Too hot to cook?

Posted on July 22, 2025 by Burnt My Fingers
Cornell Grilled Corn

Too hot to cook indoors? Head for the grill and make some Cornell Chicken with Cornell Grilled Corn.

Yep, the summers are getting hotter and our cooking interests wane as the temperature rises. Here are a few easy to prepare and mostly stove-free dishes we find ourselves repeating.

Cornell Chicken. This goes on the grill so it’s technically cooking, but there are a couple of features that make it easy. Unlike most marinated foods, it needs only an hour in its sauce; in fact, the food scientists at Cornell warn it should never marinate past two hours. Second, because of the low oil content of the marinade it’s less likely to burn on the grill. And this stuff is delicious: grab a jumbo pack of chicken thighs and see for yourself. Bonus feature: you can run farm-fresh corn on the cob through the marinade for Cornell Grilled Corn.

Tabbouleh

Tabbouleh

Tabbouleh. We’ve started making half portions of our recipe and seems like as soon as one tub is gone, we want another. A big bunch of Italian parsley is enough for three of these half size salads. One Roma tomato, seeded and chopped, is just the right amount for one. Fresh mint grows in abundance outside our kitchen. Easy, cool and refreshing.

Gazpacho. A flavorful and painless way to eat your vegetables. We nearly always have a beaker in our fridge these days. Resist the urge to gulp it down as soon as it is blended; the flavor will change (improve) dramatically after it sits a few hours.

Ultimate Gazpacho

Ultimate Gazpacho

Hot dogs with the works. Ball Park franks and buns have been on sale most of the summer at our local supermarket and we have succumbed to their siren song. We dress them one of two ways: with Stewarts-style meat sauce, hot relish, pickled onions, sauerkraut and stone ground mustard, or else with dirty water sauce, sauerkraut and yellow mustard. Pop a bun into the toaster oven, microwave the tube steak with the kraut and meat sauce for 90 seconds, and in under five minutes you have a mini feast.

Hot Dog Meat Sauce

A well dressed tube steak with hot dog meat sauce.

What’s cool to eat when it’s too hot to cook in your house? Suggestions appreciated!

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Recipe: Snow’s BBQ Beans (sort of)

Posted on July 17, 2025 by Burnt My Fingers
Snows BBQ Beans

A nice cup of Snow’s BBQ beans, or as close as we can get without going to Lexington, TX.

There can never be an official recipe for Snow’s BBQ beans because Kerry Bexley says he improvises. Still, there are several things we know. He starts with generic pintos from Sam’s Club. He mixes in a salt/pepper combo which is probably the same as the rub he uses for brisket. His chili powder is Toné’s though another similar mild New Mexico style should work. He says he uses bacon ends for the fatty element, but it’s hard to imagine he would buy a separate product when so much pork and beef fatty trim is available from his smokers. Anyhow, our interpretation is in the ballpark and also delicious. Makes 8 cups, about 16 servings.

Ingredients:
1 lb dried pinto beans
6 c water
2 T mild chili powder (we use Toné’s)
1 ½ t Kosher salt
½ t ground black pepper
¼ to ½ c animal fat such as bacon ends, bacon fat, suet or BBQ trim

Method: rinse beans and remove any pebbles (recipes always say that but when was the last time you found a pebble in your dried beans?) and add to inner pot of Instant Pot along with 6 c water, chili powder, salt, pepper and fat. Pressure cook on high for 50 minutes followed by 15 minutes natural release. Taste for seasoning; Terry admits he has a heavy hand with the salt shaker and the finished product should be noticeably but not unpleasantly salty. Serve hot with smoked meats.

Don’t have an Instant Pot? Then soak the beans overnight and add seasoning in the morning along with plenty of water. Cook over low flame till tender but not falling apart, maybe 2 hours. Don’t throw out the pot likker; we think it’s as tasty as the beans themselves.

PPS. We don’t care what Texas Monthly says, Snow’s Barbecue is still the best we’ve found in Texas which means the best in the world. Snow’s BBQ beans are a wonderful side benefit because you can dip a cup for free with your order.

