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Good Eats: Grillus Domesticus
Most homeowners own an outdoor grill, and most of them use it regularly during the grilling season from late spring, through summer and fall. Seeking variety, most outdoor cooks eventually take on gallus gallus domesticus, the common chicken. It's cheap, and most of us feel we have the skills to prepare it. But without the right technique, the outcome might instead be mealus yuckus. With the right technique, Alton's Ring of Fire Grilled Chicken will certainly be Good Eats!
| 7/10 (1 Vote cast) |
Episode Info
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Episode number: 14x2 Production Number: EA1402H Airdate: Thursday June 03rd, 2010 |
Recap
The scene opens outside, on the patio where Alton demonstrates outdoor cooking skills. This time he is surrounded by grills ran ranging from a small square kettle all the way up to a gas-fired giant. Whatever grill one owns, sooner or later one will attempt to prepare gallus gallus domesticus – chicken – and without the right technique, the result is likely to disappoint. (Alton extracts a partially burned piece of something that might once have been chicken from a grill and contemplates it ruefully.) In exchange for a half hour, Alton promises to make sure the viewer's next grilled chicken is... Good Eats!..Read the full recap
Episode Notes
Cards
- Chickens were first domesticated around 8,000 years ago in what is now Thailand.
- 71% of grill owners use their grills at least once a week during the summer grilling season.
- Although it is convenient, charcoal briquettes can't burn as cleanly as natural wood chunk varieties.
The episode title is Grillvs Domesticvs according to the refrigerator. The Food Network uses Grillus Domesticus (replacing the 'v' characters with 'u' characters). The title is a play on gallus gallus domesticus which is the proper Latin taxonomic reference to the sort of chicken most of us eat regularly, and which Alton cooks on a grill. Grillvs Domesticvs is (of course) dog Latin. The episode name contains 'v' characters because the alphabet in use during ancient Roman times lacked a 'u'.
For those who do want to know (see the recap): gelatin is mostly collagen, a triple-strand protein that forms the basis of a lot of connective tissue. Collagen is found in the skin and bones of animals; that harvested to make gelatin usually comes from pigs and cows.
Episode Quotes
Alton: Despite whatever firepower you may have amassed or your skills you think you have attained, the meeting of gallus domesticus and grillus americanus can and often does result in... mealus yuckus.
Alton: (contemplating a burnt piece of grilled chicken) Pitiful? Perhaps. Preventable? Positively. After all, we're Americans, right? Grilling is in our bones! Which is why, if you'll lend me just a half hour of your busy day, your next grilled chicken will be all kinds of... Good Eats!
Alton: In pigs, this layer is so thick and versatile it can be made into either leather goods or gelatin. Actually, gelatin comes from the... you don't want to know.
Alton: My personal favorite piece of chicken on the grill is the thigh. This was Julia's favorite, and if it was good enough for Julia, it ought to be good enough for us.
Alton: (about cutting an “airline breast”) Master that technique and your friends will be amazed. And your enemies will be confused and frightened. As they should be.
Alton: I know what you're thinking. What lame model will he come up with this time to explain what's going on with this whole brine business. Well, I got a doozy for you!
Alton: Now THAT is barbecued chicken! There. I said it. Actually, barbecue flavored chicken, since you can't technically barbecue a chicken, at least not in the south. If you have some slaw and potato salad, you've got yourself instant summer.
Cultural References
Alton comments that the thigh was Julia's favorite and further opines that what was good enough for her ought to be good enough for all of us as well. He refers to Julia Child, one of the earliest celebrity cooks and a key reason why the Food Network exists today: Julia lent it her support when her career was well-established and her opinion highly respected.
Alton calls his solution to bi-level grilling the “ring of fire.” It is possible that the Johnny Cash song Ring of Fire inspired this name. The song, written by Cash's future wife June Carter, compared falling in love to falling in a ring of fire.
Episode References
That's Another Show: Alton promises a show on grilled pizza.
Other Episode Crew
| • Creator | Alton Brown |
| • Executive Producer | DeAnna Brown |
| • Line Producer | Dana Popoff |
| • Music | Patrick Belden |
| • Director of Photography | Marion Laney |
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