Let’s kick off TAILGATING season!
I graduated from Roanoke College, and if I had it to do all over again, I’d go to the same school. But I can’t deny that I feel a little left out when football season rolls around. For one thing, it sure would be fun to root for an alma mater. For another, I have missed out on countless opportunities to tailgate.
What could be more fun, other than watching your team cream the other guys, than partying out of the back of a vehicle? It’s a picnic on wheels. Indulgence in a parking lot. An excuse, for some, to tie one on hours before the typical toddy time.
This year, I was tasked with writing a story about tailgating food for our special Welcome Back Students section, which comes out this Sunday. Because I couldn’t speak for experience, I chatted up the biggest tailgaters I know. I find it amazing that such things as gas-powered blenders, hitch-on grills and customizable steak branding irons exist. These people are SERIOUS!
My story for the section focuses on how to turn the typical American tailgate into one with ethnic flair. It includes a Mexican tailgating menu and a Mediterranean tailgating menu, and I’ll be sure to share all of that with you on the blog. Coincidentally, my favorite magazine, Fine Cooking, has just released a special Tailgating issue that will be on newsstands through the end of November. It is packed with menus, including one for a tailgate breakfast, a vegetarian tailgate and a super-cold weather tailgate (helloooo, spiked hot cocoa!)
I would be very surprised if I didn’t have some professional tailgaters reading this blog. If you’re out there, tell us about some of the best pre-game meals you’ve ever had, and some of the craziest things you’ve transported to make those meals happen. Any tips for newbies on the best way to keep foods cold/hot and fresh are also appreciated.
I would love to share some of your ideas in an upcoming Front Burner column.
August 25, 2010 - 11:00 AM
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Foodies has a cooking class devoted to Tailgating Food on September 16. Check it out!
Yum…I got one of those cute red Coleman propane grills for the beach this summer, and I can’t wait to use it in Bburg this fall! Any ideas of good tailgate grilling recipes?
Kristen, we have the same grill for tailgating! We’ve used ours to reheat ribs & wings from Fresh Market, as well as frozen wings. We’ve also done brats. Ours has a side burner that you could put a small skillet on for sauteed onions…I might try that this year!
After we bought the Coleman grill, we got a large plastic tub to keep it and all of our other tailgating supplies. We have it stocked with extra propane, tongs, knives, cutting board, paper towels, trash bags, mixers, soda, mini bottles of booze, etc. It makes game day so much easier, because all I have to do is restock it instead of packing a bunch of stuff.
Kristen, what do you like to take to the tailgate?
I was thinking kabobs could be good for tailgates, because they are fairly easy to store, transport, grill and eat. Also, I am a big fan of a grilled flatiron steak or another cut marinated in mojo and sliced thinly for soft tacos.
I know there are others out there who tailgate. Where are you folks?
Kabobs is a great idea, Lindsey! You could marinate the meat in a ziploc bag, and if using bamboo skewers, soak them in another, and throw it all in the cooler.
On a side note, has Luker’s Place on Peters Creek Road closed up? If so, it’s a crying shame. He had the best sandwiches in Roanoke, hands down.
I have found that cooking chicken on site in a pressure cooker is a great tailgate food. Here’s how it is done.Prepare chicken in ziplock bags ready for dusting in flour. Heat 2″ of Canola oil in pressure cooker 360 degrees. Drop in chicken and stir to keep from sticking together. Put lid on pressure cooker and cook as follows:wings 5 minutes;breast 7 min. Legs and thighs 8-9 mins. Remove from cooker and salt. A good wing dip is two parts Texas Pete and one part melted butter.
A few years back, my wife and I did a fake tailgate party thing at Halloween so we’d be easier to access for the trick-or-treaters. We set it up on the bed of my truck, tailgate down as the eating surface. I had my mini grill doing up some steaks, we were decked out in VT gear, had tiki torches going, and the folding camping chairs too. It was amazing how many parents thought it was a great idea. We had the candy and things right there with us to pass out, and the kids seemed to like it too.
For actual tailgate food, I tend to enjoy just about anything off the grill. A good steak is hard to beat, as are home-made hamburgers and grilled chicken. We’ll also frequently do up a pot of chili too, chips and dips, and nachos. We’ll eventually do wings too, but we’ll have to find GF fresh wings and fry them ourselves. We’ll have a totally gluten free party though! Complete with GF beer…
We are not veteran tailgaters like the other readers but we’ve grilled various foods over the years at Tech ganes and have one important sugestion for folks who enjoy cooking at the game. A friend placed his greasy, still warm small gas grill in the back of his truck only to find that someone had stolen it when he came back after the VT game. This was a pretty nice little grill worth about $100. After that, we grill early so the grill has plenty of time to cool. We bring lots of cleanup items and bag the grill in several heavy duty plastic trash bags before stowing INSIDE a locked vehicle or covered truck bed.
Mark, I love the chicken in a pressure cooker idea. The smell has got to be wonderful. Thanks.
These are some good ideas and bits of advice. I, too, love the pressure cooker idea. There’s no better way to get tender meat in a jiffy. We made pressure cooker wings at our house one year and they were so fast. Howard didn’t like them as much as the standard preparation because he likes his wings crispy. I like mine crispy, too, but the pressure cooker wings were so tender you could pull every bit of meat off the bone with one bite. I thought they were delicious.
The other night, I pressure cooked a cut of beef to make shredded beef for tacos. It was also really good.