Barbecue Tricks

BBQ Tips and Tricks

Sauces

Butcher's Guide

Chicken Pops On An Electric Smoker

Plum Chicken Pops is my favorite recipe from my new book The Complete Electric Smoker Cook Book.  Chicken Pops are one of those things that are a bit of a trick to make therefore they’ll take a bit more time. As a result they are always more appreciated.  Check out the video to see the How To pluck the pops HERE.  


Chicken drumsticks have always been a BBQ favorite. We love them as a kid because they are tasty, hand held, portable, and fun. As an adult I can also appreciate the fact that dark cuts of chicken are easier to cook without drying out. Because dark meat is so affordable – heck inexpensive – my wallet is happy too.

Furthermore, the addition of this sweet and sticky plum sauce takes the drum stick to the next level of flavor. Plus, making the handle all fancy (a technique known as “Frenching”)  keeps your family’s fingers from getting too sticky.  The boys (young and old) will just like it because it looks cave man cool.

chicken popsPlum Chicken Pops

  • 12 chicken drumsticks
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp pepper

 

For the plum sauce:

  • ¾ of a 16 oz jar of plum jam
  • 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 Tbsp brown sugar
  • chicken leg1 Tbsp minced onion
  • 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • ½ tsp ground ginger
  • Salt & pepper to taste (less than i did in the video – whoops)

First of all make the plum sauce. Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan and remove from heat after reaching a boil. Set aside.

For the unique looking legs that I call pops you need cut the skin down to the bone just over the bottom end leg joint.  Stretch skin as much as possible on drumsticks and using a needle nose pliers, remove the thin, white tendons from each leg.  You’ll need to grip (I suggest using a paper towel to grasp the slick skin) the meaty end and then

chicken leg tendon

pull and  “pluck” the long tendons This can sometimes be tricky (and slippery) to do. Don’t panic if you lose a bit of meat clinging to the shoelace -like tendons. Grip the meaty end to help keep more meat in the process.

Sprinkle each with salt and pepper and head to the smoker.

I used cherry wood and smoked on a Char-broil Electric Smoker for 90 minutes at a steady 250 degrees F.  Look for the skin and meat to retract to create a nice looking ball at the end of your “chicken pop.”

Finally, I like to dredge the pops in the sticky sauce. However it’s really up to you.

 

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White Castle Slider Recipe – How To Make on The BBQ

A White Castle Slider at home? Yeah, you can now buy them at the supermarket or on Amazon  but  its not quite the same.

I haven’t been able to get an “in store” white castle slider (or is it slyder?) since moving to South Carolina. The closest thing we have in the South is called Krystal and even that is a state away.  There are plenty of Burger tricks and tips out there but a slider is a bit different. This recipe calls for steaming the bun with a special onion mix. Here’s a perfect replica that we made even better by adding a spicy ketchup sauce!

 

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White Castle Slider Recipe

Prep

Cook

Total

Yield 12 Sliders.

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef½ cup dehydrated onions1 cup warm waterSalt & pepper to taste12 American cheese slices12 dill pickle slicesMustard12 small slider buns

Instructions

  1. Roll out ground beef very thin - to approximately ¼” thick.
  2. Cut into 2.5”x 2.5” squares and use a straw or wooden dowel to put 5 small holes in each. (Some shrinkage will occur in cooking.)
  3. Freeze patties for a minimum of 1 hour. This can be done several days in advance.
  4. When ready to cook, hydrate onions in 1 cup warm water
  5. Heat grill to medium-low. Using a cast iron skillet or grill sheet pan, spread hydrated onions over bottom, and top with frozen meat squares. Place the bun half on each and top with remaining bun to steam. Grill for approximately 5-6 minutes. Turn once and top with cheese.
  6. Build with mustard, pickle and Firecracker Ketchup (recipe below). Top with remaining steamed bun and enjoy!

1 lb ground beef
½ cup dehydrated onions
1 cup warm water

Salt & pepper to taste
12 American cheese slices
12 dill pickle slices
Firecracker Ketchup (recipe below)
Mustard
12 small slider buns (we found Cobblestone brand was a close match)

Roll out ground beef very thin – to approximately ¼” thick. Cut into 3”x3” squares and use a straw or wooden dowel to put 5 small holes in each. (Some shrinkage will occur in cooking.) Freeze patties for a minimum of 1 hour. This can be done several days in advance. When ready to cook, hydrate onions in 1 cup warm water and heat grill to medium-low. Using a cast iron skillet or grill sheet pan, spread hydrated onions over bottom, and top with frozen meat squares. Place the bun half on each and top with remaining bun to steam. Grill for approximately 5-6 minutes. Turn once and top with cheese. Build with mustard, pickle and Firecracker Ketchup (recipe below). Top with remaining steamed bun and enjoy! Makes 12 sliders.

