The Perfect Barbecue Guide

 everyone, whether novice or experienced home chef needs a good barbecue guide. Barbecuing is  very different than indoor cooking. There are different aspects to consider, like temp and cooking time. Luckily there is a guide to use this summer.

Regular contributor and barbecue master , Steven Raichlen wrote about everything grilled  in today's New York Times Food section. This is a must save. Chef Raichlen who has created amazing dishes on his PBS TV show first explains how to start and heat a grill. There will b e glowing embers in fifteen to twenty minutes of time without the addition of lighter fluid. It's building a tiered fire to control the hear. You should rake the coals into a thicker layer at the endof the grill. This is the searing zone. Have atinner layer in the middle which will be your cooking zone.It's then leaving no coals in the front third of the grill. This is your safety zone.If you have a gas grill. set one burner on high and one on medium,Keep one burner free to become your safety zone.If your grill lacks a third burner then use your warming rack as your safety zone. All this is possible if you have a clean grate. If;not it's time for a good cleaning. Chef Raichlen recommneds  cleaning hot grates with a stiff wire brush. A better tool is a wooden scraper which eliminates the risk of accidentally ingesting a loose bristle. Also oil it.It minimizes sticking and gives you better grill marks. Use a tightly folded paper towel dipped in oil to do this. You can also use a chunk of bacon, steak fat or even an onion for this.

The most perfect steak comes from cooking evenly and accurately. Leave at least one inch between each piece of food for better heat circulation, Leave about twenty-five of your grill free of food so you have space to manuever and doge flare ups. Definitely use an instant read meat thermometer to check for doneness.Insert it through the side of a burger or chicken breast not through the top to get an accurate reading. Afterwards let the meat rest. Transfer over to a sheet pan to prevent the bottms getting soggy or directly onto a  platter or plate,wait a minute before serving. This allows the meat to relax  and the juices to redistribute.Thid goves you a juicier, more tender cut. Chef Raichlen also gives some tasty recipesThey run the gamut from steak to pork to hamburgers. grillers will like the variety of the barbecued chicken and salmon. Any of these can be made for a weekend dinner or part of an outdoor party. The grilled steak has a comboof bourbon and maple syrup on it while the chicken is covered in herbs.

It's grilling season. Use thsi guide and recipes to create tasty barbecues. They're a wonderful way to start the summer.

Grill Those Veggies

 It's grilling season and that means plenty of dogs and burgers along with chicken steak, and seafood on the barbecue. Yet it also means veggies too. There's nothing like a nice side of grilled asparagus or fresh from the coals corn. Any veggie, even an avocado can be turned into a barbecue delight.

Steven Raichlen, the man most associated with the PBS favorites Primal Grill and Barbecue University wrote this informative guide in yesterday's New York Times Food section. Chef Raichlen is usually associated with grilling all things meaty  however here he goes for all things veggie. Like grilling any kind of meat or seafood , cooking and cooking times vary. What works for sturdy cauliflower will nor work for delicate asparagus and vice versa. Chef Raichlen breaks them down into categories which will make for easier grilling and more delicious dishes. There is also direct and indirect grilling. The first is perfect for soft vegetables such as mushrooms and zucchini along with bok choy and kale . Indirect grilling is done for meatier veggies like cauliflower or potatoes, both Idaho and sweet. It's cooking them in a closed grill (like the Egg) over a medium heat.

Chef Raichlen also includes some recipes as well. There is a delicious grilled zucchini that's also pretty.It's slicing the zucchini on a mandolin outfitted with a finger guard. This will turn the gourd into ribbons and then pushed onto wood or metal skewers . They should resemble old fashioned ribbon candy. Oil the grill with vegetable oil first to prevent sticking. You can add barbecue butter .a tasty blend of melted butter, barbecue rub or spice mix ,garlic and lemon zest. This would be a great side with chicken. Another recipe calls for corn with sesame soy butter. The butter is a mix of melted butter, sesame oil, soy sauce, and mirin or honey.  The cobs should have their ends cut off on one end while the husks should be pulled down and then tied with butcher's string. They're then basted with the soy sesame butter and browned three minutes on all side. After they're cooked, baste with more butter nad sprinkle with sesame seeds and chives.

It is grilling season but instead of meat try veggies. They're a nice side or change up from the usual chops or wings. Get some green on the barbecue this summer.

Those Smoking Hams

 One of the joys of any Easter dinner is a smoked ham. The flavor is a perfect blend of earthy and sweet, a great foil for asparagus. Surprisingly you can make it at home.

