Ketchup Salt? Bacon Rub? Weird? Definitely!

Our offices are located in South Seattle, in a warehouse, with a lot of cool neighboring businesses. Over the years we've made great friends with our neighboring peeps and have even come to do business with a few of them, which has been both fun and an honor for us here at ChefTools. One of our favorite neighbors are J&D's Foods - the makers of Baconnaise and BaconSalt.

A month ago they brought over some new products to sample and let me tell you, it was a buzz of excitement here in our offices. If there's one thing us chefs, cooks & foodies love, it's product samples to get excited about and share with the world and these new products filled with Baconny goodness were right up our alley.

Let's start with the Bacon Rub - um, hello?! It's absolutely fantastic! They nailed this one, it's all natural, Kosher, vegetarian and pretty low in the sodium department. But the taste? Well, let's just say that it will be going in my Father's Day gift this year because I know he is gonna love it! I can't wait to taste the goodies he'll be grillin' up on his trusty 'ol Traeger. Ribs, chicken, burgers - I'm thinking a brisket would be fantastic rubbed down in some good 'ol bacon lovin'!

Next up is the Ketchup Salt. For those of you who have traveled and eaten in Canada or parts of Europe, you'll understand this love for ketchup flavored goodness. Ketchup flavored potato chips are the norm there and they are delicious. For the rest of us who just so happen to love ketchup on everything and anything, then this salt's for you. It's light, not overly powerful and adds just a hint of the vinegary ketchup taste you might not think you're looking for, but will be pleasantly surprised to find.

As J&D's founding fathers put it:

"Is Ketchup Salt kind of weird? Absolutely. Is it weird that we dared to dream of a seasoning that would give us bold ketchup taste while keeping our fries crispy and our eggs smoking hot? Sure, it might be weird, but it's also innovative, forward-thinking, and dare we say patriotic?"

These two wonderful new products are being launched just in time for your BBQ filled summer. So, try them out and be weirdly surprised!

Over 100 New Epicurean Boards, Tools and More

Epicurean Flower Trivet Epicurean BBQ Salver

Epicurean makes fantastic cutting boards. They became famous for their boards because they are extremely durable, environmentally friendly, dishwasher safe and light-weight. If you are in the market for a new cutting board Epicurean is definitely worth looking at. Something else worth looking at is Epicurean's fantastic new line of tools! Like the Trivets and Coasters. Epicurean Trivets come in three different styles, Flower (pictured top left), Curve and Star, and each style has different color combinations. Epicurean coasters come in three different colors and they may be the best surface protecting coasters on the market. Epicurean Saute Tools, Turners and Spoons are must haves if you have any nonstick cookware. They are made from renewable and natural materials and won't scratch your pots and pans. The Epicurean Food Scrapers are pretty indispensable as well. If you ever work with pastry dough or need to chop and scoop some quick veggies this is the tool for you. Lastly, I'll recommend Epicurean's BBQ Salver (pictured bottom left). All of Epicurean's boards are great, but this one is exceptional for all types of grilling enthusiasts. This board allows you to have your tools, a beverage, and some sauces or seasonings always close at hand while at the grill. It comes in Grey and Red and includes a removable 15" x 11" Kitchen Series cutting board. If you are going to eat outside, this board is great for grabbing your meat off the grill, placing it on your board and slicing it up right there. You can also remove the board inside, chop your veggies, then carry them out to the grill to be cooked or placed on things like burgers and brats. Shop all Epicurean HERE

The Hottest Grill Tool Of The Season

The Steak Station from Charcoal Companion has been getting some press lately and it's not even available until late May. All the buzz is due to the fact that the Steak Station is a brand new innovation that allows you to easily monitor up to four steaks at once. Could you imagine the alternative of trying to find room for four different probes at your grill? The Steak Station takes care of other things for you as well. It clearly displays a meter-style reading of "Rare", "Medium" and "Well" for each piece of meat so there's no confusion as to what temperature fits into which category. The probes are also color coated in red, yellow, green or orange so you can criss cross the wires all you need to and still keep track of everything. The Steak Station can also be used in the oven like a regular meat thermometer. Pre-order your Steak Station today

An All-In-One Grill Tool

the Grill Station from Charcoal Companion

Meet your new best friend, the Grill Station from Charcoal Companion. A unique tool that does more than meets the eye, the Grill Station marinates, stores, chills and serves food. The tool caddy attachment keeps all the necessities like thermometers, tongs and spatulas close at hand while the trays keep raw and cooked foods separate to avoid cross contamination. The Grill Station's trays have ridges inside which prop meat up slightly allowing marinade to freely flow and evenly coat all your meat. One lid is included, which fits both clearly marked 'RAW' and 'COOKED' trays. Another great feature of the Grill Station's trays is their ability to be written on. You can use a dry erase pen to write dates or notes on the side of the trays, then simply wipe them off with a mild cleaning detergent or throw them in the dishwasher. Shop all Charcoal Companion products

Srping + Grill + Sliders = Fun!

As the crisp, cold air begins to fade and summer quickly approaches it's hard not to think about grilling. While some wait for the chill to diminish completely, others fire up their gas or charcoal grills and brace the cold. All this just for the delicious flavor, taste and comfort grilled food yields. One of the most popular and timeless grilled food items has always been the hamburger. However, the more recent "slider" burger has been quickly gaining popularity thanks to restaurants and avid home grillers who are serving them up as appetizers or as the small main dish. The name "slider" is said to have originated due to the mini burger's size because they can easily slide down your throat in one or two bites. Whatever the history and reason for their origin, sliders are undeniably great for parties, kids and adults of all ages. With the Deluxe Mini Burger Slider Basket & Press Set from Charcoal Companion you can easily make sliders at home. The set includes a 9 slot grilling basket for easy grilling and flipping, a triple patty burger press to create uniform sliders and a mini-bun cutter to trim full buns down to size. The Deluxe Slider Set also makes a great gift for any lover of all things grilling. Shop all Charcoal Companion BBQ Tools, Grillware and Grill Accessories

The story of Grill Charms(TM)

It all started with an extra hot piece of Jamaican Jerk chicken at a dinner party. Leslie Haywood, founder of Grill Charms™ was hosting a dinner party with her husband when he mixed up the extra hot and mild pieces of chicken, accidentally serving Leslie the wrong piece. After that moment, Leslie got her idea for a new product. Grill Charms™ are a revolutionary new way to keep track of what's what on the grill. They are made of pure stainless steel and have a serrated tip that will hold firm while you flip, rotate and shift your meat on the grill. Some of the many uses for Grill Charms™ include (but are not limited to):   ·distinguishing between Rare, Medium Rare, Medium Well and Medium   ·clearly marking which meats are spicy, mild and medium   ·allowing you to customize each different grill item   ·identifying meats for people with health or allergy concerns Grill Charms™ come in four different packs of 6. The Steak Collection gives you two charms for Rare, two for Medium Rare, one for Medium and one for Medium Well. The Spicy Collection gives you two charms for Hot, two for Mild and two for Medium. The Charmed Life Collection gives you one palm tree charm, one sailboat, one four leaf clover, one crown, one martini glass and one dollar sign. The final collection is more special than the first three. The Pink Collection comes with one ribbon charm, one chef hat, one shoe, one wine glass, one ladie's hat and one swan. But, the thing that makes is special is that 10% of each sale goes directly to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Leslie became a breast cancer survivor after having a bilateral mastectomy in August of 2006. After two reconstructive procedures she says she's feeling better then ever. Shop All Grill Charms™ HERE To learn more about the Breast Cancer Research Foundation follow this link: http://www.bcrfcure.org/