Roger, Cailynn, Cal, Colton and Brandy Clark enjoy grilling often.
Local residents share their passion for cooking on grills, smokers and flat-tops.
By Rich Wicks | Guthrie Center Times
Few things in life are more American than grilling burgers or steaks on a beautiful spring or summer day. Most who are in charge of the grilling wouldn’t want to be doing anything else, and those who are the recipients of the offerings appreciate it even more. Learn about area residents who are often seen cooking delicious foods on their smokers or grills.
Grilling year-round
Have you heard of “spatchcock chicken?” Although it sounds like a dance craze from the 1960s, or maybe a TV cartoon character, spatchcocking is simply a method of cooking chicken or other fowl. The backbone is removed, allowing the meat to be split open and partially flattened, which results in more even cooking when grilled. Spatchcocking is a favorite method of grilling chicken at the home of Devan and Dwayne Seeck of rural Guthrie Center.
“We raise our own cows and chickens, so almost everything we grill is our own,” Devan said. “We’re just trying to be as self-sufficient as possible.”
Dwayne Seeck checks on the spatchcock chicken and bacon-wrapped asparagus.
Dwayne works as a pesticide investigator, so the family also likes the idea of knowing exactly what is (and isn’t) in their home-raised foods. Devan added another reason for their practice of self-sufficiency.
“When you have four kids, it’s a heck of a lot cheaper to raise your own meat and grow your own food instead of going to the store every time you need it,” she said. “We have a huge garden, and we try to grow a lot of our own veggies and roast those.”
The family is well equipped for cooking outdoors with a large grill, a smoker and a flat top grill. Devan explained that the family doesn’t stop grilling just because summer weather ends.
“Even in the winter, especially with mild winters like this, we do grill year-round. If there’s not snow blowing around, we grill or smoke,” Devan said. “And then, in the summer, we pull out the flat-top for camping a lot, because we like to do hibachi-type grilling.”
Devan recalled a year when Dwayne smoked brisket for Thanksgiving dinner, and Dwayne mentioned deep-fat frying a turkey for another. Devan said they would like to use the smoker even more often, but with work and four kids, there isn’t always enough time. Because of this, most of the Seeck family grilling is done with propane, simply because it’s quicker than waiting for charcoal to be ready.
Dwayne mentioned that he’s made pizzas on the grill, as well as eggs and other breakfast items.
“We’ve even tried ‘lollipop legs,’ ” Dwayne said. “You take a drumstick and cut it and press it down so it looks like a lollipop and marinate it or season it and grill it that way.”
Dwayne and Devan said lollipop legs have been a favorite of their kids.
On this particular day, the Seeck grill was active with two spatchcock chickens and bacon-wrapped asparagus.
“He likes to experiment a lot,” Devan said. “I worked at a steakhouse, so I’m more traditional — steaks and stuff. The only tip I would have is, don’t overcook your steaks. I like mine rare.”
No s’mores for these scouts
Besides family grilling, another group known for cooking around a fire is scouts. On a recent day, a group of scouts was spotted around a fire at Springbrook State Park. The group included Boy Scouts from Troop 46 and Cub Scouts from Pack 38. The scouts ranged in age from 7 through 16.
The adult chaperones explained that the group was on their annual spring campout. The scouts and chaperones told of the various items they’d already enjoyed or planned to cook during the weekend, including goulash, walking tacos, popcorn, Dutch oven cornbread, eggs and hashbrowns.
However, one notable item was humorously absent from the weekend’s menu. There was no plan to attempt making s’mores, due to the likelihood of flaming marshmallows.
“They’ve never worked on a scouting trip,” a chaperone said with a knowing grin.
“There’s just something about a grilled hot dog”
Grilling is an American tradition, and the staff at New Homestead Senior Living Community in Guthrie Center is working to bring that piece of Americana back into the lives of the people living there. Brandy Clark, community relations director at New Homestead, told of the ongoing plans.
“My family grills quite frequently, and that’s why I first thought of the idea for our assisted living and independent living campuses,” Clark said. “It’s commonly known as a family activity. As our tenants have moved off their homes or acreages or farms, some of the activities get lost. We want to give them a piece of home, when we can.”
Clark recalls asking tenants what they miss most from their former homes, and grilling was a common response. She reported one tenant telling her, “There’s just something about a grilled hot dog.” Many memories of summertime holidays and gatherings involve grilling, so Clark committed to the idea of doing much of the same at New Homestead.
A grilling event at New Homestead was planned for May 14, after this interview but before Guthrie Center Times published. New Homestead was partnering with the Guthrie County Cattlemen group to provide a drive-through meal of burgers, chips and a cookie in honor of May Beef Month.
“The whole goal is to provide them with the quality of living that they deserve, and this is just one of the ways that we are trying to do that,” Clark said.
Apple, hickory and mesquite
At home, Roger and Brandy Clark grill for their family frequently on their Traeger grill, which uses pellets for fuel.
The family previously had a smaller grill but upgraded to the larger model for more space and the built-in warming rack. Brandy said the larger grill is perfect for their family, which includes three kids.
The three Clark children all attend ACGC Schools. Cailynn is finishing first grade, Cal is a seventh grader, and Colton is a freshman. Colton’s favorite food off the grill is marinated pork loin, while Cal said he prefers ribeye, and Cailynn couldn’t name a particular favorite.
Roger explained that he enjoys the indirect heating of the pellet grill and the various flavored pellets available.
“I use apple, hickory and mesquite,” Roger said. “Steaks, and even burgers, are so much juicier. They don’t dry out.”
Roger also sometimes uses the grill as more of a low-heat smoker.
“I’ll do pork butts on it, and they usually take about 10 hours,” Roger said. “That really tastes good with all that smoked flavor. It takes longer, but it’s so worth it.”
Roger pointed out that he grills more than just meat.
“When we have green beans, we’ll season them with olive oil and seasoning and do them on the grill. They’re really good that way,” Roger said.
The Clark family also uses a large flat top grill during the summer.
“I make a Philly cheesesteak sandwich on it,” Roger said. “I’ll get fresh baked buns, cut them in half, butter them and put them on the grill. Then I do really thin steak on there, with green peppers, onions and mushrooms and sauté them all up, and then I have kind of an assembly line for the family. It’s fun to make omelets and things on there, too.”
Roger said he enjoys the grilling process almost as much as the final product.
“I grew up on the farm, so I like cooking. It’s kind of relaxing,” he said.
Scouts and grilling are an American tradition.