Firecracker Ketchup
½ cup ketchup
½ cup creamy French dressing
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp spicy horseradish sauce
2 tsp brown sugar
1 ½ tsp Cayenne pepper
½ tsp garlic salt

Stir together all ingredients until well blended and chill until ready to serve.

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Authentic Jerk Chicken Rub

jerk1Authentic Jamaican Jerk chicken  – how can you make it easy?
I visited at one of the south’s most authentic jerk festivals to try to get some tricks on spices that will unlock authentic Jamaican Jerk flavor.  I learned some basics:
Most often you’ll get leg quarters… With the skin scored… Jerk spice rub is typically a fiery blend of allspice, Scotch bonnet peppers and sometimes scallion, thyme,  ginger, even rum. The folks i talked to in the video were big into escovitch (pickled vegetables).
The habanero is the standard scotch bonnet substitute- they are different, but the same species. When ripe, the Scotch bonnet looks sort of like a little squashed reddish orange paper lantern.
flickr-Jason Smith

flickr-Jason Smith

After some research (tasty research) I adapted this rub and here’s how to make it at home…

 

Good news is the leg quarters are really affordable.. Start with that. I used half Chickens here but the breast is less forgiving than the dark meat – that’s why competition BBQ teams use thighs exclusively… I also used the remaining sauce in the small blender after coating chicken and added 4 tablespoons of cane syrup and 4 tablespoons of texas pete plus another habanero and blended to create a VERY hot but wonderful hot sauce.  Great flavor.

JAMAICAN JERK CHICKEN
4 chicken leg quarters

¼ cup canola oil

2 Tbsp whole Allspice Berries (pimento berries)

2 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp cumin

2 tsp cinnamon

2 Tbsp salt

8 cloves

6 sliced habanero peppers

¼ cup cane syrup

1 green onion, chopped
Score chicken and heat smoker to 275°F. Brush the chicken with canola oil. Combine the remaining ingredients in a blender or food processor and pulse until smooth and sticky. Use apple or cherry wood chips for a sweet smoked flavor and throw in a few of the whole allspice berries as well. Brush mixture on chicken and under skin. Smoke approximately 45 minutes – 1 hour. Remove chicken from the smoker when the temperature is 160°F and let it stand about 10 minutes so it will be at the targeted temperature of 165°F by the time you are ready to eat. Baste with additional jerk seasoning before serving.

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Seafood Sauces Made Easy


bowens-island-seafoodSeafood may not be barbecue but a good fish fry outdoors with friends comes pretty close.

Seafood and barbecue both share some room on the plate for hush puppies (grab our free Sauces and Sides book for a solid hush puppy recipe). Not sure how hush puppies ever got into the barbecue category but I think it has to do with Jamaican festival).

Also barbecue and seafood are almost always served with a few sauces.  Lately I’ve been feeling cheated at a few seafood houses for being stingy with the Tartar sauce so below (and in the video) are a few quick recipes fish1so you can make cocktail sauce and Tartar Sauce in the comfort of your own home. The video also features a visit to one of my two favorite seafood shacks of all time: Bowen’s Island.  The other is Tybee Island’s Crab Shack.  Neither has ever short changed me on Tartar sauce.
Cocktail Sauce:

  • Combine your favorite Ketchup with horseradish to taste.
  • Dash of worchestichire (optional)
  • Dash of hotsauce (optionall)

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Tartar Sauce / Seafood Sauces Made Easy

Tartar Sauce / Seafood Sauces Made Easy

Ingredients

  • 1 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 tablespoon sweet pickle relish
  • 1 tablespoon minced onion
  • 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and mix thoroughly.
  2. Allow mixture to set in refrigerator for at least an hour before serving.

Recipes

White Barbecue Sauce Recipe

BBQ Sauce

BBQ Sauce

White Barbecue Sauce – Gourmet BBQ Sauce at Its Best
By Chris McCarthy

Barbecuing is not what it used to be. When growing up the only time that my family would start up the grill or smoker was in the summer and on the weekends. Today, people barbecue every night and all year round. Barbecue sauces have come along way since then as well. There used to be only a couple of choices at your local market. But now with the invention of “super” markets the amount barbecue sauces you can buy locally has grown significantly. For those gourmet barbecue sauces the web is probably the only place you will find these unique sauces. If you don’t live in the Alabama area the only place you will find traditional White BBQ Sauce like Big Bob Gibson’s is on the web or of course you can try to make it yourself.

