Game Plan - BBQ

I LOVE to BBQ!

As a kid I was always at my Dad's elbow as he grilled burgers, steaks, ribs, fish and the occasional suckling pig.  He had smooth style and knew what he was doing.  The man could start a fire rubbing two sticks together.  He did favor an electric starter though.

Seriously,  my pop was the best and I learned so much from him.  My style is a bit different though and my repertoire far more varied.  For one, I'll grill anything.  If it can use a little heat - I'm on it.  Even baking.  I love to cook over an open fire - I must have been a pioneer woman in a previous life.

To grill with great success,  all you need is good planning, tools, heat and of course food!  There are an astonishing number of grills and pits available and most of the dedicated grillers I know have strong preferences.  I sure do.  Gas is for cooking in the kitchen, not on the patio and certainly NEVER in the camp kitchen.  Horrors!  Kettles do a better job than square or rectangular grills and real mesquite is better than pressed charcoal because it provides more heat and adds a good flavor rather than the chemical off taste you might find in a lesser brand of pressed charcoal.  If you are going to use pressed, by all means use the best quality you can find.

My dream grill will have to be custom made - I've already drawn up the plans and just need a new home with a larger patio to accommodate it :-) Three feet wide, 6 feet long, a steel firebox with a fitted bottom plate held in place by carriage bolts for easy cleaning.  The grilling surface will be raised and lowered by a wheel and there will be a multi level spit rack for the rotisserie. A full sized pig turning lazily over a crackling hickory log fire... Ah, dreams, this one will come true, I'm sure.

In the mean time, I have my trusty kettle.  My talented friend Ian Kelly, who makes wild lamps,  built a wonderful stand to hold my rotisserie.  Very clever man. I have a kettle, and the only rotisserie I could find built for kettles cost twice what the kettle did!  Shocking.

So, enough wandering.  Assuming you have your grill, planning the meal comes next.  What are you planning?  A variety?  Poultry?  (Try BBQ duck sometime-mmmm!) Burgers?  Steaks?  Fish?  It is a good idea to pick something that "takes" to BBQ.  For instance turkey burgers can be a problem since they tend to dry out if you so much as blink twice. Some veggies will need a grill basket or skewers (Even the truly talented griller has lost a spear or two of asparagus!) Will you need direct or indirect heat?

Plan you menu around the meat.  What flavors are you thinking about?  In the photo here, the pork ribs were rubbed with olive oil, salt and pepper, grilled over indirect heat for 20 minutes per side then basted with pineapple raspberry apricot sauce and grilled for another 10-15 minutes per side, long enough to set and char the sweet spicy sauce.

Pineapple Raspberry Apricot Sauce

1/2 cup Pineapple Apricot jam
1/4 cup seedless raspberry jam
1 teaspoon green Tabasco
1/2 teaspoon Habanero  Tabasco

Mix jams and Tabascos in a small saucepan and heat to melt.  Mash any large bits of fruit.  Remove from heat - cool, refrigerate and use within a month.

Since the ribs were spicy sweet, I served savory grilled eggplant lightly brushed with quality olive oil and dusted with thyme and marjoram, salt and pepper.  Asparagus marinated in lemon juice, salt pepper and olive oil, grilled just until the spears turned bright green and char marks appeared.  An arugula laced green salad with a fresh goat cheese dressing added plenty of zip and an easy cherry berry trifle rounded out the menu.  My wine selection, 2006 MacPhail Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley, complimented the meal to a "T".

Fresh Goat Cheese Dressing

3 ounces fresh goat cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup 1/2 and 1/2
2 tablespoons balsamic fig vinegar (Trader Joe's)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Coarse salt and ground pepper

Blend all ingredients and dress salad as usual - can be made ahead, store refrigerated, covered tightly, use within a week.


This weekend I plan to christen the rotisserie -  I'll report back!