3 1/2 Pound T-Bone: An Exercise In Simplicity (W / Q-View)

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tx smoker

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Apr 14, 2013
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Lago Vista, Texas
I've seen a few episodes of Restaurant Impossible with Robert Irvine and have enjoyed them to a large degree. One theme I believe I've picked up on is that when he creates the new menus for these places he tends to keep it simple but still makes some really good food. I took that concept last weekend and applied it to a top notch dinner I put together for us and a couple of friends. All of the offerings were only 3 to 5 ingredients and all were readily available in almost any pantry or fridge in the world. Decided to go with a 3 1/2 pound T-Bone and run it on the rotisserie of the Weber Performer.

Here is the steak (roast??). It started out at 3 pounds 10 ounces but I trimmed it just a bit
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Broke out the good stuff for this one. This was posted a while ago by a forum member and it is outstanding stuff.
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Steak all seasoned up. Used only the Worcestershire sauce, pink Himalayan sea salt, and black pepper
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Made up a cheesy potato casserole with bacon and jalapenos then topped with a little bread crumbs
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Made some au jus. This had beef broth, Better Than Bouillon beef base, garlic powder, black pepper, and minced onions
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Little appetizer plate. The cheese and sausage were Christmas gifts from Tracy's aunt. Needed to use them up so here they are. The dip is just a little mayo, sour cream, and dry Ranch Dressing seasoning but was very good.
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Got the meat going. Had to drill holes through the bone end to get the spit and tines through but it was easy enough.
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Maybe I'm just biased but I really like this picture!!
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Did up some bread with garlic olive oil, garlic powder, and Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
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Jodi brought a beautiful Caparese salad. This was amazing!!
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Steak all done
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The whole spread
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Finally time to eat...it's 82 degrees and we are having dinner on the patio
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And the executive chef after a long day coking and a big meal
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I know I'm going to get slapped around for this but the meat got away from me by a little bit. It took an hour and a half to get to 105 then less than 15 minutes later it was at 130. I went into a panic when I saw that. Literally, I yanked the steak from the grill with no gloves or hot pads...but it was too late. I'm guessing that with the carry over it wound up at 137 or so. More medium than medium rare. Still very tender, juicy, and flavorful though. Just not what I wanted. All in all I'd say the minimalist approach to all things food for this one was a success. There is not a thing I'd change about this meal. Oddly enough it was the potatoes and the au jus that stole the show. They were so good!! Folks ate all the bread I cooked and literally got the sandwich bread and butter out to soak up the rest of the au jus with. There were a few taters left that got incorporated into breakfast the next morning. The Caparese salad was an amazing accompaniment to dinner and a total surprise, but they too are a very minimalist salad...but a very good one. This was kind of a fun experiment and I can certainly see that you don't need a cornucopia of ingredients to make a really nice meal. Well, gonna call this one done. Y'all have a good one, stay safe, and I have a couple other things I may post up in the next few days.

Robert
 
Robert ,The only reason that I would slap you around is because I didn't get any of that meal ,The whole meal looks fantastic ,great job
 
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Looks amazing Robert. I like a good medium rare. I think we get hung up though on trying to get it perfect everytime when in reality it tastes delicious at medium also lol. I understand though. That pic on the rotisserie is stunning. Nice work bud. 82? Our low Saturday is gonna be 1°
 
Looks great to me Robert!! I’m sure it was still tender and tasty!! Love the salad and au jus too. I think the idea behind Irvine’s strategy is 3-5 ingredient items can be very delicious, easy to repeat the quality consistently and simplified inventory management / reduced spoilage for the restaurant. I think many restaurant menus are just way to big
 
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Darn good looking meal! I love a simple cook like that...( meaning just a few ingredients). And 82 on the patio?!?!?! Shoot im gonna come camp on your patio this weekend. Gonna be low teens here.
Jim
 
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Looks pretty darned fine from where I'm sittin' Robert! A bit past what I consider perfect, but I know you do too. I'd be thrilled to sitting down to that table, tender juicy beef and gorgeous sides, what's not to like? Like! RAY
 
82? Our low Saturday is gonna be 1°
Jake, I'd kill for +1. I left camp up where I'm hauling logs where it was -45 Saturday--things tend to break out in the bush at that temp. Went home and basked in the -37 heat wave for 2 days. Came back to camp Monday and it was -47. Going home again in the morning. Can't win.
Gary
 
Another nice cut of Beef, and great meal...We like simple here anymore. Green Beans in Brown Butter with S&P is the most requested Veg. Other than that, it's meat and potatoes. Well, unless they want Asian or Indian cuisine...JJ
 
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Great looking meal Robert. That T-bone looks excellent, and the whole plate delicious. We like simple meals too, especially it's the 2 of us most of the time. Plus, simple is as complicated as we get, lol. Thanks for sharing. Stay safe.
 
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