"Santa Maria Style BBQ" Oakwood Grilled Tri-tip

Ingredients
2 (3-pound) tri-tip roasts
Basting Sauce, recipe follows
Seasoning Salt Mixture, recipe follows

Directions
Heat a grill to low.
Coat both sides of the tri-tips with half of the seasoning mixture, rubbing it in as you would a dry rub. Let rest for 30 minutes at room temperature. Place the tri-tips over a low temperature fire, 1 with fat side up, and the other with fat side down. Turn as the first side gets crispy, approximately 6 to 8 minutes. Be careful of flare-ups, as the dripping fat will fuel the fire. Turn the tri-tips before the heat pushes juices out the top, and continue to turn using this timing method throughout the cooking process. After turning, baste with sauce and season lightly, 4 times per side. Continue turning until the tri-tips are cooked to your liking. Remove from fire and let rest for 10 minutes before cutting into 1/2-inch slices against the grain.

Seasoning Salt Mixture:
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons white pepper
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon onion powder
4 tablespoons granulated garlic
6 tablespoons salt
Mix together all ingredients in a small bowl.

Basting Sauce:
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup garlic-infused vegetable oil
Whisk together vinegar and oil in a small bowl.

Recipe courtesy Frank Ostini

Buffalo Mozzarella Burgers

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef or hamburger meat
half a 3.5 ounce package Buffalo Mozzarella
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon mixed herbs
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 Italian style bread rolls (split)
Oil and butter for cooking

Method:
The success of this recipe lies solely on the freshness and quality of the Buffalo Mozzarella used so find a local Italian market/deli or buy from one of the online gourmet cheese sellers. The Buffalo Mozzarella should be packaged in liquid in a ball of around 3.5 ounces - do not use the shredded stuff.
Start by gently sauteeing the chopped onion with some butter in a skillet over a medium to low heat until they begin to brown, this should take 5-7 minutes.
Now combine the beef or hamburger meat, minced garlic, herbs and seasoning in a large bowl and mix well, then mix in the cooked onion.
Shape the mixture into 4 patties with your hands and fry in a little oil for 4-5 minutes each side making sure the meat is fully cooked. Add a thick slice of Buffalo Mozzarella to each patty about 90 seconds before cooking is done, to melt the cheese.

BBQ Lime Pork Chops

Ingredients:

1/3 cup Key West lime juice

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

1 tablespoon honey

1 teaspoon lime zest

Salt and pepper to taste

4 boneless center-cut pork chops

Lime slices

Directions:
Prepare marinade by mixing lime juice, cider vinegar, honey, lime zest and salt and pepper in large zip-top bag or in shallow glass dish. Reserve 1/4 cup marinade. Add pork chops to marinade, coat chops on both sides. Refrigerate 30 minutes. Preheat grill to medium. Brush chops with reserved marinade and grill, turning once. Cook about 10 minutes on each side or until no longer pink. Place on platter and garnish with lime slices.

Recipe from CDKitchen for Barbecue Lime Pork Chops serves

BBQ Beef Ribs

Ingredients:

• 3 to 4 pounds beef back ribs (about 8 ribs)
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 4 ounce can green chilies, diced
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard

Preparation:

Trim excess fat from beef ribs. Combine salt, pepper and cayenne. Rub over the ribs. Preheat grill and prepare for indirect grilling with a drip pan. Place ribs on grill over drip pan and close the lid. Cook for about 3 to 3 1/2 hours over a medium low, indirect heat (try to keep the temperature under 265 degrees F.).

To prepare sauce combine onion, honey, ketchup, chili peppers, garlic and mustard in a sauce pan. Heat over a low temperature, stirring until even and warm. When the ribs are nearly finished begin brushing the sauce on them until you get a thick coating.

Recipe by Derrick Riches of About.com

Hot and Sweet BBQ Shrimp

INGREDIENTS

2 pounds LARGE shrimp, uncooked, pull the skin/tails off

1 finely chopped onion

1 cup olive oil

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp cayenne peper

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp oregano

1 tsp garlic powder

1/4 cup Maple Syrup

Optionally a pound-o-bacon

DIRECTIONS In a large bowl, mix everything togather (except bacon) and then add shrimp. Leave it in the fridge overnight (PREFERABLE) or at least for several hours. Flip occasionally to distribute shrimp marinade. Pull out from fridge an hour or so beforehand to let things warm/loosen up a bit. The next day, preheat your bbq grill while skewering the shrimp. Optionally place flat on a fine-screen mesh cookware - less work! Wrap in bacon and grill. Be careful about flames from the dripping marinade. Serve over rice, pasta, or as-is ... but be sure to drip some marinade on 'em!

The Deen Brothers' BBQ Chicken

Ingredients
1 cup ketchup
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons orange juice
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 (3 1/2-pound) chicken, cut into 8 pieces

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F or prepare a grill (brush the grill grate lightly with oil).
In a large bowl, stir together all ingredients except the chicken. Reserve 1/3 cup of the barbeque sauce; set aside. Add the chicken to the remaining sauce in the bowl, turning to coat.
Arrange the coated chicken in a roasting pan or on the grill. Cook (covered, if grilling) for 40 to 45 minutes or until cooked through, basting with the reserved 1/3 cup sauce after 20 minutes.

Recipe courtesy Deen Bros., 2007

Red, White, and Blue Burger

INGREDIENTS
2 pounds ground beef sirloin
1 red onion, diced
1/2 (1 ounce) package dry ranch salad dressing mix
4 ounces crumbled blue cheese

DIRECTIONS
Preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat, and lightly oil the grate.
Lightly mix together the ground sirloin, onion, ranch salad dressing mix, and blue cheese in a bowl. Form into 6 patties.
Grill the burgers for about 5 minutes per side on the prepared grill, until well done.