I like to go by a tested recipe first to get a baseline reference. After that, I'll tweak it or radically change it to suit my taste. Oooo Smokemaster, yes, Jerk! If anyone's game, I've found this recipe comes as close to authentic Jamaican Jerk than any other I've tried. I always end up doing two versions; one with two Scotch Bonnets for the GF and one with 12 for me ;-) The recipe is from a... wait for it... Weight Watchers recipe book. Here's a copy of the original recipe. I use it without any changes, it's perfect as is IMHO. Works for pork or chicken. Jamaican Jerk Pork Tenderloin This fiery barbecue was invented by the Maroons, or runaway slaves, as a means of preserving meats without refrigeration. The more Scotch bonnet peppers you use, the more authentic the flavor. Use one pepper for a mildly spicy dish and four for a very spicy dish. (To approximate the heat of the authentic jerk marinade, you would have to use 12 Scotch bonnet peppers.) Here, we butterfly the pork to increase the surface area for the marinade to penetrate. This recipe will also work with pork loin and chicken breasts, wings and thighs. 2 cups coarsely chopped green onions 1/2 cup coarsely chopped onion 2 tablespoons white vinegar 1 tablespoon soy sauce 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 2 teaspoons kosher salt 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves 2 teaspoons brown sugar 1 teaspoon ground allspice 2 teaspoons chopped peeled fresh ginger 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 - 12 Scotch Bonnet or Habanero peppers, seeded and chopped 1 (1 1/2 pound) pork tenderloin, trimmed Cooking spray 1. Place first 15 ingredients in a blender or food processor; process until smooth. Pour into a large zip-top plastic bag. 2. Slice pork lengthwise, cutting to, but not through, other side. Open halves, laying each side flat. Slice each half lengthwise, cutting to, but not through, other side; open flat. 3. Add pork to marinade in bag; seal bag, and marinate in refrigerator 3 to 24 hours. Remove pork from bag; discard marinade. 4. Prepare grill. 5. Place pork on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 8 minutes on each side or until meat thermometer registers 160F (slightly pink). Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 3 ounces pork).

Here are a few of my favourites. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Beef Tenderloin - Kabobs ======================== 2 pounds beef tenderloin, cut into Cubes (from 1 inch to 2 inches) 2 - 3 cloves of garlic minced 1 large shallot, chopped 2 tablespoons fresh thyme Chopped/ and/or Rosemary 2 tablespoons fresh parsley Chopped 1 cup red wine 1/2 cup olive oil Salt Black Pepper - Coarsely Ground 2 Green Peppers cut into squares 2 large white onions- cut into 1/4's (option: Large Cherry Tomatoes) . Cut beef tenderloin in to nice size cubes. Mix together all of the other ingredients and marinate the beef for about 4 to 6 hours. Par Boil onions and green peppers for less than one minute. Drain and cool in icewater. Remove meat from Marinade and thread onto metal or wooden skewers, placing a piece of green pepper and onion in between each piece of meat. Grill on high heat. Turn a few times. Tenderloin should be served rare to medium rare so these do not take long to cook, depending on your grill. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Chicken Souvlaki ================ Chicken breasts Fresh minced garlic Dried oregano Lemons Olive oil Salt Pepper . Cut chicken breasts into 1 inch cubes Place on wooden Skewers that have been soaked in water (prevents sticks from burning.. or on metal skewers. Rub with fresh minced garlic and dried oregano Squeese fresh lemons over chicken and some olive oil Salt and pepper Marinate for up to 1 hour. If marinating longer do not add lemon juice until the last hour. Lemon juice "cooks" the flesh and changes the texture. Place on hot grill and turn often until done. Serve with Greek salad and rice. NOTE: This recipe works well with Pork (I use Pork Tenderloin) and with Lamb Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Shish Taouk with Toum (Garlic Sauce) ==================================== Source: http://chichoskitchen.blogspot.com/2010/04/shish-taouk -grilled-chicken-kebabs.html Ingredients (around 15 skewers): 1-1/2 kg chicken breast, cut into 1 inch cubes 1 cup olive oil 3 tablespoons dijon or mild mustard 3/4 cup lemon juice 10 crushed garlic cloves 2 tablespoons salt 1 tablespoon white (or black) pepper 2 tablespoons tomato paste 4 tablespoons finely chopped thyme Mushrooms, (optional but highly recommended) 1 red and/or 1 green pepper (optional but highly recommended) Emulsify the mustard with the olive oil. This is done by whisking a little bit of olive oil into the mustard and continuing to do so until all the olive oil is incorporated. Add and whisk the lemon juice, salt, pepper, tomato paste, garlic and thyme until well mixed Marinate the chicken in the sauce overnight in the fridge. Skewer the chicken along with pieces of mushroom and red/green pepper and barbecue or grill until done. Dont over cook otherwise the chicken would dry out. Toum (Garlic Sauce) Http://chichoskitchen.blogspot.com/2010/04/toum-garlic- lebanese-sauce-recipe.html Ingredients: 5 cloves of garlic 1 egg white 1 cup of neutral oil (sunflower is fine) Juice of 1 lemon A good pinch of salt 1 cup of iced water of which you will use around 2 tbsp Put the garlic cloves along with salt and 1/4 of the lemon juice in the blender. Blend on medium and scrape the sides down when the garlic goes flying everywhere. Add the egg white and blend on medium. Add half the oil in bit by bit. A thin stream is not necessary, but dont go crazy. A reasonable, fine, steady pour is good. At this stage, the emulsification should have taken place. If it hasnt and the sauce looks like it has split, then something has gone wrong. You may need to remove half the amount, add another egg white, whizz away and re-pour what had already split. But if you take it slow without pouring the oil too quickly, it should be fine. Switch to a slow blend, and add the rest of the lemon juice in slowly too. Add the rest of the oil in the same fashion. Add 1 or 2 tbsp of water. You will see the consistency change into something wonderfully creamy and light.

