This year, the San Jose Earthquakes have partnered with Bay Area Self Storage to ask players one question: What item don't they have room for, but can't live without?
SJEarthquakes.com sat down with goalkeeper Jon Busch to talk about his item of choice: His barbeque.
SJEArthquakes.com: What is your favorite thing to BBQ and Why?
Jon Busch: Usually for me, I like chicken and peppers. I like to put the peppers in aluminum foil and put a little balsamic vinegar or some Paul Newman’s on there and barbeque up. It’s quite tasty.
SJEQ: What is your favorite marinade?
JB: Balsamic vinegar is my favorite. It’s easy and it adds a really good flavor to whatever you are cooking. You can’t go wrong with it.
SJEQ: What is the most obscure or weirdest thing you have ever barbequed?
JB: I don’t get out of my box too often when it comes to barbequing. Once we grilled up some asparagus, but that was about as obscure or out of my comfort zone as I was willing to go. I am not too adventurous; I like to keep it simple.
SJEQ: What is your preference: Gas or charcoal? What brand do you prefer and for what reason?
JB: I have a propane grill. They are easy to start and there is less time between prepping the food, cooking the food and eating the food. No having to warm up the charcoals or whatever. And my favorite brand is Weber. It's just a good quality grill.
SJEQ: What do you like to do while you bbq?
JB: Usually we barbeque with the neighbors. I'm out there with a beverage of some sort in one hand and my handy spatula in the other.
SJEQ: Do wear a quirky outfit while you BBQ?
JB: No, no quirky outfit. I am not like Chef Ramsay or anything. I have to stay within myself. Can’t get too crazy while you're at the grill, don’t want anything to get in my way.
SJEQ: What side dishes do you like the most?
JB: We pretty much do anything and everything. Broccoli and corn on the cob are two of the most popular. For me, I love peppers. Whether it’s red peppers, yellow peppers or green peppers, the more the merrier. It’s usually a safe bet to assume I've got peppers cooking.
SJEQ: Who would you invite to a summer BBQ and why?
JB: Mark Messier, Michael Jordon and Steven Lenhart. Mark Messier because to me he was an amazing leader for so many years and so many teams. He is a legend in the hockey world. Michael because he was the similar thing, but in the basketball world. And Lenny because Lenny makes anything interesting. You could be anywhere at any time and he will make it interesting. He would spice it up that’s for sure.
SJEQ: Have you ever had a BBQ mishap or disaster?
JB: Yeah. it was a choice of saving the beverage falling or saving the chicken. I made the split second decision to save the beverage. So unfortunately we didn’t have any chicken that night.”
SJEQ: Be honest - does your wife enjoy your barbequing?
JB: She does, she is a big fan, a huge fan! She's like me; she is pretty easy going, some chicken, beef, fish or whatever. She knows that I can’t get too complicated, so she doesn’t make it too complicated on me.
SJEQ: What is your best dish to BBQ?
JB: I would say my steaks or chicken. Those are my go to dishes. It’s hard for me to mess either of those two up.
SJEQ: How often do you BBQ?
JB: Unfortunately not at all here because we don’t have room for it back at our apartment. But back in the day when we had the house in Columbus, it was every Sunday. Every Sunday afternoon we would have the neighbors over and some of the boys on the team would come over. We would grill out in the afternoon and hang out on the back patio. That’s my favorite place to cook. It was every Sunday as long as the weather was good and allowed us too.
SJEQ: How did you learn to barbeque? Are you picking up any tips from the Food Network?
JB: I figured it out as I went. I didn’t blow anything up so life was good. The only thing I like to watch is Hell's Kitchen because I like to watch Chef Ramsay yell at people. But I don’t really watch any of the Food Network shows.
SJEQ: How do you think you would fare in a BBQ throw down with one of those guys from the Food Network?
JB: No chance. It wouldn’t even be close, I would be too focused on what they were cooking and wanting some to worry about what I was trying to cook on my own grill. Those guys are pros when it comes to cooking so I will stick to cooking on my patio for friends and my wife.
