Fire up the Grill for Memorial Day

I heard on the radio this morning that 78% of Americans grill on Memorial Day. Keith Todd on 105.7 out of Statesville, NC shared that little tidbit. He also said that steak was the top pick for grilling followed by hamburgers.

If you're firing up the grill today, then you ought to check out my Grill Web Site. I've been working my space for close a year now and have a good collection of recipes, tips, and product information.

It may be a little late to pick up a chimney starter, but that's my top pick of the grilling accessories for the year (if your're using charocal). You would not believe what a difference it makes in getting charcoal or wood chips started. I'd considered getting one for quite a while. After I did, I kicked myself for waiting so long.

Now, I need to decide what we want to toss on the grill. Decisions. Decisions.

Where is your SPECIAL barbecue spot?

I know most folks hit the porch, deck or back yard when it comes to outdoor cooking. No shame there. You work with your environment.

But, if you have a some mileage on you, then you probably remember some of the more rustic outdoor fun. Maybe it was some fire cooking with Scouts or maybe with family off the beaten tracks. There was a time when "leave no trace" was not a thought or concern. You just struck the match and stuck the meat on a stick. It was all good in the best sense of it.

I revisited one of my favorite spots for that sort of old time fun this week. After a hard day of clearing brush, it was just natural to burn off the excess and make it a party. Hot dogs were rather the meat of choice, since it's hard to keep most other meats on a stick (or coat hanger--the metal type).

Actually, I made sandwiches and carried in this time. But, I remembered all those nights after working hard when the reward was meat on a stick and going to bed drop dead tired and full.

It's mostly a different world now. My town still asks that we burn off brush, but I expect that to change in the near future. Coat hangers are mostly plastic now. That sure won't work for a brush barbeque. And, trees are not so plentiful these days, so a quick green stick is harder and harder to find.

All that doesn't change the memories. I can always go back to the family farm even with sandwiches and drift off in time to when work and food were connected and when it wasn't a sin to stick a weiner over a fire on your own land and skip the kitchen altogether.

Grilled Cheese Potatoes - NO - I don't think so.

Don't you just hate when you find a recipe that sounds heavenly; then, you make it up, and it's just a mess.

Sure. There are cooking errors to factor in. But, there are times you just KNOW the person never made the dish and just pumped out some junk to get readers. There is just no way the dish could work. The idea sounds good, but it's just not going to work out no matter how good you are at cooking.

Tonight, I decided to try some jazzier tin foil potato packs on the grill. I found a recipe online that had cheese and bacon. Yum. That sounded like a good side dish. We have some great potato recipes including my traditional potato tin foil packs and even potato slices right on the grill, but I wanted something new, different and extra special.

What a mess! You can see in my photo exactly what I'm talking about.

When I got to thinking about it, I should have known better than to put cheese in foil packs. Foil packs are basically a baking method. I'd know better than to throw potatoes in a baking dish with a little cheese and butter. There's just not enough liquid there.

What happened here was that the cheese (which is soft) melted and then burned to the tin foil as the potatoes were cooking. It takes a good while to cook potatoes. So, even with butter in there, the cheese just cooks way too fast to be in there with a root vegetable.

We were able to salvage some of the potato side dish. It was not easy. It was not pretty. And, it didn't even taste that good. The cheese that did manage to hide between potato slices was kind of rubbery. Ugh.

I guess the moral of the story is to get your recipes from someone who knows what they're talking about. Anyone can write up or post a recipe of random items that sound good. That doesn't mean that the recipe will work out.

All my recipes at G&H Barbeque Master are right from my grill with photos in many cases. You better bet you won't see cheese potato tin foil packs on my space. I don't set my readers up for failure before they even get started.

Free Recipe Magazine - Summer Outdoor Issue Out

My free summer edition Kraft Food and Family magazine arrived, and I was thrilled to see that the focus is on outdoor cooking. "Kick Back and Relax--50+ Recipes for Grilling and Chilling" is stretched right across the cover.

This issue has loads of ideas for the grill including some of my favorites like steak and corn on the cob. There are also some delicious looking side dishes. I've got my eye on the Light Lime Chiffon Pie. That looks great.

I found out about the free Kraft magzine from my friend Robin in her Fresh Cooking from the Garden blog. Be sure to check her out. She always has something good to share. I enjoy fixing her dishes to go along with my barbecue.