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Cookoff challenge: Aaron Franklin vs instant Pot

Posted on July 13, 2025 by Burnt My Fingers
Baby Back Ribs Plated

Aaron Franklin (left) vs Instant Pot (right) baby back ribs.

A rack of baby back ribs is a wily beast. It’s a thin cut that is easy to ruin, yet it needs a long time in the smoker for tenderness. On a previous outing we managed to char the outer edges of our baby back ribs. This time we were more diligent in following pitmaster Aaron Frankin’s advice.

We started with “St Louis Style” ribs which are pre-trimmed, something Aaron doesn’t like. But this avoids food waste in paying for product you don’t use, plus a St. Louis Style rack fits snugly in our 18 inch Weber Smoky Mountain/Bullet. We slathered on yellow mustard then dusted the surface with a 2:1 black pepper/salt blend. Two racks went on the top level of the Weber while the lower shelf remained empty; it was a waste of BBQ space but we were correct that the top rack would maintain the ~250 degree temp that is recommended for ribs. 4 hours of this, then the ribs were wrapped in aluminum foil and returned to the Weber for another 2-3 hours till the fire went out. So far so good.

Saucing Baby Back Ribs

It’s easy to tell the difference as the baby backs were slathered with sauce before a final run under the salamander.

All this time a third rack of ribs was slumbering in our fridge. Only when the smoke cycle on the first two was nearing its finish did we crack open the cryovac. We dusted with a rub (Salt Lick Dry Garlic, which was what we had on hand though any good rub would work) and fitted in an Instant Pot on a trivet with a cup of water, half a cup of cider vinegar and a healthy dash of liquid smoke. These went on the Meat setting for 24 minutes, followed by 10 minutes natural release.

In our picture you see the state of affairs as the meats prepare for their final outing, a journey under the broiler for a few minutes with a cider vinegar/BBQ sauce lathering. (We used our Texas sauce for both.) The Instant Pot rack was pale at the beginning but after a few minutes under fire they looked identical. More important, tenderness and taste were so close it was hard to tell one from the other. The Franklin ribs had a bit more smoky flavor but the difference was very very slight.

Baby Back Ribs Grilled

A few minutes later, the racks look (and, more important, taste) nearly identical.

We’re not saying Aaron Franklin needs to move over for a new sheriff in town. But the Instant Pot deserves a deputy badge at least. And we’re going to keep this option in mind for occasions when a rib craving strikes but we don’t have all day to hang around the smoker.

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Recipe: Hot Dog Meat Sauce a la Stewart’s Shops

Posted on July 8, 2025 by Burnt My Fingers
Hot Dog Meat Sauce

A well dressed tube steak with hot dog meat sauce.

This hot dog meat sauce is so close to the product offered at Stewart’s Shops, we predict you could swap out the crockpot on the counter and regular customers would not notice any difference. After our earlier experiment we simplified, added paprika and included cornstarch as a thickening agent. Makes about 2 c, enough for a cookout’s worth of hot dogs.

Ingredients:
1 lb 80/20 ground beef
1 c canned tomato sauce
2 c water
2 T mild chili powder (we used Toné)
1 T paprika
¼ t cinnamon
½ t kosher salt
¼ c dried onions
½ t garlic powder
2 t cornstarch in 2 t water

Meat Sauce Comparison

Stewart’s hot dog meat sauce is on the left, ours on the right. Can you tell the difference?

Method: sear the meat without browning until fat renders and any redness disappears. Drain off some fat if you like and add tomato sauce, water and seasonings. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until most liquid evaporates and the sauce reduces to coat a spoon consistency, about 2 hours. Mix in cornstarch slurry and stir until sauce thickens somewhat. Serve hot as a hot dog condiment.

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Hacking Stewart’s Hot Dog Meat Sauce

Posted on July 4, 2025 by Burnt My Fingers
Hot Dog Meat Sauce

Service area for Stewart’s hot dog meat sauce. Notice the purpose-built tongs and holder to the right of the grill.

