sugar, natural smoke flavor, salt, cayenne, mustard, onion, Xanthan gum, garlic and cloves are listed as ingredients. We opened the bottle and a pleasant vinegar and spice smell hit our sinuses or Ms. Goofy’s snout. We tried a little on a spoon. It was very sweet. It did have a good balance of smoke and vinegar. We did not detect any heat level at all. The sauce was a little thin. We basted the chicken several times. Now for the real taste test, will this stand up to the judges?

Ms. Goofy gave the combination of rub and barbeque sauce two paws up. She said the original saltiness of the rub played out to a good flavor on the cooked chicken. She liked the balance of sweet and vinegar of the sauce. Overall the combination of rub and sauce was a good combination. I thought the sauce was a little on the sweet side for my personal tastes. I would also call out for more heat. This would be a good excuse to try their hot sauce. The rub came through with a little spank of heat. SuckleBusters has a quality barbeque sauce and rub that we would invite back to another barbeque.

Sucklebusters Texas Style Sauces & Seasonings
(972) 393-9509

Friday, November 13, 2009

CHEESECAKE AND SUCH



Melvin Ainsworth is a retired baker. He lives in Crockett California. His claim to fame is that he walks the Carquinez bridge daily. He has been in the local news for his walking quest. He also has been in the news for a not so pretty episode.


Melvin is a retired baker. He loves to show off his skills. 'Man oh Man' can he bake! He always shares his breads and cakes at the local watering hole. He also sells his wares to supplement his income. They are a bargain if you realize the love and effort involved. If you would like to sample a (Bananas chocolate, cream, apple, pumpkin, cheesecake with several toppings and any other pie that you could imagine) and you live in the East Bay, I will hook you up. They cost 10 dollars a pie.. I will try not to let my finger swipe show.

ENGLISH EGG NOG MUFFINS


We are still baking in the Mad Meat Genius kitchen. A vision to make some English muffins came after consuming some eggnog.. No, it was not the brandy that laced this cinnamon, egg, milk concoction It was some leftover eggnog left in our politically correct glass milk container. Strauss farms makes a wonderful eggnog. It is organic and from what I heard the Cows are happy. Some dried cranberries will be added to these muffins to sweeten them up.This will be a Mad Muffin experiment. Will these muffins be delicious or will they be the folly of a Jepson brandy premonition.

English Muffins
  1. 1 cup egg nog
  2. 2 tablespoons sugar or honey
  3. 1 cup dried cranberries
  4. 3 tablespoons melted butter
  5. 5 cups bread flour
  6. 1 cup whole wheat flour
  7. 1 teaspoon salt
  8. 1 egg
  9. 1 tablespoon yeast

Proof yeast in lukewarm egg nog. Add rest of ingredients and mix well. Nead for 5 minutes. Let rise in covered lightly oiled bowl. Let rise for two hours. After 2 hours roll out and cut into muffin shapes. Take a pastry brush and dip in a cup of water. Brush muffins and sprinkle corn meal on both sides. Let rise for another 30 minutes. Cook on a hot griddle. Cook for aprox 5 minutes on each side. Muffins should be brown on both sides. Let cool completely

We were pleasantly surprised. These muffins were delicious. This is perfect with the morning coffee. They are toasted and serve with a dab of butter. You will have a sweet treat with a slight hint egg nog flavor with these muffins.

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

BROWN RICE ONION BREAD


The days are getting shorter. The thermometer is dropping. It actually was below 70 degrees yesterday. Now that is cold. I may have to change out of my Bermuda's and Birkenstock. That was a joke, son. I have never owned a pair of Birkenstock. It is the time of year to make pots of simmering goodness and fire up the oven for baked goods. I came across a recipe in our local paper for making bread with wild rice. Some locally grown brown rice will be substituted for the wild rice. Black bean chili made with elk meat and home smoked chipotle peppers will accompany the bread. The kitchen will be sizzling with warmth and love. Yes, I will be wearing my Bermudas and shades.

Brown Rice Onion Bread
  1. 5 cups bread flour
  2. 1 cup whole wheat flour
  3. 1 1/2 tablespoon yeast
  4. 1/4 cup brown sugar
  5. 2 teaspoons salt
  6. 1 cup cooked rice (wild or brown)
  7. 1 1/2 cup lukewarm water
  8. 1/2 cup buttermilk
  9. 1/4 cup dried onions minced

Place all ingredients in food processor and mix for 4 minutes. You will have a fairly sticky dough. Turn mixture out on to a cutting board and knead by hand for another 2 minutes. Add minimal amount of flour to prevent sticking. Place dough in lightly oiled bowl, cover, and refrigerate overnight. Take dough out of refrigerator two hours before baking. Place in well oiled loaf pan. (one large or two small) Let rise to 1 inch over lip of pan. Bake at 350 for 50 minutes or until internal temperature is 185 degrees. Let cool for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely on wire rack.