I thought the Kraft mag would be a little booklet, but it's a full scale magazine. It comes out quarterly. Just go to Kraft and look under "Daily Dish." You can also find loads of recipes right there on the site and also can sign up for email if you like electronic info better than mail info.

There are no strings with this wonderful freebie. I'm on my second quarterly issue. Kraft does email to let me know it's on the way, but they don't spam my box. I'm mightily impressed. I think you will be too.

Mobile Concessions - Barbecue on the Road

I always love to talk to barbecue chefs, and it was great fun hooking up with Dennis Correll at the town festival. He was loading ribs, burgers, and pork chops on a custom industrial cooker out of South Carolina. Now, that's a grill I can tell you. Would have made me drool even if it hadn't been covered with meat.

The Corrells don't barbeque full-time, but they do hit the festival circuit from time to time and also are glad to cater for parties. The young lady handling the french fries said they had a party for 200 coming up soon. Wish I had an invitation to that.

Mobile Conessions is based out of Salisbury, NC. The owner is George Correll. If you live anywhere near the area and need to feed a big crowd, give him a call at 704-636-5430.

I had the ribs. They are huge slabs and Dennis gets them done to perfection--tender and smoky. They sauce them up with a tomato based mix that is mild. Some of the die-hard BBQ folks spice ribs up big times, but when you're looking at feeding a group with a range of taste buds, these will be perfect. Just hand the "hot" lovers a bottle of tobasco sauce.

I'd also note the slaw. It was a nice southern cabbage mix with tomato chunks. I'm not a super big fan of cole slaw, but this was very tasty.

Support the Troops One Box at a Time - Small Town Style

While I was at the town festival enjoying the funnel cakes and later the barbecue, I ran across Malinda. Well, I saw Curly sitting there at the table, so I had to drop by. Curly is one of my favorite women folks around these parts.

The women were taking donations for "Operation Troop Support." This is a true grassroots effort. They don't even have a sponsor--just the good folks of the community. That's plenty though. They've sent out over 1500 pounds of gift boxes to our troops.

Lots of people in the community help out on collecting supplies to send. Others, like today, kick in a few bucks here and there to help with the mailing costs (which we all know have gone up again). I, of course, hit the jar with a little to help out. If every person at the festival today put in the change from their pockets, well, you know, that would cover a lot of boxes to our men and women serving overseas.

Malinda and Curly were also gathering names and addresses for the care packages. My boys' uncle is on his third tour over to Iraq, so I put his name down and will email his address. I had to come home to get my hands on that.

If you have a loved one over in Iraq or know a military member needing support, then email Malinda at hobosclan@aol.com As long as she has things to send (and she'll find stuff if she doesn't), then you can be sure that packages will go out. Let her know your special person's name and address. And, give her a big thanks for doing this. A lot of people talk about helping out. She steps up and really does something.

I know that many people do not support the War. That's fine. But, the young men and women over there are doing their jobs. I think most people do recognize that. If you want to help out too, then also let Malinda know. I am sure she will find a way for you to pitch in.

I really hate that I can't cook up a bunch of ribs or beer butt chickens and pack them out. I've seen those rations in the brown sealed bags. Ugh. No slam on the people who come up with these field meals, but even they, I am sure, would say it's not home cooking. I hope that my boys' uncle comes home safe and sound. I'll cook up a feast, because that's the least I can do. And, I'll keep supporting the hometown boxes and the time, work, and effort that goes into coordinating this big project straight from the heart.

Small Town Festivals, Barbecue, and Funnel Cakes

We had our local town festival today. In a town of 800 people, it's really more like a family reunion. Of course, some folks drop in from town (the county seat) and around, so the population probably triples here on festival day.

One of the big draws today was the Funnel Cake booth. It's hard to beat a funnel cake after a good plate of barbecue. But, these were extra special funnel cakes. Instead of the usual fried dough with powdered sugar (yum), you could top these off with all kinds of fruit and with cinnamon.

I must confess that we hit the funnel cakes BEFORE the barbeque. I'm as bad as the kids. Life is short, and dessert is a necessity and not a luxury.

Bernadine was manning the fryer, and we got to chat a bit. She told me that they had driven down from Kings Mountain, North Carolina. Someone gave them "back road" directions, so they ended up out in the middle of nowhere. Of course, this town is the middle of nowhere too. But, they were in the wrong nowhere. In any case, someone helped, and they managed to make it over.

