Friday, May 29, 2009

Get Cooking With Barbeque

By Darren Smith

If you want a tasty way to avoid cooking in the kitchen this summer, barbequing is the way to go. Sure, you can cook your food indoors on an electric grill, but the tastiest way to get the true flavor and aroma of BBQ is through outdoor cooking. There's gas or charcoal for grilling, and smokers for slow cooking. Some of the best BBQ tips recommend using marinades, rubs and sauces to add zest to your cooking. There are various internet sites and cookbooks loaded with recipes for barbeque cooking. But no matter how you cook it up, it's bound to be a flavor favorite.

There are several different bases that are used for a BBQ sauce, and they each lend their own distinctive flavor to the food you're cooking. There are sauces based on tomato, mustard, vinegar or even fruit. You can also try using a sauce to marinate the meat before cooking. You can also take advantage of interesting sauces and marinades that are brushed on the meat while it's cooking. Finally, there's a sauce used to coat the meat right before taking it off the grill, or to add to the meat when it's on your plate.

Rubs are another BBQ staple, and are often used along with sauce. A barbeque rub is a blend of seasonings that are applied to the surface of the uncooked meat, which then infuse the whole cut while it's cooking. The advantage of rubs over sauces is that they cling to the meat and don't drip away. This means they provide more flavor.

These three seasoning techniques can be used together for maximum effect. For example, marinate the meat for a full day then apply the rub. While your food is cooking on the grill, add some sauce to improve the taste and texture.

As well, there are various methods of barbeque cooking to choose from. Indoor cooking on a grill is always a possibility. An outdoor grill, though, will give you loads more flavor due to the effect of the smoke from the flame. You have the option of using a gas grill or a charcoal grill. Some people prefer charcoal because of the enhanced flavor. Either way, consider using wood chips. The meat gets a flavor boost due to the aromatic smoke produced by the wood chips while cooking.

Just remember that cooking barbeque can sometimes be a time consuming process. Some things will be fast, like hot dogs or hamburgers. But if you're planning on serving up something like ribs or roast, you'll need to cook on low heat for a long period of time to get the best results.

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