CONTENTS

1 THE SCIENCE OF HEAT

MYTH: Plan on a 5°F to 10°F carryover.

2 SMOKE

MYTH: Creosote should be avoided.

MYTH: A smoke ring is caused by smoke.

MYTH: It is important to match the wood to the meat.

MYTH: Soak wood chips and chunks for the most smoke.

3 THE SCIENCE OF FLAVOR

MYTH: Let meat come to room temperature before grilling.

MYTH: Searing meat seals in the juices.

MYTH: Meat needs to rest after cooking.

MYTH: Marinades penetrate deep into meat and make it more tender.

MYTH: The fat cap will melt and make the meat juicier.

MYTH: Pink pork can cause trichinosis.

MYTH: Cook chicken until the juices run clear.

MYTH: Grill marks are a sign of a great steak.

MYTH: Flip meat on the grill as little as possible.

4 HARDWARE

MYTH: There is no difference between the flavor of food cooked over charcoal and gas.

MYTH: Poking holes in your meat with a thermometer will make your meat dry.

MYTH: You can tell doneness by cutting into the meat to check its color.

MYTH: The best tinder is dried leaves or newspaper.

MYTH: Lump charcoal burns hotter than briquets.

MYTH: Lump charcoal has more flavor than briquets.

MYTH: The higher the BTU rating, the hotter the grill.

5 SAFET Y

6 RECIPE S

Brines

Dry Brines

Rubs and blends of herbs and spices

Pork

Beef

Lamb

Ground meats: Burgers, hot dogs, and sausages

Chicken and turkey

Duck and goose

Fish

Clams, oysters, and mussels

Lobster, shrimp, and crab

Pizza and breads

Potatoes

Beans

Slaws, vegetables, salads, and sides

Desserts

INDEX

Meet Meathead!

“The Alton Brown of barbecue.”

— JOE MIZRAHI, SMOKIN’ JOE’S, NYC

“Impish irreverence, along with a kettle of assertions about the ‘thermodynamics’ of outdoor grilling, have made Goldwyn a sort of

cross between Guy Fieri and Bill Nye the Science Guy.”

— BLOOMBERG.COM

“[This] book will add a decidedly modernist sensibility to this primitive cooking form, as it brings the exacting science behind

molecular gastronomy and applies it to barbecue.”

— JIM SHAHIN, WASHINGTON POST

“Meathead is the best writer covering this part of the culinary world. We’re really lucky to have him in our community because he has

become a soothsayer. If there’s a BBQ Mt. Rushmore, his face ought to be on it. To have such muscular prose is better than we deserve.”

— JOHN MARKUS, PRODUCER, BBQ PITMASTERS

“[Meathead] looks for real answers to serious questions. People will argue that barbecue cooking is a magical process.

He’s brought science to it.”

— BARRY SORKIN, CHEF-OWNER OF SMOQUE BBQ

THE SCIENCE OF HEAT 54 THE SCIENCE OF HEAT

WHEN TO COOK LOW AND SLOW

The thicker the food, the lower the cooking temperature should be. Cooking low and

slow is essential for tough cuts like beef brisket, pork shoulder, and ribs. These cuts are too tough to eat medium-rare (130°F to 135°F), the opti-mum temperature for most other cuts of beef and pork. They also have lots of tough connec-tive tissue. But if they are cooked to a mind-bog-gling 203°F or so, magic happens: Fats melt and the tough connective tissue softens up like Marshall Dillon in Miss Kitty’s arms. Another benefit of cooking low and slow is that it gives salt time to migrate towards the center, which seasons the meat throughout. We took two pork loin roasts about four inches wide and three inches tall and roasted one at 325°F and the other at 225°F. By the time the center of the meat hit the desired tempera-ture of 145°F, the outer layer of the one cooked at the higher temperature was a parched 170°F, while the one cooked at the lower temperature was a still-moist 160°F.

