BBQ'd Grouper and Shrimp

Red Grouper (Lyretail)

Wednesday nights are burger nights at the Olivas household. I grilled up some Motsiyas Burgers. You can see that post here. But I also grilled some grouper and shrimp and that's what this post is all about.

Many of you know I love to go fishing. Our last trip out to the southern banks of Guam, we did pretty well. Most of the fish went to the local market. But every fisherman also takes home a bucket of fish. That amounts to about 30 pounds. My wife Lupe and I are big fish eaters. Here is a photo of my take-home fish..

I decided, with Lupe's recommendation, strongly I might add, that I would BBQ that nice red grouper in the middle. 

Here is a better picture of it.

Red Grouper (Lyretail Grouper)

It would be plenty for us. It's about a 16 inch, 3 lb. fish. It would make a nice meal.

My grandson Jacob was over and he did the cleaning honors. I cut two diagonal slices on each side of the fish, just so the lemon and lime could penetrate better as well as the sea salt.

I cut up some coconut branches to lay on the grill. This is a local non-stick method used for fish. Grilled the fish for about 45 minutes over medium heat on my wood-burning BBQ pit. 

At the same time that I was grilling the grouper I was also grilling some marinated shrimp. I marinated the shrimp for about 4 hours using calamansi lemon, lime and orange juice, canola oil and salt and black pepper. This was kept in the refrigerator until time came for it to be grilled.

Marinated grilled shrimp.

After slaving on the pit for about an hour, it was all served up for my wife Lupe. I still held out in order to eat my Motsiyas Burger first. Then I had a little fish and shrimp. 

Here is the spread for Lupe. 

With this Lupe ate boiled banana in coconut milk as her starch (super delicious) and the thick, corn tortillas made locally.

Here is a picture of the aftermath....

Well needless to say, we were all happy campers who ate more than we planned on. But it was so good we couldn't help ourselves.

Looking forward to the next BBQ. That would be tomorrow. I have chicken in the refer all thawed out.

Until next time....

What have we been BBQing lately???? Plenty

Been so busy cooking, both indoors and out, planting and fishing that I haven't posted in a while. So let me show you a few pics of what's been happening......

Grilled Firehouse Burger. You can read about it and see the rest of the pictures here.

Chamorro Burger.

Portobello/Chamorro Burger.

I wrote a blog post on both of these burgers. Read all about them here.

Even did a smoked Yellow-Fin Tuna Burger. Here is the photo.

Grilled some chicken...

Even Eggplant, Pork Chop Steaks and Portobellos went down on the grill..

And we mustn't forget the fresh bottom fish...

So as you can see, there has been a lot going on over here at our place. Planting, cooking and fishing has consumed most of my time. It gets so tiring living this boring life. But I don't have a choice.........I live on Guam. As my good buddy Rudy the Mechanic says, "It's just like that!!!"

Until next time....

What do you BBQ??

Chicken and Pork Loins

I get visitor's to my blog from all over the world. I so appreciate all the visits and comments. But every time I get a visit from another country, I can't help but wonder "What do you BBQ there?" So here is my request......

Roast Pig using "La Caja China".

I would ask that any of you please send to me, via my email attached to my profile "About Me" on my blog home page, your favorite dish to BBQ, smoke or cook outdoors. What is popular to cook using traditional methods in your area. 

Grilling soy marinated Cross-cut beef short ribs.

Please send me pictures of what you cook and all the action that goes with it, any recipe that you care to submit and a little brief about yourself and your area. Here is my email just in case you can't find it: rueben.olivas@gmail.com.

Wouldn't mind posting those either. Of course with your permission only!

Grilling Mahi Mahi (Dorado, Dolphin Fish).

Let's show the world how you throw down around a grill or smoker. I know everyone would like to know and see how you do it. I know I do!!!!

Until next time....

Pork Spare Ribs- Friday Night Dinner Date

My wife Lupe wanted to stay home this past Friday night so I planned a little dinner for our Friday night together. What better way to spend a Friday night than with my best friend and wife with a little BBQ at the same time.

Because it was only the two of us, I dry rubbed a half slab of pork spare ribs with a simple salt, pepper and garlic powder rub. I let this sit in the refer for 6 hours. 