Shawn is the owner, and he's in the background in the photo. Shy guy he is. That's OK. He has a great product and a friendly front gal. If he wants to duck and run when the camera comes out, then that's fine. My boys do the same.

If you're looking for traveling food vendors, then check out The World's Best Funnel Cake. Yep. They really have a web site. That's rather the exception at small town festivals. I'm glad they came out and gave us a look and a taste of the funnel cakes. Hopefully, they'll be back next year.

Food Lion Grill Guy and Summer Cookout Giveaway

Today, I saw the Grill Guy out in front of Food Lion. He was handing out free samples of rib eye steak hot off the grill. So, naturally I had to stop and gab (and try out the steak).

The Grill Guy’s name is Rick Dobrowski, and he is traveling around all summer in a big truck and setting up grill stops to promote Food Lion’s Butcher’s Brand meat. I started to ask him if he needed a sidekick, because that sounds like a heavenly way to spend the summer. I never see jobs that say: NEEDED – person to grill and travel.

While I was at the grocery, I picked up the information on the Summer Cookout Giveaway. If you shop at Food Lion 4 of 7 weeks and spend $45 or more on each of the visits, then you get a coupon for $15 for your 4th of July cookout (good on any food items). That starts this week (May 17) and runs through July 4. Weeks run from Wednesday to Wednesday just as the sales run at the store.

Food Lion is a southern chain in eleven states and is based out of my hometown. They are the food store that helped drive down grocery store prices years ago by buying and selling in bulk. They still come in with great prices and excellent sales especially if you sign up for the store MVP card. You’ll need the MVP card to take advantage of the summer special I mentioned.

Hopefully you’ll run across the Grill Guy and stop and chat. He’s got some great tips on outdoor cooking. If you don’t see him, then just visit Barbeque Master at Garden and Hearth where I have loads of information on grilling, smoking, and other outdoor cooking.

Barbecue and Politics Don't Mix Well in North Carolina

Well, shut my mouth. The barbecue folks in North Carolina are stirred up. Seems some state legistator decided to slide through a bill to make Lexington, NC the official BBQ city of the state. The beach crowd didn't take too kindly to this. In fact, the Washington Post found the little in-state feud quite interesting and headed south to get the scoop.

If you're not from around these parts, then you probably wonder about all the fuss. Is barbecue really that big a deal? Yep. Sure is. Just stop at any Q joint in the state and ask who makes the best slow cooked pig. You will get an ear full (and a mouth full of "the best barbeque" to back it up).

It basically boils (or fires up) to ketchup vs. vinegar. Fans fall on one side or the other. As Dennis Rogers says in the Post article, "People who would put ketchup in the sauce they feed to innocent children are capable of most anything." He represents the eastern portion of NC.

Lexington is in the piedmont (not the west--that's the mountains). Don't go look that up. Piedmont just means the flat land between the mountains and the beach. The sauce in the piedmont is vinegar based with just a tad of tomato. That "tad" is enough though for the coastal dwellers to draw a line in the sand. Ask anyone from the piedmont if the barbecue is tomato based and they'll laugh and "set" you straight.

It's those people out in Kansas that lather meat up with ketchup--not the good people of central North Carolina. Just try slapping the bottom of the sauce bottle in the piedmont like you would a ketchup bottle, and you'll see. Your chopped pork sandwich will be floating like a boat. Of course, the sauce is the best part. So, no big deal.

The beach BBQ folks know that the piedmont folks don't use ketchup, but it makes for a good insult (sorry about that Kansas que cooks). Saying a sauce is ketchup base is about as bad as insulting someone's momma in this state. But, that's the best they can come up with out in the sandhills, since the slight color variation is the main obvious difference in the two cooking styles.

As for the taste, I'm not even going to go there. Don't talk politics, religion, or barbecue in North Carolina unless you have all day and nerves of steel.

Nice weather we're having, by the way. Good day for a "fill in the blank."

Something fishy to think about.

Man (or woman) can't live by bread alone, and I'd say the same thing about meat--even grilled meat. Love it. But, anything gets old if it's not spaced out some. It's hard to beat a good steak, but I'd say that it would not be special if it was on the menu every night.

We'd been hitting the grill pretty hard lately, so I pulled out a can of Phillips Crab Meat. Now, that is even better than sliced bread. Why it was a problem to cut bread in the first place, I'm not sure. But you know how the saying goes. "Best thing since sliced bread."

