Intro/Chapter 1: Grilling - The Clear Choice

Seeing how this is our first entry as the Walsh Family, perhaps a small introduction is apropos.  My name is Mary. I am married to a man name Scott.  Together we share the name of Walsh.  Our lives became legally and lawfully one on August 12, 2010. And despite the occasional lovers squabble over a boiling pot of something, we can't get enough of each other.  Another thing we can't get enough of?  FOOD.  

Scott and I love to cook.  We started cooking together while we were dating, and it proved to be a fantastic way to unwind after a long day of work.  It gave us the chance to work on not only our cooking chops, but on that all too important relationship skill - what the professionals call "collaboration."  We still haven't perfected that skill, nor are we yet master chefs.  But thanks to all the fantastic wedding gifts, our jointly owned kitchen is well stocked and ready for new adventures!  In short, we're ready to shock and awe our palates with our self-made culinary delights.  And we're also ready to document our progress herein.

As you will see, we don't exactly take ourselves too seriously here.  A sense of humor is required, so make sure you bring it with you as you read.  

One of our very first cookbooks was the America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook.  I bought it one summer ago, but didn't really start using it until I started cooking with Scott.  Since then, we have added many more cookbooks to our library, leaning more toward the exotic and international cuisines, but never forgetting the stunning impact of a well-made peach cobbler, and therefore use this little jewel almost weekly.  When we decided to start a blog, we thought it would be fun to take a cue from the ATK and conduct our own "tests" with our own kitchen, and see what sort of education we can gain from it.  And so we begin.

The Taste Test:  Pan-Grilled vs. Zapped

It all started when I told Scott I wanted a hot dog for dinner tonight.  I usually want a hot dog when I'm feeling lazy and carnivorous for processed pork.  Being the loving companion he is, Scott offered to make them for us.  That's when we came upon our first quandary:  to grill or to nuke?

I had grown up microwaving my hot dogs. I guess based on this fact you might conclude I was a lazy child.  And I'd grown very fond of the way a hot dog tastes when cooked with nuclear vapors.  So you can imagine my shock when my new husband takes out a frying pan, places it on our electric stove and throws two hot dogs in the center of it.  

THIS IS NOT HOW IT'S DONE.  Just another example of personal histories colliding violently under the backdrop of marital cohabitation.

I'll spare you the details of the conversation that followed, and just skip to the part where we decide that we'll each try one grilled and one microwaved hot dog, and see which one tastes better.

Grilling:
When I first saw how the grilled dogs were shaping up, it looked to me like they were suffering from some form of "casing" cancer.  I worried that this would make for a not so pleasing taste in my mouth.  I also worried that there was no water in the frying pan.  I pleaded with Scott to add a few drops to the pan so the dogs wouldn't scorch.  His reply:  "You don't put water on a grill, honey.  You shouldn't need it here either."  Whatever.

 Zapping:

Next it was my turn.  I prepared the dogs the way I usually do by stabbing them with a fork and wrapping them in a paper towel.  

Then I monitored carefully, taking thorough notes:

The Results:

Scott noted that the dog from the frying pan had a nice, not too strong, char flavor to it.  The skin gave a satisfying crunch when you bit into it, not unlike a dog you eat right off the barbecue at a summer picnic.  He recommends a spicy mustard for a tasty condiment.

As for the microwaved dog, Scott was left a little underwhelmed (which didn't surprise me at all.)  The texture, according to him, was "spongey" and flimsy.  Aside from the benefit of cooking a hot dog quickly, Scott concluded that a pan-grilled hot dog was "the clear choice."


After trying both dogs myself, I reluctantly had to agree.


Conclusion:


So maybe the reason why I preferred nuked dogs all this time had more to do with convenience than flavor.  But bottom line, Scott and I both will tell you, if you want a yummy dog, but it's too cold for a barbecue, don't 'wave it.  Grill it.  It's the clear choice.