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Another first and last (APL Serious BBQ Recipe)

The Cen-Tex Smoker
The Cen-Tex Smoker Posts: 22,951
edited March 2019 in EggHead Forum
So I’ve had Serious Barbecue for like 3 years and every time I get the itch to try something out of it, I open it, read the recipe, check my watch and shut it again. They all seem so involved (and they are). 

This week i said “eff it, I’m doing it”. I’ve always had my eye on his “fajita style marinated flank steak” recipe and I happened to have a beautiful chunk of parking lot wagyu flank looking for a home. 

The first thing I noticed is that he says “I’ve done the research, I’ve cooked hundreds of steaks, and I’ve come to an important conclusion: Nothing makes better fajitas than flank steak”. Then it shows him holding up a skirt steak. 





I didn’t think too much about it and went about the business of making the 20 ingredient marinade. The first thing I noticed was how much apple cider vinegar was in the marinade. I made it, added the flank steak and went about making the rub, finishing butter, marinated grilled peppers, and grilled onions.   

Took the steak out of the marinade after 2 hours as stated in the recipe (at least one and up to 3 hours) and noticed how dark it was but didn’t think much about it. 

So 4 hours after I started, the steak, onions, and peppers came off and were ready to eat. 4 hours. 

The verdict? I’ll start with the good- it was actually pretty tasty. I will use the rub again so it was all worth it. 

The bad? The vinegar in the marinade cooked the first 1/8” inch of the steak in the bag. My beautiful wagyu steak had a nasty brown ring all the way around it. Had a flavor like it was left in the fridge too long and turned brown. Very disappointing to see my beautiful wagyu flank steak with a brown vinegar ring around it. 





So after 4 hours and $30 in marinade, rub, butter, onion, and pepper ingredients I got a nasty brown ring for my troubles. And even though it was full of flavor, the overriding flavor was vinegar. No balance or subtlety at all. Just a big salty vinegar bomb. 

I knew it when I picked that book up that it was not for me. I don’t have 4 hours to make tacos and if I do, they had better be spectacular. 

And i I know the difference between flank and skirt. 

Save yourselves some trouble on this one. But if you do make it, cut the vinegar by about 80%

the rub is good though. Make that with your usual fajita recipe.  
Keepin' It Weird in The ATX FBTX
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Comments

  • dmchicago
    dmchicago Posts: 4,516
    edited March 2019
    Well, that sh!t still looks great!
    Philly - Kansas City - Houston - Cincinnati - Dallas - Houston - Memphis - Austin - Chicago - Austin

    Large BGE. OONI 16, TOTO Washlet S550e (Now with enhanced Motherly Hugs!)

    "If I wanted my balls washed, I'd go to the golf course!"
    Dennis - Austin,TX
  • DoubleEgger
    DoubleEgger Posts: 17,125
    That’s a pisser.
  • Legume
    Legume Posts: 14,602
    That pic of him is suitable for framing, hanging in your kitchen.
  • Legume said:
    That pic of him is suitable for framing, hanging in your kitchen.
    Done. 
    Keepin' It Weird in The ATX FBTX
  • dmchicago said:
    Well, that sh!t still looks great!
    It wasn’t horrible but i still felt like I had been duped in the end. I knew it before I made it. But I still made it. Guess that’s on me. 

    The rub was really tasty (and super simple if that tells you anything). The onions and peppers too. SImple and delicious. Nothing tricked up about them. It was when he tried to get fancy withbthe crazy marinade that he got over his skis. Good food is pretty simple. A 20 ingredient dish outside of Indian or Mole’ Is likely way, way overdone. 
    Keepin' It Weird in The ATX FBTX
  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    edited March 2019
    Never trust a guy who uses all three names. Wonder if his friends call him Adam Perry... or just Mr. Lang. =)

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

  • thetrim
    thetrim Posts: 11,352
    Still looks good enough for Raichlen to pirate it!
    =======================================
    XL 6/06, Mini 6/12, L 10/12, Mini #2 12/14 MiniMax 3/16 Large #2 11/20 Legacy from my FIL - RIP
    Tampa Bay, FL
    EIB 6 Oct 95
  • bgebrent
    bgebrent Posts: 19,636
    Bummer man but nice effort.
    Sandy Springs & Dawsonville Ga
  • Never trust a guy who uses all three names. Wonder if his friend call him Adam Perry... or just Mr. Lang. =)
    John Wayne Gace might disagree. 
    Keepin' It Weird in The ATX FBTX
  • I’ve said it before.... anytime I go to make an APL recipe, it starts out this way: “Step One: Book the week off work.”

    The guy is obviously a great chef, but for those of us who are employed, have families or have things to do other than cook, his recipes prove daunting. 
  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    Never trust a guy who uses all three names. Wonder if his friend call him Adam Perry... or just Mr. Lang. =)
    John Wayne Gace might disagree. 
    Maybe, but he's been dead for 25 years. Yes, I had to look that up. BTW, he apparently was a fan of three word phrases. According to Wiki, his final spoken words were, "Kiss my ass." He left off "goodbye". 

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

  • The Cen-Tex Smoker
    The Cen-Tex Smoker Posts: 22,951
    edited March 2019
    I’ve said it before.... anytime I go to make an APL recipe, it starts out this way: “Step One: Book the week off work.”