The black bean chili is made from some ground and loin elk meat. The elk meat is another gift from the Great White Hunter. The recipe is very similar to a recipe used in Bowl of Red from a previous post. Black beans, home grown tomatoes and whole dried chipotles are the difference. Yes, you read correctly. We still have some home grown tomatoes on the vine. They do not have the flavor of summer, but they are still a vast improvement over store bought tomatoes. We will have tomatoes until the rain starts.



The Brown Rice Onion Bread was a very moist loaf. It had a nutty sweet flavor. It toasted up very nice. The dried onion was just a subtle hint of allium flavor. You will not notice that brown rice is an ingredient. The chipotle black bean chili was smoky, spicy and very comforting. A slice of bread with a bowl of red is a wonderful combination of home style warmth.

Saturday, November 7, 2009

BACON WRAPPED WILD BOAR ROAST


The Great White Hunter asked me if I would like a wild boar roast. I replied, "Well, maybe?" Of course I want a boar roast. The Great White Hunter had a boar roast from Washington State. Apparently there is a buffalo farm that raises these beasts for consumption. The buffalo roam and graze. Before slaughter, they are put in pens and fed grain. The wild boar raid these pens and eat the grain. They are considered a nuisance. This will be no nuisance in our kitchen.I look at it as a grain fed wild boar. Does it get any better? The Great White Hunter delivered the package and told me it was a mystery cut. We did not know the type of roast it was. It had a large bone, so I am assuming it was a shank cut. This would be perfect for a low and slow bath of mesquite fire. It just so happens that No Name bacon is in the house. Boar is very lean and a wrapping of bacon is perfect to baste the outer surface of the roast. The bacon will tame this Wild beast.


The boar meat is a dark red color. It looks like it will be full of flavor. A dusting of Survival Spice and salt was applied to the surface of the meat. No Name bacon was draped over the roast like a blanket of love. The tamed wild beast was put in a wire roasting rack. Mesquite charcoal was fired up in a chimney starter. When the coals were flaming, they were placed in a Weber to form an indirect fire. A drip pan was placed in the middle to prevent a grease fire. The vents of the Weber were closed to the halfway mark. The roasting rack with the roast was placed in the middle of the Weber and the lid was secured. It was time to pop a couple of James Brown DVDs in the machine and jump up on the good foot. GET DOWN! with your bad self. 'Sometimes I clown, then I step back and do the James Brown.YEOOOOOWWWWW!"

Ms. Goofy just told me to knock it off and turn down the music. Ahh Man! I guess the roast is done. The thermometer is hovering around 150 degrees. It is a beauty. It is all browned, bacon and porky looking. The smell is awesome. We let it rest for 15 minutes and sliced it open. It looked great.

This roast had so much flavor. There was not even a hint of gaminess. This grain fed wild beast hit the spot. The meat was a little tough. If I cooked this again, I would pull it out a little under 145 degrees. The toughness might of been a factor of the cut of the meat. We never did know the origin of cut. Hey a little chewiness gives your chops a work out. I almost forgot to mention the treat of 'No Name' bacon on the top. It was just an added delicious bonus to our meal. The mesquite fire gave the bacon a smoky kiss that could not be beat. Thankyou to the Great White Hunter and No Name Bacon. It was a bacon weekend!

Friday, November 6, 2009

NO NAME BACON


Today we are sponsored by 'No Name Premium Meats'. They have generously supplied Mad Meat Genius with bacon for sampling and sharing. Several friends and a fellow Meat Freak, the Reverend Dr. Biggles were recipients of this bounty.' Boy oh Boy', are we going to have a bacon weekend. A wild boar roast wrapped in bacon will be roasted over a mesquite fire. Some bacon fugasse bread will accompany a creamy rich bean and bacon soup. Best of all we will taste a new bacon with an unusual name.

How did No Name acquire this name? About 35 years ago a butcher in Minnesota was selling hand cut steaks that cooked up juicy, tender and tasted incredible. The customers wanted to know what the steaks were called. The butcher replied,"They don't have a name". The rest is history. No Name Premium Meats runs a family owned company in St. Michael Minnesota. They sell numerous quality meat products to the Midwest. They take great pride in their quality and customer service. Lets cut to the chase and see how their bacon tastes.



This is a splendid looking bacon. It has a superb meat to fat ratio. It fried up crisp like good bacon should. This is a sterling everyday bacon. This bacon will be a great addition to the following dishes. The taste was very agreeable. I would like to borrow a quote from a famous bacon author, Heather Lauer, "This is simply good bacon!"


Lately I have noticed several food blogs making a fugasse bread. This bread is a hearty bread with cheese, onions and peppers. You know a Chilebrown twist of bacon and jalapeno will be added. This bread will be made with some peppers from the garden. An extra sharp cheddar is a great addition to the mix.

