That Food Guy
Friday, August 28, 2015
Gander Mountain Sportsman's Seasoning Tex Mex Rub
The wife and I went shopping at Gander Mountain the other day. While she was looking for clothing items, I wandered about the camping and cook-out areas. I found a bean crock on sale. I have always wanted a bean crock and it looked like this was the time to get one. There will be another blog about the bean crock later. While I was strolling through the aisles, I came across a rack of store brand spices. One of them caught my eye; Gander Mountain Sportsman’s Seasoning Specialty Blend Tex Mex Rub. Ever since McCormick stopped making their Fajita Marinade and Seasoning (and went to that junk in the envelopes) I have been looking for a substitute. The label promised a savory garlic and onion with chili for a zesty flavor. I picked up a bottle to try it out.
I
let a couple of large boneless and skinless chicken breasts partially thaw. I butterflied
the breasts and seasoned both sides with a moderate amount of the Tex Mex Rub.
I placed the breasts in the refrigerator to finish thawing. An hour before
grilling, I put the chicken on the kitchen counter and let the chicken warm to
room temperature.
To
go with the chicken I made some Spanish rice and some refried beans. Not
overcooked, the chicken was moist and it was tender. The main spices in the mix
are salt, chili powder (with oregano and a few other things) cumin, black
pepper, paprika, onion and garlic. It makes for a nice balanced flavor, none of
the flavors overpowering the others. The moderate seasoning I did make for a
piece of chicken with a very nice spicy flavor. If I were going to make fajitas,
where the pieces of chicken are mixed with the peppers and onions, the sour
cream and the guacamole, I would probably double up on the Tex Mex spice.
The
wife and I both enjoyed our meal and we agreed that the chicken was very good.
Considering we are having left-overs tomorrow that is a good thing. It wasn’t
as good as the McCormick Fajita Spice I remember form long ago but it has
earned a place on my spice shelf and it is certainly much better that the stuff
McCormick puts in those little envelopes today and calls it fajita spice. 
The wife and I went shopping at Gander Mountain the other day. While she was looking for clothing items, I wandered about the camping and cook-out areas. I found a bean crock on sale. I have always wanted a bean crock and it looked like this was the time to get one. There will be another blog about the bean crock later. While I was strolling through the aisles, I came across a rack of store brand spices. One of them caught my eye; Gander Mountain Sportsman’s Seasoning Specialty Blend Tex Mex Rub. Ever since McCormick stopped making their Fajita Marinade and Seasoning (and went to that junk in the envelopes) I have been looking for a substitute. The label promised a savory garlic and onion with chili for a zesty flavor. I picked up a bottle to try it out.
I
let a couple of large boneless and skinless chicken breasts partially thaw. I butterflied
the breasts and seasoned both sides with a moderate amount of the Tex Mex Rub.
I placed the breasts in the refrigerator to finish thawing. An hour before
grilling, I put the chicken on the kitchen counter and let the chicken warm to
room temperature.
I
preheated the grill, a nice scorching grill plate to make nice grill
marks. I placed the chicken on the
grill, closed the cover and reduced the gas to maintain about a 350˚F. I cooked
for 2 minutes and then turned the chicken pieces. I cooked an additional 2
minutes then turned and rotated the chicken pieces to make crisscross grill
marks. I cooked an additional 2 minutes and then turned the chicken on to the
last side and cooked an additional 2 minutes, a total of 8 minutes. I checked
the temperature and had an internal temp of 150˚. I grilled for an additional 1
minute and pulled them chicken from the grill just as they reached 170˚.
To
go with the chicken I made some Spanish rice and some refried beans. Not
overcooked, the chicken was moist and it was tender. The main spices in the mix
are salt, chili powder (with oregano and a few other things) cumin, black
pepper, paprika, onion and garlic. It makes for a nice balanced flavor, none of
the flavors overpowering the others. The moderate seasoning I did make for a
piece of chicken with a very nice spicy flavor. If I were going to make fajitas,
where the pieces of chicken are mixed with the peppers and onions, the sour
cream and the guacamole, I would probably double up on the Tex Mex spice.
The
wife and I both enjoyed our meal and we agreed that the chicken was very good.