Stewart’s Shops festoon the northeast like ripe fruit on a raspberry bush. There are 6 of them in Saratoga Springs  (which is also Stewart’s home base) alone and another 4 on the outskirts. Stewarts (often thought of without the apostrophe or affectionately as Stewies) is like 7-11 or other convenience stores but with a number of quirks that create great affection among locals.

Stewarts Waste Lid

Every Stewie’s has a trash receptacle like this one, which looks like it was made out of formica and label maker in a high school shop class.

A favorite Stewart’s item for me is the Deli Dog. I wrote about this soon after I moved to Saratoga; the price has gone up and for some reason (probably a copyright issue) the name has been changed to Hot Dog but the product is the same. You can currently get two of them for $4 and will serve yourself from a roller cooker with tongs from a special hanger on the side, and place the tube steak on a bun which comes prepackaged atop the cooker or in a drawer underneath. (In modern they times have discontinued the practice of steaming vs grilling the dogs, and no longer warm the buns. Such is progress.) You can add condiments to your heart’s content: mustard, green or spicy red relish, sauerkraut, chopped onions, ketchup… and meat sauce.

A family member is fond of Stewart’s hot dog meat sauce, which is like chili but without the beans (which of course should never be in chili to begin with) and unlike the chili is free with your hot dog purchase. You can’t always be at Stewart’s when a hot dog urge strikes so we decided to hack Stewart’s meat sauce at home.

There are lots of hot dog meat sauces on Amazon, including Coney Island, Chicago and Detroit varieties, but we guessed the Stewart’s product was heavily influenced by the sauce on the “Michigan Dog” originated a hundred miles north of us in Plattsburgh, and ladled onto the mini-dogs served at various establishments in the Capital District. Hot Dog Charlie’s, based in Troy NY, sells Hot Dog Charlie’s Meat & Chili Sauce in a jar by mail order and at local supermarkets so we were able to suss out the ingredients by reading the label: Water, Beef, Dehydrated Onions, Soybean Oil, Paprika, Salt, Chili Powder (ground Chili Peppers), Spices, Citric Acid, Garlic.

We liked that there is more water than meat, which suggests a formula for an item with very low food cost. Using first-ingredient-is-water as a criterion we hunted around for “hot dog meat sauce” recipes online. The most promising was this on TikTok from doihavetocook for “Coney Island Hot Dog Sauce” so we cooked it up. The ingredients:

1 lb ground beef (we used 85/15 mix)
2 c water
¼ c tomato paste
1 T minced dried onions
2 T mild chili powder (we used Toné)
½ t garlic powder
½ t Kosher salt
¼ t ground mustard
¼ t ground allspice
¼ t cinnamon
1/8 t cayenne pepper
1/8 t ground cumin

Method: sear meat in a saucepan, crumbling with a spoon, over medium heat to render fat without browning the meat. Drain off fat and add all other ingredients. Simmer for 2 hours or more till the sauce is reduced to the thickness of a pasta sauce that coats a spoon without dripping off. Serve warm over your favorite cooked wiener.

Deli Dog Comparison

Our hot dog with hacked meat sauce in on the top, a Stewart’s dog on the bottom. Notice their sauce is more viscous and spreads more evenly vs clumping.

Verdict: this was the same consistency as Stewart’s meat sauce but much more interesting flavor-wise thanks to the warm spices. For a more authentic Stewart’s hot dog meat sauce hack, next time we plan to eliminate the allspice and cumin (cinnamon stays because we like it in chili; unsure about the tiny amount of mustard) and substitute 1 T paprika for one of the T of chili powder. Other things we might consider:
Using canned tomato sauce or puree instead of tomato paste
Thickening/stretching the sauce with flour, cornstarch or corn flour
Adding some brown sugar (a variation since Stewart’s sauce is not sweet)
Perking it up with some cider vinegar (again, a flavor note missing in Stewart’s meat sauce).

Did we nail it in the second test? Stay tuned to find out in our next post. And happy 4th to those who celebrate!

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Cornell Grilled Corn

Posted on June 27, 2025 by Burnt My Fingers
Cornell Grilled Corn

Cornell Grilled Corn.

