Let's face it, cooking amongst men is becoming a lost art. And I know what you're thinking, 'Puff, why do I need to cook? That's what women are for!'. Yes, women do a lot of the heavy lifting in the kitchen. But every once in a while, it's good fend for yourself. Whether you just want a peaceful meal to yourself, to impress a date, or to have some grub handy for poker night, here are some awesome manly recipes that are pretty tasty and easy to make.

Bourbon Steak

Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 2 hours, 10 minutes

Ingredients:

  • ½ cup of soy sauce
  • ¼ cup of bourbon
  • 1 clove of garlic, pressed or minced
  • ¼ teaspoon of grated ginger
  • ¼ cup of water
  • 1 steak (roughly ½” thick)

Directions:

1. Combine everything in a shallow dish.
2. Unless it’s already a high quality steak, tenderize it by beating the hell out of it, and marinate it for at least two hours.
3. Grill the steak over a charcoal fire.

Beer Brats

Serves: 10
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 4 cans of beer (Any kind. Experiment with different flavors.)
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 10 bratwurst
  • 2 teaspoons of red pepper flakes
  • 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon of salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:
1. Preheat an outdoor grill for medium to high heat. When the grill is hot, lightly oil the grate. Remember this from our grilling article.
2. Combine the beer and onions in a large pot and bring it to a boil. Toss the brats in the beer, making sure they are completely submerged. Add the red pepper flakes, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Lower the heat to medium and cook another 10-12 minutes. Then remove the brats from the beer mixture and continue to cook the onions with the heat set to low.
3. Cook the brats on the preheated grill, turning once every 5-10 minutes.
4. Serve with the onions as a topping as a side.

Beer Can Chicken

Serves: 10
Prep: 1 hour
Cook: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Ingredients:

  • ½ cup of dark brown sugar
  • ½ cup of kosher salt
  • ½ cup paprika
  • 4 tablespoons of fresh ground pepper
  • 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
  • 2 cups of cherry or hickory wood chips (available in the charcoal aisle)
  • 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil
  • 2 three to four pound whole chickens
  • 2 cans of beer (Again. Any kind. Experiment with different flavors.)

Directions:
1. Preheat an outdoor grill for indirect medium grilling. Soak the cherry wood chips in a bowl of water for at least 60 minutes. Put the soaked wood chips over the coals once the chicken is ready to be cooked.
2. Combine the brown sugar, salt, paprika, black pepper and cayenne into a dry rub.
3. Clean out the chicken’s cavities and wash the chickens with cold water. Pat them dry with a paper towel and rub them each with two tablespoons of vegetable oil. Rub the dry rub spice mixture inside and outside of the chickens. Make sure to cover the entire bird, including the creases between the wings. Save roughly two teaspoons for the next part.
4. Take each can of beer and pour out (or drink) half of the can. Using a can opener, poke two extra holes in the top of the beer cans. Slowly pour one teaspoon of extra dry rub into each of the cans, being careful as they may foam up and out of the can.
5. Place the beer cans in the chicken’s cavities and use their legs to make a tripod. The beer and spices will steam up into the chicken, keeping it moist.
6. Make sure to use indirect grilling. In other words, don’t put the chicken directly over the coals or flames. They will burn. If they start to get too dark, loosely cover the top of the chickens with a piece of aluminum foil.
7. Chickens should be ready in an hour and half or when the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 180 F. Delicious juices will be running off the bottom of the chickens.
8. Don’t open the grill too often. Try opening the grill once after every hour and then every fifteen minutes afterwards. Don’t let too much heat escape.

Whiskey Pork Chops

Serves: 4
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 1 hour

Ingredients:

  • 2/3 cup of fat-free sour cream
  • ½ cup of water
  • 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon of salt
  • ½ teaspoon of dried rubbed sage
  • ¼ teaspoon of black pepper
  • 4 six ounce bone-in center-cut pork chops, trimmed
  • ¼ teaspoon of salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon of black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon of olive oil
  • ½ cup of chopped onion
  • 1 eight ounce package of pre-sliced mushrooms
  • ½ cup of whiskey

Directions:
1. Preheat your oven to 300 degrees.
2. Combine the sour cream, water, flour, salt, and black pepper in a small bowl. Add the sage to the same mix by rubbing it between your fingers to release the oils.
3. Sprinkle pork with ¼ teaspoon of salt and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper.
4. Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Once it’s hot, sauté the pork for five minutes on each side, or until golden, and remove it from the pan.
5. Add onions and mushrooms to the same pan and sauté for three minutes. Carefully add whiskey to the pan and cook for one minute or until the sauce becomes less liquefied.
6. Return pork to the pan and spoon mushrooms, onions and sauce over the pork.
7. Cover the pan and bake the chops in the oven at 300 degrees for an hour.

Beer Chili

Serves: 10-12
Prep: 47 minutes
Cook: N/A

Ingredients:

  • 1 ½ tablespoons of ground cumin
  • 1 tablespoon of ground coriander
  • 5 pounds of ground chuck (cut of beef extending from neck to ribs, includes shoulderblade)
  • 2 tablespoons of canola oil
  • 2 ½ pounds of chopped onions
  • 1 ½ pounds of red bell peppers, seeded, cut into ½ inch pieces
  • 1 ½ pounds of yellow bell peppers, seeded, cut into ½ inch pieces
  • 2 large jalapeno chiles with seeds, chopped (about 1/3 cup)
  • 7 tablespoons of chili powder
  • 2 teaspoons of minced canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
  • 2 28 ounce cans of crushed tomatoes
  • 2 15 ounce cans of kidney beans, drained
  • 1 12 ounce bottle of dark beer, you know… some sort of stout
  • Sour cream
  • Chopped green onions
  • Grated cheddar cheese

Directions:
1. Toast cumin and coriander in a skillet over medium heat for about four minutes until dark and beginning to smoke. Let it cool.
2. Saute chuck (beef) in a heavy large pot for about eight minutes over medium-high heat until it’s no longer pink. Break it up with a spoon.
3. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions, bell peppers and jalepenos. Saute vegetables for about fifteen minutes until they begin to soften. Add this mixture to the pot with the meat and mix in the aforementioned toasted spices as well as chili powder and chipotle chiles.
4. Add the crushed tomatoes, beans and beer, and bring the chili to a boil, stirring occasionally.
5. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring often.
6. Season with salt and pepper and serve with sour cream, green onions and cheese.

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