Spice Rubs to Save Fat

Summer is the best because you can literally enjoy the bounty of your own personal garden! Right now we have giant cucumbers, beautiful yellow squash and a host of other herbs growing in our garden. One of the things that we love to do is grille outdoors on a summer night. Many clients have asked me about the safety of backyard grilling. The American Institute for Cancer Research warns us that grilling animal products (both red and white meat) causes potent carcinogens called heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) to arise within food. There is limited evidence that suggests that these can lead to an increased risk of cancer. Now not all foods cooked on the grille produce HCA's and PAH's. Veggies and fruits do not, so all the more reason to pile them on your plate!

The AICR does have suggestions for limiting your exposure to these carcinogens:
-Select smaller cuts of meat, such as kabobs, and limit your portion size.
-Select leaner cuts, to prevent dripping fat from causing flare-ups, which deposit carcinogens on the meat.
-You can also reduce flare-ups by spreading aluminum foil on the grill. Make small holes in the foil to allow fat to drain.
-Try a marinade. Some laboratory research suggests that even briefly marinating meat significantly reduces the formation of HCAs.
-Flip meat frequently, which reduces the amount of carcinogens that arise

Another suggestion that I have to cut the fat in your grilling process is to use more spice rubs. We recently tried this rub on chicken and then topped the chicken with a homemade salsa.
Caribbean Spice Rub (source Fine Cooking):
1 Tbs. dark brown sugar
2 tsp. ground coriander
2 tsp. ground cumin
1-1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
3/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground turmeric

Homemade Fresh Salsa:
chopped tomato, chopped red onion, chopped cucumber, chopped cilantro (from the garden!), the juice of a lime.

Grilling veggies on the grille is another great idea. In my personal opinion, there is no better way to cook corn on the cob than by putting it on the grille! Keep the corn in their husks for the first 10-15 minutes on the grille, then de-husk and place the corn back on the grille and baste it with the sauce mixture below. This really spices it up and the contrast of the paprika and honey is out of this world!
Corn on the cob sauce:
butter (a little fat never hurt anyone!), paprika, pepper, salt and honey.

7-Day Goals:
Today try to think of a few ways that you can creatively add flavor without adding fat. If you have a garden, make sure to use some of your spices with dinner tonight. Here is an idea: pick a few veggies from your garden or if you don't have veggies only herbs, get a few veggies from the store, steam them up, splash them with a mixture of lemon juice and your fresh herbs. What a way to enjoy the summer flavors with out the fat! Be creative today!
~K