Symon's Dinners Cooking Out (2020) - full transcript

- Happy Tuesday. It is...
- It's not Tuesday.

- It's not Tuesday?
- Isn't it Monday?

It is Monday. It
is! Happy Monday.

Hey, everybody,
michael symon here.

This is our first
day of daily dinners.

Michael: This past spring,
I poured my passion for cooking

Into something pretty
simple. Look at that.

- Oh, yeah.
- Every night I made dinner live

On food network
kitchens' facebook page...

- Norman just got a little bacon.
- Norman got it.

Michael: ...And millions of
people watched and cooked along.



- Liv's making her debut.
- Hello, world.

Michael: My friend liv filmed and
took questions from everyone watching

Liv: Anna's wondering if
she could use greek yogurt

In case of sour cream.

Michael: Sure,
it'd be greek perogi, but delicious.

Liv: Could you shred the sweet
potatoes in a food processor

If you don't have the grater?
- Of course.

And it would make it
even easier for you.

Pauper dell, we did pretty good.

Michael: Now that the
weather's warmed up.

I'm taking symon dinners
outdoors to show you

That anything you can
make inside of the kitchen...

- Look at that.
- ...You could also make outside.

- Oh, my god. - My wife, lizzie,



Is helping me cook...

You're the highlight
of the show.

...And liv is back filming us...

- Hey,
guys - ...And joining in the fun.

Michael: So we start
mixing that in the sauce.

- Will this be thick enough?
- As I make

Some of my favorite simple comfort foods,
all outside.

Oh, my gosh,
that looks fantastic.

♪♪

Today is all about
the no-look cook.

Now,
what is the no-look cook mean?

We're going to
cook in foil packets

Right on the charcoal.
It's going to be delicious.

We're going to start off
with a bundle of clams,

Sausage, peppers, delightful,
and then grilled peaches

With a touch of butter and
mascarpone whipped cream.

And then liz is going to
make a sangria with rosé

That is going to
knock your socks off.

So I have some
bell peppers here.

I have orange, yellow, and red,

But any bell peppers
will work just fine.

I'm going to slice
these up relatively thin,

Like, you know,
like the french say julienne.

I always find it easier if
you cut the pepper like this,

It's harder to cut. If
you put the interior up,

I always find it's easier
to work the knife through it.

The other things that
I'm going to add to this

Is I'm going to add
about four cloves of garlic

And I'm going to
add one red onion,

Which I'm just going to slice.

In addition to that,
we have clams

And I'm using middle neck clams
and also any kind of sausage.

I'm using a smoked sausage,
but you could use spicy italian,

But you want a kind of a sausage
that's already been cooked,

Whether it's cured like a
salami or smoked like a kielbasa,

That's what you're looking for.

Liz: And do they have
to be middle neck clams?

What's the difference
between clams?

The difference between
clams is mainly size.

So there's little necks,
which are smaller;

Middle necks, which are middle.

I like a middle
neck clam for this

Because they're
just a little meatier.

They take a little
bit longer to cook,

Which gives the
onions and the peppers

And the sausage time to
kind of catch up with them.

The beautiful thing
about cooking in a packet

Or you know,
the french would say "en papillote"

Is that you put all these
different flavors in the packet

And then they cook together.
When the clams open,

They're going to throw
their juice into the sauce.

When the sausage
renders out some fat,

It's going to go into the sauce.

This is like a
marriage of flavors.

The thing that I love
about these packets

Is you could build

Individual packets for
individual guests like,

Say you had a guest that,
you know, doesn't eat meat,

You could leave
meat out of theirs.

Or a guest that
wanted them spicy.

So you could almost
make it like a party,

Like cut a bunch of vegetables,

Cut a bunch of meat.
- It's a new kind of party...

Build your own packet.
- Build your own packet.

If we were doing
these in the oven,

We would set our oven to about 375,
400 degrees,

Put the packets in the
oven on a sheet tray.