Actually my Carolina Crab Cakes do require two slices of sliced bread, so I better not tick off the sliced bread folks. I'm glad I don't have to bake a loaf and then cut it up to make my crab cakes. Well, really they are not MY crab cakes. They're my Granny's. She has passed on, but she taught me how to make these before she went on to a better place.

Granny first gave me her recipe verbally with the old pinch and splash of this directions. Mine did not turn out near so tasty. So, I offered to help make them the next time and watched. My Granny's idea of a splash would be more like tablespoon. I played around with it and finally managed to figure out pretty close measurements. My Carolina Crab Cakes will never taste as good as Granny's, but nothing does when you have to do the cooking--if you know what I mean.

For you gas grill folks out there, use that side burner and make crab cakes to go along with grilled fish or steamed oysters on the grill. Have a REAL seafood fest. Charcoal can be trickier but can be done. You need to use a pan though and something like cast iron that will take the heat.

I'm more likely to do my Carolina Crab Cakes in the house. After all, the weather is not always good, and there are days when you're out of charcoal.

If you want a great potato salad to go with the crab cakes, then I shook down one of the church ladies for the Best Potato Salad Ever. I've never even been a big fan of potato salad, but I could eat a gallon of this stuff. Really super. If you want something a little easier, then my Super Easy Pasta Salad is just the ticket. It's impressive and folks will think you worked hard, but nope. Just throw a few things in the bowl and chill, and you have a wonderful side dish to go with seafood, grilled food or special holiday meals.

Beyond Barbecue - You need some sides dishes of course.

If I haven't put a few pounds on your frame with my Barbecue recipes, then buy some fat pants and check out my newest space at Garden and Hearth--Southern Cooking.

I have a few great side dishes like Best Ever Potato Salad in with my outdoor recipes. I was thrilled when I talked one of the local ladies out of that one. Some of the great southern cooks won't share their secrets. I'm not even big on potato salad, but that one totally rocked. In any case, it made sense to branch out with side dishes and desserts. After all, what's a cookout without the extras. Now, I can share all the family cooking secrets.

Of course, I'm really cooking like crazy now. This makes my boys very happy.

Strawberries are just coming in around here. And, they're even good for you. I love foods that both taste like heaven and don't clog my arteries--and those are rare I must add.

For a little sample, here's the strawberry pie we had this evening. It's so easy to make that even the kids can nail it, and it tastes great too. If you're close a refrigerator, then this one is perfect with a grilled out meal.

It's a Beer Butt Chicken day here!

Today we're making Beer Butt Chicken. My recipe is at Yes You Can Grill. That version is for the grill. It's quicker than smoking which is what we're doing today. If you decided to smoke your bird, then expect to spend between 4 and 5 hours cooking up the chicken. That sounds like a lot of time, but you just need to check the chicken every hour or two, so it's not as labor intensive at it sounds.

If you don't drink beer, you can use soda. It works out better to use regular rather than diet (for some reason). My pick is Pepsi, but yellow soft drinks work out well too.

For those rainy days when it's not fit to barbecue!

Not to worry. I'm not packing away my grill. But I have branched out and started writing about good old indoor cooking.

My newest site is Southern Cuisine at Suite 101. Suite 101 has been around 10 years now, and they are getting ready to launch with a whole new look. That should be some time this month or next (April-May 2006). I have no clue what they're doing with the space, so I guess we will all be surprised.

I have a couple of pieces up already including Fried Dandelion Blossoms and Electric Skillet Meat Loaf. If you stop by, be sure to check out my poll. I'll use feedback to help select upcoming recipes to share.

Pork Chops and Texas Toast on the Grill

Pork Chops Grilling - Will Add BBQ Sauce Near the End


The dad person wasn't the keen on the idea of slathering BBQ sauce on the pork chops. He's rather a pork purist as he grew up on a hog farm in Kansas. Hey, I'm easy. If someone else wants to grill, then whatever they want to try out is fine by me. I read some stats that suggested that more males grill, but the females decide on the menu and how the stuff is cooked. Come on girls. Let the guys play a bit. If it gets you out of the kitchen, then it's no skin off your nose. And, the fellows come up with some good stuff if you give them free rein.

Anyway, those were some massive chops. I know he used lemon pepper--a real staple for grillers. Other than that, I don't know and didn't ask. I'm not ruining a good thing. I'm glad the guys are doing some of the outdoor cooking. Gives me more time for writing and blogging. Plus, they're just darn fine. So the lesson of the day is: Don't micro-manage.