You’ve just grilled off a brace of quarters or halves of Cornell Chicken. Now you’re going to do the same with some ears of sweet corn at its summer peak. Soaking the ears first to keep them moist is not a bad idea, nor is a sprinkle of chili lime seasoning. But how about this:

The bowl you used to marinate the chicken is right there next to the grill , and there’s plenty of juice remaining. So why not give each ear a bath in it before hitting the grill? The vinegar mixed with oil provides really nice flavor and the egg in the marinade helps seal it in. And no worries, the heat of the grill should lingering any food safety concerns. (Which you probably don’t have if you’re a regular reader of this blog and enjoy ake or raw foods in general.) Dig in and enjoy your Cornell grilled corn!

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Mid-century musings, or ruminating about rumaki.

Posted on June 20, 2025 by Burnt My Fingers
Rumaki

Rumaki, a mid century favorite.

There is nostalgia in America for “mid century” culture evoking a time when suburban moderns congregated in verdant back yards to get seriously drunk, flirt with their neighbors’ spouses, and eat rumaki. Those times are not coming back. Reason one: today’s rising potential suburban homeowners would find such a lifestyle out of reach financially. Reason two: bacon.

I have been fiddling with foods wrapped in bacon and broiled. Last week we tried scallops with a dash of lemon juice. Today it was rumaki: chicken livers and water chestnuts marinated in a soy/sugar/ginger sauce then wrapped in bacon before hitting the oven. Angels on horseback (oysters wrapped in bacon) and devils on horseback (dates stuffed with cream cheese and ditto) are tempting but I’m throwing in the Hula Hoop because the bacon I’ve used falls apart.

Notice how the bacon in the photo of a Trader Vic’s pu pu platter is meaty and thick compared to today’s thinner, stringier rashers even in premium brands. (Not shown: little crunchy nodules from dead trichinosis parasites which were ubiquitous in those gentler times.) The rumaki in my feature photo tasted fine and the bacon was crisp but Instagram is not going to come knocking at my door.

Trader Vic Rumaki

Trader Vic rumaki with improbably pink yet crisp bacon.

I’m now turning the page to more successful uses of bacon, like fried up crisp and served with eggs and pancakes or hash browns. If you’d prefer to linger in the 1950s, here is a history of Trader Vic’s pu pu platter with its faux Polynesian roots and husband-pleasing (yours, and someone else’s if you are a suburban wife with a roving eye) flavors. And here is an account of an early-aughts party in the deep south that successfully recreated the steamy decadence of mid-century. Bottoms up!

P.S. Except visually, my rumaki was a success. Here’s what I did and what I would do differently next time.

Ingredients:
½ lb chicken livers
12 water chestnuts (from a 6 oz can)
6 slices bacon, each cut in half crosswise
¼ c light soy sauce
2 t grated ginger
2 T dark brown sugar

Method: trim connective tissue and any yellow bits from the livers and marinate an hour or so in a mix of soy/ginger/dissolved ground sugar. (Online recipes say to marinate the water chestnuts too but why? The soy sauce won’t penetrate and will only discolor them.) Assemble 12 rumaki with a half slice of bacon, a portion of liver and a water chestnut on top for each then fold together and secure with a toothpick. (This part was a mess and must have been the bane of mid-century prep cooks. Whole livers are too large but they are slippery and you have to slice through a lot of strange tissue to create smaller pieces, and the water chestnuts are also too big and tend to pop out and shoot across the room. Experiment with smaller chicken liver pieces and sections of water chestnut. Good luck!)

Secure each rumaki with a toothpick (some recipes advise soaking in water but this makes the toothpicks collapse when you try to penetrate the water chestnut) and broil until bacon is crisp but chicken livers are still pink in the middle, about 20 minutes. Serve warm with other appetizers.

PPS. If you want to get in the midcentury mood with  tales of suburban infidelity, try some John D. MacDonald books. He’s best known for the Travis McGee mystery series but his other bus station paperbacks are full of sultry bedroom stuff.

