BBQ and cocktail recipes from Melange and Pangea for Memorial Day

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grill chicken

Melange, easily one of the best restaurants in downtown Sarasota, is taking Memorial Day off, but not before offering patrons help for our own barbecue bash on Monday. Enjoy these food recipes from Lan Bradeen, executive chef and owner of Melange, as well a cocktail recipe from award-winning mixologist Brad Coburn of Melange's sister business Pangea Lounge. Originally sent out to to recipients of Melange's newsletter, Bradeen is happy to share with us, too. And, don't forget, you can stop by Melange and Pangea any other day this weekend and upcoming week.

Barbecue dry rub

½ cup paprika
¼ cup chili powder
½ cup cumin
¼ cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoons oregano
2 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons white pepper
1 Tablespoon cayenne pepper

Combine all these spices together.

Simple Brine

5 Tablespoons kosher salt
2 quarts water
Stir to dissolve. Chill to 44 degrees or lower in the refrigerator before you put any meat into it (for food safety purposes).

If you are in a hurry to use the brine, dissolve the salt in 2 cups hot water, then add 6 cups ice water. This way, you can use it immediately.

Melange Chef Lan Bradeen.

Lan Bradeen, owner of Melange

Barbecue chicken

Ingredients:

10 pounds chicken (You can use whatever cuts you prefer. I like the leg and thigh with the skin on.)
1 Recipe of Simple Brine
1/2 Recipe of BBQ Dry Rub
Your favorite BBQ Sauce from your favorite grocery store.

Method:

Make and chill the brine. Add the chicken to the brine and let sit in the refrigerator overnight.
Fire up the grill.
Remove the chicken from the brine and pat dry. Sprinkle liberally with the BBQ Dry Rub on both sides of the chicken.
Grill the chicken over medium heat until the center of the chicken reaches 165 degrees. You should invest in a digital probe thermometer for this purpose. (They’re about $15, and you can get one online or at Target.)
When the chicken is almost cooked, you can brush it with your favorite BBQ sauce and grill for about a minute (you want the sauce to caramelize a bit, but too long and it will burn).

Barbecue pork ribs

Ingredients:

4 sides of Pork Ribs (spare ribs or baby back ribs)
1/2 recipe BBQ Dry Rub
Kosher Salt
Your favorite BBQ Sauce from your favorite grocery store.
Method:

Heat your oven to 275 degrees F.
Sprinkle salt on both sides of the ribs. (There’s no need to remove the silver skin on the bottom of the ribs.)
Liberally rub the ribs with the BBQ Dry Rub on both sides.
Put the ribs in a baking pan, and cover the pan with aluminum foil. (You can layer the ribs slightly so they fit in the baking pan, but don’t stack them.)
Bake for 3-4 hours – the meat should come away from the bone easily when you grab it with your tongs.
At this point, you can eat the ribs as is (if you like them without sauce), or you can grill them with BBQ sauce as follows. (You can also chill the ribs at this point and BBQ them the next day. In fact, if you are going to cut the individual riblets before you serve them, it’s better to cut them cold.)
Fire up the grill.
Brush the BBQ Sauce on both sides of the ribs as you grill them at a medium flame. (You want the sauce to caramelize a bit, but too long and it will burn).

Brad Coburn, owner of Pangea and Lan restaurant on Tuesday, January 18, 2011 at Pangea in Sarasota. (Sarasota Herald-Tribune photo by Craig Litten)

Brad Coburn, owner of Pangea Lounge.

Gerald Murphy’s Bailey

This cocktail, which is perfect for warm weather, is said to be invented by Gerald Murphy, one of the guys in the Ernest Hemingway socialite group of the 1920s and 1930s. It is slightly modified so that it’s more balanced for our contemporary palate.

Ingredients:

2 ounces gin
1/2 ounce simple syrup
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
1/2 ounce fresh grapefruit juice
6-8 mint leaves
Method:

Chill a cocktail glass, then rim it with sugar.
Shake all the ingredients together, then strain.

P.S. – If you order this cocktail at Melange or Pangea Lounge, we have a machine that will carbonate anything liquid. We highly recommend the Bailey carbonated – it adds a nice texture and is even more refreshing than the original version.

Last modified: May 22, 2015
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