I love barbecue of all kinds.
The various southern states think they have the barbecue market cornered, but like many things in life, people prefer the barbecue they grew up with. I grew up with almost every kind. Our melange of residents from other places brought their traditions of low and slow cookery here to teh Chi. And it’s delicious. All of it.
There are high-snob-purists who only like one style or another. I feel nothing but pity for them because obviously the subtle nuances of the various styles is simply lost on them. Why subscribe to one barbecue philosophy when there are millions of options? I say open your mind, your mouth, and loosen your belt.
Besides, who EVER wants to turn down something as good as barbecue?
With that said, there is a whole helluva lot of grilled food that doesn’t even deserve to be called barbecue. The people who call pathetically grilled foods drenched in some “magic sauce” barbecue should have their license to grill revoked. Sauce does not a barbecue make.
Confession: I cannot cook barbecue.
I own a propane grill, and never having used a charcoal grill for any length of time, the fundamental “low and slow” principal has been beyond my reach for many years. I firmly believe you CANNOT make barbecue with a gas grill. It just don’t work, and don’t bother to explain how it would work because I-dun-wanna-noe.
Goal: I WILL learn to make barbecue.
Two very pivotal things just happened to me. My copy of Low & Slow: Master the Art of Barbecue in 5 Easy Lessons arrived earlier this week. I’ve torn through the book from cover to cover in just a few days. For those of you wondering why I didn’t get the Kindle copy (well, there isn’t one yet that I know of), I refuse to buy cookbooks via Kindle. Crumbs, oil, flour, grease, and generally the bits of cookery that end up on a cookbook do not belong on my Kindle. I need cookbooks in paper form.
Second, I just purchased a Webber Smokey Mountain Cooker from Newegg. I also ordered a charcoal starter ’cause as I said, I am a propane boy at present. But that’s all going to change, and you, dear readers, are going to follow along as I learn the in’s and out’s of barbecue as taught by Gary Wiviott.
How the heck did I get to barbecue? Well, I’ve been a fan of the LTHForum for a while. I contribute where/when I can and absorb as much of the cookery lore, techniques, and ideas as I can. It’s my default place to go to when I have a food question. LTH was founded by G Wiv. ‘Nuff said.
The barbecue program is designed to be rigidly followed. That’s going to be tricky for me. My extemporaneous nature (oooh, big word) in the kitchen has led me to discover more good than bad. But the art of charcoal fire cookery is not a strong point in my repertoire (another big word!), and I confess I’d be scared to follow anyone. Except G Wiv. As I mentioned above, I love ALL kinds of barbecue, and subscribing to one man’s philosophy sounds counter-intuitive. But I’m promising myself I’ll stick with the program until I get through all five lessons because I’ve been reading G Wiv on LTH for a long time, and he is an endless fountain of sage wisdom. By the end of his program, I should have a gut feeling for how barbecue works. Then, and only then, can I start chasing the many barbecue memories stuck in my craw.
So, for the next however-many-it-takes weeks, if you are near the corner of Belmont and Halsted, you’ll likely either smell an overly perfumed drag queen or me and my WSM practicing the art of barbecue. Of course, stick around here and I’ll guide you through my barbecue classes.
Incidentally, if you want to download the first chapter of the book, check out the book’s website at LowSlowBBQ.com