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Recipe: Copycat Durkee’s Famous Sauce

Posted on June 15, 2025 by Burnt My Fingers
Copycat Durkees Famous Sauce

Looks like Durkee’s oozing out of this turkey sandwich but it’s really Copycat Durkee’s Famous Sauce.

Copycat Durkee’s Famous Sauce was the runaway winner in our taste test. It is so close in taste and texture to the original that we really can’t tell the difference. We used distilled (white) vinegar because that’s what is on the Durkee’s label, but if you want to get it closer to the yellowish cast of authentic Durkee’s Famous Sauce consider using cider vinegar instead. Makes about 1 ½ c.

½ c cold water
¼ c cornstarch
½ c plus 2 T distilled vineger
2 T Kosher salt
½ c white sugar
1 egg
¼ c French’s prepared mustard (the stuff in the yellow plastic bottle)
¼ c neutral oil

Copycat Durkees Famous Sauce

Texture and thickness same as original Durkee’s: very important.

Method: add all ingredients to a blender or mini-chop. Blend on high speed until cornstarch is fully absorbed and sugar and salt are dissolved, a minute or more. Transfer to top of double boiler and cook over gently boiling water, stirring often for 12 to 15 minutes or until thickened and smooth. Cool before using. I expect this will keep quite a while in the fridge, just like the original.

11/25 update: our Copycat Durkee’s Famous Sauce is still in our fridge 5 months later and will be used for our Thanksgiving leftovers sandwiches. Looks and tastes the same as when we made it; there’s a very slight separation of liquid but easy to stir that back in.

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Taste Test: Durkee’s Famous Sauce Copycat Recipe

Posted on June 8, 2025 by Burnt My Fingers
Durkee Copycats

Durkee’s Famous Sauce Copycat #1 on the left, original in the center, #2 on the right.*

The dry-brined turkey breast we smoked on Memorial Day required some Durkee’s Famous Sauce to make sandwiches, and our jar was near empty. Amazon does not currently stock the product and their third parties are offering punitive markups. If we lived in TX we could just stroll to the supermarket and buy a fresh jar but, north of the Mason Dixon line, Durkee’s Famous Sauce seems impossible to acquire. Time to execute a long delayed experiment and attempt a copycat.

Durkees Empty

Our jar of Durkee’s Famous Sauce is down to the last spoonful.

Here are the ingredients on the Durkee’s label which have stayed fairly consistent through changes in ownership: soybean oil, water, distilled vinegar, sugar, mustard, salt, whole egg solids, food starch-modified, xanthum gum, spice extractives. Not that helpful. Xanthum gum is a thickener you probably don’t have in your cupboard (though we do, from our molecular gastronomy experiments) so we’ll need to find another way to turn liquids into a spreadable emulsion.

We have been tracking copycat recipes online as Durkee’s availability has ebbed and flowed over the years and saved two recipes for experimentation. We will tip our hand and tell you the following recipe was not the winner but it’s pretty good if you feel like making something up right now:

Ingredients:
1 egg yolk
¼ c white vinegar
½ c plus 2 T mayonnaise
¼ c plus 1 T Dijon mustard
2 t granulated sugar
4 t dry mustard
1 t Kosher salt
½ t Worcestershire sauce

Method: whisk egg yolk and vinegar in a double boiler until temperature on an instant-read thermometer reaches 160 degrees. (For us, this happened after a couple minutes when the egg and vinegar were smoothly incorporated.) Add all other ingredients and whisk to combine while still warm. Cool before using as a spread or salad dressing.

Critique: the finished dressing (#2 in our feature photo) has a mayo-like consistency which is fine but Durkee’s is thicker. This dressing is tarter than Durkee’s so consider dialing back the vinegar. “Dijon mustard” is variable and the brand we used (Maille) maybe was more assertive than the recipe wanted. And we had misgivings about the use of Worcestershire which does not fit the flavor profile of Durkee’s in our opinion.

The other recipe? It’s almost a dead ringer and we share it here. It’s very close to actual Durkee’s Famous Sauce and is a variation of (but not same as) on the recipe we linked to way back in 2010. Check back in a few days!

