It is grilling time once
again, with July and August being the peak months for outdoor cooking
activity. Granted, I know at
least a couple of die hard individuals out there who insist on standing at a
grill just outside a gaping garage door during bone-chilling January just to
satiate their cravings for grilled meats sporting braised grids and dripping
with sweet and spicy sauce. In my
household, the grill typically gets shrouded and relegated into the shed for
the winter months, the last cookout occurring sometime in late October. By that time, huddling around the
warmth of the flames or sipping a glass of merlot around the fire pit while
Brian grills is usually requisite.
Whether enjoyed in the crisp and colorful months of autumn or during the
hazy days of summer, everyone loves a cookout. It is the nationwide quintessential American pastime that
symbolizes summertime. In recent
years, the fine culinary art of the grill has become more popularized than ever
by grilling gurus that include Steve Raichlen and Bobby Flay.
First established in the
southeastern United States, four key areas rival for the honor of boasting the
best barbecue: Texas, Memphis, Kansas City and North Carolina. Original barbecue technique called for
slow roasting pork over a wood platform for several hours. The result was tender meat laced with
the flavors of wood smoke. This
was barbecue. Not to be confused
with grilling. Grilling is what
most of us outdoor cooks perform.
Grilling basically means cooking food more expediently over a hot grill,
and the traditional barbecue flavors are imparted through additives such as
aromatic wood chips, cedar planks and flavorful ingredients for seasoning. Do not, under any circumstances,
confuse the two terms. Those who
participate in serious team competitions to strive for the best true barbecue
don’t like it! Food editors won’t
like it either. Many casual cooks
tend to use them interchangeably.
If a diehard Texas barbecue chef gets wind of such an uttered grievance,
the punishment will be swift banishment to a cell where you will be served
exclusively bread and water. The
bread will not be grilled Texas toast, either.
The aromatic tale of hickory
smoke, spices and tangy sauce entices and beckons, a mouthwatering invitation
for outdoor gathering. Cooking,
dining and socializing outdoors is as casual and relaxing as entertaining can
get. A backyard cookout with a
select group of close friends and family is a regular occurrence in most
households. Larger affairs with
longer guest lists take to the local parks and beaches. Either option offers the perfect
atmosphere for social scene cookery.
The head chef who swelters at the grill gets a helping hand from a whole
crew of sous chefs. While he or
she craftily wields the tongs to turn the ribs, others are relegated to
contributing salads, sides, appetizers and desserts. There is often a designated bar tender who has been drafted
into duty as well. The proper carriage
while attending these functions is as follows: mingle and socialize with a
drink in one hand; the other hand must remain free to lend assistance in
cooking and, of course, nibbling.
All grilling involves
flaming action. However, the most
heated topic of debate among grill masters involves how the fire gets
started. Purists like my husband
swear by charcoal, insisting that this is the traditional method of grilling
and that gas grilling does not impart the same blackened, authentic grilled
appeal to the food. Gas grill
enthusiasts tout the instant gratification factor of simply pressing a button
and the grill is ready to go.
Perhaps gas grillers are more ravenous and to wait the extra fifteen
minutes could purge them into the throes of starvation. Guess it hasn’t yet occurred to them
that you do get to eat while the grill heats up too! Brian and I always enjoy a homemade dip or a cheese platter
or some other appetizer with a cool cocktail while waiting for the coals to
glow.
The next topic of debate
among barbecue chefs and grill masters alike surrounds the formula for perfect
barbecue sauce, and it is a formula that might leave some chemists
stumped. First there is the
decision of whether or not to create a tomato-based sauce, a mustard-based
sauce, or an Asian glaze. Then the
actual ingredients for each come into the arena. Even a mustard sauce spurns further discussion: do we want
painfully hot mustard sauce or milder variation with sweet nuances of honey? When it comes to traditional
barbecue sauces, sweeteners can mean brown sugar, molasses, honey, maple syrup
or the incorporation of fruit, as in peach preserves, blackberry jam or grape
jelly. Even beverages sometimes
get poured into the mixing pot, including any of the following: beer, tequila,
whiskey or bourbon and even coffee.
When barbecue originated,
pork was primary meat used.
Southern traditions like barbecued ribs, pulled pork and pork chops all
graced the menu. Beef followed,
hitting the grill in the form of hot dogs, burgers, steaks and brisket. Today, no meat is excluded from the
searing grill top. Chicken, duck,
fish and seafood all get their chance to shine. Grilled vegetables are a healthy side dish alternative, from
eggplant rounds to skewered cherry tomatoes to slices of zucchini. Even fruits have earned a supporting
role on the grill, from grilled peaches to garnish a pork chop to grilled
pineapple served with vanilla ice cream for dessert.
Just as within our kitchens,
international flavors have been embraced in our outdoor cooking projects as we
welcome the spices and marinades from every continent. Moroccan spice rubs, Mexican salsas and
Asian marinades have all transformed our grilled meats into flavorful entrees.
