Patio Daddio BBQ - Musings of barbecue, cooking, and life -- served hot, fresh and saucy

All of the recipes and photographs that you see on this site are mine, unless specifically attributed otherwise.

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All-Purpose BBQ Seasoning

This is for those of you who need or want a great basic all-around barbeque seasoning (or "rub"). This is also a great base recipe for creating your own signature seasoning.

Bacon-Wrapped Mushrooms with Artichoke Stuffing

These mushrooms are a little more complicated than your average stuffed mushrooms, but the combination creates a simply magical layering of flavors.

Barbecued Baloney

An offbeat recipe for a spicy, sweet and subtly smoky treat. This never fails to please.

Barbequed Garlic

It always amazes me how roasting completely mellows and sweetens what is otherwise so harsh and pungent. Given that, and my proclivity to try to find a way to cook most anything over coals, it's not a surprise that I dreamed this up.

Barbequed Meatloaf

Here's a no-fuss, hearty meatloaf that is quick and easy to make, and tastes like it took a lot more effort. My goal was to minimize the prep while not compromising flavor.

Barbecued Sweet Potatoes

Here is a great simple side dish to accompany barbecue or just about any rustic meal. The smokey flavor helps to cut the natural sweetness a little while adding a unique dimension to the flavor.

Barbecued Sweet Potato Pie

Yes, you read that right, it's a barbecued sweet potato pie. The pie is very rich and has a subtle smokey flavor. It's just a standard sweet potato pie recipe, aside from the barbecued potatoes.

BBQ Crackers

Here is a quick and easy snack that has that familiar sweet, salty, smoky, and subtly spicy flavor of BBQ potato chips.The seasoning could easily be used on all manner of things other than the lowly oyster cracker.

BBQ Chicken Fettucine

Barbequed chicken, pasta, and a smoky creamy cheese sauce, what's not to like about that? This is a great answer to the question, "What in the world can I do with all this leftover barbequed/grilled chicken?!".

Beef Cheddar & Portabella Stromboli

Beef, mushrooms and cheese are a great combination. This builds on these flavors with sauteed portabellas, bourbon-caramelized onions, black pepper white cheddar, broccoli, and a little garlic.

Big Bold Barbecued Beef Short Ribs

It's often difficult to find decent standard beef ribs, so this recipe uses short ribs as a great substitute.

Braised Nectarines with Champagne Honey Caramel

Here is an simple but elegant summer dessert that pairs nicely with barbecued or grilled dishes.

Broiled Tex-Mex Steak

Don't fear the broiler! Just because you'd rather not deal with all of the outdoor cooking festivities doesn't mean that you can't enjoy a good steak.

Cheater Chicken & Dumplings

Do you love good old school comfort food? The "cheater" in the title means that we are going to make use of mostly store-bought ingredients for this old southern classic.

Cheater French Onion Soup

I am a fool for some good French onion soup. Unfortunately, most of the common restaurant fare is thin, salty and vacuous.

Cheater Pulled Pork

If you like pulled pork, but are lazy or just pressed for time, here is a great solution. This recipe will give you great pork in a small fraction of the time. It's not really the real thing, but most folks will not know the difference.

Chili!

There's something magical about coming in from the cold and smelling that aroma of dinner cooking. It's almost like an airborne appetizer. As an added bonus, you get the peace of knowing dinner is just a bowl and spoon away.

Classic BBQ Chicken Drumsticks

I'm sure I am not alone in hearkening back to fond childhood memories of sweet and sticky barbecued chicken legs cooked in the backyard. To me this is one of the most quintessential of all-American summer finger foods.

Cornbread & Cranberry Stuffed and Grilled Chops

I've found that pork and cornbread are a magical combination -- especially when roasted or grilled. This recipe adds that familiar tang of cranberry both in the stuffing and in the finishing glaze.

Cowboy Top Sirloin

Here is a simple recipe that will add a new dimension to your steak. I used top sirloin, but any quality steak cut, like ribeye, T-bone, porterhouse or flat iron will work well. I call it "cowboy" because of the use of the Gebhardt's chili powder.

Cuban Rueben

What does a guy do when he has a mess of pulled pork, a hankerin' for
a Cuban sandwich, but also loves a Rueben? He makes a Cuban Rueben! My version is adds a Rueben twist by replacing the pickles with sauerkraut.

Cucumber & Red Onion Salad

Here's a little different twist on a perennial summer favorite. This sweet and sour salad pairs beautifully with grilled meats and other summer fare.

Easy Chicken Marinade

Here's a marinade that is brain-dead easy and will work wonders on your yard bird. There is almost no way to make this any easier. What's great about it is that it tenderizes and adds just enough flavor without overpowering.

Fairly Simple Beef Stew

I call this "fairly simple" because it falls in between brain-dead, dump-it-in-the-crockpot easy and ugh-that-is-too-much-work difficult. You'll see that I use some canned goods to minimize the fuss without compromising flavor.