HOW TO COOK LOW AND SLOWThis method cooks food with warm convection air instead of directly over radiant heat. To do it properly, you need to master the single most important technique for the backyard cook: the two-zone setup (see page 000). A quick summary: You need a hot radiant “direct zone” where you can put food directly above the heat and a warm convection “indirect

zone” off to the side, where warm air circulates around the food. Experiment with your grill so you can stabilize the indirect zone at 225°F to 325°F with the lid down. At 225°F, you can roast low and slow with indirect convection heat, perfect for turning tough cuts like brisket into tender, juicy meat. This temperature also allows you to slowly and gently raise the interior tem-perature of thick steaks and roasts, maintaining their moisture. At 325°F, you can quickly crisp chicken and turkey skins. Practice hitting these marks in your cooker in different weather conditions without food. Cold weather, rain, and wind can significantly impact the temperature inside your cooker. But once you nail these two target tem-peratures, you’ll be able to cook all types of food in your grill in any weather.

SURFACE TO CENTER TEMPERATURE DIFFERENCE IN 3-POUND PORK LOIN ROAST

2 m

m B

elow

Sur

face

Tem

pera

ture

(F)

195

175

155

135

115

95

75

145

Center Temperature (F)

50 70 90 110 130 150

Cooking Temperature225F325F

BUSTED! All the grocery, restaurant, and grill

ads show beautiful steaks and burgers with

crosshatched grill marks. Cooking magazines and

books explain how to get the marks. But do we

really need them?

Look at the three rib eye steaks. The grill marks

on rib eye #1 prompt a Pavlovian response and

make you salivate. But rib eye #2 will taste a lot

better. The grill marks on rib eye #1 are merely

superficial branding, unlike the deep, rich sear

that delivers maximal taste and texture in rib

eye #2. When it comes to meats and many other

foods, the goal is a golden brown to dark brown

color on as much surface as possible. That’s

the most flavorful part because a dark color

means that hundreds of tasty compounds have

been created through the Maillard reaction and

caramelization.

But rib eye #1 has only about a third of the sur-

face fully browned. The diamond shapes between

the grill marks remain well-done. And if you’re

not careful, grill marking can scar your meat with

black stripes of chalky carbon that taste like burnt

toast and might contain hazardous cancer-caus-

ing chemicals as shown in rib eye #3.

Some foods, however, do call for grill marks.

On skinny foods like shrimp, chops, skirt steaks,

asparagus, and bell peppers, grill marking quickly

browns the exterior without overcooking the inte-

rior. But watch that they don’t burn.

MYTH GRILL MARKS ARE A SIGN OF A GREAT STEAK.

1

2

3

THE SCIENCE OF FLAVOR 7

REVERSE SEAR TO THE RESCUE

If you have experience cooking, you know a lot of recipes have you brown meat in a pan

before finishing in the oven or in a pot. Two steps. Two temperatures. Sear over high heat, finish at low heat. But when you start with high heat, you load up the exterior with energy, and by the time you are done, you have a thick band of overcooked meat at the edge. If you reverse the order and start the food at a lower temperature, you warm up the meat until it is close to uniform doneness on the inside. Then you can hit it with high heat at the end and get both the interior and exterior more prop-erly cooked. That’s reverse sear, and it is the best approach for many foods. Master it. Start by setting up your grill for two-zone cooking. Try to get the indirect zone as close to 225°F as you can with the lid on. Put the meat

on the indirect side, toss a little hardwood on the flames, and then close the lid so the meat will roast slowly with smoky convection air. Roast it gradually, flipping it once or twice, until the interior temperature is 10°F to 15°F below your target temperature. For this, you absolutely posi-tively need a good instant-read digital thermom-eter like the Thermapen. When your chicken hits 150°F, take it off the heat and put it on a plate for a moment. You are done working on the interior. Now go to work on the exterior. Take the lid off, and crank up the heat on the other side as hot as you can get it. Pat one side dry with a paper towel so when you put it on the grill it doesn’t cool the surface and steam the meat. Then put the meat dry side down on the hot side and leave the lid off. You want all the heat focused on one surface near the coals or flames so the moisture steams off and the crust turns deep and dark bourbon brown. You want to take it just shy of burnt because at that edge, dazzling things happen.