Considering we are having left-overs tomorrow that is a good thing. It wasn’t
as good as the McCormick Fajita Spice I remember form long ago but it has
earned a place on my spice shelf and it is certainly much better that the stuff
McCormick puts in those little envelopes today and calls it fajita spice.
I
did look up this particular spice on the Gander Mountain website. As far as I
can tell, it just isn’t listed. I don’t know if it is s discontinued product (Oh,
great. Here we go again, just like McCormack.), if it is just a limited
circulation product, or perhaps a new product that has yet to be added to the
online catalog. Either way, if you are in the neighborhood of a Gander Mountain
store, stop in and pick up a bottle of the Tex Mex Rub. I think you will enjoy
it. Let me know how you like the spice.
Labels: chili powder, cumin, fajita, garlic, marinade, Mexico, onion, refried beans, Southwest, Spanish rice, Texas
¶ 7:40 PM 0 Comments
Wednesday, August 06, 2014
Texas de Brazil - Tampa, Florida
Many countries have traditions carried over from their pioneering days. In the Western United States we have cowboys, trail drives and barbecues that incorporate many of the unique flavors, ingredients and cultures of the American Southwest. It is no different in the rest of the Americas. In Mexico there are vaqueros and charros. There are many regional names in South America but we are probably most familiar with the cowboys of the pampas. The pampas is a large, flat and fertile plain that includes southern Brazil, much of Uruguay and part of Argentina. We know those cowboys as gauchos. Each of those regions have enshrined their cattle ranch hands in legend and frequent works of fiction much as we have here created the cowboy myths.
Churrascarias are
not common here in the United States. There are a few chains and their presence
seems to be increasing. One of those chains, Texas de Brazil, is represented in
West Central Florida by their Tampa restaurant. It was our pleasure to be the
guest of my wife’s Aunt Effie and Uncle Gil for lunch at Texas de Brazil. I am
all for it when someone wants to treat me to lunch. Cousins Alan and Kyla were
also there. It all made for a compatible party of six.
The restaurant building appears to have been purpose built. Nicely
furnished and maintained, it boasts of high-ceilings that maintains a low
ambient noise level; one can talk across the table in a normal voice. Center
stage, against the back window wall, is the soup and salad bar. They are open
daily during the dinner hours; 5 to 10 weekdays, 4 to 10 weekends. In addition,
they are open Friday 11 to 2, for lunch and Saturday and Sunday, 12 to 3, for
brunch (may vary with location). They
serve rodizio-style for preço fixo, a fixed price. With
each meal you can select just the salad bar, a meal in itself, of the meat
course which includes the salad bar. For Dinner:
salad bar $24.99 and meat course $44.99. For Lunch: salad bar $19.99 and meat course $24.99. For Brunch: salad bar $19.99 and meat
course $24.99. A 10% discount is offered for seniors and a 15% discount is
offered for the military. Call for reservations. I would hazard a guess that
they use the reservation totals to schedule the meat going into the churrasqueira.
Returning
to our seats we found the side dishes had already arrived, small bowls of
garlic mashed potatoes, sweet fried bananas and Brazilian cheese bread; little
almost bite sized pieces of tasty bread. As a side note, it was probably there,
somewhere, either on the salad bar or on the table. I am speaking of chimicchurri sauce. It is a green sauce
made of parsley, garlic, olive oil and oregano. It is used as a serving sauce
for meats. I was anxious to try this unfamiliar sauce but forgot about it in
all of the activity. You will have to tell me how you
liked the sauce on your next trip to Texas de Brazil.
Since we all were served from the same bowl, so to speak, I
will tell you about my meal as a collective for the table. At the salad bar I
chose the following; sausage, olives, marinated cucumbers, sliced tomatoes,
potatoes au gratin, pickled hot mix carrots, shrimp, potato salad, steamed
green beans and steamed asparagus, Genoa salami and some prosciutto. It would have been a fun meal all
by itself. I returned to the table and sampled awaiting the arrival of the passadores. Each of my selections was
excellent; taste and texture as you would expect it to be. Each place setting
has a small disc resembling a coaster. One side is green meaning More Please, and the other side red for
No More Thank You.