Steven Raichlen, grill master extrordinaire and host of the very popular PBS show Project Fire wrote this article and how to in yesterday's New York Times Food section. Keep in mind if you do want to do this, you have a short window of time because curing does take six days and Easter is only ten days away. You could do this for small family gathering later on in the season. The method is for a wet cure  not a dry cure one. Dry cured hams are rubbed with salts and left to dry for several months , resulting in a tight satiny texture and complex flavor associated with prosciutto and the Spanish jamon serrano, the last costing up to $1000. Wet cured ham, soaks in a mix of water,  salt, and sodium nitrate. The last you can buy on line from the Sausage Maker or Hoosier Hill Farm. Then there's the equipment,  Use either a stockpot , bucket or even a three gallon resealable plastic bag. There's also a marinade injector which gets all the meat cured and juicy. Then there's the actual smoking You can use a kettle style grill or charcoal burning one with a lid. The wood chips are what make the flavor. Chef Raichlen recommends using apple or hickory.

What about the cut used? A shoulder ham is recommended simply because it's small and can accommodate a smaller gathering of people. This is the easiest to smoke and cure in a week . You can also do this to a pork loin (which Chef Raichlen offers a recipe for , complete with a cognac orange glaze). As for the brine he adds a spice bundle of cloves, allspice berries,bay leaves, lemon zest strips and whole black peppercorns. The actual brine is made from water, Morton Kosher salt, honey , dark brown sugar and Prague powder #1 , the sodium nitrate needed. The brine is first made and then the spice bundle is added. As this is all boiling , the ham is prepared ,its' exterior scored with a sharp knife. The ham is placed with the brine in the roasting pot.It's also injected with it and then placed in the fridge for at least three days. The meat will take on a pinkish hue after three days of brining and being injected. It's now ready to be smoked. Set the grill temp at 250 degrees Farenheit, and put it on indirect heat. Put the ham on the grate fat side up and cook until it's handsomely brown and cooked through. It'll take seven hours. Keep adding wood chips to produce a steady stream of steam. evenly rotate the meat so it's nicely browned all over. drape it loosely with foil if it's browning too much.

Home cured ham for Easter is a real treat. Any ambitious home chef can cook this and have a memorable holiday meal. It's a delicious treat perfect for the season.

A Spin On Southern Barbecue

Kentucky is known for many things - hot browns from Louisville,bourbon from the various distilleries across the state and their version of barbecue - well sort of barbecue. This fiery bite of pork shoulder is only known in the mid and southern part of the state - but it is catching on quick.

Steven Raichlen , the king of American barbecue and host/chef of such PBS shows as Barbecue University, Primal Grill, Project Fire , and Project Smoke wrote bout this variation of barbecue for today's New York Times Food section. He went to southern Kentucky to try this tasty and tongue searing roast.It does have roots, as other barbecues, in colonial America  where traditional barbecue was a favorite of George Washington and originated with the cooking of the enslaved. However this one is different from other roasts . There's no chopping or shredding. The meat isn't slow smoked.It does require to be thinly sliced and then put into the freezer before slicing.The meat also needs an electric bandsaw - a mean looking cutter that was a regular fixture in butcher shops until the Twentieth Century. As for the dip, that's unique too to Monroe County too. According to Anita Hamilton Bartlett, owner and chef at her restaurant,R&S Barbecue, her grandfather had told her that the recipe came from an old enslaved camp in Cave City, where his ancestors were enslaved. It's an hour northwest of them but the recipe probably migrated south as people searched for better lives. The most perplexing question is why pork shoulder.It could have originated in farm country. Pork shoulder is quick to cook and calorie dense , perfect for hungry field hands after a day of picking tobacco leaves.

The sauce is what makes it, although the pork shoulder on its' own would be delicious. The dip is made first, with distilled white vinegar,cayenne pepper, and kosher salt. Ketchup and mustard are also added along with butter and lard - yes lard. Home grillers may balk at the large amount of butter - two sticks - and half a cup of lard used.According to Mr. Raichlen it is vital to the recipe. Lard reinforces that sweet porky flavor along with keeping the steaks rich and moist.He also recommends subbing in more (!) butter if lard isn't available. The true recipe has brown vinegar which is merely distilled vinegar with caramel coloring. The barbecue sauce is cooked over a stove top and will be slathered onto the meat whilei t's still hot. Take out the grill if it's been put away for the season. The pork shoulder will be cooked on a grill oiled with vegetable oil. It's then taken off the grate and dunked in the sauce and finished grilling about three to five minutes each side. Do a second dunking with the cookd meat and served with a side of sauce. There's also a BBQ egg recipe which is pickling hard boiled eggs in the barbecue sauce for a week in the fridge. The butter and lard will congeal into a crust. Break this and drain the sauce. The extra sauce can be reheated and used for pork, chicken or steak.