    The guy is obviously a great chef, but for those of us who are employed, have families or have things to do other than cook, his recipes prove daunting. 
    I'm not saying he's not a great chef but he published a recipe with so much viengar, it cooks the meat in the bag. I knew it was too much vinegar when I read it but I assumed he knew more than me. He certainly does but for that to slip through his radar is pretty bad.

    and check this out- this guy has a blog called "cooking by the book" where he tries cook book recipes and blogs about them. He cooked this exact recipe- Notice anything funky about his flank steak?




    The blog is pretty damn funny because he clearly has no idea what he's talking about. He's just "cooking by the book".


    Keepin' It Weird in The ATX FBTX
  • crap - I accidentally posted his pic (with the knife in my first post). Mine are the dark ones and his is the light one. Was on my phone and didn't notice.
    Keepin' It Weird in The ATX FBTX
  • JohnInCarolina
    JohnInCarolina Posts: 30,868
    That is one of the recipes in his book I’ve never tried.  Probably because I know what flank steak looks like.  
    "I've made a note never to piss you two off." - Stike
  • Saw him on one of them morning shows doing pork ribs and the network host
    asked him why he didn't remove the membrane . . . so I was not impressed
    Lrg 2008
    Mini 2009
  • Saw him on one of them morning shows doing pork ribs and the network host
    asked him why he didn't remove the membrane . . . so I was not impressed
    Simple: There was no room to remove the membrane amongst the 117 steps to the recipe.  
  • northGAcock
    northGAcock Posts: 15,164
    Ellijay GA with a Medium & MiniMax

    Well, I married me a wife, she's been trouble all my life,
    Run me out in the cold rain and snow
  • Legume said:
    crap - I accidentally posted his pic (with the knife in my first post). Mine are the dark ones and his is the light one. Was on my phone and didn't notice.
    Raichlen move.
    It's a reverse Raichlen. I swiped the crappy pic and claimed it as my own.
    Keepin' It Weird in The ATX FBTX
  • Legume
    Legume Posts: 14,602
    Legume said:
    crap - I accidentally posted his pic (with the knife in my first post). Mine are the dark ones and his is the light one. Was on my phone and didn't notice.
    Raichlen move.
    It's a reverse Raichlen. I swiped the crappy pic and claimed it as my own.
    Now to be known as pulling a Cen-Tex.  Bbq forum own-goal.
  • Legume said:
    Legume said:
    crap - I accidentally posted his pic (with the knife in my first post). Mine are the dark ones and his is the light one. Was on my phone and didn't notice.
    Raichlen move.
    It's a reverse Raichlen. I swiped the crappy pic and claimed it as my own.
    Now to be known as pulling a Cen-Tex.  Bbq forum own-goal.
    “Pulling a centex” could be so much worse. 
    Keepin' It Weird in The ATX FBTX
  • Legume said:
    That pic of him is suitable for framing, hanging in your kitchen.
    Janell said no so I made it my profile pic. That smirk tho....
    Keepin' It Weird in The ATX FBTX
  • CigarCityEgger
    CigarCityEgger Posts: 2,109
    Still looks great from here 
  • Legume
    Legume Posts: 14,602
    Legume said:
    Legume said:
    crap - I accidentally posted his pic (with the knife in my first post). Mine are the dark ones and his is the light one. Was on my phone and didn't notice.
    Raichlen move.
    It's a reverse Raichlen. I swiped the crappy pic and claimed it as my own.
    Now to be known as pulling a Cen-Tex.  Bbq forum own-goal.
    “Pulling a centex” could be so much worse. 
    Sooo true.  I need to be more thoughtful.  Could’ve put that to better use.
  • Legume said:
    Legume said:
    Legume said:
    crap - I accidentally posted his pic (with the knife in my first post). Mine are the dark ones and his is the light one. Was on my phone and didn't notice.
    Raichlen move.
    It's a reverse Raichlen. I swiped the crappy pic and claimed it as my own.
    Now to be known as pulling a Cen-Tex.  Bbq forum own-goal.
    “Pulling a centex” could be so much worse. 
    Sooo true.  I need to be more thoughtful.  Could’ve put that to better use.
    you need to keep your powder dry
    Keepin' It Weird in The ATX FBTX
  • JohnInCarolina
    JohnInCarolina Posts: 30,868
    Legume said:
    That pic of him is suitable for framing, hanging in your kitchen.
    Janell said no so I made it my profile pic. That smirk tho....

    "I've made a note never to piss you two off." - Stike
  • caliking
    caliking Posts: 18,727
    You're one ahead of me . I've had that  book for about as long, and still can't bring myself to cook something out of it . Nobody got time for all day!!

    And for someone who lists their camera/photography details for each post, that blogger takes some sh¡tty pics. 

    #1 LBGE December 2012 • #2 SBGE February  2013 • #3 Mini May 2013
    A happy BGE family in Houston, TX.
  • dmourati
    dmourati Posts: 1,265
    I just finished the prep for my second attempt at his bowl o' red chili. It was a super PITA. In particular, seeding/stemming 1lb of peppers and then straining the resulting paste to get rid of any chunks of skin took almost 2 hours. We'll see if it is worth it tomorrow.
    Mountain View, CA
  • littlerascal56
    littlerascal56 Posts: 2,104
    Way too complicated for my style of cooking!
  • HeavyG
    HeavyG Posts: 10,324
    dmourati said:
    I just finished the prep for my second attempt at his bowl o' red chili. It was a super PITA. In particular, seeding/stemming 1lb of peppers and then straining the resulting paste to get rid of any chunks of skin took almost 2 hours. We'll see if it is worth it tomorrow.
    Did you use a food mill to deal with the peppers?
    “Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away.” ― Philip K. Diçk