I'm going to do, I think,

Two or three big packets,
build our packets.

So I'm going to
take two pieces of foil

And I'm going to
make an x like this.

I'm going to take
half my peppers,

A little bit of my garlic,
some onion.

Olivia shopped for those red
peppers this morning. Good job.

Liv: Yes, I did.

[ laughs ] a pinch of salt,
cracked black pepper.

Some sausage...

Put our clams right on top.

I like putting the peppers
and onions on the bottom

Because that's going to
go directly on the flame.

They're going to caramelize
and then the meat and the clams

Are going to release
their juices down in it.

So now I start to kind
of crimp up my sides

And put in a little bit of my butter,
splash of my wine

And we crimped up the sides
so the liquid doesn't pour out.

Obviously. Do you
have to use wine in this?

I do want some acidity in there.
So you could use lemon juice

And a splash of water
would work fine or lemon juice

And a little bit of stock would work fine,
too.

I have chicken stock,
but any stock will do.

And then we're going to
come up all the way here.

Seal everything up,
so we got our first bundle done.

Now the second package
is exactly the same unless,

You know, you wanted to do
something a little bit different

And you could do that, too.

Like if you wanted
to eliminate the meat,

You could eliminate the meat.

So we're going to take the rest
of our onions, peppers, garlic,

Most of our sausage,
put our clams right on top, do salt...

Cracked black pepper...

...In our little
well there formed.

Stock, wine,
and then we bundle up this guy.

Make sure everything's sealed
because you want the steam

To form in there
to cook everything.

Now I'm just going to set
them right on those hot coals.

- Oh, wow. Right in there.
- Right in there.

Michael: The other one
goes in right next to it.

Right in the coals.

So now, I could put this top
on and I'm still getting heat

And I'm going to make
my rice pilaf on top

As the clams are
cooking underneath.

Liz: Why are you
zesting the lemon?

What does that
bring to the dish?

So there's more flavor
in the zest of the lemon

Than there actually
is in the juice.

So one, why waste it?

Two,
the zest has so much pop in it,

So this is a little
crispy squash blossom.

To finish it with just a
little bit of lemon zest

Is going to just
put it over the top.

These little bundles of joy
are in there cooking away.

Now I'm going to start my pilaf.

I got my pan on the
stove getting hot already.

I'm then going to put in about
a tablespoon or two of olive oil

And a little bit of butter.

I go equal parts butter
and olive oil for my pilaf.

Uh-oh, come here, butter. Oh,
butter on a warm day.

Oh, boy. Oh, boy.

See, this is the real skill test. Oh,
boom.

[ laughter ]

Liv: And I just have to ask,
since these are wrapped,

How do we know
when they're done?

They're going to go for
about 8 to 10 minutes.

At 8 to 10 minutes,
I'm going to pull them out.

You could kind of
peek in there to see

If the clams are
starting to open.

If they're not open,

You could leave them
in there for a little bit,

But the beautiful thing
about these is they'll stay hot,

Ready to serve for about
a half hour after that.

So it's a great way to entertain
because you don't have to

Pull it out of the
stove or off the grill

And serve it right away.

So my butter and oil
are starting to froth.

To that, I am going to add
my onion that we diced off...

One medium yellow
onion that's going to go in

And then we're going to
start adding our aromatics

Or our seasonings that
we want in our rice pilaf

So the seasonings could open
up also before we toast the rice.

So the first thing,
a pinch of salt always,

Which is about a half...

It's about a teaspoon,
forefinger pinch.

To that, I'm going to add cumin.

Same thing,
about a four-finger pinch or a teaspoon.

And a little bit of coriander,
a little bit of nutmeg.

We always add our spices
when the fat and onions

Are kind of toasting

Because then it helps
those spices open up

And that's when you
really maximize flavor.

So you don't want to spend
all this money on spices

And then not
maximize their flavor.

