This amazing fish recipe was developed by BYB owner Jay Mathiesen. Homemade blackening rub and pineapple rum salsa compliment flavorful swordfish, making a gorgeous dish that’s as pleasing to the palate as it is to the eye.

Note: Don’t attempt this recipe on your kitchen stove top, as it tends to make smoke detectors think you’ve started a 3-alarm fire.

View the Blackened Swordfish Photo Guide by clicking here!

Ingredients:
4 Swordfish steaks
Blackening Rub (recipe below)
2 Sticks of butter
Pineapple Rum Salsa (recipe below)

Instructions:
1. Apply rub to swordfish steaks.
2. Heat a cast iron pan over very high heat on the charcoal grill. Make sure to use cast iron, as it will stand up to the direct heat of the flames.
3. Dip steaks into butter, covering both sides.
4. Carefully put steaks in pan and sear for 2-3 minutes per side.
5. If swordfish steaks have not yet reached an internal temp of 140 degrees F, finish them on the grill to that temperature or until they can be flaked easily with a fork.
6. Serve with Pineapple Rum Salsa and garnish with lemon.

Blackening Rub

Ingredients:
10 Whole bay leaves
1 Tbsp mixed whole peppercorns (black, white, pink & green)
1 Tbsp paprika
1/2 Tsp basil
1/2 Tsp oregano
1 Tsp granulated onion
1 Tsp granulated garlic
3 Tsp salt
1/2 Tsp thyme
1/2 Tsp cayenne

Instructions: Using a spice grinder or blender, grind bay leaves and peppercorns into a coarse meal. Mix with remaining ingredients.

Pineapple Rum Salsa

Ingredients:
1 Whole fresh pineapple, cubed
1/2 Red bell pepper, diced
1/2 Purple onion, diced
1 Serrano chile, finely diced
3 Tbsp dark rum
2 Tbsp brown sugar
Juice of 1 lime

Instructions: Mix well and refrigerate until ready to use.

I have people in my family with MSG allergies, diabetes and heart disease, so I know it’s not always easy to find barbecue seasonings that everyone can consume. That’s why I decided to make this handy chart to aid in your seasoning shopping at Backyard Bash.

I’ve included products that are labeled MSG-free, gluten-free, all natural, sugar free and/or salt-free and products that clearly listed all of the ingredients in the seasoning and did not have MSG. If labels were ambiguous or did not list every ingredient, I left them off the list. This does not mean that they have MSG, only that they did not give enough information to make that determination. Use this chart as a starting point, and always read the labels for yourself before you buy!

Download the pdf of the list here: Special Diet Shopping Guide

If you’ve ever wandered through the grill section at one of the gigantic big box stores, you’ve probably noticed one of the same name brands that Backyard Bash carries.

But what’s the difference between purchasing a Weber grill at one of these stores and buying from Backyard Bash? Weber’s Alliance Dealer program gives smaller stores with more focused knowledge and customer service access to the premium grills and accessories in each of their product lines.

So, while you may see a Weber Genesis grill at Home Depot or Lowes, chances are it’s a Weber Genesis E Series grill with porcelain enameled grates and Flavorizer bars and limited color availability. While you can still order the Genesis E Series grills from Backyard Bash, we also keep the Genesis EP Series grills with stainless steel grates, Flavorizer bars and extended color options in stock. The box stores cannot even order these grills for you. They’re only available at Alliance dealers like Backyard Bash!

Here’s a list of the premium Weber grills you’ll find at Backyard Bash, but not at box stores:

Backyard Bash will also have access to new and exclusive Weber products first, as they become available! Plus, we keep a large selection of Weber replacement parts in stock!

In addition to being the largest Weber dealer in the Northland, Backyard Bash offers free assembly for all customers on all grills, no matter the brand, and free delivery north of the river, with a small fee added for delivery outside the Northland. Backyard Bash is committed to giving great customer service, free cooking advice, and offers a no-strings customer rewards program that rewards you for every $250 you spend on tools, accessories, sauces, seasonings, wood and charcoal.

