Barbecues 101 More Than 100 Recipes for Great Grilled, Smoked, and Barbecued Food Plus All the Fixings for Perfect Outdoor Parties

Grilling 101 People love grilled food for many reasons. First, grilling is an inherently simple way to cook, with less pots and pans to wash than with conventional, indoor cooking. Cooking over fire is a great way to add extra flavor to food without extra calories. But I think the real attraction is that it allows the cook to use all of the senses, even more than other cooking methods. Grilling requires the cook to stay tuned in to the entire process, from feeling the heat of the fire, to hearing the sizzle of the meat, to smelling the charcoal, to tasting that first, smoky bite of perfectly grilled steak. If you throw the food on the grill and nonchalantly walk away, you are courting disaster. And when it comes time to throw a party, the easy preparation of grilled food is most appreciated. An average-sized grill can turn out plenty of food, even if you are looking beyond barbecue favorites, such as hot dogs and burgers. Grilling is indeed easy, but only if you understand the necessary techniques to do it right. When I was growing up, I saw the men in my family grill the same way that cavemen must have. (This was back in the day when the grill was the property of the man of the house, a concept that has mostly disappeared with rabbit ears on the black-and-white television set.) The typical dad would marinate the chicken in store-bought barbecue sauce, then grill it directly over the coals. The poor guy was constantly fighting flare-ups, burned barbecue sauce, and raw chicken. There's nothing easy about that. Barbecues 101 shows how to avoid all those pitfalls, and it shows that there is a difference between cooking something to perfection and just trying to keep it from burning up. d clean machine d With both types of grills, before grilling, always scrub the cooking rack. The best way is to set the rack in place as soon as the ignited coals have been spread out, letting the heat burn any food residue on the grill. Use a stiff brush to thoroughly clean the grill. Do not let the food "burn off." By the time that happens, the coals will be too cold to grill anything. If you are a committed griller, you should clean the grill every few weeks to avoid buildups of carbon and residual food and grease. It's an easy chore to give the inside of the grill and lid a scrub with a scouring pad and a rinse with the hose. At least once a year, give the grill a complete spring cleaning with grill or oven cleaner. With a gas grill, manufacturers suggest that you make an annual check of all the connections and replace any hoses as needed. The Great Debate: Charcoal versus Gas The line has been drawn in the sand. Grilling aficionados have broken into two camps: the "it was good enough for Grandpa, and it's good enough for me" charcoal grill fans, and the "I love my new gas grill more than my BMW" faction. I doubt if one group will ever win the argument over which grill is better. To me, it's not a question of which grill cooks better, it's a matter of convenience. In the last few years, gas grills have outsold charcoal. Surely, it is the convenience of gas-grill cooking that has spurred the increase. My friends who traded in their "clinker" charcoal grill for a "late model" gas grill all say that they love the new one because it has given them the time to grill more often without any charcoal mess. However, the love affair took time to grow. At first, the gas-grilled food didn't seem to have the same intense charcoal flavor. But as the cooks learned about their new grill, discovering ways to add more flavor with wood chips and other tricks, the relationship was sealed. Frankly, I have both grills on my city rooftop garden. For me, the deep smoky flavor and sensory experience of cooking at a charcoal grill has the edge. I'm just a pyromaniac at heart, I guess. When I have the time, I build a charcoal fire in aRodgers, Rick is the author of 'Barbecues 101 More Than 100 Recipes for Great Grilled, Smoked, and Barbecued Food Plus All the Fixings for Perfect Outdoor Parties', published 0010 under ISBN 9780767906739 and ISBN 076790673X.