# Wife Is Out Of Town So Indulging In The Forbidden Fruit  (W/ Pics)



## tx smoker (Apr 7, 2019)

Well that maybe a bit melodramatic but it is forbidden when she is here. That would be seafood of any sort. She just can't eat it and gets sick every time she tries so we don't even bother. When she goes out with the girls or goes out of town she encourages me to indulge....because I absolutely LOVE seafood. Well, she headed to the airport early yesterday morning and about 6:00 I headed into town to get my staples for dinner. The only place open at that time was WalMart but I didn't expect any issues. Turned out I was mistaken. The original plan was to do Surf And Turf. I have 3 of the huge 45 day aged rib eye steaks still in the freezer so was gonna grill one of those along with some lobster tails in a butter and garlic sauce. OOPS!! The only tails that they had were in a large bag and were frozen. I didn't need a large bag and I certainly didn't want frozen lobster. Time to shift gears and go a different direction. Looked around and saw some fresh tilapia and shrimp....the cogs started turning. Here was my new menu plan:

-Cajun Blackened Tilapia
-BBQ Shrimp
-Grilled Asparagus
-Parsley Potatoes

Grabbed the tilapia, shrimp, and asparagus and was headed home (I had potatoes in the fridge). Got all my weekend chores done then headed to my little pub about 3:00 for a couple of adult libations all the while dreaming of this dinner. It's been a LONG time since I've had seafood and was Jonesing for my fix. Started getting things ready immediately upon my return from the pub and here's what I came up with:

Peeled and cubed one large Russet potato, into a pan of salted water to lightly boil







Tossed the asparagus in a bit of Organic EVOO, salt, pepper, and garlic






Into the grilling wok






Shrimp seasoned with my rib rub (done it before and was fantastic!!) then into another grilling wok






Shrimp and asparagus onto the grill






Got the small cast iron griddle and on the grill to heat up with a hefty dose of butter. Sear burner running about 900*






Tilapia fillets seasoned on one side






On to the CI griddle and the other side seasoned. At 900* this isn't going to take long






Dinner all done and plated. Sprinkled the asparagus with some gourmet Parmesan cheese, tossed the potatoes with butter, salt, pepper, and chives. It's show time!! Here's the money shot






The tilapia was absolutely stellar. Perfectly blackened, moist, juicy, tender and unbelievably flavorful. Shrimp was perfectly cooked, just a bit too salty but still fantastic. Taters were done to al dante' and had a really nice flavoring balance. Asparagus also done al dante', which is how we like it. We aren't big fans of mushy asparagus and the addition of the cheese set it over the top. Maybe it's just been so long since I've gotten to eat seafood but this was about my favorite meal in a very long time. The fun part is that I only used half of the shrimp and half of the tilapia so I'm thinking about doing a Po Boy this evening for dinner with what's left.
Side note: I came to the realization yesterday that I have a tendency to take and post a lot of pics detailing every step of my cooking endeavors...possibly too many pics. Last night I kept the picture taking a bit militaristic so as not to overdo it this time, but now wish I hadn't. This dinner was spectacular and I wish I'd caught every step of the process. Oh well, next time I'll take the pics and maybe just be a bit more discriminating on how many I post.

Livin' on the lake and finally got to eat fish,
Robert


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## flatbroke (Apr 7, 2019)

Get er done Reb. Looks pretty damn good.  Congrats on making my Carousel.  Mangia!!!!!


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## trevor decker (Apr 7, 2019)

Looks delicious.  Lobster tonight?


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## pineywoods (Apr 7, 2019)

It looks good and I'm sure tasted even better. I can't go very long without eating seafood we eat a lot of it of course being close to the water helps with that. Too many pictures?? is there any such thing???? I think not


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## chef jimmyj (Apr 7, 2019)

Looks great. I WISH nobody here but me ate Seafood. Cost a fortune to feed 6 adults anything but Haddock. A great eating fish but my fav are Seared Scallops and any type of Crab. The rest prefer Shrimp, Crab or Lobster. For our 30th Anniversary, this past June, had all my kids and their spouses for a Surf and Turf. 8 8oz Lobster Tails shipped in from Maine, $200. An 8 pound whole Beef Tenderloin, $100. All in with Wine, Sides, Etc. Came out to $40 a head. Realistically, probably cheaper than the same meal out and ours was prepared by my 2 Pro Chef Daughters. Still a pretty big nut to crack...JJ


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## Misplaced Nebraskan (Apr 7, 2019)

Click bait title! 

Looks awesome!  Need to look at getting me some baskets or racks for items like that. Good to have some go to while alone.  Wife knows when she leaves, I'm headed straight out for meat and sides. Not that we don't BBQ often, but I live solely off the pit.  Last time I sent her a pic of some new to me scratch made Mac and she was mad I didn't make it before with her.


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## Inscrutable (Apr 7, 2019)

Misplaced Nebraskan said:


> Click bait title!
> .
> .
> Last time I sent her a pic ... and she was mad I didn't make it before with her.


maybe ANTI-click bait


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