The abundance of corn, which
grew ideally in the humid southern climate, gave rise to corn bread as the
favored accompaniment in the originating barbecue setting. Today, the traditional outdoor cooking side dish of grilled
corn on the cob, slathered with butter, remains a perpetual favorite. Spiced butters can be mixed to lend the
corn an added facet of flavor, tailored to echo the ethnic flavors of the entrée. Try butter with finely grated lime zest
and chili powder for a southwestern flare.
Potato salad, Cole slaw and macaroni
salads are traditional outdoor menu standards. While a basic potato salad containing hard boiled eggs,
celery and onion is an old fashioned charm that promises to be satisfying and
delicious, potato salads have evolved to include an infinite array of
ingredients, from blue potatoes to blue cheese, bacon, nuts, green beans,
etc. For one example, try my
recipe for this variation, a Smokey Potato Salad with Blue Cheese and Pecans
Cole slaw has been
reinvented from the ubiquitous cabbage and carrot mixture to include a host of
other ingredients as well. One of
my favorite side dishes for an Asian seasoned grilled meat entrée is an Asian
slaw, made with long shreds of broccoli stems and carrots, plus bean sprouts,
scallions, red pepper, an Asian sesame vinaigrette and a handful of peanuts,
cashews or crunchy wasabi peas. I
have seen fall Cole slaws that contain shredded fennel and apples, plus walnuts
and sometimes dried cranberries in addition to the cabbage and carrots. The longer ingredient lists of most
newer Cole slaw incarnations benefit from lighter, vinaigrette type dressings
that won’t smother the flavorful salad.
Appetizers can be conjured
on the grill. Examples include
bruschetta with prosciutto, peppers and mozzarella, grilled shrimp for plunging
into cocktail sauce, and chicken satay served with the traditional Indonesian
peanut sauce.
There have been some
unexpected new surprises to come off the grill, one of them being pizza. A couple of years ago I embarked on
producing a pizza on the grill. It
was amazingly quick and so good.
Have a tray with all of the toppings ready grill side. Toss the pizza crust dough on the
grill, wait a minute, flip it.
Immediately and quickly arrange all of the toppings on the crust and
close the lid of the grill. The activity
level during that thirty seconds of topping the pie is performed at a frenetic
pace. However, once your close the
lid, wait one minute, open the lid and voila! A perfect pizza ready to eat, dinner in THREE minutes!
Next time you fire up the
grill, throw another shrimp on the barbie, grab yourself a good cold craft
brew, and then whip up Brian’s simple barbecue sauce to paint over chicken,
ribs or chops. Serve that up hot
with some grilled corn on the cob and that potato salad in the aforementioned
link and you’ve got a winning barbecue dinner to feast off of.
Brian’s
Smoke n Whiskey Barbecue Sauce
Ingredients:
2 12-ounce bottles chili
sauce
½ cup brown sugar
1 cup white wine vinegar
2 6-ounce cans tomato
paste
4 tablespoons Jack Daniels
Whiskey
4 teaspoons liquid smoke
salt and pepper to taste
Hot Sauce to taste (we
like it hot! Brian used about 6 tablespoons)
Combine all ingredients in
a medium pot over medium-high heat.
Bring to a boil. As soon as
the mixture begins to boil, reduce heat and simmer for ten minutes. Makes 3 cups of barbecue sauce.
This sauce is so quick to
make, very easy, no chopping involved.
It is the most basic sauce, containing the tomato factor (the chili
sauce), the sweetener (brown sugar), the sour facet (the vinegar) and a thickener
(tomato paste). The flavor enhancements
for this sauce come from the liquid smoke, whiskey and hot sauce. This sauce is versatile, it will work
on grilled ribs, chicken and pork chops.
Tools
of the Trade
Just as a surgeon proudly
picks up scalpels and hemostats and forceps from a surgical instrument tray in
order to deftly carry out an operation, the devoted grill master welcomes the
assist of a good set of barbecue tools.
There are entire sets available, packaged in tool cases of their own, or
pieces can be purchased individually.
If you can splurge, it’s actually more beneficial to buy separate tools
of better quality, piecing together your own set to suit your needs. Stick to tools that are made
exclusively from metal, they will be more durable in the elements of extreme
heat and flame flare-ups. The
tools should be specifically designed for grill use; they will have extra long
handles to keep a safer distance between your hands and the food that is being
tended. Basic necessities include
a spatula, a meat fork, tongs and at least two brushes for sauces and seasoned
oils – yes, there will be meals when you will need more than one. Tongs should have teeth in the design
in order to better grip the food that is being turned; otherwise your hovering and
eager golden retriever will end up enjoying the rib that slipped off onto the
ground (sorry, puppy, not good for you!).
When it comes to skewers, stick to flat variations so that the shrimp or
cherry tomatoes don’t spin every time you go to flip the kebab. Personally, I like those packages of
long, disposable wooden skewers that can be found in most supermarkets in the
seasonal section when grilling accessories are displayed. You simply soak the skewers in a pan of
water for the day, thread them with the food to be cooked, toss them away after
dinner. Soaking the skewers
prevents creating an additional fire, and the non-slippery wood surface
prevents the spinning foods that don’t end up cooking evenly. If you like to sauté veggies or simmer
sauces at the grill, a cast iron skillet and a small cast iron saucepan will
also be valuable.