You can really
smell the spices now

Getting very aromatic
and opening up.

- Smells delicious. - It does.

And to that,
I'm going to add 2 cups of

I have basmati rice here.

I like basmati and
jasmine in a pilaf

And we're just
going to stir this.

So the fat, the onions,
the spices all come together.

And the other thing this does

Is it starts to toast
our rice a little bit,

Which gives our rice
a really nutty flavor.

It's also toasting the
exterior of the rice.

It's going to help you
make sure you get

A slightly more fluffy pilaf.

Another good tip for making sure

That the rice
stays a little fluffy...

We're essentially going
equal parts rice to liquid.

So I have 2 cups of rice,
I have 2 cups of liquid.

In this case,
I'm using chicken stock.

And as soon as this
comes up to a boil,

We're going to drop
it down to a simmer

By moving it to
the front of the grill.

The lid goes on. We're
going to let that come to a boil.

Hi, lizzie. - Hi.

Oh,
I've got to put a bay leaf in my...

I forgot my bay
leaf. Come on in.

Come on in, peaches.

I got a bounty of peaches.

- A bounty of peaches,
- round things out here.

Michael: So we are
making grilled peaches.

Liz: So these
peaches are very ripe.

Liv: Do they have to be
ripe? What if I just got them?

They don't,
actually. They could be not so ripe,

But what's nice
about a ripe peach

Is that you can almost
do the avocado twist on it.

Michael: It just makes
them easier to work with.

It doesn't make them better or worse,
just sometimes easier.

To this,
I'm just going to drizzle a little honey.

You want probably
about 2 tablespoons,

But I'm just going
to kind of eyeball it.

I'm just gonna sort
of drizzle it over.

Now,
these peaches are very sweet,

So I'm not adding a ton.

But what the honey is
going to do is it's going to mix

With a little bit of butter.

It's going to make
a little snazzy...

- Wow, are these peaches good.
- ...Butter and honey sauce.

Probably I don't want to go...

Well, there's that.
- Happened to me, too,

Don't worry.

So let's just scooch
that over there.

Probably about 2
tablespoons of butter.

So I'm just going to
zest one lemon in here,

And I'm going to do the juice

Because I like
lemon as we all know.

Okay,
so now we're just going to...

...Pouch this up.

Now,
if you didn't have the bundle,

I've seen you do this on a
sheet tray right in the oven

Just without the bundle. - Yeah.

So you could put it on a cookie sheet,
right?

You could or even in a,
you know,

A skillet, you know,
like a cast enamel.

All right. I'm going to show
you what's going on with the rice.

So as soon as that
liquid is absorbed,

I take it off the heat.
- Look how great that looks.

Yeah,
I take my fork and I fluff it up.

And then after we fluff it,

To absorb some of
that additional moisture,

You take a towel

And then you put the lid
back on over the towel.

So as it steams,
the towel is absorbing the liquid

So your rice doesn't get sticky.

All right. So the last
thing I'm going to do

Is I'm going to take
off these packets

That I made,
and I'm going to take the clams.

I'm going to put
them on the tray.

Remember I said these clams
stay hot for close to 30 minutes.

So you want to do
your best to get them out

So you don't leak juice because
we want that juice for the rice.

Liz: Oh,
I'm so excited about these. I love clams.

And then I'm going to put
the peaches in that same pit,

And we'll close the lid now
because the coals are starting

To come down a little
bit temperature wise.

I'm going to take a little peek
in here to see what's going on.

Oh, yes. Wow. See, liv,
how they're popped.

- Oh, yeah.
- So we're going to close it up

So we could hold the heat,
pull the moisture.

Those are going to
continue to open up.

Peaches are going to
cook. Rice is hanging out,

Staying fluffy.

And we have a little what?
- I'm making

Some delightful fruit
sangria with rosé.

It's a rosé sangria.

It's going to be great.

Liv: That tool,
what's it called again? Your little...