We had some Omaha Steak potatoes with the pork. I think they were called au gratin potatoes, but they tasted more like potato pancakes but a bit stiffer--in a ball shape. I did those in the oven while the guys manned the grill. My youngest son loves those, and we're definately buying some more.

To round out the meal, we had Texas Toast. Those come in the freezor section. You just toss them on the grill about the time the meat is done. Yum. They are tasty and especially with the char marks and the smoke flavor. It only takes a few minutes to heat up frozen Texas Toast. Check out the frozen section of the grocery and add some easy bread to your outdoor meal.

Great weekend for grilling - Burgers and beer

After a cold snap here in North Carolina, we've got a great weekend going. Naturally, I rummaged around in the freezor and pulled out some meat for grilling.

My oldest son wanted hamburgers, so that's what we cooked up last night. Generally I hand pat my burgers using the recipe I posted at Yes You Can Grill. Man, those are some killer burgers. I'm the official burger maker for our family gatherings. Some of the family men will buy the meat if I'll prepare it. I even had the same deal going in college. When the fellows wanted a good home cooked meal, they'd buy up the beans, and I'd cook.

This time, though, we had some burgers from Omaha Steak. They offer some good deals from time to time, so I've ordered from them several times. I'd give thumbs up on the meat and the service. The only note I'd make is that the portion sizes seem a tad small. Then again, we're from the south where food is always served super sized.

Tonight we're looking at making pork chops. My favorite way to do those on the grill is with barbecue sauce (put that on the last 5 minutes or so). That's another recipe I need to post up. Pork is a little trickier on the grill than beef, but it's delicious when you get it right.

We'll probably round out the weekend with steak. If you want to grill the perfect steak, then you've got to plan a bit ahead. The marination makes a huge difference. And, it's fine to use bottled Italian dressing.

In other news, we're getting tickets to see Jimmy Buffett. Yippee! If you've never been to a Buffett concert, then you're missing out. It's like one big family reunion--inluding all the very odd relatives. We always tailgate (as do most Parrot Heads). Hum, now to decide on what to cook when we hit the concert.

Peace, Love & Barbecue came in. I am doing the happy dance.

I had been waiting for "The Barbecue Bible" by Steven Raichlen to come in the mail.

It came.

Oh yes. I am a happy camper. Well, I don't actually like to camp. I always thought that was a form of torture designed by my parents to ruin my teenhood. I was the oldest, so we did not hit that circuit until I was over the age of "getting it" I think. The main things I remember about camping were that all the bugs ate me up, it rained and my baby sister put her feet on the tent causing leaks, and the camp stew gave me the runs. Oh well. I now have Scouts and must do this camping thing from time to time but still think it is not what it's cracked up to be--that sleeping under the stars. I like a bed, a pillow, and a real toilet. I especially like the toilet. Women were not designed to go behind trees.

Anyway, my new book looks interesting. It will take me a while to soak it up. It says "over 500 recipes" on the front, and it has 556 pages. Yep. That is looking like a bible or a doorstop. I may still be looking it over when the maker comes back for us all. It does appear to have everything I might even think about doing outside (that is legal) and includes all the ways every sort of person might barbeque, barbecue, or BBQ. I am going to be most busy.

My current favorite barbecue book is Peace, Love and Barbecue. I do need to warn you that you're looking at bbq as in smoking if you go with this book. So, if you're using a grill, then you will be in for a shock if you buy Peace and Love. It does tickle my fancy, because it has all kinds of cool stories, and I'm a sucker for good stories. That is my mountain heritage coming to the surface. I wouldn't even care if I ever smoked meat at all. I'd read the book. It's that neat. But, it's not a cookbook for grillers if you lean that way. It does look like Barbecue Bible would work for those grilling but also for most other outdoor cooking types. I'll have to get back with you all on that. But, it looks like a good bet (unless you like pictures). This is not a photo cooking book. You need some experience and/or imagination.

One of my editors sent me an email today. She said that my Beer Butt Chicken article was getting some notice. Seems some discussion group was linking that one up and talking about trying out the recipe. It appeared to be a British group as they were talking about shoving the beer can up the bum, and I don't think many folks on this side of the pond talk about bums. I could be wrong on that, but I just don't hear that around the States. Anyway, some of the women thought you had to go out and buy special equipment. NOPE. A can of beer, a chicken, and a grill (with a lid). This is not rocket science. But, it's sure good eating. It's hard to beat beer butt chicken.