In Alabama Barbecue traditional Sauce uses Mayonnaise as its base rather than tomato sauce, vinegar, or any of the other more typical barbecue sauce bases. It is clearly a region favorite. Bob Gibson of Decatur, Alabama is credited with the invention the white sauce back in 1925. Friends and family were first treated to this secret-recipe sauce on chicken and pork at weekend barbecues where boards were nailed to trees for tables. Today, this famous mayonnaise-based condiment is traditionally employed to baste chicken, seafood and pork.

White BBQ Sauce is as synonymous with the state with Alabama as the legendary “BAMA” football program. White BBQ Sauce’s intriguing flavor complements salads and is a superb baste for chicken, pork and turkey. You can also use White Sauce as an ingredient to add an extra kick to your favorite slaw or potato salad. However, because the racks of your local grocer are dominated by many incarnations of tomato-based sauces and white bbq sauce is such a regional anomaly, most people outside Alabama have not tested this concoction of flavor.

Like many barbecue sauces you want to apply this only at the very end of your grilling or smoking. It will breakdown and separate if it is heated too long. Use this sauce on chicken and turkey. It is also good on pork. Alabama White Barbecue Sauce has a tangy flavor that is a great addition to grilled foods.

White BBQ Sauce makes a unique experience. Use this recipe when grilling chicken; brush lightly over the chicken during the last few minutes of grilling. This sauce is also great for dipping; keep some sauce aside for passing at the table.

White BBQ Sauce Recipe

Ingredients:

1 quart mayonnaise

3/4 quart apple cider vinegar

1/2 cup corn syrup

1/4 tablespoon cayenne pepper

Prepared horseradish

Lemon juice

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a very large blender or food processor. Blend for 1 minute, or until thoroughly mixed and sauce is smooth. Pour sauce into a large container or bowl.

Chris McCarthy is the owner of InsaneChicken’s BBQ Sauce Catalog. InsaneChicken is proud to sell Big Bob Gibson White BBQ Sauce and a BBQ Sauce of the month club [http://www.insanechicken.com/bbq_sauce_of_the_month_club.html]

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Grilling for Beginners: 8 Easy Marinades for a Delicious Barbecue Dish

marinateBy Adrian T. Cheng

Flavor is what defines whatever you cook on the grill. The longer you marinate your meat, the more flavorful it will be. Keep in mind that chicken is ideally marinated for a minimum of 20 minutes and a maximum of 12 hours, beef, pork and lamb for a minimum of 3 hours and a maximum of 24 hours while fish and other seafood will be most flavorful if marinated for a minimum of 10 minutes and a maximum of 20 minutes only.

So whether you’re in the mood for just a classic steak or something more festive, here are 8 quick and easy meat marinades for grilling:

Classic Steak

Perfect for grilled beef, pork or chicken.

What you need:

  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 tbsps. brown sugar
  • 2 tsps. balsamic vinegar
  • Ground black pepper to taste

Sweet and Spicy

Best for grilled chicken and pork and can be used as a glaze as well.

Photo:Flickr.com/adactio

Photo:Flickr.com/adactio

What you need:

  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 cup ketchup
  • 1 cup hot sauce
  • 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 2 tbsps. fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp. or more brown sugar

Classic Grilled Seafood

Use for any kind of fish. Works great for shrimp, too.

What you need:

  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • Rind of 1 lemon
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 2 tbsps. lemon juice
  • 2 tbsps. chopped parsley
  • 1/4 tsp. black pepper
  • Salt to taste

Mexican Style

Great for grilled beef or chicken.

What you need:

  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
  • 1/3 cup white vinegar
  • 1 tbsp. onion powder
  • 1 tbsp. paprika
  • 2 tsps. oregano
  • 2 tsps. sugar
  • 1 1/2 tsps. salt
  • 1 tsp. cumin
  • 1 tsp. ground black pepper
  • Chili powder to taste

Italian Style

Ideal for chicken, pork, fish and shrimp.

What you need:

  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/3 cup white wine vinegar
  • 2 tbsps. mustard
  • 1 tbsp. sugar
  • 1 tsp. mixed dried herbs
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Korean Style

Perfect for beef, chicken or any kind of seafood.