This is a fish spatula.

So we have other
spatulas. I never use them.

This is like a
restaurant spatula.

If you go to a restaurant,

If you were to go to one of
our restaurants in the kitchen,

Not one single human cook

Ever has used one of
these in a restaurant.

Everybody has these and
it's because they're thinner.

They're just... they're
easier to work with.

They're not so clumsy.

Liv: Is there anything that's
better to cook with those?

I have not found it in
my lifetime as a chef.

So we're going to do a little
citrus mascarpone to serve

Underneath the warm peaches,
creamy, creamy mascarpone.

So I have 4 ounces of heavy cream,
1 cup of mascarpone,

A couple tablespoons of honey,

And then the zest
of a whole orange,

The juice of half an orange.

And then I'm just going
to whip this together.

- That's going to be amazing.
- All right. What do you got?

Well, I am going to make
a little overnight sangria.

So what we're going to do to start,
and I'm sorry,

I'm going to infringe
on your board here

A little bit.
- Oh, get in there. I can...

So we just want to slice
up one whole lemon.

Then we're going to also do

I can help you with
some fruit if you'd like.

You know what? You want
to slice up some of this stuff.

I've got some strawberries,

Some plums,
and a little half of a peach.

And you don't have to get
real precise with this at all.

I mean,
this is just going to really flavor

And infuse your wine.

So I'm going to juice
one whole lemon in here.

You really want probably
about 4 cups of fruit,

But, you know,
you can just kind of eyeball it.

See, you know,
what looks pretty.

Oh, these look nice.

The beauty is that when you
have this in your fridge overnight,

It sort of takes on
some of the alcohol

So you can just eat the
fruit and just be really happy.

So I'm just going to do about

2 kind of scant
teaspoons of sugar.

Oh, a little orange liqueur.

I'm also gonna put some
orange liqueur in here.

And you don't have
to put this in at all.

You could just maybe squeeze
or put a little orange juice

In there would be delicious.

Oh, wow. Those look fantastic.
- Thanks, honey.

Okay,
that's more than enough fruit.

So I'm going to
just take my muddler

And just kind of mash
this just a little bit.

I don't want to break
it up to the point

Where the fruit's
unrecognizable.

All right. Now we're
going to take our rosé.

I'm just going to pop it in.

We're using two whole bottles.
So this is a recipe for two.

So this is complete.

We're going to
put it in the fridge.

Best if you do it overnight

Because then it
really... Those flavors

Really come out and
they're real poppy.

But even if you
went a couple hours,

Like three hours
or so in the fridge,

You're going to be totally fine.

Lizzie,
as you're kind of stirring that up,

I want to show you where we are.

The peaches are almost ready,

But I'm going to
lay out our seafood.

So we took the pilaf. I
put the towel over top

With the lid to absorb any
moisture after we forked it.

So look at how fluffy it is.

- And it doesn't look mushy.
- No, not mushy.

It smells so good.

And that's what you want.
Jasmine and basmati rice,

You know,
I put some seasonings in here,

But they just have such
great natural flavor. Just plain.

They're super nutty.

- They really are.
- By far, my favorite rice.

And then I'm going
to grab one of these.

All right. So it's still steamy.

Those clams have
popped open now.

Look at that.
- That looks incredible.

You can still sort of get

That little hint of
wine in there. Right.

- Clearly...
- The wine and the butter

And that juice,
see the juice pouring out.

Open these and
just pile them up.

And this is the beauty
of these packets.

You know what the beauty of this is,
is no dishes,

- That is a huge thing.
- You have no idea.

So I'm going to garnish
with a little cilantro.

But you could use parsley,
basil, no herbs at all.

So this is done and ready to go.
- That is just heaven on a plate.

I want to show
you these peaches.

- Yeah, let's see.
- Because this is hot.

So you can use
tongs to open this.

Yeah. Be careful because
that steam is really...

But look at.

