Grilling with All-Star Chef David LeFevre

David LeFevre came over to my house to grill lamb belly in my fab DCS outdoor kitchen. This is the dish he grilled at All-Star Chef Classic, Grill and Chill and as we played in the Southern Californian sunshine making a movie I learned a few Girl & Grill tips:

1. Get your grill nice a hot with the center burners on high so that when you put the meat on it you will create a nice sear and lots of caramelization. The lamb belly created lots of flames and smoke.

2. Move the meat to the side of the grill, away from the direct heat so that it continues to cook through but doesn’t burn.  You want delicious caramelized meat rather than charcoal! At the end let it rest on the upper rack before serving.

3. Mise en place is key to being prepared and grilling the best dish like an All-Star Chef. Beer really helps too! Especially when there’s a lot of smoke generated by the cooking meat on the grill.

4. Height helps at the grill when you are cooking such fatty meat -all that smoke and those flames are not great if you are too close – so wear heels to give you that extra lift! Girl & Grill + Jimmy Choo’s = perfectly cooked meat!

 

Moroccan Lamb Belly w/ Carmamelized Onions, Japanese Eggplant, Kumquat, Orange Curd – Yield 4 Portions

by David LeFevre

4 each- 5 oz Confit Lamb Belly Skewers (Cut into 2 inch Cubes and Skewered)
½ oz Sliced Kumquats
2 oz Caramelized Onions
1 Japanese Eggplant (Cut into 1 inch ovals)
4 oz. Moroccan BBQ Sauce
1/8 orange (Zest Only)
1 oz Cilantro Leaves (For Garnish)

For the Japanese Eggplant : Cut into 1” ovals by angling the knife on a slight bias to obtain more surface area, Season with Olive Oil, Salt, Pepper and sear them on medium high heat until they have a rich golden brown color.

For the Moroccan BBQ – Yields : 20 oz.

21oz Ketchup
2 cups Rice Wine Vinegar
1 cup Honey
2 Tblsp Coriander
2 Tblsp Lavender
1 Tblsp Chili Flake
14 each Garlic Cloves
½ Tblsp Ginger, Crushed
2 oz. Lemon Juice
Sachet
4 each Star Anise
2 Sticks Cinnamon
½ Tblsp. Black Pepperconrs
1 Tblsp. Green Cardamom

Directions:
1. Toast all the spices prior to making a sachet,
2. Combine all ingredients and the sachet and bring to a boil
3. Simmer until the consistency coats the back of the spoon or has the consistency of BBQ sauce when spooned onto a room temperature plate.

4. Once the sauce reaches the correct consistency, strain the sauce to catch any spices or aromatics.
5. Cool and Reserve for later Use

For the Lamb Belly Dish Preparation

1. Grill the Lamb Belly Skewers until they have nice grill marks on all for sides.
2. Brush the Moroccan Sauce over the Lamb Belly Skewers whilst on the grill (flash in a broiler or 400 degree oven if not using an outdoor grill) until a tacky glazed has formed on the Lamb Belly
3. Heat the Caramelized Onions until hot and reserve for plating
4. Heat the Eggplant in the oven until hot as well and reserve for plating

Plate the dish by laying down a line of the caramelized onions, then place the Grilled and Glazed Lamb Belly on the onions, Garnish with the Sliced Kumquats, the warmed Seared eggplant and cilantro leaves and fresh orange zest atop