Could you walk out of a box store today with a Weber grill? Yes. But will you walk out with the best product available for your budget, knowing how to cook on it and with the ability to call the owner of the store and ask cooking questions? At Backyard Bash, barbecue is our focus and our passion. We’re here to give you the best BBQ experience possible!

Recipe by Jay Mathiesen
Commentary by Beth Politsch

View the Grilled Chicken Cordon Blue Photo Guide here!

Jay makes the food, I shoot the pictures and sample the results of Jay’s hard work. (Pretty awesome job, huh?) That’s how we put together the recipes and photo guides for the Backyard Bash BBQ Newsletter.

So I was a little bummed when the camera’s battery died in the middle of prepping this month’s Grilled Chicken Cordon Blue recipe a few Saturdays ago. That is, I was bummed until I sampled it when it came off the grill, and I realized we would have to do the whole thing over again the next week. Hooray!

Hands-down, this Grilled Chicken Cordon Blue recipe is one of my absolute favorites of all time. Bite into this Blues Hog Tennessee Red Sauce-basted chicken breast and you’ll savor a citrus-spicy, oozy Swiss cheese and ham center that will send you over the moon!

I only wish we could talk Jay into making this at the store every weekend!

Ingredients:
Boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (preferably with no additives)
Shaved ham
Baby Swiss cheese slices
Dizzy Pig Shakin’ The Tree Rub
Blues Hog Tennessee Red Sauce (i.e. Cordon Blue, instead of Cordon Bleu)
Cooking oil

Instructions:
1. Butterfly the chicken breasts and lay them open on your cutting board.
2. Rub chicken breasts with a light coat of oil.
3. Sprinkle with Dizzy Pig Shakin’ The Tree Rub.
4. Place 4-6 slices of shaved ham on each breast.
5. Cut Baby Swiss slices into halves, and place 2-3 half slices on each breast on top of ham.
6. Fold the breasts around the ham and cheese and secure with butchers twine or Food Loop Flame stainless steel cables.
7. Grill over direct fire until well seared on both sides. Baste with Blues Hog Tennessee Red Sauce while cooking.
8. Move to indirect heat to finish. Take internal temperature to 155 degrees F. Remove butcher’s twine and serve.

Need a complimentary side dish? Check out our other great recipes, like Jay’s Grilled Pineapple!

Each time you accumulate $250 in purchases of supplies and accessories*, you’ll get a $15 reward**! Your $15 may be applied to any purchase!

Our reward program is a no-fuss way for us to give you credit for being a great customer! There is no card, and there are no strings attached. We get to see what parts of the city our customers are coming from, and we get to see a very happy customer each time we give someone $15 off their purchase!

*Purchases of grills, smokers and rentals do not count toward the $15 reward.
**Customer must choose at least $15 worth of merchandise before tax in order to redeem reward. Reward will be given after the purchase that puts you over the $250 mark is complete. Reward is given in store credit only. Not redeemable for cash.

1. Tell your friends about Backyard Bash and our great selection of grills and smokers.
2. Fill out the form below and give it to your friends.
3. When one of your friends becomes a new Backyard Bash customer and purchases a grill or smoker over $600, we’ll email or call you and let you know that you’ve got a $75 merchandise credit* waiting for you!

The more new customers** you refer, the more opportunities you get to earn store credit! Plus, there’s no limit to the number of $75 merchandise rewards* you can earn!

*$75 merchandise credit valid for use on everything in the store except grills & smokers. Not valid for classes or rentals.
**Referred customer must be new to Backyard Bash, i.e. not in our customer database, and with no prior purchases listed in our retail system.

Click the link below to download the customer referral form and get started! Referral forms will also be available in-store.

Referral Form

This small, affordable pellet cooker is perfect for small families, tailgating and apartment-living! It has 292 square inches of cooking surface and Traeger’s Auto-start and EZ drain systems. Just fill up the pellet hopper with all-natural Traeger BBQ pellets, plug in your cooker and choose your heat setting from Smoke, Medium or High on the three-position thermostat! What a great gift for the holidays! The rebate expires 12/31/09.