Fire Up The Grill One Last Time This Year

If you’re resigned to the fact that your barbecuing days are dwindling until next spring, don’t just pack up the equipment. First prepare one last, great meal.

Now that the weather is cooler, switch from fish and other light fare to beef. The sweet, caramelized taste of grilled beef is incomparable. Skirt steak is a favorite cut for the grill. The meat is an even thickness for uniform cooking, and it is very tender if cooked to a medium doneness.

You can reduce cooking time even further, pack a flavor punch and possibly gain some health benefits if you marinate skirt steak before grilling it. The evidence is based on chicken experiments; boneless, skinless chicken breasts that were marinated before grilling contained fewer potentially carcinogenic compounds, according to researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California.

When poultry, beef and fish are cooked at high temperatures - on the grill, or in the broiler - heterocyclic aromatic amines (HAAs) are formed. These HAAs might increase the risk of cancer.

The Tufts University Health and Nutrition Letter recently reported that the Livermore scientists found marinated chicken contained 92 to 99 percent fewer HAAs than unmarinated chicken. It’s possible that the marinade creates a protective coating, and if the technique works on chicken, it may also work on quick-cooking skirt steak.

Marinate skirt steak in a potent combination of lime juice, garlic, olive oil and serrano chili, then grill or broil it until it’s still pink-red in the center.

Slice the steak into thin strips and serve with a delicious, nutty-tasting salad of cooked wild rice, avocado and chilies.

Then, before the grill cools down, start scrubbing. After all, you don’t want to come back to a dirty rack in the spring!

Carne Asada

Juice of 2 limes

1 garlic clove, smashed

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small serrano chili, cored, seeded and minced

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 (10-ounce) skirt steak, about 1 inch thick, trimmed of all fat

Combine all ingredients (except steak) in glass bowl. Add steak and marinate at room temperature 1 hour. (If kitchen is hot, marinate in refrigerator 2 hours instead.)

Place steak on oiled grill over ash-covered coals, or on an oiled broiler pan. Grill or broil 4 inches from heat about 5 minutes on each side. Reduce time for thinner steak. Remove steak from heat. Slice thinly to serve. Serve immediately.

Yield: 2 servings.

Nutrition information per serving: 324 calories, 21.6 grams fat (60 percent fat calories), 28 grams protein, 4 grams carbohydrate, 72 milligrams cholesterol, 633 milligrams sodium.

Wild Rice, Avocado and Chili Salad

3/4 cup wild rice

2 cups water

2 teaspoons minced serrano or jalapeno chili (about 1/2 chili)

2 tablespoons minced cilantro

1 small avocado, peeled, pitted and diced

Juice of 1/2 lime

1-1/2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Combine wild rice and water in small pan. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer until rice is tender but slightly chewy, about 40 minutes. Drain well. Spoon out into serving bowl to cool. Add minced chili, cilantro and avocado.

Combine lime juice, oil, salt and pepper in cup and stir well. Pour over rice mixture and toss gently to mix.

Yield: 2 servings.

Nutrition information per serving: 431 calories, 22.3 grams fat (47 percent fat calories), 11 grams protein, 52 grams carbohydrate, no cholesterol, 556 milligrams sodium.