6 SMOKE

THE SMOKE RING

Smoked meats, like ribs and the brisket shown here, often have a pink layer called

the smoke ring directly below the surface, nes-tled under the crust. The smoke ring is mostly caused by nitric oxide and/or carbon monoxide from combustion locking in the meat’s nat-ural pink color. Smoke rings have long been emblems of great barbecue. Alas, every year thousands of restaurant customers send back this meat, thinking it is undercooked. It is not. No matter what type of cooker you use, here are four secrets to a great smoke ring, all related to moisture:

1. Start with cold meat. Smoke is attracted to cold meat.

2. Use a cooker that does not have strong air currents, which might parch the meat’s surface.

3. Create high humidity in the cooker to keep a moist surface on the meat. A water pan helps. You can also add water by lightly spritzing the meat with a spray bottle. Spritzing with apple juice or vinegar is also popular. The water is sticky and grabs onto nitrogen oxides and flavor molecules.

4. Keeping a charcoal or wood fire at a steady, low temperature of about 225°F minimizes drying on the surface and produces the best-tasting meat.

CHICKEN AND TURKEY 9

1. Make the sauce.

2. Pour it in a large bowl, or better still, into a large

zipper bag. Add the chicken. Marinate, refrigerated,

for at least 3 and up to 24 hours. The Huli-Huli sauce

contains a lot of soy sauce, which is salty. So some

of it will penetrate, like a brine. It also makes a nice

glaze when basted on during cooking.

3. Set up the grill for two-zone cooking and preheat

it so the indirect side is about 325°F. Pour the mari-

nade into a saucepan and bring to a boil to pasteur-

ize it so it can be used for basting. Keep cooking until

it reduces by about a quarter.

4. Roast the chicken with the lid down on the indirect

side of the grill. Turn it frequently so the sugar in the

sauce doesn’t blacken. After turning, paint the upper

surface with a layer of the sauce.

5. As the chicken approaches 150°F, stop basting.

Discard the sauce. Move the meat over the direct

heat, skin side down to crisp the skin. Flip it every

minute or two to make sure it is not burning. When

the white meat is 160°F and the dark meat 170°F to

175°F, you’re ready for your luau.

HAWAIIAN HULI-HULI TERIYAKI SAUCE AND MARINADE

In 1955 Ernest Morgado cooked up a big batch of chicken for a group of farmers. It

was such a hit that, by the time he died, it had become a signature dish beloved throughout Hawaii. Morgado’s recipe is a secret, and every vendor on the islands has his or her own varia-tion on the theme. Use this whenever a recipe calls for teriyaki sauce.

MAKES: About 3 cups, enough for 2 whole chickens, cut into quarters

TAKES: 30 minutes

1 cup pineapple juice

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth or water

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup ketchup or red barbecue sauce

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar

4 tablespoons peeled grated fresh ginger

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

2 teaspoons sriracha sauce

4 medium garlic cloves, pressed or finely

minced

Mix all the ingredients together in a saucepan and

simmer gently for about 10 minutes. You can refriger-

ate it for months.

8 RUBS AND BLENDS

MEATHEAD’S MEMPHIS DUST

Although it is formulated for pork, I’ve used this recipe with success in sausage blends,

on smoked salmon, on celery stuffed with cream cheese, on the rim of Bloody Marys, and even on popcorn. It is designed to flavor, color, and form the proper crust when cooked at low tem-peratures. Don’t skip the sugar, which is import-ant for formation of the flavorful bark. I typically use about one tablespoon per side of a slab of St. Louis-cut ribs, and a bit less for baby backs.

MAKES: About 3 cups

TAKES: 15 minutes

¾ cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

¾ cup granulated white sugar

½ cup paprika

¼ cup garlic powder

2 tablespoons ground black pepper

2 tablespoons ground ginger

2 tablespoons onion powder

2 teaspoons ground rosemary

Mix all the ingredients together. Store the extra in a

zipper bag or a glass jar with a tight lid.

SIMON & GARFUNKEL RUB MAKES: About 1/2 cup, enough for about 8 large whole chickens

TAKES: 10 minutes

1 tablespoon dried parsley

2 tablespoons dried sage

1 tablespoon dried crushed rosemary

1 tablespoon dried thyme

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon dried basil

1 tablespoon dried crushed bay leaf

1 tablespoon ground black pepper

1 tablespoon sugar

Measure everything and dump it into a blender. Put

the lid on and blend on medium for a few seconds,

turn it off, and run it again. Continue pulsing about

until you have a coarse powder. Dump the whole

thing in a jar and label it. It will keep for 6 months.

