Market Monday's Back as Outdoor Season Takes Off
Plus, you can make a smokin' bbq brisket without a smoker.
This Week’s Expanding Outdoor Market Schedule
For the second consecutive year, Green City Market dared the weather gods and kicked off our region’s outdoor market season on the first weekend of April. Fewer than a handful of other markets followed suit with April openings though. So the first full-on opening of the outdoor season begins this week.
Scroll through the schedule below and you’ll see some very familiar market names — and many more opportunities to buy delicious, super-fresh, sustainably produced local food and support our local farmers. The first May opening, on Tuesday at 7 a.m., is at Lincoln Square Farmers Market, which is as close to public transit as possible… it’s right below the L’s Western Brown Line stop (see photo above, from opening day 2021).
Tuesday, May 2
Lincoln Square Farmers Market, 7 a.m. to 12 p.m., Lincoln & Leland Aves., Chicago
The Farmer at the Green, 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., 320 S. Canal St., Chicago
Woodstock Farmers Market, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., Historic Woodstock Square
Wednesday, May 3
Green City Wednesday Market, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., 1817 N. Clark St., Lincoln Park, Chicago
Uptown Farmers Market, 2:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Sunnyside Mall (betw. Magnolia & Beacon), Chicago
Thursday, May 4
Growing Home Englewood Farm Stand, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., 1844 W. 59th St., Chicago
Lincoln Square Thursday Farmers Market, 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., Lincoln & Leland Aves., Chicago
Friday, May 5
St. Charles Farmers Market, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., Baker Memorial Church, 307 Cedar Ave.
Saturday, May 6
Division Street City Market, 7 a.m. to 12 p.m., 100 W. Division St., Chicago
Downtown Evanston Farmers Market, 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., University Place and Oak Ave.
Grayslake Farmers Market, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., 201 Center St.
Green City Market Lincoln Park, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., 1817 N. Clark St., Lincoln Park, Chicago
Green City Market West Loop, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., 1817 N. Clark St., Lincoln Park, Chicago
Kankakee Farmers Market, 8 a.m. to 12 p.m., S. Schuyler Ave. & Merchant St.
Park Forest Farmers Market, 7 a.m. to 12 p.m., 152 Main St.
Palatine Farmers Market, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., Palatine Train Station
The Lincoln Park Farmers Market, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., 2001 N. Orchard, Chicago
Woodstock Farmers Market, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., Historic Woodstock Square
Sunday, May 7
95th Street Farmers Market, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., 1835 W. 95th St., Chicago
Wicker Park Farmers Market, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., 1425 N. Damen Ave., Chicago
Smoker? We Don’t Need No Sticking Smoker
I like brisket barbecue a lot, but when I’ve eaten it, it has mostly been made by other people. Most bbq chefs make brisket by indirect heat on a grill or in a smoker. Living on the 30th floor of a highrise (and in apartments almost all my life), grilling and smoking meat is just not an option.
I have become a big fan of the regeneratively produced meats from 99 Counties, the mission-based Iowa company that delivers their products to homes throughout Chicagoland. I’d previously made delicious stews and pot roasts with their chuck roast cuts, so on a whim I ordered a 3-1/2 pound brisket.
Since I didn’t have much experience with this cut, I searched and found a recipe that looked pretty easy and potentially very tasty. It started with creating a dry rub made from brown sugar and several herbs and spices. This was applied to the meat and left in the fridge overnight. Brisket is a relatively tough cut and needs to be slow cooked, so it went in the oven for about five hours — it’s ready when a fork goes in easily — either in a covered pan (what I did) or wrapped in foil.
[Note: I cooked this in my all-purpose Breville convection oven. Cooking time may vary depending on what equipment you use.]
The barbecue sauce recipe that came with the brisket recipe looked great but was complicated, so I located a super-easy recipe on the New York Times Cooking site. It took a total of about 15 minutes to prepare, and is so good it may become a household staple. I applied the sauce to the meat only for the final half hour of cooking, when the pan was uncovered.
That’s a photo of the finished product above. Dark and crusty on the outside, tender and juicy inside. The photo below is of some of the sliced meat with sauce.
Oh, and yesterday I placed another 99 Counties order. It includes another brisket.