The Return of the Jar-B-Que

Summer arrived with a vengeance. Los Angeles had been a cool dreary place, then all of a sudden it got hot, real hot. That means it is time for eating outside at night on the deck and lots of grilling.

We had Billy and Kevin over for a Char Shu Pork (Chinese style pork chops). We purchased the pork at McCall's Meat and Fish, it was beautiful meat! We made our absolutely favorite recipe for pork chops: We call it Jar-B-Queue, because the recipe is from Jar Restaurant. It has great Asian flavors and reminds us of the pork we used to get in Chinese Restaurants. You can find the recipe in our blog of Aug. 22, 2006. Click the date to get the recipe. It is delicious!

Corn had finally arrived in the market. It is very sweet. I saw a recipe in the Los Angeles Times for a Butter made blended with Tequila and Jalapeno Pepper and Lime that is spread on the corn. I decided to make it to serve with the grilled corn.

Finally we made Shrimp, Leek, and Pine Nut Fried Rice from The Modern Art of Chinese Cooking. from Barbara Tropp’s cookbook. The secret is to scramble the eggs separately from the rice and then just blend in the egg to the rice. It makes for a very light rice. You can get the recipe from our blog of April 20, 2010. Click the date to get the recipe.

We ended the dinner with fresh Cherries from the Hollwood Farmer’s Market.

Recipe: Grilled corn with tequila-lime butter – LA Times

 Grilled corn with tequila-lime butter

Total time: 1 hour, plus chilling time for the butter  Servings: 8

Note: This butter can be made a day ahead and stored tightly wrapped in the refrigerator.

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened to room temperature

3/4 teaspoon minced, seeded jalapeño

1 teaspoon finely grated lime zest (about 4 Mexican limes)

1 teaspoon lime juice (about 1 Mexican lime)

1 teaspoon tequila

1 tablespoon minced cilantro

1/2 teaspoon salt

8 unshucked ears corn

1. Make the tequila-lime butter. Beat the butter, jalapeño and lime zest in a bowl until creamy. Beat in the lime juice and tequila. The mixture should be very soft, but there should be no liquid showing; if you want, add a little more tequila. Beat in the cilantro and salt. Taste and adjust the seasoning. The mixture should be very forceful (it will be much milder when spread over the corn), but it should be evenly balanced between lime, butter and salt. Add more salt, lime or tequila as needed.

2. Spoon the butter onto a sheet of plastic wrap in the shape of a log and roll it into a cylinder. Twist the ends of the plastic wrap in opposite directions to firm the cylinder and roll it gently on the counter to eliminate any air pockets in the center. Refrigerate until ready to use. (Recipe can be prepared to this point a couple of days in advance).

3.. Soak the ears of corn in water to cover for at least 30 minutes before grilling.

4. Grill the corn over a medium-hot fire until the kernels inside are golden and tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the husks and most of the silk will come with them; rub off what little might remain. Slice the butter into discs and pass along