HAWAIIAN HULI-HULI TERIYAKI CHICKEN

As popular as this is in Hawaii, it is surpris-ing that the dish hasn’t become more pop-

ular on the mainland. Let’s change that!

MAKES: 1 whole chicken, enough for 2 to 4 people

TAKES: Making the marinade takes about 30 minutes; marinating takes 3 to 24 hours; cooking takes about 30 minutes

1 cup Huli-Huli Sauce (recipe follows)

1 (2-pound) chicken, cut into parts

CHICKEN AND TURKEY 1 1

CLASSIC BUFFALO HOT SAUCE

8 tablespoons (1 stick) salted butter, melted

2 minced or pressed garlic cloves

1/2 cup Frank’s Original RedHot Sauce

THE REST

24 whole chicken wings (about 4 pounds)

Salt and ground black pepper

6 celery stalks, cleaned, and cut into 4-inch

sections

1. Take the cream cheese and the blue cheese out

of the fridge and let them come to room temp. Then

smush them together with the spices in a bowl. Mix

in the sour cream and half-and-half. Refrigerate.

You can do this a day ahead. Cut up the celery and

refrigerate.

2. You can also make the hot sauce days ahead. Melt

the butter in a pan over a low heat and then add the

garlic. Let it simmer for about a minute but don’t let

the garlic brown. Then add the Frank’s. Let them get

to know each other for at least 3 to 4 minutes.

3. So here are the problems with wings. There are

three distinct pieces of different thickness and skin

to meat ratio: (1) The tips, (2) the wingettes or flats

in the center, and (3) the drumettes on the end that

attach to the shoulders. The thickness differences

means they cook at different speeds and finish at

different times. The best thing to do is separate them

into three parts with kitchen shears, a sturdy knife, or

a Chinese cleaver.

The tips are almost all skin, really thin, and small

enough that they often fall through the grates or burn

to a crisp. You can cook them if you wish, but I freeze

them for use in making soup. Separate the V-shaped

piece remaining at the joint between the wingette

and drumette. You will cook both these parts.

4. You can start them on a smoker if you wish, but I

usually grill them. Set up the grill for two-zone cook-

ing with the indirect side at about 325°F to help crisp

the skin and melt the fat. If you wish, add wood to the

direct side to create smoke. Use a lot of smoke. Grill

with the lid closed in the indirect zone until the skins

are golden. That will probably take 7 to 10 minutes

per side. By then they are pretty close to done.

5. Now move them onto the direct heat side of your

grill, high heat, lid open, and stand there, turning

frequently until the skin is dark golden to brown but

not burnt, keeping a close eye on the skinnier pieces,

moving them to the indirect zone when they are

done.

6. Put the sauce in a big bowl or pot and put it on

the grill and get it warm. Stir or whisk well. Keep

warm. When the wings are done you can serve them

with the sauce on the side for dipping, or just dump

them in with the sauce and toss or stir until they are

coated. Then slide them onto a serving platter. Put

the celery sticks next to them, and serve with a bowl

of the dip. People can scoop some blue cheese sauce

on their plates, and dip in the celery and wings.

Drumette

WingetteTip

ANATOMY OF A CHICKEN WING

10 CHICKEN AND TURKEY

BUFFALO WINGS

Some will say the quintessential American foods are hot dogs and hamburgers, but

they have their roots in Europe. Buffalo Chicken Wings, however, were born in the USA, made from a part of the chicken that once upon a time was used for soup stock. The popular dish was invented in Buffalo, New York, at the now fabled Anchor Bar, still at the original location, 1047 Main Street, although ownership has changed. The exact origin fable has become clouded a bit through time, but the new owners and survi-vors of the memorable night tell this tale: Late on a Friday night in 1964, Dom Bellissimo, son of owners Frank and Teressa, was working at the Anchor when some of his buddies showed up with the munchies. Theresa was shutting down the kitchen, so she looked for something quick and easy. She had a box of wings to use in making soup, so thinking on her feet, she tossed them into the deep fryer, which was still hot. When they came out she sprinkled them with hot sauce, some melted margarine, and to make sure the boys had a well-rounded meal, she added a side of celery and blue cheese dressing