What you need:

  • 8 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 red apple, grated
  • 1 brown onion, finely sliced
  • 3 tbsps. soy sauce
  • 2 tbsps. brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp. sesame oil

Japanese Style

Can be used for beef, chicken and seafood.

What you need:

  • 3/4 cup mirin
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce

Greek Style

Best for grilled chicken, lamb and seafood.

What you need:

  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • 1 tbsp. oregano leaves
  • 2 tsps. thyme leaves

These recipes are for 1-1 1/2 kg. of meat. Enjoy these simple yet deliciously flavorful marinades for your meat the next time you grill!

Adrian T. Cheng is a food blogger and a BBQ expert. Through years of grilling experience, reviewing various top quality grill accessories and trying delicious and unique recipes, he is sharing his knowledge with everyone through his blog. For more grilling secrets, tips, recipes and more, head over to Adrian’s page.

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Sauces

57 Ketchup Trick Relieves Sauce Anticipation

57ketchupWe thought everyone knew this ketchup trick but have been surprised how may people didn’t know about the “57 Ketchup trick” where you hit the 57 on the bottle of ketchup to release the sauce/ketchup from it’s glass prison.  We tested the 57 ketchup bottle trick HERE…

Maybe it’s because the classic glass ketchup bottles are so hard to find.  We had trouble locating anything NOT plastic for this video.

The question remains was the “57” branded on the bottle to actually be used for this purpose or happy accident?

Interesting that Henry Heinz came up with “57 Varieties” from looking at a shoe store slogan.   Some say there were already over 60 sauce varieties at the time but the 5 and 7 were he and his wife’s favorite numbers.  Thank you wikipedia.

 

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Why Marinate Meat Before You Grill

Why You Should Marinate Your Meat Before You Grill

Photo:Flickr.com/adactio

Photo:Flickr.com/adactio

By Bonnie R Giller

The summer is in full swing which means you are likely putting your outdoor grills to work as you cook up some of your favorite grilled meats. We all know that when grilling meat, fish or poultry, it’s all about the marinade. You may think that the sole purpose of marinating your meat prior to cooking is to enhance the flavor, but there are actually health benefits associated with marinating your meat that go beyond satisfying your taste buds.

So here is what you do know. A marinade acts as a tenderizer and brings out the meat’s natural flavors before grilling. What you may not know is that marinating is one of the most effective ways to reduce the formation of cancer-causing compounds, known as heterocyclic amines (HCA’s). These compounds are produced when meat is cooked at high temperatures, like in grilling. Marinades can reduce the formation of these carcinogenic compounds by up to 99%. You can even boost this benefit by adding rosemary to your marinade. This herb contains the antioxidant carnosol, which has some specific anti-cancer properties.

Though it is unclear why marinating meat before grilling effectively eliminates HCA’s, it is believed that the marinade acts as a barrier between the meat and the direct flames. The cancer fighting power of marinades may also lie in the type of ingredients used. Vinegar, citrus juices, herbs, spices, olive oil and safflower oil are common marinade ingredients that all seem to contribute to the prevention of HCA formation. These acidic ingredients seem to slow the growth of harmful bacteria, like listeria, tenderizing the meat to make the protein easily digestible and moisten the meat, preventing it from becoming tough.

If you are someone who never uses marinades, now is the time you should start! Eating healthy does not mean your food has to be tasteless and bland, especially now that you know marinades do great things for your health. There are endless amounts of ingredients that can be used to create healthy and tasty marinades for any kind of meat, fish or poultry. Start to create the perfect marinade by first knowing the basic ingredients:

1 part acid (vinegar, citrus juice, yogurt)

1 part oil (olive, canola, safflower)

2 parts aromatics (herbs and spices)

Salt and sugar to taste (can substitute with low sodium soy sauce and/or honey)

This is a ratio you can always refer back to when creating your marinade. To keep the calorie count down and avoid having leftover marinade, only use about � cup of marinade for every pound of food, unless you have large pieces that may require a little more. Total immersion is not necessary, but the food should be turned occasionally, so that all surfaces will be in contact with the marinade long enough to benefit. Use non-metal containers or re-sealable plastic bags to hold the marinating food. You may also want to marinate your vegetables to add extra flavor. If this is the case, always make sure you keep the vegetable marinade separate from the meat marinade, to avoid cross contamination of bacteria. Also keep in mind that if you are making skewers, keep vegetables on their own skewer, since meat typically requires longer cooking times.