Fugasse

4 tablespoons bacon fat
1/2 cup finely chopped onions
1 1/2 cups chopped peppers (combination of red and yellow bell and jalapeno)
1 tablespoon yeast
1 1/4 cups lukewarm (110°F) water
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar or honey
3 cups bread flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 cups extra sharp Cheddar cheese (1 cup grated, 1 cup cubed)
7 strips bacon (No Name) fried crisp and chopped into large pieces

Reserve some bacon fat from frying bacon. Use half of the fat to saute onions and peppers. Reserve and cool.
Proof yeast with warm water. Mix together flour, yeast, water, sugar, grated cheese,2 tablespoons bacon fat and sugar, Knead for 5 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients and knead for and additional two minutes. Add flour to prevent sticking. Place in a oiled bowl and cover. Let bread rise for 2 hours. After 2 hours shape bread into desired shape. Place on cutting board with corn meal or flour underneath loaf to prevent sticking. Heat your oven with a baking stone to 400 degrees. Let rise for another 45 minutes. Bake bread for 30 minutes. The bread should be nicely browned. Turn the loaf over and tap the bottom. It should be firm and have a hollow sound. Try to let it cool before you devour the loaf.

Bean with Bacon soup is a comfort food from my youth. I hate to admit it, but it was from a very popular condensed soup maker. Home made soup was not to come to my plate till much later in life. Bean with bacon soup is so easy to make. This was made with dried Navy beans and some home made chicken stock. Home made chicken stock is the secret to great soups. Some celery, onion and home grown carrots were sauted in a little bacon fat and thrown into the stock and bean cauldron. It was simmered for an hour. Some spices, No Name bacon and home grown parsley was added the last minute. This soup is genius. It is a blast from the past improved.


Fugasse bread and soup made with No Name bacon was so stupendous. The bread is hearty with so much flavor. I sliced, buttered and toasted it on a cast iron griddle. The cheese was all melty and gooey, The soup just complimented the bread or did the bread compliment the soup? Will we have room for a bacon wrapped boar roast? Stay tuned!


Wednesday, November 4, 2009

BLACK LIGHTNING


When I heard Peppahead was making a hot sauce from Nepales Khumbu chiles, I got excited. These peppers were grown from seed found from a scraggly wild plant found growing at the foot of the Khumbu glacier (around 16,000 ft elevation) in the Himalayas. These peppers are grown in San Rafael California by Larry the owner and proprietor of Peppahead’s. Peppaheads sell sauces, spices, calendars and hot sauces at the Marin Farmer’s market.

Black Lightning hot sauce is a blend of 60 percent khumbu chiles and 40 percent Thai chiles. Larry adds shallots, onion , garlic, water, vinegar, salt and xanthan gum. For those of you who do not know what zanthan gum is, it is a polysaccharide. I looked that up in my Funk and Wagnall’s and rolled it up in my bippy and smoked it.

When you open this bottle of Black Lightning you will get a pleasant whiff of vinegar with hints of Asian spice. The smell only teased you for the next steps.

When the sauce was shaken out on to a plate with ‘Black Jack Tacos’, it had a medium thick consistency. This sauce would spread over any food item with a thin blanket of love. The sauce had a reddish brown color that screamed taste me.

Why did I pick ‘Black Jack Tacos’? I have no idea except this sauce is called Black Lightning and Black Tacos? Chilebrown’s Genius is suspect at times. The taste, the most important factor shall be examined. Shallots and garlic is the first hit on your tongue. Right away you will receive a jolt of heat. It is not a fiery blast. It will make you sit up and notice. The flavor is unique in a good way.

The heat level is 3.5 out of 5 on the burn scale. Extreme heat seekers will think this is a medium hot sauce. For novice peppers consumers this will be very hot. I like to think this sauce achieves a happy medium. It will keep you on your toes.

The label is nice but small. You need to have some good eyes to see the detail. There is a picture of a pepper in the Himalayas with lightning bolts hitting the peppers. If you take the time to look at the label it is very good. It would not grab my attention at a store because of small detail


Peppahead is a small company that does quality pepper products. This is another hot sauce that he has created that is wonderful. I would stand in a long line on a rainy day to get another bottle of Black Lightning. It is unique because of the Khumbu peppers. The taste is great even on a Black Taco. By the way ‘Black Jack Taco’s’ are just wrong!

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

"L' CHIAM"


Mad Meat Genius is open for business as usual. Thankyou!, Thankyou to all the readers who left comments on the last post. They really helped us get through a sad time in our life. We will always have a spot in our hearts for Trixie. It is time to move on. It is time to Celebrate Life. It is time to pursue good barbeque, chile, bread, hot sauces and most of all bacon. We are looking forward to new Meat Adventures. Dear Readers, have a seat and relax while we continue our journey. “L” Chiam” ! (To Life!)


Chilebrown has embarked on a new endeavor. I will be writing hot sauce reviews for a wonderful forum called Peppers & More. They will be sending me sauces for consumption and critique. Wow, free hot sauces, I think I just won the lottery. The reviews will be posted on Peppers & More and later on Mad Meat Genius. Take a gander when you get a chance.

This weekend, ‘No-Name Bacon’ will be in the house. Hope to see you soon!