When it came time to grill, due to the rainy weather, I used my little 2 burner gas grill and took care of the ribs muy pronto!! Then I proceeded to grill the cut yard long green beans, sliced eggplants and red hot peppers. Used a little olive oil and salt and pepper on those and added a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese on the eggplants.

Lupe prepared her grilled chicken and mango garden salad. 

Here are a couple pictures of our meal...

Grilled pork spare ribs, green beans, sliced eggplant with Parmesan, and red pepper.

Lupe's awesome grilled chicken and mango garden salad topped off with Asian Sesame dressing.

We had a wonderful time and we really enjoyed our meal. 

We always look forward to our Friday nights together.

Another fabulous Friday evening on Guam!!

Until the next time....

Taco Burger....Talk About Flavorrrrr!!!!

I love a good grilled burger as much as the next guy. I just don't get around to grilling them as much as I do steaks and ribs. But a great burger is hard to beat. 

Wednesday night's has been dedicated as Burger Night at the Olivas household. I vowed to grill up a different burger every Wednesday night. No duplication. I also vowed that I would try my best to come up with a different fry or onions ring recipe to go along with those burgers. I love a good challenge.

Well, this past Wednesday I decided to grill Taco Burgers served up with wedge-cut fries made from red potatoes. I was inspired by the recipe from Food.com. You can view the original Taco Burger recipe from that site here.

Now I modified the recipe just a tad. Here is the recipe I used:

1 lb lean ground beef

1 sausage link of Johnsonville Chorizo (removed from casing)

1/2 cup of my home-made salsa

1 large egg

1 package (1 1/4 ounce) taco seasoning mix

Here's the burger....

I topped off my burger with the regular fixings of lettuce, tomato, onion and mayo/ketchup spread and one slice of Swiss cheese. My wife, Lupe's burger had an extra level of "heat " applied with a spread of hot pepper paste. Here is the recipe for that:

1 cup of hot peppers with stems removed 

1 medium sized bulb of garlic, peeled and cleaned 

4 tbsp of apple cider vinegar

1/4 tsp of fine grain sea salt 

1/2 tsp of onion powder (optional) 

Using a small blender like a "Bullet Blender", add the garlic, salt, onion powder and vinegar and blend until liquefied; 

Add the hot pepper and blend until all the ingredients are evenly reduced to a paste.

My first bite of this burger told me one is not enough. I ate two!!!

So if you want a great burger with a tender, juicy, mellow spicy flavor, this is the burger for you...

Don't forget to check out the Food.com site and the other 14 burgers part of the same article. You'll be glad you did.

Read more:

http://www.food.com/summer-grilling/burgers/package

Until next time....

2012 Mango Festival, Agat, Guam

The Agat Mango Festival is a very special event here on Guam. This year's installment is the 6th year for the festival. Click here to learn more about this festival on their official site page. 

There is some BBQing going on here, so I am keeping with my BBQGuam theme, but I just had to share these pictures with everyone...

Here is the entryway to the Festival grounds.

Right off the bat you will see a beautiful display of tropical plants and flowers.

Pickled mango is so popular and super tasty.

I tried this homemade jam and it is fantastic!!! I bought a jar.

My wife, Lupe, showing off the goods.

Serving out the mango slushes.

Making the mango bonelos (donuts, fritters)

These were so delicious, people were waiting in line for them. They just couldn't keep them "on the tray".

Open air stage.

This "Slushie" was a total winner.

Lupe with vegetable lumpia (spring rolls)

Are we hungry yet???

My wife, Lupe, enjoying one of her favorites....banana lumpia.

A carved piece of Ifit wood and a coconut crab.

A "kamyo". This is used to grate coconut. The seal is where one sits and the little blade (covered with a small coconut) is where you grate the coconut.

Guam's Master wood carver, Senot Robert Taitano.

Display of the largest mangoes for judging.

Diplay of the most beautiful mangoes for judging.

Agat Bay adjacent to the festival grounds.

Guess who came to party!!!!

Yea Mon!!!

Hope you enjoyed....we did!!!

Until next time....