to dunk the celery into. The boys dipped both the celery and the saucy wings in the blue cheese dip, and an international rage was born. Nowadays every bar in Buffalo serves wings, they are standard fare across the nation, there is a national chain named Buffalo Wild Wings, and there is even a huge National Buffalo Wing Festival in “The Queen City” over the Labor Day weekend. True Buffalo wings are deep fried, but I love the flavor and convenience of cooking them on the grill, and even smoking them first. And there is much less mess. Blasphemy, I know. But mmmmm, tasty blasphemy, to paraphrase Homer Simpson. The problem is getting the skin crispy. So I tried everything. I painted them with oil. I took a tip from Chinese restaurants and the way they make Peking Duck and dunked them in boil-ing water for a bit, and then let them dry in the fridge. I dunked them in salted boiling water. I steamed them. I sprinkled them with baking powder. I poked holes in the skin so they would drain better. I even combined techniques. So I’ve chosen the simplest path: reverse sear. I start the wings on the indirect side to cook the meat, add smoke, and finish on the hot side to crisp the skin.

MAKES: 4 to 6 appetizer servings

TAKES: 2 hours prep and 30 minutes to cook

BLUE CHEESE DIP

3 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

3 ounces good-quality blue cheese, crumbled

1/2 cup half-and-half

1/4 cup sour cream

1/2 teaspoon Simon & Garfunkel Rub (page 8)

“ An amazing compendium of barbecue knowledge.” — AARON FRANKLIN, CHEF, FRANKLIN BARBECUE, AUSTIN

PUBLICITY & MARKETING

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∙ ISBN 978-0-544-01846-4 ∙ $35.00 ∙ 8 x 10 ∙ 512 pages

∙ Full-color throughout

PUBLICATION DATEMay 24, 2016

PUBLICITY CONTACTBrittany Edwardsbrittany.edwards@hmhco.com(212) 592-1112

A Rux Martin Book

www.hmhco.com/cooking

Follow us @HMHCooks

Designed by Endpaper StudioPhotographs by Meathead GoldwynAuthor photo ©John R. Boehm

FOR SUCCULENT RESULTS EVERY TIME, nothing is more crucial than under-standing the science behind the interaction of fire and food. In this definitive guide to the concepts, methods, and equipment of barbecuing and grilling, Meathead Goldwyn shatters the myths that stand in the way of perfection. “Busted” miscon-ceptions include:

MYTH MEAT SHOULD BE BROUGHT TO ROOM TEMPERATURE BEFORE COOKING. BUSTED! Cold meat attracts smoke better.

MYTH HARDWOOD CHARCOAL IS BETTER THAN BRIQUETS. BUSTED! There’s no difference in flavor, and briquets last longer.

MYTH MEAT NEEDS TO REST AFTER GRILLING TO REABSORB ITS JUICES. BUSTED! Tests show it does not take up juices but can become cold and overcooked.

Meathead reveals everything backyard heroes need to know, including how to decide when to use a dry rub or a brine and a detailed roundup of equipment—from grills

and grates to the best thermometers. Lavishly illus-trated with full-color photos and illustrations, this book contains all the sure-fire recipes for traditional American favorites: Tennessee Hollerin’ Sauce, Last Meal Ribs, Baltimore Pit Beef, Simon and Garfunkel Chicken, Schmancy Smoked Salmon, Roman-Style No-Knead Pizza, and Ultimate Corn on the Cob.

MEATHEAD GOLDWYN is the president and founder of amazingribs.com, one of the most popular online barbecuing sites. He has written hundreds of articles for the Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Huffington Post, AOL, Wine Spectator, and may others. He has taught at Cornell University’s Hotel School and Le Cordon Bleu in Chicago. He has judged food and drink from Italy to New York to Kansas City to California. He lives outside Chicago.