The meat, carried by the passadores,
comes from the kitchen in batches. There were more than a dozen kinds, perhaps
less than twenty; too many to really keep track of. There are offerings of
lamb, many cuts of beef, pork and chicken. I passed on the lamb, not one of my
favorite meats. I did hear that it was very good. The beef; flank steak, ribs,
filet, etc., were all excellent. They are cooked to about medium rare inside.
If you prefer a more well done piece of meat you have to ask for an outside
cut. When the passadores come to your
table, they are holding a large skewer of meat, a large sharp knife and a small
dimpled metal saucer. The dimpled saucer is placed on the table and the sharp
point of the skewer sits in the dimple. He then starts a slice down the length
of the meat. He waits until you use your tongs to grab hold of the meat and
then he completes the cut. Each place setting has a small tongs similar to a
sugar cube tongs. The meats are seasoned before cooking and you will have
little use for your salt and pepper shaker; all had excellent flavor, savory
and juicy..jpg "Medalion asking for MORE!")
The manager was a busy fellow. He was never obtrusive,
almost always in the background, but he was there making sure everything was
working smoothly. Our server, Camille, did an excellent job. She kept our
glasses full and responded quickly to requests. Like a good server, she was a
very definite reason we had such a good meal, a good time at Texas de Brazil.
Texas de Brazil
4112 W Boy Scout Blvd
Tampa, FL 33607
(813) 871-1400
www.texasdebrazil.com
Many countries have traditions carried over from their pioneering days. In the Western United States we have cowboys, trail drives and barbecues that incorporate many of the unique flavors, ingredients and cultures of the American Southwest. It is no different in the rest of the Americas. In Mexico there are vaqueros and charros. There are many regional names in South America but we are probably most familiar with the cowboys of the pampas. The pampas is a large, flat and fertile plain that includes southern Brazil, much of Uruguay and part of Argentina. We know those cowboys as gauchos. Each of those regions have enshrined their cattle ranch hands in legend and frequent works of fiction much as we have here created the cowboy myths.
Common to all are meals taken together either during the
cattle drives or at the end of the trail. Here we have the chuck wagon and the
barbecue with all the traditional Southwestern fare. In Southern Brazil they
have the churrasco, Portuguese for
barbecue, it is meat on a skewer and roasted over coals. A churrascaria is a house where churrasco
is served. It may be served as proportioned meal on a plate or it can be served
rodizio, for a fixed price, all-you-can-eat.
When served rodizio-style, passadores, meat waiters, bring skewers
of the freshly roasted meats to the table and slice off pieces for the diners.
Common to most is a table top token that is used to signal ‘More’ or ‘No More.’
Churrascarias are
not common here in the United States. There are a few chains and their presence
seems to be increasing. One of those chains, Texas de Brazil, is represented in
West Central Florida by their Tampa restaurant. It was our pleasure to be the
guest of my wife’s Aunt Effie and Uncle Gil for lunch at Texas de Brazil. I am
all for it when someone wants to treat me to lunch. Cousins Alan and Kyla were
also there. It all made for a compatible party of six.The restaurant building appears to have been purpose built. Nicely
furnished and maintained, it boasts of high-ceilings that maintains a low
ambient noise level; one can talk across the table in a normal voice. Center
stage, against the back window wall, is the soup and salad bar. They are open
daily during the dinner hours; 5 to 10 weekdays, 4 to 10 weekends. In addition,
they are open Friday 11 to 2, for lunch and Saturday and Sunday, 12 to 3, for
brunch (may vary with location). They
serve rodizio-style for preço fixo, a fixed price. With
each meal you can select just the salad bar, a meal in itself, of the meat
course which includes the salad bar. For Dinner:
salad bar $24.99 and meat course $44.99. For Lunch: salad bar $19.99 and meat course $24.99. For Brunch: salad bar $19.99 and meat
course $24.99. A 10% discount is offered for seniors and a 15% discount is
offered for the military. Call for reservations. I would hazard a guess that
they use the reservation totals to schedule the meat going into the churrasqueira.
We arrived just about the appointed hour. The hostess showed us to our
seats within moments of our arrival. Our server, Camille, was there to greet us
and take our beverage orders. The restaurant does feature a full service bar
(where bar patrons can order downsized meals from their own menu) and a wine cellar
for wine by the bottle or the glass. Then it was a short walk to the salad and
soup bar.
