Thursday, March 10, 2005

Fire it up

As I have said earlier, Smoky Hale is the definitive voice of barbecue and grill skills. I'm gonna post a few tidbits and if anyone is interested in the Whys? or following up, drop a comment or buy the book. Again, BUY HIS BOOK.

  • If you marinate your steaks for grillin, always let them dry completely before placing on the grill.
  • Water smokers are for those who don't know what a vent is and have unlimited amounts of money to spend on fuel.
  • Never cook over an open flame unless using lump charcoal.
  • Know the difference between basting and finishing sauces. Big difference.
  • It's impossible to barbecue on a gas grill.
  • Use water as a last resort to control flare-ups. And for God's sake, no pitchers of water at the grill unless for mixing an adult beverage.
  • Obvious, but needs saying and repeating over and over. Not everything cooks at the same temperature and for the same amount of time. Know your cuts.
  • Baby back ribs are not barbecue.

There. That oughta get some reaction or else this is the new food Bible.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

whaaa! and i was about to ask where tofu falls in the bbq handbook! does smoky hale allow for grillin' do gan? and would you please give me a little more info on the difference b/w basting and finishing sauces? i'm intrigued...

J-hole said...

Dearest Sandy,

Smoky don't have much to say about tofu but he does have good suggestions about other veggies such as eggplant,tomatoes,salads,slaws and beans. You could probably treat do gan like button mushrooms on the grill.

Basting sauces add flavor,protect more delicate foods and create a nice seal for the inside juices instead of a hard crust. While basting sauces are used every time, finishing sauces are not.They can enhance flavor and appearance.They are put on when the food is almost finished. Otherwise, they will leave a black char and undercooked meat underneath. Most commercial sauces like KC Masterpiece are finishing sauces

Red A said...

Dude, enough already, get your grill going for this week-end.

Bread said...

so a basting sauce should have no sugared elements or what? more details necessary on what's actually in the two sauces