Review: The Barbecue! Bible

I've had Steven Raichlen's Barbecue! Bible for several years. It's a great resource for beginning and experienced backyard cooks. Novices will appreciate his how-to tips ranging from the basics of how to tell if your steak is done to how to keep your kebob skewers from sticking to the grill grate. The sheer mass of recipes (over 500!) will keep seasoned grillers busy for a long time.

I wrote "grillers" for a reason. This book may have the word "barbecue" in the title and Raichlen may talk a lot about low and slow, but the recipes are all for the grill. He has recipes that use a variety of grill techniques and cooking times, but none are what a purest would call true barbecue.  More on the difference between grilling and barbecuing at another time.

The only other complaint I have about the book is the lack of photographs. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words. Illustrations in the book look like cartoony clip art. Pictures with the recipes would have been helpful in choosing which ones to try. The latest edition of the book is in color and has photos, so hopefully this deficiency has been rectified.

The depth and variety of recipes is what really makes this a bible, barbecue or otherwise. When most people think of grilling they probably think of meat. Meat is important, no doubt, but you can cook much more on the grill and Raichlen covers just about all the bases. Here's a quick sampling from the book's extensive index: potatoes a la ketchup (!), chorizo grilled mushrooms, grilled provolone, Vietnamese grilled beef and basil rolls, tandoori cauliflower, grilled eggplant, Peruvian fish kebabs. He has recipes for all the meats you expect (beef, poultry, pork, lamb) as well as seafood and vegetables.

A quick comment about his fish recipes: He describes a variety of ways to cook fish but doesn't mention planking fish (or anything else). Maybe planking is a recent fad but I would liked to have seen the method mentioned.

The recipes I've tried have all been great. "Silver Paper Chicken" is marinated chicken thighs wrapped in aluminum foil and then cooked on the grill. An excellent appetizer but also good to eat as a main course. "Susur Lee's Chinese Barbecued Pork" is as close to the flavor of restaurant style Chinese barbecued spare ribs as I've ever gotten at home. And I've tried.

 To sum it up. If you have a grill and want to cook more than steaks and chicken cutlets The Barbecue! Bible is what you need to succeed.