Barbecuing – Slow Low-heat Cooking Outdoors

Barbecuing, a traditional cooking process in use for centuries is a great way to enjoy tasty meals without heating up your kitchen in the hot summer months. It is a great way to gather friends and family and enjoy time together. In some areas, the term barbecuing is reserved for a slow low-heat cooking process that operates at about 220°F and the term grilling is used for a fast high-heat cooking process. The best temperature for barbecuing is between 200F and 300F.

Meat - There are three basic qualities used to identify barbecue: the sauce, the type of meat and the type of wood used to smoke and cook the meat. The meats usually used in barbecuing are tougher cuts of meat, such as the beef brisket, or pork ribs. These meats benefit from the long, slow cooking process, becoming so tender that they will just fall off the bone. Since the cooking process is slower, and the heat not as high as grilling, barbecue sauce can be brushed onto the meat through out the cooking process, forming a delicious glaze on the outside of the meat.

Take time to marinate: Some research has shown that ingredients such as vinegar in marinades can actually protect the meat and reduce the chances of carcinogenic compounds forming.

Sauce - Sauces, marinades and rubs are popular cooking ideas when barbecuing. There are a wide variety of sauces and glazes that can be made. BBQ sauce is generally a basic mixture of tomatoes, sugar and vinegar. A sauce often includes sugar, honey or preserves, which can cause the sauce to burn when cooking; a suggestion is to brush your sauce on in the last five to ten minutes of cooking when cooking at higher temperatures. Barbecue cooks have individual preferences about the proper meats and sauces to use, which differ from region to region. The advantage of a rub is that it will last in a shaker for months, while a marinade or sauce should be used the day it is made.

Wood - The type of wood you use is very important. The most popular barbecue woods are hickory, oak, mesquite and fruit woods such as apple, pear, pecan and alder. Wood is the fuel that adds the most flavor to grilled meats. Barbecuing is traditionally done with hickory or mesquite wood, which gives a nice smoke flavor to the food. Wood is place in a firebox which is usually off to one side of the cooking chamber. The cooking chamber fills with smoke, giving the food its characteristic smoked flavor, which varies depending on the type of wood that is used for the fuel. Damp wood chips added to the fire add a delicious smoky flavor to meat.

Tips - Don't cook too hot – keep grill heat low, Turn food frequently, Don’t overcook food, Don’t precook food, Use thinner cuts of meat, Use a meat thermometer, Don't poke your meat with a fork or ever press meat with a spatula to speed up cooking.

You want to remove the meat from the grill when it's just a bit underdone. The meat will continue to cook, and more significantly, the juices, left undisturbed and unmolested, will redistribute through the resting meat in a natural and rewarding way. Failing to rest the meat after grilling is the number one rookie mistake-and its consequences are enormous.

Barbecuing is cooking by using indirect heat at low temperatures and long cooking times. Before you start, however, be forewarned – barbecuing is a process that takes time and patience to be done correctly. It takes time to master the methods and techniques to create the perfect barbecue. While most folks actually grill in the summer, give barbecuing a try; it is a great American pastime.