Fried Agnolotti

As one of the Tastemakers over at Foodbuzz, I was given the opportunity to review the Wild Mushroom Agnolotti offering from Buitoni's Riserva fresh pasta line.

General's Grilled Chicken

If you've had General Tso's Chicken at your favorite Chinese restaurant, you'll understand this twist on grilled chicken. If you've never tried General's Chicken, and you like sweet, sticky and spicy Asian sauces, give this a try.

Grilled Chicken Cordon Bleu

These breasts are stuffed with herb brie which is wrapped in Black Forest ham. They are grilled and topped with a white wine, butter, apricot and honey sauce.

Homemade Hot Sauce

This sauce is thick, subtly smoky, and earthy, with a little bit of sweet and just enough heat. I think it will prove to be great on meats.

Hot & Fast BBQ Beef Brisket

Here is the process I used to cook a "hot & fast" barbequed beef brisket. Brisket is generally more than a little initimidating for those that have never cooked one.

Hot & Sticky Wings

These are the ultimate in sweet and hot wings. The sauce is brain-dead easy and the results are incredible.

Hungarian Braised Short Ribs

Beef short ribs, browned, coated with sweet Hungarian paprika then braised in beef stock, shallots, red wine, and a little tomato. What emerges is tender and unctuous beef in a rich velvety sauce.

Incredible Steak

These bad boys were about ten inches across and just shy of 1 1/2 inches thick. We're talkin' steaks that would almost make a cowboy blush. The results were top sirloin bliss at it's best.

New Year Stew

Ringing in the new year calls for blackeyed peas, greens and pork. This is one of those simple hearty comfort foods that fills the house with airborne deliciousness even before you eat it.

Orange Sweet & Sour Sauce

Talk about recipes on the fly! I was prepping a chicken stir fry for my daughters and I realized that I had no sauce for it. Well, kitchen resourcefulness kicked in and I literally whipped this up in mere moments.

Patio Daddio Big Bird Bath

Here is a brain-dead easy brine that really does a number on turkey or chicken, as the name implies.

Patio Daddio Bovine Bath

Give your cow a bath in this and tell me what you think. This is killer for big 'ol steaks or tri-tip. The cola, soy and Worcestershire all act as a tenderizers, while the rest adds serious bold flavor.

Patio Daddio Sangria

I love wine and sangria is just a great way to lighten up some red wine. It's a winey, fruity, refreshing and festive drink. Oh, and it's brain-dead easy to make.

Pomegranate Chile Lime Glaze

This glaze is a little out of the ordinary, but the flavors work very well together. It's fruity, but not too fruity. It has a little kick from chiles and a tang from the pomegranate and lime. It's more tangy and savory than sweet.

Pulled Pork Pockets

What could be simpler than canned flaky biscuit dough rolled out to six-inch rounds, filled with pork then brushed with an egg wash and sprinkled with a little chili powder?

Rattlesnake Tails

Anaheim peppers stuffed with a combination of ground turkey and spicy pork sausage, wrapped in bacon, smoked, then glazed with BBQ sauce, honey and butter. They are sticky sweet, with a touch of spicy goodness.

Roasted Vegetable & Smoked Sausage Penne

The vegetables and sausage are oven-roasted and then they are quickly combined with the cooked penne to form a simple sauce.

Salsa Diablo

The 'diablo' in the name is Spanish for 'devil', so you might think this is a salsa that is so hot that it will give your mouth second-degree burns. In reality, it’s fairly mild and subtly smoky, with just a hint of heat.

Simple Barbecued Turkey

Turkey is most definitely not just for Thanksgiving! If you've never enjoyed a good smoked turkey, you don't know what you're missing. Bring a little Thanksgiving love to your table, even in the heat of summer.

Smoky Citrus Seasoning

Orange, lemon, lime and alder-smoked salt combine to create a simple seasoning that is great on fish or fowl.

Spatchcock BBQ Chicken

Here's a step-by-step process to barbequed chicken nirvana. It looks like a lot of work, but it's really not.

Spicy Sausage Relish

Here is an incredibly simple recipe for an outstanding relish to top grilled sausage. The ingredients are very common and consist of what you might normally put on a sausage or hot dog.

Stuffed Peppers on the Grill

Here is a twist on classic stuffed peppers. There is no need to wait until fall or winter to enjoy these. The ingredients are a little un-classic, but the results more than make up for it.

Sweet-n-Sassy BBQ Almonds

These almonds are seriously good. I know that because the first pound I made lasted almost 24 hours. They are brain-dead easy, and still pretty good for you, despite the sweet and salty goodness that coats them.

Thanksgiving Stuffing Balls

These are a serious family tradition. They are the perfect combination of crunchy and soft and moist stuffing. I can't imagine Thanksgiving without them.

Ultimate Thanksgiving Turkey Brine

I've tried many brine concoctions for my holiday birds, and I've settled on this one. Give it a try and tell me what you think. This recipe works very well for both smoking or traditional roasting.