I am thinking I should check again on that message board and tell them that they don't need to cut the can. Someone said something about cutting the beer can in half. Unless your chickens are really scrawny (like bitties), I sure don't see doing that. You drink the extra beer. Then you try cutting a can. You are going to end up at the ER. This sounds like a safety problem. Those English folks. They are making this too hard. They don't need to do a thing to the can. Just shove it in.

Now I will probably go down in history as the Beer Butt Chicken lady. I can just see my tombstone--Here lies Cyndi . . . she wrote lots of articles . . . but she is best known for telling the world that she sticks a can of beer where the sun don't shine up a chicken. The family will all be most proud I am sure (not). And, most of the rest of them don't even buy beer. Of course, most of the relatives don't ride a Harley either. But, that's another story for another day.

I must get myself to bed. The only reason to stay up way past dark is to watch a smoker or for a really fun party. Neither is happening here this evening. So, I will grab my Barbeque Bible, put on my flannels, and call it an evening.

Can you be a barbeque master and skinny too?

We had a church luncheon today--soup and salad with mega desserts. If I can't be at a barbecue, then a southern pot luck is the next best thing.

I went over to say "hi" to one of the dear church ladies. The first thing she says is, "Have you put on a lot of weight lately?" Hum. Is she searching for a conversation topic or spoiling for a fight? I kind of mumble, "Yeah probably." Really, what can you say in such a situation? This should end the topic I'd think, but she continues with more commentary. "Yeah. I looked over and thought, 'She sure has gained some weight,' then you stood up, and I thought, 'Not really.' I think your face is just puffy." This, of course, made me feel ever so much better.

In the south, folks are typically polite to a fault EXCEPT when it comes to weight. I have, in fact, added some pounds in the last 4 or 5 years, and it's rare to go out without someone making this keen observation. These are people who would probably never dream of telling you that you had broccoli stuck between your teeth or toilet paper caught on the bottom of your shoe. But, put on some weight and they sure like to talk about that and not behind your back.

It's not like I'm at risk of breaking the scales which I refuse to have in the house. I wear a 11 or 13 in Levi's and usually need a 14 in shirts due to being busty as they call it around here. Of course, the weight loss commercial today featured a woman who was so thrilled to have gone from an apparently gross size 10 to a 4 and was feeling absolutely fabulous. All I can say is that it's a good thing Marilyn Monroe didn't come of age in this era of anorexia as normal. I think she was a size 12 or 14, and she didn't have to apologize for it either.

I love to cook, and I love to eat. There would be something a bit suspect about someone who wrote about grilling and smoking and wouldn't eat the goods and was skinny as a bone. A body would have to wonder if she (or he) really did cook up good grub.

Then again, it's not much fun to deal with the "comments" when you're not the same size you were in 7th grade. I'm tempted to say that I have some terminal disease and the medications make me swell when someone asks about my weight. Might make them squirm a bit. But, then I'd probably get something terminal for telling fibs. So, I'm still just saying, "Yeah. Uh-huh" and then trying to redirect the conversation.

I told my guys not to bring me anything back from BoJangles today. Now, that's some good fast food eating. If you've never tried BoJangles, then you've got to check them out--spicy fried chicken, fluffy mashed potatoes, zippy dirty rice. Yum. The fellows wanted to know if I was feeling sick or something. When I finally confessed that I'd been called a fatso at church, they said to ignore it and enjoy my food and the ballgame. Apparently it would put a damper on their meal for me to skip. So, I had a wing and some sides and called it good.

Maybe I'll look at some lower calorie, lower fat recipes for the grill. Maybe not. I guess it depends on how many people tell me I look fat tomorrow.

What the heck is barbeque, barbecue, BBQ?

I grew up with a strong sense of barbeque. Barbeque was, of course, slow cooked pork served on a bun with vinegar based sauce. I didn't question this "fact of life," because it was "fact" in this area. If you asked for barbeque, you knew what you were getting.

The first time I questioned my definition was when I moved to Texas. I ordered barbeque. The waitress brought out a huge plate of beef ribs smothered in tomato sauce.

I said, "What's this?"

The waitress said, "Barbecue. Wasn't that what you ordered?"

I covered well (I think). I said, "Yep. And, it sure looks good."