Salad bar is a bit of a misnomer; it is much more. The salad bar itself
is a free standing kiosk. Next to it is a serving counter with many tureens;
rice, black beans, au gratin potatoes, and soup du jour (that day it was lobster
bisque. On the salad bar there are some small bowls of lettuce. But this salad
bar is not about the lettuce, it is the fifty or so other items to choose from
including salami, prosciutto, shrimp, steamed asparagus, sliced
tomatoes, green beans, cheeses, olives and grilled sausages. Carnivores and
vegetarians alike can make a satisfying meal from the salad and soup bar.
Returning
to our seats we found the side dishes had already arrived, small bowls of
garlic mashed potatoes, sweet fried bananas and Brazilian cheese bread; little
almost bite sized pieces of tasty bread. As a side note, it was probably there,
somewhere, either on the salad bar or on the table. I am speaking of chimicchurri sauce. It is a green sauce
made of parsley, garlic, olive oil and oregano. It is used as a serving sauce
for meats. I was anxious to try this unfamiliar sauce but forgot about it in
all of the activity. You will have to tell me how you
liked the sauce on your next trip to Texas de Brazil.Since we all were served from the same bowl, so to speak, I
will tell you about my meal as a collective for the table. At the salad bar I
chose the following; sausage, olives, marinated cucumbers, sliced tomatoes,
potatoes au gratin, pickled hot mix carrots, shrimp, potato salad, steamed
green beans and steamed asparagus, Genoa salami and some prosciutto. It would have been a fun meal all
by itself. I returned to the table and sampled awaiting the arrival of the passadores. Each of my selections was
excellent; taste and texture as you would expect it to be. Each place setting
has a small disc resembling a coaster. One side is green meaning More Please, and the other side red for
No More Thank You.The meat, carried by the passadores,
comes from the kitchen in batches. There were more than a dozen kinds, perhaps
less than twenty; too many to really keep track of. There are offerings of
lamb, many cuts of beef, pork and chicken. I passed on the lamb, not one of my
favorite meats. I did hear that it was very good. The beef; flank steak, ribs,
filet, etc., were all excellent. They are cooked to about medium rare inside.
If you prefer a more well done piece of meat you have to ask for an outside
cut. When the passadores come to your
table, they are holding a large skewer of meat, a large sharp knife and a small
dimpled metal saucer. The dimpled saucer is placed on the table and the sharp
point of the skewer sits in the dimple. He then starts a slice down the length
of the meat. He waits until you use your tongs to grab hold of the meat and
then he completes the cut. Each place setting has a small tongs similar to a
sugar cube tongs. The meats are seasoned before cooking and you will have
little use for your salt and pepper shaker; all had excellent flavor, savory
and juicy.
With such an over-abundance of food, I didn’t sample all of
the meat offerings. As I mentioned I passed on the lamb, but of all the other
selections, save one, were, to my tastes, excellent. The chicken thighs were
cooked skin on. That made for a very juicy piece of meat but also a bit greasy
with the chicken fat from the skin. It wasn’t bad but it was far from a
favorite piece. The side dishes, the garlic mashed potatoes, bananas and bread
were all excellent.
The manager was a busy fellow. He was never obtrusive,
almost always in the background, but he was there making sure everything was
working smoothly. Our server, Camille, did an excellent job. She kept our
glasses full and responded quickly to requests. Like a good server, she was a
very definite reason we had such a good meal, a good time at Texas de Brazil.
We were all engrossed in after dinner chatter as the last of
our dinner plates were cleaned. Camille arrived with a large tray of dessert
items. Yes, there is a whole other menu page for dessert things. There were
some luscious looking items but there were no takers. We had all sated
ourselves on the meat and salad bar items. There was no room left for dessert;
we had gone from gourmet to gourmand.
It was a great meal that we all enjoyed. A good meal is so
much more enjoyable with good company. Good company was in abundance at that
table. Save for the kindness of Aunt Effie and Uncle Gil, the dining at Texas
de Brazil might not have come to pass. I will always be thankful for their generosity
and courtesy. And all our thanks to the staff of Texas de Brazil for their kindness and service.
Labels: beef, Brazil, churrascaria, churrasco, lamb, poultry, salad bar, skewer, steak house, Texas
¶ 5:14 PM 0 Comments