There has never been a more delicious way to prevent cancerous compounds than marinating. The sky’s the limit when creating a tasty marinade. So, get creative! Make use of a variety of herbs and spices to add natural flavor to your marinade. Yogurt in a marinade is thought to tenderize meats and help balance out sweet and spicy flavors in marinades. While it’s best to use herbs and spices, if you are going to add salt to your marinade, don’t add it until just before you cook the meat as the salt will draw out the moisture creating tough, dry meat.

Bonnie R. Giller is a registered and certified dietitian nutritionist and certified intuitive eating counselor who helps chronic dieters break free of the pain of dieting and get the healthy body they love.

Bonnie utilizes the principles of intuitive eating in her work with her clients, which is eating based on internal signals of hunger and satiety versus situations or emotions. The result is they lose weight, keep it off without dieting and live a healthy life of guilt-free eating.

Download Bonnie’s free e-book “5 Steps to a Body You Love Without Dieting” at http://www.DietFreeZone.com

For more information on Bonnie’s programs, books, lectures and presentations, visit http://www.brghealth.com

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4th Of July Red White and Blue Sauce Recipes

blue bbq sauceHere’s a fun way to celebrate the All American BBQ on a patriotic holiday.. a fun trio of BBQ sauces done up in flag wavin’ Red – White – and Blue.  We have a great red sauce (Almost Award Winning) here – but there wasn’t a VIDEO RECIPE FOR THE WHITE OR THE BLUE BBQ SAUCE – so we put one together HERE on YouTube.

First the WHITE SAUCE:

Big Bob Gibson’s is a big name in BBQ especially when it comes to this white sauce…. An Alabama Barbecue traditional ce uses Mayonnaise at it’s core and Bob Gibson of Decatur, Alabama is the guy who launched it back they say in the 19-20’s

Youll want to apply this only at the very end of your grilling or smoking. It will breakdown and separate if it is heated too long.

It’s tangy and thinner than you might think – when grilling chicken; brush lightly over the chicken during the last few minutes of grilling.

4th of july bbqHere’s what you’ll need for White BBQ Sauce
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup apple juice I tried corn syrup here
1 tablespoon powdered garlic
1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
1 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper
1 teaspoon mustard powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon finely ground cayenne pepper

Place all ingredients in a very large blender or food processor. Blend for 1 minute, or until thoroughly mixed and sauce is smooth. I used a bullet blender – remember it’s almost like a mop – use it to slather on in the very end of the cooking process but you may first want to try it as a dip – again mainly for chicken…

Some people also like to use it a a base for cole slaw and potato salad….

Next THE BLUE SAUCE is unlike anything you’ve tried before.
This version uses dried blueberrys because we couldn’t find fresh at the time… and True it’s not really a Smurf blue color… and that’s probably a good thing. The color is subtle (in fact hard to see here). But the blueberry is defiantly in the flavor.
Perfect for beef or chicken. A side of blue potatoes?
The added bonus is there is a nice hint of blue in the sauce and it’s a great conversation starter.

blueberry bbq sauceIngredients

2 cups water
1/2 cup tomato catsup
1/2 cup dried blueberries minced
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon sriracha
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper

Add water, blueberries and vinegar to sauce pan and simmer for five to ten minutes.
Add remaining ingredients and simmer on low heat until desired thickness.
Season to taste with salt and pepper. Strain out blueberry pulp using spoon to force out additional liquid. Discard MOST pulp.

If you want to try a fresh blueberry version ——-from blueberry council.org
Try with 1 to 2 cups fresh (or frozen blueberries) blended in a blender first – let me know in the comments
·

Team this Blue sauce up with our almost award winning red sauce and a unique Alabama White sauce and you have a RED, White, and Blue patriotic BBQ.
For more tips tricks and other fun stuff head over to www.barbecuetricks.com

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What You Need to Know About Using BBQ Marinades

What You Need to Know About Using BBQ Marinades

marinate

Photo: Flickr/swanksalot

By Les Fenton

Take your barbecue and grilling skills to a new level by learning how to make marinades for the food you cook on your bbq grill. By using your own bbq marinades you can not only produce lots of exciting and different food flavors, but also ensure that your barbecued food is more pleasant and healthy to eat.

What is a Marinade?

Marinating is a process used before barbecuing or grilling to impart flavor and also, especially for meat dishes, to tenderize. The marinating process is carried out by soaking your fish or meat in mixtures of different ingredients (the marinade) before cooking, sometimes for just a few minutes and sometimes for many hours or even overnight. You can use marinades for any food you cook, but they really come into their own when used on the food cooked on your barbecue grill.