This was over 20 years ago, and I remember it like yesterday. The ribs were good, but they were ribs to my way of thinking. This was a date, and I would not order ribs on a date. They are a might messy. I try to order neat meals on a date. No spaghetti. No ribs. Not when you're trying to look cool and impress a guy. I had my work cut out for me and quite by surprise.

I don't think I ordered BBQ again the entire time I lived in Texas. It's not that I don't like Texas BBQ beef ribs, but I do like to know what's coming when I order food. I did learn to say "OK" to putting my stuff in a "sack." Around here, a sack is a big burlap sack for potatoes. In Texas, they just mean a paper bag. I turned down sacks for a while until I figured out they just wanted to put my purchases in a paper bag. I was thinking they ran out of bags there for a bit and didn't want a sack to store in my small apartment. After a while, I got that down. But, I neverdid catch on to barbeque that didn't come neatly on a bun. When I saw the word barbecue in Texas, I was quite confused. Kansas further added to my confusion, but that's another story.

To further complicate matters, some of my northern friends (years later) invited me to a barbecue. I was thinking pig again, and they had hamburgers. Whew. That was odd (back then). I finally figured out that my northern buddies called anything grilled out barbeque. They were using the word as a verb (what I'd call grilling) while I used it as a noun (chopped pork on a bun). At least, those burgers were on a bun and not messy to eat like the Texas BBQ ribs. I love grilled burgers and cook up some great ones. I've got some great tips for burgers if that's your idea of BBQ.

Now I understand that barbeque is a mixed bag. And, I'm old and worldly enough that I'll flat out ask what folks are talking about. I do love all kinds of barbeque, barbecue, or BBQ. I do, however, like to know what to expect. It is rather a shock to think I'm getting pork on a bun and then to get ribs or to think I'm going to a pig roast and find out that it's going to be hot dogs on the grill. On the flip side, I know to let folks know (from other parts of the country) that if they are in these parts and ordering barbeque that they'll be getting chopped pork with slaw served on a bun or white bread. It's fun, in fact, to not say and watch the expressions, but I like to be a kind person. Our local barbeque is rather an acquired taste I'd say, so I'm usually one to step up to the plate and explain the local customs.

Folks in the south take barbecue pretty seriously and don't play around with the words. If you tell a southerner they're getting barbeque, then they are going to be shocked if you give them ribs or grilled chicken. They aren't trying to be difficult. They are just being southern.

Happy Martin Luther King Day

I had the day off work. That's always a good thing!

I spent some time looking over my favorite barbeque book Peace, Love & Barbecue. It's all about smoking meat and the folks who do that. There are as many stories as recipes, so it's fun to sit and read. I tried one of the sauce recipes this weekend--Lexington style BBQ sauce. It sounded too bland with only ketchup and vinegar as the base, so I added a little Texas Pete and Louisiana Hot Sauce. That was a real hit with our Boston butt smoked on the Smokey Mountain by Weber. That's one of our best buys of 2005. We'd been wanting a smoker for a long time and were thrilled to get that.

Our most recent outdoor cooking toy was a turkey fryer. I was a little hesitant on that, since I'd heard they are pretty dangerous. The Masterbuilt electric has a UL rating and also an auto shut off, so I felt better about that. It really does make the best turkey I've ever tasted. I didn't know what I was missing until we fried one up. I don't think we'll be baking the big birds any more. That also frees up oven space to do the other foods for a feast. Gotta love that.
Tomorrow I go back to work. The boys have the day off and also Wednesday. Hope they don't make too big a mess at home while I'm gone. I won't hold my breath though.

Welcome to the Barbeque Master Blog!

I have been cooking outdoors as long as I can remember. My family grilled out a lot. Both my brothers are in Boy Scouts. So, we camped and made all sorts of interesting foods wrapped around sticks, dumped in Dutch Ovens, or even sizzled up on the camp stove.

Now I have two boys of my own. They're in Scouts too. Though I'd always done a lot of outdoor cooking, I began trying out even more techniques and recipes, so I could help the troop with the cooking part of Scouting. They'd catch fish. I'd try out various grilled and Dutch Oven recipes for fish.

We even built a fire pit in the back yard. That was simple enough. We simply dug a hole and surrounded it with rocks. The pit is high enough to add a grate for outdoor cooking over wood, and it's also perfect for Dutch Oven cooking.

I'm a freelance writer on the side, so a blog seemed like a natural extension to my scribblings. I write for national newspapers, magazines, and for corporate sites and I also have my own web site - Yes You Can Grill.