Saturday morning is going to be cold … real cold. But for those of us who tailgate like professionals, it just presents an opportunity to be creative and set our friends up with an appropriate feast. I don’t know about you, but when I’m tailgating in the morning, I want breakfast foods. And not just any breakfast foods, rich hearty ones. Here’s a pretty simple-to-prepare buffet that will be sure to warm up everyone.
Everyone has a food weakness. A weakness that is impossible to ignore. Now, for those of you who have read this column over the years know, I’ve got a lot of them. This week’s weakness is biscuits. I don’t think I’ve ever said “no” to a biscuit.
Believe it or not, I’m not going to provide a recipe for biscuits. Why? There are a couple of reasons. First, I don’t think it’s realistic for anyone to get up at the crack of dawn and make biscuits from scratch on the day of a football game. And second, the ones you buy frozen are so good, that I don’t actually think there’s that much of a difference. I’m sure there will be some strong opinions on this matter … particularly for those of you who grew up to freshly baked biscuits every morning. But as a Chef, I can tell you that the ones in the freezer section are really, really good and so much easier to make. I prefer the Pillsbury Grand Buttermilk Biscuit dough. Just be sure to make them in the morning, because if you make them the night before, they (like all other biscuits) will harden over time. Also, heading out to Popeye’s, Hardees, or KFC to order biscuits on the way to the game would be another solid choice.
(For the record, I’m not saying that these frozen biscuits are better than Grandma’s. But unless Grandma is going to stay the night at your house and wake up at 5 a.m. to make them, this is a decent alternative!)
So, what I’m advocating for this tailgate is a biscuit bar. And here are a couple of pretty simple recipes to give your guests good options for toppings/ingredients. But first, let’s talk equipment.
The first thing you’ll need is a portable burner … you know the ones you see at breakfast buffets where the cooks make your omelets to order (I spent quite a few Sundays flipping omelets for guests). They aren’t that expensive (about $20-$30) and are not only great for tailgates, but for camping as well (I use them for dinners and breakfasts at camp). You can find them at kitchen supply stores (like the one on 5th Street in Charlottesville) or at some larger outdoor stores like Gander Mountain and Sportsman’s Warehouse. If you have one of those MSR backpacking stoves, those will work too, but be careful, as they aren’t quite as stable.
The second thing you’ll need is a hot buffet set up. I have a professional chafing dish that I use, but you don’t need to spend well over $100. You can get the simple wire ones that use disposable aluminum pans at Sam’s Club (and possibly Wal-Mart or Target). These aren’t that expensive and you can reuse them for future tailgates, large picnics, or any time you are entertaining a bunch of guests and want to keep stuff hot. You can buy the Sterno refills at the outdoor stores mentioned above and at Wal-Mart in the camping section. Because it’s going to be so cold on Saturday morning and you only have one burner to use, you don’t want to go without this. No one wants to eat cold food!
The third thing you’ll need is a good non-stick pan to make the eggs and sausage gravy. There was a thread the other day on the Corner discussing non-stick pans. I use the T-Fal Signature non-stick pan … which is by far the best non-stick pan I’ve ever used (and I’ve had the expensive ones). You can get them at Kroger (believe it or not) for $20-$30 depending on the size needed. They aren’t the best omelet pans because of the shape, but they make phenomenal scrambled egg pans! If you have a good seasoned cast iron pan, that will work as well, if not better.
Sausage Gravy
This can be made ahead of time and reheated at the tailgate.
Ingredients
- 1 pound breakfast sausage, ground (not links)
- 1 small onion, minced
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1 quart whole milk (warmed in the microwave for 90 seconds)
- Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
In a large non-stick skillet, brown the sausage over medium-high heat. You can put the whole roll in the pan and then just break it up with a rubber spatula. When the sausage is almost done, add the onions and cook for 3 minutes or until the onions are clear. Add the flour and stir constantly for 2 minutes. You want to make sure the flour does not stick to the bottom of the pan and does not brown. If the flour browns, your gravy will turn brown as well.
Add the milk and whisk to combine. Simmer for 3-5 minutes or until the gravy thickens and the flour taste is gone. Add salt and pepper to taste. More than almost any other dish, sausage gravy needs a lot of pepper. But before adding too much salt, remember that sausage is very salty. If you are going to reheat it, you might want to add a little milk to the pan before adding the cold gravy. Also, you will need a whisk to stir it and break apart the lumps.
Eggs Over and Sunny-Side-Up
Here’s where the T-Fal pan really shines. You can make eggs over and sunny-side-up without any fear of sticking. And, because the non-stick coating is so good, you don’t have to use butter or oil, you can use cooking spray. Just heat the pan over medium heat for 2-3 minutes and spray well. It helps to have your egg(s) already out of the shell, so you don’t burn the cooking spray waiting to crack your eggs. I like to cook four or five at a time and just use a spatula to cut them.
Scrambled Eggs
I like to use a combination of cooking spray and butter in the pan. Here’s another really cool trick: pierce a garlic clove with a fork and use this “garlic fork” to stir your eggs up. You’ll get a hint of garlic, but it’s not overpowering. I like large curds for biscuits, so the eggs don’t fall out. All you have to do is stir the eggs less (but make sure your pan isn’t so hot that it browns the eggs).
Bacon
Be sure to buy thick-cut bacon. I like to cook mine on a cookie sheet in the oven, rotated about halfway through cooking. The length of time, completely depends on the how thick the bacon is. I usually cook mine at 375 degrees until it’s about 90% cooked. I then drain it and reheat it in the pan the next morning and you will have bacon as if it were cooked that moment.
Cheese
I know I’ll get blasted for this, but I like American cheese on my biscuits. There, I said it. You need a much softer cheese than cheddar, so it melts on the warm eggs.
Sausage
I like to cook my sausage patties in the oven the night before until they are completely done. I then cool them in the fridge overnight and brown them in the pan.
Ham
I actually prefer Canadian bacon or a thicker cut of ham than the ham used for lunch meat. I like to fry it up in the pan to get it warm
The overall strategy is to have as much done the night before as you can, and then reheat the ingredients quickly, and hold them in the chafing dish as they get hot. I also like to wrap my biscuits in foil and put them in the pan over low heat for 5 minutes to warm them up (or, if you have space in your chafing dish, you can put them in there for 10-15 minutes … and that might be the easier way to go about it).
And here’s another tip if you like sausage, egg, and cheese biscuits. Go to Ace Biscuit and Barbeque over on Henry Ave (off Harris Street, where the Bodo’s on Preston is) in Charlottesville and try theirs. They make their own biscuits and sausage. It’s one of the top five foods/dishes in Charlottesville. Trust me on this. And yes, their biscuits are better than Pillsbury’s, but I highly doubt the chefs there are coming to your house to cook you biscuits on Saturday! As far as ordering some to go for your tailgate, I don’t know if they do that.
Hey ChefHoo…Do you still have tha Hulu chicken recipe? Could you post it here? YOur archives were taken down when new site launched…Need me some HULU! THanks!!