This article will introduce you to the different types of marinade you can use and outline the steps you should follow for successful marinating. It will also point out some of the mistakes commonly made when making and using bbq marinades.

Use a Marinade for Flavoring

There are thousands of different marinade recipes which can be used to flavor foods cooked on a bbq – meat, fish and vegetables. The intensity of the flavor produced depends upon the ingredients of the marinade and the length of time used for marinating.

For example, if you are going to cook shrimp on your bbq you might choose a lime marinade. The lime flavor to enhance the flavor of the shrimp when it’s cooked. As we’ll find out later though shrimp should only be marinated for about half an hour. If you do it for longer the strong flavor of the lime will dominate that of the shrimp and spoil your dish.

However, the same thing doesn’t apply to all fish dishes. Tuna has a strong flavor so you might choose a recipe which recommends marinating for several hours. As a general rule, stronger flavored and less delicate fish can be marinated for longer, but the length of time used will depend upon the ingredients in your marinade.

If you are working on a jerk beef marinade recipe with all manner of spices and sauces you’ll want your bbq beef to be tender and have an intense flavor. In this case you would marinade for at least eight hours. The longer period of marinating affects both the flavor and the tenderness of the meat once it is cooked.

Using Your Marinade for Tenderizing

Marinating is an excellent way of tenderizing meat. The amount of tenderization depends upon the ingredients you use. For tenderization bbq marinades can be either acidic or enzymatic:

– Acidic Marinade

Acidic marinades contain vinegar, cider, lemon juice, or wine as ingredients. These ingredients act on the coiled protein substances within meat (or fish), breaking them up by causing them to unwind. The process of unwinding softens them.

It may seem rather strange to use acidic marinades for fish, but they can produce the most wonderful flavors. The key is to use the correct strength acid for the type of fish you’re marinating. The shrimp marinade described above should be a low-acid marinade (perhaps one part mild acid to four parts oil) to avoid making the shrimp tough.

A fairly tight-textured cut of meat like flank steak can survive a more acidic marinade because the marinade only penetrates the meat by a fraction of an inch and therefore won’t toughen it.

– Enzymatic Marinade

Enzymatic marinades contain ingredients which break down the connective tissue in fish and meat. Raw pineapple, figs, papaya, honeydew melon, ginger, and kiwi all contain these enzymes (known collectively as proteases or protein enzymes).

The enzymatic marinades need to be used carefully because they can work almost too well. They will, for example, turn tough meat muscle into mush if it’s left in the marinade too long. In some cases the meat won’t even pass through any intermediate stage of tenderness.

Make sure you use a proven recipe when preparing marinades for your bbq. As a general guide marinate fish for short periods of time (anything from 30 minutes to 2/3 hours depending upon the texture of the flesh) and meat for much longer periods (8 to 24 hours).

Marinades for BBQ’s – Three Steps to Follow

Step 1

Find a good marinade recipe and prepare your marinade. Make a careful note of the recommended times for marinating.

Step 2

Use a large porcelain vessel (with a lid) to marinade your fish or meat. You’ll need just enough marinade to cover your food. If you have an excess of marinade, you can save it in a sealed container in the fridge for use on another occasion.

Step 3

When you have covered your food in the marinade put the vessel in the fridge. The lower temperature will inhibit the growth of bacteria in your raw fish or meat and prevent oxidation of the marinade ingredients.

Step 4

When your bbq has reached the required temperature remove the food from your marinade and put it on the hot grill. During cooking don’t baste your meat with the raw marinade, and don’t use the marinade left over in your basting vessel to prepare any sauces unless you intend to boil them first to destroy the bacteria.

Marinade Recipes

The flavoring ingredients in a marinade can include a wide range of juices, oils, herbs, and spices. Marinating is used for barbecuing and grilling all over the world for many different types of national cuisine. For example, the marinades used for Indian cuisine contain lots of spices such as, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, paprika.

Once you start preparing marinades for your bbq you should start investigating the many global internet sites where you can find marinade recipes. Make a folder for these recipes as you discover them, but I recommend that first of all you should start with the well-established recipes, later moving on to recipes which might not be so well-known, but can be great fun to experiment with.

Find out more about bbq methods and techniques and catch up with my reviews on the most popular and best-selling bbq grills at www.barbecues-for-sale.com.

And while you’re there don’t forget to sign up for our FREE “Barbecue Secrets and Tips” Newsletter.

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