This tasty variation of barbecue is a nice change up from regular ones. It may be fiery but it's a great chill chaser on an autumn night.Try it for a different spin and for a flavor that's both spicy and rich.

The Old Fashioned Way Of Grilling

Before charcoal there was wood.It stoked the home fires and cooked deliciously flavored meats.Now it's coming back thanks to a new generation of home grillers. They 're discovering that a few chips or sticks can make a big difference in a barbecue's success.

Steven Raichlen,  the host of the  shows Primal Grill and Project Smoke and  the guru on anything smoked wrote this in depth article for yesterday's New York Times Food section.As he points out this new trend is nothing new. Wolfgang Puck and Alice Waters have been using wood fuel for decades.This new generation of chefs are embracing it with an almost religious zeal. A growing number of home cooks are also making the switch. Grilling over wood is healthier and won't raise the  risk of getting cancer.The other plus is the taste.It comes from the high dry heat of a wood fire which caramelizes proteins in meat and the plants sugars in fruits and vegetables. Another plus is wood smoke contains more than a thousand flavor producing compounds., according to Dr. Nathan Myhrvold, once a Microsoft executive and now promotes modernist cooking. The list of chemicals include creosol which gives Scotch whiskey it's smoky peaty taste , syringol, responsible for the clovelike flavors and vanillin - the source of the vanilla sweetness in smoke. It's much more effective than charcoal in flavoring meats, However, he warns avoid evergreens like spruces and pines which emit a black, sooty smoke that has the repulsive taste of turpentine.

Before home chefs get on the wood bandwagon, there are a few things to keep in mind. According to another grilling expert, Aaron Franklin, use one kind of wood  When you mix wood, you really can't pinpoint the flavor. Keep in mind that different regions of this country use different woods that actually define then. Southerners use hickory, which is always associated with their outdoor cooking. The Southwest  along with Hawaii and Northern Mexico uses mesquite which not only gives grilled meat a distinctive flavor but also provides the added fun of pyrotechnic sparks. The Pacific Northwest has a fondness for cherry and alder. Any fruit tree will do. Home grillers should use split seasoned, appropriate logs (or hearty sticks). They should be between ten and twelve inches long and  two to three inches wide. Use seasoned, older wood instead of younger or green wood because it burns more effeciently. Also make sure it's split because it burns quicker. Grill affectionados may also want to get a parilla grill, This is a huge investment but worth it .It's basically building an outdoor kitchen in the backyard. You can also buy a smaller version from Home Depot or Lowe's.Wood grilling is also versatile. You can grill over flaming logs, like cooking on a campfire or over glowing embers like with a charcoal grill.

Wood grilling is a popular method for creating tasty barbecues. Try cooking over a fragrant wood for a delicious spin .It may be old school but it has a decidedly modern flavor.

Grill Season

This is the season - and weekend - for grilling. All over the US Webers and other brands will be cleaned, primed and prepped for endless dogs, burgers and ribs. The 4th of July seems like the easiest holiday meal to cook, yet it's not. There's a lot to cooking meat on a simple grill.

The New York Times Dining section handled this yesterday in a good should be cut out article by Dining regular, Steven Raichlen. He interviewed several chefs, gleaning their secrets on how to create the most flavorful and the most tender meats. After all grilling is the most primitive and basic of any cooking technique. It's wild and unpredictable, appealing to our savage side which is why we go mad for a spot at the barbecue. However it is cooking and should have a certain level of sophistication. Grilling sadly enough, cooks almost every meat and veg the same way, sometimes giving everything the same smoky flavor .Of course that changes with both the grill prep and food prep.

Sometimes all it takes is a minor change to make a barbecue memorable. This means switching from simple charcoal to wood chips. Most regular barbecuers use hickory however for real taste try cherry or apple wood chips. This imparts a sweetness to the meat without adding anything else. others such as Belgian chef , Peter DeClercq ofMaldegem's Elckerlicj adds broken staves of beer kegs along with a whole range of herbs and spices to his grilled meat. Others such as Spanish chef, Victor Arguinzoniz of Axpe Spain's Extebarri prefers to use calibrated heat and just simple olive oil for his simple grills. Home cooks can try these methods themselves to create a tasty meal for themselves and guests .

Before grilling look at what you have. Ask yourself how you can make it the best and most flavorful. Add a few wood chips or different spices to create a really unique and different grill everyone will love ..