A Little Labor Day Grillin'

A Little Labor Day Grilling Guide!!!!

Well, since this upcoming weekend is the Labor Day Holiday and the unofficial end of summer (but we do not want to think of that), I figured that it would be a good time to talk about some basic beer and food pairings for all of those that are going to be BBQ’ing and grilling over the weekend.

Food pairings are not just for wine you know. While any great BBQ, whether it is burgers, hot dogs, or chicken, can totally be enhanced with an ice cold beer (in the words of Jimmy Buffet – Cheeseburger in Paradise) who doesn’t enjoy a good burger with a beer. But I am talking about going a few steps further and moving beyond the typical “standard” BBQ offerings.

For example, grilled chicken is a popular protein to grill. Now if you were going to cook this with a little spices or salt and pepper, a good beer pairing would be a light Amber Ale. The slightly sweet and citrusy flavors of the ale would definitely compliment the aromatic flavors of the grilled chicken. However, if you were planning on smoking or using a BBQ sauce on the chicken instead, then I would probably go for a porter because of the toasted flavors of the beer would balance out the smoke or BBQ flavors.

Another favorite for the backyard pit are grilled pork chops. Instead of just throwing them on the grill, lets get a wee bit little silly and spice it up by adding a bit of homemade apple relish glaze on the top. Add a side of potato salad or macaroni salad, or to even stay on the crazier side, how about a Roasted Quinoa salad? I am not knocking potato salad as it is one of my favorites: The more the better, but why not change it up? So now that we have the main course and the sides, what kind of beer would pair well? In this case, I would suggest a Belgian-Style Dubble or even an IPA. The intense characteristics of the grilled pork fat would stand up great and compliment the hoppy and bitter flavor of the IPA, while the fruitiness of the Belgian Ale would pair nicely with the apple relish glaze. And even an American Brown Ale would match very well with the roasted Quinoa.  In this case though, I guess you would have to drink three beers to experience all of the distinct flavors: Definitely not a bad way to start a barbeque!!!

If you like shellfish (however, don’t compliment yourself or people might think you are shellfish), clams or mussels pair great with a German Hefeweizen. I enjoy steaming the clams and mussels in a white wine, garlic, basil and thyme sauce. The hefe pairs very well with this dish because it brings out the salinity of the seafood while at the same time rinsing and cleansing the palate. A Belgian Saison would also go great with this dish. Since we are still cooking shellfish, I also love to cook shrimp. After they are cleaned, I put them on the grill and cook them up for a bit. Once they are almost finished, I glaze them with a homemade lemon garlic sauce. Sometimes I will thicken it with corn starch, but you can also keep it thin and for a bit lighter main. However, pair this with an American Wheat Ale and you are in shrimp heaven. The slight tart flavor of the ale meshing with the citrus of the lemon is like a splash of liquid sun soaked fields. Or in other words, it is just a great combination and has an amazing flavor profile.

For those of you who are on the lighter side of grilling (or vegetarians) and wanted to make a salad instead either as a side or main course, you cannot go wrong and pair it with a Belgian Witbier. The aromas of orange and coriander adds to the zest of a light citrus dressing on the salad and also will bring out the flavors of feta and/or goat cheese (if used).

So with all those main dishes (I hope you are all hungry now) beer can also be paired with cheeses and desserts. For example, an English Style Pale Ale would complement a nice Brie or Blue Cheese. Just as snobby as those wine folks!!!! And on the dessert side, Cheesecake would go great with a Barley Wine or Fruit Lambic.

So my three big rules when pairing food with beer (and this also applies to food and wine pairing as well) Are:

1). Match Strength with Strength – light and delicate foods deserve light and delicate beers, stronger flavors of foods pair up with stronger beer flavors. You do not want to overpower one or the other with too heavy of flavors.

2). Balance – look for flavor profiles and balance each other out. A sweeter beer will balance out the spiciness (chili heat) of the food: Where as a hoppy beer would only emphasize the heat.

3). Look for the common ground – while balance is important, look for some common flavors. I.E. - the nuttiness of an English Brown Ale would complement the nuttiness of an aged Asiago Cheese. An Imperial Stout has chocolate and cocoa characteristics that would pair with sweet desserts.

And that is my beginner’s guide to pairing!!!!!

P.S. I also must mention, although this is not a pairing but more of using beer as an ingredient, and it is also one of my Mom’s favorite dishes to make: It is beer can chicken. Essentially, you put the entire chicken on the grill; raise it up and with the can of beer open stick the beer can in the bottom of the bird. This way as the meat cooks over the grill it takes on some of the flavors of the beer (depending on what kind you use) and it makes the chicken extremely moist where it literally falls off the bone (the chicken also gets a bit loopy from the beer intake!!!!). Good stuff. I think my Mom drinks half the can of beer first though. Cannot imagine why?

So get out and cook some good food this weekend and pair it up with some damn good beer!!! And as always, RAISE A PINT OF ALE AND ENJOY!!!!!!!!! CHEERS