Here are a couple that I make. Peach-Chipotle Pork 1 lb pork tenderloin 1/3 cup peach or apricot jam 3 tbsp white wine vinegar 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce minced salt and pepper In a small saucepan bring jam, vinegar, garlic and chipotle to a boil. Cook, stirring occasionally until jam is melted, 2 minutes. Set aside 2 tbsp of the glaze. Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper and brush with the glaze. Place on a greased grill over medium-high heat, close lid and grill until temp reads 160F, about 18 minutes, turning occasionally. Let stand before slicing. Brush with reserved glaze. Grilled asparagus makes a nice side dish. Pork Medallions with Raspberry Balsamic 1 pork tenderloin, cut in 1" slices 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp olive oil 1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar 2 tsp dijon mustard Flatten pork slices to 1/2" thickness and sprinkle with garlic powder. Cook in a large skillet over medium heat until no longer pink insde; 3-5 minutes per side. Remove and keep warm. Add jam, balsamic and dijon to the skillet and cook until thickened. Serve drizzled over the pork. Orange-Ginger Pork Medallions 1 cup fresh orange juice 2 pork tenderloins, 1 lb each, cut crosswise into 6 slices 1 tsp cornstarch 2 tbsp vegetable oil 1/4 cup finely chopped shallots 2 tbsp minced ginger 2 cloves garlic, minced 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes 1/2 cup chicken broth 1 tbsp soy sauce 1 tbsp unsalted butter Combine 2 tbsp orange juice and cornstarch and set aside. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add shallots garlic and pepper flakes. Cook, stirring frequently until shallots are light golden, 3 minutes. Add remaining orange juice, soy sauce and chicken broth. Bring to a boil and cook until reduced to 1 cup. Whisk i cornstarch mixture and boil 1 minute. Remove from heat. Flatten pork slices slightly with your hand and sprinkle with salt and pepper. In a 12" nonstick skillet over medium-high heat melt butter with remaining tbsp oil. Cook pork in batches until browned and cooked through, 4-5 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate. Add sauce to skillet with drippings. Place over medium-high heat. Bring sauce to a boil, stirring to remove browned bits. Stir in juices from the pork, remove from heat and add pork slices, turning to coat with sauce.

I don't spend a lot of time cooking-my kitchen is awful, no usable counter space so I do a lot of very simple foods, but when the urge strikes, I make more diverse dishes. Following are my faves - Beef Main Dish: I make a family dish, we call it agasate. It's a braised eye round roast, then removed from the pan to soften a couple of chopped onions and some garlic. Put roast back in, cover with water and set to boil. Once roast is cooked, remove and cook down the juices to make a thick gravey-almost like french onion soup. Serve over thick noodles and be generous with the freshly grated parmesan. - Ground Beef Main Dish: Meatloaf and scalloped potatoes - Chicken Main Dish: Chicken alfredo w/broccoli served over noodles -Ground Chicken or Turkey Main Dish: - Pork Main Dish: Baked pork chops and roasted veggies - Vegetarian Main Dish: Baked penne with marinara - Pasta Main Dish: Pasta with my homemade meat sauce - Out on the Grill Main Dish: rib eye steak smothered in crushed garlic - Main Dish Salad: Grilled chicken, chopped apple and pecans over spring greens - Fish Main Dish: Fish tacos-usually made with either mahi mahi or cod, with shredded cabbage, lime & cilantro - Other Seafood Main Dish (such as Shrimp, Scallops, Etc.): I hate shellfish, so I never make anything like that. - Vegan Main Dish: pad thai - Homemade Soup: beef bourguingon or split pea with ham - Main Dish Sandwich: Oven roasted turkey, swiss cheese, cranberry mustard on crusty french bread. - Non-Vegetable Side Dish: ? Stuffing? - Veggie Side Dish: Roasted veggies-beets, carrots, red and white potatoes and parsnips are staples. - Quick & Easy Dessert: Ice Cream! Fresh pineapple when feeling ambitious. - Breakfast Main Dish: Overnight peach french toast