Beef Bouillon... in a Rub???

SonVolt

I had a couple steaks in Texas last week that were obviously seasoned with something heavy on the MSG that were unusually delicious.  I'm pretty sure it was some sort of beef bouillon, either in the seasoning or rubbed into the steak.  Some of APL's cookbooks call for rubbing "Better Than Bouillon" beef stock concentrate on trip-trip and other large cuts as part of his "meat paste", so maybe this technique is more common than I thought. 

So last night I made paste out of a bouillon cube and soy sauce and rubbed it on a tri-tip about and hour before it went on the egg. It turned out pretty amazing.  Matter of fact, it was the most flavorful tri-tip I've ever cooked. It had that ultra-savory deep beefy flavor on the crust and in the drippings that could have only come from that bouillon cube.  It's not something I'd want everyday, and especially not on high quality steaks, but as a "competition rub" or where you're going for maximum flavor for a crowd, I think there's something to this. 

Just thought I"d share to see if anyone else was using bouillon in their arsenal. The die hard salt & pepper guy in me died a little, but results are results. 

tarheelmatt

I use Wylers beef and chicken powder for a lot of things. 

TEXASBGE2018

If you are talking about at Hard 8. It's this stuff called "Accent" I use it all the time on meats.

SonVolt

TEXASBGE2018 said:

If you are talking about at Hard 8. It's this stuff called "Accent" I use it all the time on meats.

It wasn't Hard 8, it was some steakhouse in Irving that I can't for the life of me remember the name. I'll need to check my expense report. I do have Accent at home, it's 100% pure MSG. I typically use it in small doses in certain things like sawmill gravy for biscuits, chicken soup etc. I guess that would give similar results as the bouillon cube minus the beef flavor. 

JohnInCarolina

I’ve used it as part of that APL recipe for beef tenderloin.  That one is a real winner if you haven’t tried it yet.

SonVolt

JohnInCarolina said:

I’ve used it as part of that APL recipe for beef tenderloin.  That one is a real winner if you haven’t tried it yet.

I was thinking a whole tenderloin would be a good candidate for this as well, since it's relatively lean and mild on flavor similar to a Tri-tip. 

JohnInCarolina

SonVolt said:

JohnInCarolina said:

I’ve used it as part of that APL recipe for beef tenderloin.  That one is a real winner if you haven’t tried it yet.

I was thinking a whole tenderloin would be a good candidate for this as well, since it's relatively lean and mild on flavor similar to a Tri-tip. 

Yep.  Mixed in with the honey and worstershire - man it brings the flavor to the crust in a great way.  

tarheelmatt

I've used the Better than Bullion before, but like the Wyler's Beef Powder better.  

The chicken powder they have is awesome as well.  I put that in beans, greens, and all things in between.  

SonVolt

I know he's a Yankee and he talks funny and that kinda bothers me, but APL really has changed my grilling game for the better. Not sure why it took me this long to pick up on some of these techniques. 

This was the leftover thinner end of the trip-tip so it was a little closer to medium than the rest, but fantastic nonetheless. 

tarheelmatt

Yankees aren't too bad.  I married one. 


That took a while to get passed my family. 

gdenby

Most bouillon I know about have something in them that has MSG. Its not the only thing that will boost "beefy" flavor, but its probably the cheapest. Given APL's classic French training, he's probably familiar w. beef demi-glace, which makes even "better than bouillon" seem bland. Or what you had was injected w. FAB B, which I've read is sometimes used in brisket competitions.

As an aside, it was probably not enhanced by leghemoglobin, a plant based hemo protein. My vegetarian daughter was visiting yesterday. She and her hubby are in the same apartment house as one of the top chef's in town. She had managed to get some "Impossible Burger" before the entire supply started being sold only to restaurants. When the chef came home, he was astonished, saying" Wait, did you cook beef? I can smell it."

SonVolt

I did far worse. I married a red head... 

RRP

SonVolt said:

I know he's a Yankee and he talks funny and that kinda bothers me, but APL really has changed my grilling game for the better. Not sure why it took me this long to pick up on some of these techniques. 

This was the leftover thinner end of the trip-tip so it was a little closer to medium than the rest, but fantastic nonetheless. 

THAT is a killer shot! Any chance there is an APL linkage for the recipe? If not how about the quantity info of that rub?

SonVolt

RRP said:

SonVolt said:

I know he's a Yankee and he talks funny and that kinda bothers me, but APL really has changed my grilling game for the better. Not sure why it took me this long to pick up on some of these techniques. 

This was the leftover thinner end of the trip-tip so it was a little closer to medium than the rest, but fantastic nonetheless. 