See,
it's starting to caramelize on the bottom,

Which is beautiful.

Those peaches are cooked through,
they have some liquid,

They're tender. - Super tender.

All right, lizzie,
I'm going to continue whipping this cream

And we have a little
crumble almond thing

That we're going
to garnish this with.

- Yes, shortbread almond crumble.
- All right.

If you are a gardener and I
know there's a lot of you out there,

Make sure at the
end of the season

When the herbs are done,
and you can't use them anymore,

Hang them, dry them,

And then you could get
the benefit of them all year.

So these peaches look beautiful.

Yes,
they do. They're going to be delicious.

I'm just gonna put
them in the bowl for you.

Do you mind if I
pass this on to you

Because I have some
bashing down here.

Oh, yes,
I don't want to be part of the bashing.

So I'll get the
peaches in the bowl.

This couldn't be an
easier quick topping.

These are just roasted,
salted almonds

And this is just some
shortbread cookies,

Which we're also
going to mash up.

So I'm not going
to mash all of these.

Let's do three stacks.

Okay. - I'm excited.

- Oh, oh.
- Okay, I think we're good.

Okay, and these,
I think we're going to be

A little more delicate with

Because I almost hate to do
this to those poor little cookies.

So you're starting
to plate those.

Once I put these
all in the plates on,

I'm just going to drizzle some
extra virgin olive oil on top

And then they're ready.
- All right, look at that.

You can see those little
flecks of orange in there.

That mascarpone orange cream

Is going to melt down
on those hot peaches.

These salted almonds
are going to be terrific.

And then we're going
to do a little shortbread.

I'm putting extra
shortbread on mine.

Okay,
and the last thing we need to do...

- Sangria time.
- I was going to say,

But not least. - [ laughs ]

And I'm just going to get
some of the plums in the...

Strawberries in there. Yeah.
- Oh, man. That's gorgeous.

Let's get a little cheers here.

- Cheers to you, too, love.
- Cheers.

- Cheers. - Oh, my gosh.

It's not too sweet at all.

Even though we put
that orange liqueur in

And a little bit of sugar,

It's still very,
very refreshing and nice.

This... speaking of perfect...
- You got the juice in there,

That basmati rice with the coriander,
cumin, and nutmeg.

I just went right for the rice,

And it is amazing
with that little bit

Of clam juice in there.

And liv, see, you were asking
earlier why middle neck clams.

But see what I mean,
it's the perfect size clam.

It's not too small.

It's still small enough
that it's tender.

It's not giant. It's a
perfect size clam to me.

That is amazing.

But I have to try this.
- I want to try your peaches.

They caramelized a little bit.
- I put sugar prep, that's okay.

Liv: I was just thinking that.

I thought you were making
the special one for me.

Silly me.

Oh, my gosh. Mmm, mmm,
mmm. This is seriously amazing.

The sweetness really
comes out of the peach

Because it caramelized.
- Amazing.

I'm taking my rosé.

- Okay, respect. Get in there.
- Okay, I want the peppers.

Like, you know how I like to
have everything on my plate.

That's a big one.

Michael: That's what I love
about the ladies of symon dinners,

They're not afraid to
take a real bite of food.

Oh, my gosh. This rice.

I could just eat the rice alone.

Like even if you did a
little vegetable packet,

It'd be great, you know. - Okay.

- Oh, my god. I need...
- That is a perfect bite

You just took. I mean, come on.

Oh,
my god. This is the perfect summer dessert.

Michael: All right. We had the sausage,
peppers, and clams served

Over that beautiful rice pilaf
with a little bit of coriander,

Cumin, incredible sangria, rosé,
a little bit of orange liqueur.

Super refreshing and great.

And then the
fire-roasted peaches

With that whipped
mascarpone. Delicious.

So here's what I love
about the no-look cook...

Easy as can be.

You could customize
it for all your friends

And you don't have
to clean pots and pans.

My favorite thing.