P.S. If you haven’t recently visited our 2010 post on Durkee’s, scroll down to the comments and read all the way to the end. There’s a possible recipe for “3 P Salad” to check out!

*In our photo, the Durkee’s original has a yellowish cast that we didn’t try to duplicate as it makes no difference in the flavor. The yellow probably comes from the egg solids or maybe one of those spice extractives.

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Offbeat Saratoga Springs during the Belmont

Posted on June 3, 2025 by Burnt My Fingers
Roosevelt Mineral Baths Saratoga Springs

Serenity awaits at Roosevelt Mineral Baths. One of many offbeat things to do in Saratoga Springs during the Belmont.

The Belmont Festival is back in Saratoga Springs for a second year, with five days of racing from Wednesday June 4 through Sunday June 8. We worked as a host at a private picnic area last year and the attendees were notably more focused than the usual crowd at our own summer meet. But you can’t handicap 24/7 so here are some offbeat suggestions for things to do in Saratoga Springs.

Take the waters: reserve a mineral bath in Spa State Park. The Roosevelt Bath House operates very much as it did in the time of FDR when the park was created, offering a soothing and therapeutic soak in murky waters. Make a reservation here; you can choose from a 40 minute soak as a “singular treatment” or a 20 minute bath to be combined with massage or another therapy.

Taste the waters: tour our many mineral springs. Here’s a guided tour that starts in Congress Park, right across the street from the Visitor Center where you can pick up a printed brochure with history and location of springs in town and in Spa State Park. (You can also download the brochure here.) If you’re short on time, head for the Geyser Loop Trail where you can experience a variety of springs (including one that’s mildly radioactive) on a short loop hike.

Take a rolling feast to the track (Wednesday and Sunday only). This year NYRA is relaxing its Belmont policies to allow rolling coolers and outside alcohol (no glass bottles) on those two days only. So follow a favorite Saratoga tradition and pack your chest with beer from Treehouse Brewing (skip the crowds by using the efficient take out ordering process) or canned wine from the big selection at  Purdy’s. Add an Italian mix sub (here they call it the “Big D” and it’s delicious) or other sandwich from Cardona’s (order in advance because they will be swamped) and, of course, a bag of Saratoga Chips.

Hang out with the locals at Mittler’s Market. There’s plenty of strolling and people watching to be had on Broadway and in Congress Park, but don’t overlook this bodega which is a short block down Phila at the corner of Putnam St. It’s a new place which has quickly caught on with a full bar, light meals and snacks, music and creative events like a Saturday Morning Dads Club where fathers gather to share activities with their kids.

Akazumi Marinated Tuna

Akazumi Marinated Tuna from the lunch menu at Omakazi Sushi.

Take in a show at Caffé Lena. The longest continually operating folk music venue in America offers legendary and local performers in an intimate setting with shared tables and great acoustics. At 47 Phila St, right in the heart of the action. Daily schedule is here.

Check out our Farmers Market. It’s a good one, with scores of farm stands, live music and plenty of snacking. Under and around the pavilion at 112 High Rock Blvd in High Rock Park, 9:00 am – 1:00 pm Saturday (so you can visit and still make the first post time). Don’t miss two world class bakeries, sourdough creations from Night Works Bread and laminated pastries from Bakery Suzanne. If you are up for a quirky adventure, Bakery Suzanne has a retail location at 4282 Rte 50 east of Wilton Mall. They’re open 8:00 am – 2:00 pm Friday-Sunday and are next door to the X-Files Museum which is open 11:00 am – 5:00 pm on the same days.

Get creative with your dining options. Saratoga Springs is packed with dining venues, most of which are likely to be fully booked during the Belmont Festival. Familiar Creature is a newish wine bar with inventive food from a former head chef at Hamlet & Ghost and they focus on walk-ins with only a limited number of reservations each night. Omakaze can set you back hundreds of dollars with add-on like wagyu beef sushi, but you can enjoy the same atmosphere and magnificent chef’s selections at lunch for just $35; specify Omakase Sushi Bar when you reserve here.

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