THAT is a killer shot! Any chance there is an APL linkage for the recipe? If not how about the quantity info of that rub?

This site looks like the recipe from his Serious Barbecue book that I used.

http://fooditforward.com/honey-garlic-glazed-tri-tip/

I followed it loosely, using my own seasoning blend instead of his but everything else mostly the same. I think I omitted the Worcestershire in the "flavor paste" because I was out and used chipotle powder instead of Ancho in the glaze.  I think the real key is the flavor paste, the low 'n slow direct (275F-300F) with constant glazing and flipping every ~5 minutes. Glaze the top, then immediately flip and close the lid etc. The fatty glaze dripping into the coals really gets a nice smokey environment going.  

I didn't do a final sear at the end like I typically do - it didn't need it. The crust had developed beautifully over low direct heat. I'm getting much better results on the egg for low 'n slow grilling by NOT using my platesetter. 

Theophan

SonVolt said:

Holy Moly!  That is one GORGEOUS shot of beef!

SonVolt

TEXASBGE2018 said:

If you are talking about at Hard 8. It's this stuff called "Accent" I use it all the time on meats.

It was Saltgrass Steakhouse... I believe it's a chain similar to Logans, but not as shiitty. It was fairly decent for that type of restaurant. 

TEXASBGE2018

SonVolt said:

TEXASBGE2018 said:

If you are talking about at Hard 8. It's this stuff called "Accent" I use it all the time on meats.

It was Saltgrass Steakhouse... I believe it's a chain similar to Logans, but not as shiitty. It was fairly decent for that type of restaurant. 

Ya that’s a chain. What you were tasting was this. They put it on every steak. You can get it at the grocery stores down here or at salt grass itself.

TEXASBGE2018

My dad is obsessed with the stuff. He puts it in his flour mix when making chicken fried steak and it’s freaking unbelievable.

SonVolt

TEXASBGE2018 said:

My dad is obsessed with the stuff. He puts it in his flour mix when making chicken fried steak and it’s freaking unbelievable.

Either they're not being totally up front on the ingredients or they forgot to include MSG    The steak was way too savory to be 100% natural. 

Photo Egg

I have rubbed with the paste stuff like this. Does add a great zing.

nolaegghead

Regular Bouillon....worse than Better Than Bouillon.

JohnInCarolina

nolaegghead said:

Regular Bouillon....worse than Better Than Bouillon.

Look at the big brain on Nola!

gonepostal

SonVolt said:

TEXASBGE2018 said:

If you are talking about at Hard 8. It's this stuff called "Accent" I use it all the time on meats.

It was Saltgrass Steakhouse... I believe it's a chain similar to Logans, but not as shiitty. It was fairly decent for that type of restaurant. 

This made me chuckle a bit. I stopped at the Logan's up your way once. And only once! (Athens)

thetrim

The only good thing at Logan's is the beer.  I went to one in Gadsden, AL.  Met some great folks sitting at the bar, but the steak (filet) left a lot to be desired.

SonVolt

gonepostal said:

SonVolt said:

TEXASBGE2018 said:

If you are talking about at Hard 8. It's this stuff called "Accent" I use it all the time on meats.

It was Saltgrass Steakhouse... I believe it's a chain similar to Logans, but not as shiitty. It was fairly decent for that type of restaurant. 

This made me chuckle a bit. I stopped at the Logan's up your way once. And only once! (Athens)

Logan’s quality has went way down hill since the ‘90s. It was never great, historically, but it wasn’t bad either. Now it’s objectively bad. I think the parent company isn’t doing so hot and has been cutting whatever corners were left to cut. It’s practically a heat ‘n serve now. 

Biggreenpharmacist

SonVolt said:

gonepostal said:

SonVolt said:

TEXASBGE2018 said:

If you are talking about at Hard 8. It's this stuff called "Accent" I use it all the time on meats.

It was Saltgrass Steakhouse... I believe it's a chain similar to Logans, but not as shiitty. It was fairly decent for that type of restaurant. 

This made me chuckle a bit. I stopped at the Logan's up your way once. And only once! (Athens)

Logan’s quality has went way down hill since the ‘90s. It was never great, historically, but it wasn’t bad either. Now it’s objectively bad. I think the parent company isn’t doing so hot and has been cutting whatever corners were left to cut. It’s practically a heat ‘n serve now. 

My boys like eating there occasionally. The little sliders on their rolls are pretty good, especially for glorified fastfood. 

SonVolt

Its a great place to find out if your kid has a peanut allergy. Or to take your annoying neighbor's kids with one.