The Barbecue! Bible

Steven Raichlen may be to gas grilling what Julia Childs was to French cookery, minus the iconic status. He'd done a lot to make grilling techniques approachable and has traveled the word for recipes and inspiration. But how useful you find this book depends upon your source of heat and method of cooking. Barbecue Bible is rich in information about cooking with gas but less so with charcoal and wood. Want to know the difference between charcoal briquettes (uniform size, consistent burn, more ash) and hardwood charcoal (irregular size, higher heat, less ash, great when searing is required)? You won't find it here. Nor will you find any information on types of smokers. Perhaps that isn't surprising: Raichlen is trying to make recipes from around the world accessible and cooking with charcoal and wood or using a smoker requires more of a learning curve -- for the latter I'd suggest a book such as Paul Kirk's Championship Barbecue. In his sweet spot of accessible grilling and barbecuing, Raichlen hits a home run. Among the qualities of his book that I enjoy: (1) A good primer on grilling and barbecuing, explaining the difference and key concepts such as direct versus indirect cooking. (2) Excellent photography that goes beyond sexy food shots (though there are some of those too). Photos are used to show HOW to execute key concepts, showing for example how to spatchcock (remove the backbone and butterfly) a chicken or how to fillet a whole fish. (3) The layout is very well done , with recipes shown clearly, key tips and notes set out on lime green rectangles and a pleasing mix of text, graphics and photos. (4) The paper and binding seem of high quality and I expect the book to weather well, which isn't always true for softcover cookbooks numbering more than 500 pages. (5) The useful introduction included frequently asked questions that should be especially helpful for anyone closer to the start of the learning curve. (6) There's a handy reference section in the back with metric conversions, a glossary of special ingredients and a well organized index. (7) The book is written well and with a sense of exploration and discovery that hopefully will stimulate your own curiosity. Raichlen has a heavy web presence too and you can get a taste of his approach at his website (just google barbecue bible) or his Facebook page, which more than 10,000 people like.

This book was recommended by Epicurious before it was published, so I was excited to see it when it came out. I popped on amazon to buy it, read some reviews (negative) and decided to pass. Several people complained that the recipes were complicated and required lots of specialty ingredients. When I saw the book at my local warehouse club I gave it a look. I was very impressed and snapped it right up! I'm the type who reads cookbooks like novels, and I am an experienced cook who likes to dabble in every sort of cuisine imaginable. I'm also a condiment/seasonings/spices nut, so I have an extremely well-stocked pantry. That said, in reading through the book, I didn't come across any recipes for which I didn't have the ingredients. I realize, however, that the average person does not have tamarind paste or sambal olek in their fridge, nor galangal or scores of middle eastern seasonings in the pantry. But, if I can find that stuff at my local markets (the Super Target, for goodness sake!), surely these ingredients are easily obtained. And there are plenty of recipes in this book that do not require "exotic" ingredients, if your tastes or budget doesn't run to that. The book is very broad in its scope - cocktails, salads, meats, veggies, sides, even desserts - so it is far more useful than simply a book on grilling meats. I also appreciated the explanations of techniques, histories of cuisines, definitions of terms, etc. This type of information not only equips one to execute the recipes in the book well, but experiment and develop dishes on one's own. There is also an extensive section on rubs, marinades and sauces for just such experimenting. I think this book would be enjoyed by the following types of cooks: -those enjoy trying new cuisines, new flavors and new techniques -those who want to expand their bbq/grilling repertoire -those who are adventurous cooks (and diners!) who either have a well-stocked pantry or would find other uses for some of the more unique ingredients (lots of Thai, Asian and middle-eastern ingredients) -those who appreciate a cookbook that provides an entire meal's recipes, not just the entree. If you like your food pretty plain or you're cooking for picky eaters who won't try anything they haven't heard of, this book is soooo not for you. Bob appetit!

Excellent book it’s really like a bible

I purchased this for a family member who likes to barbecue but isn't very good at it. It gives great advice on how to barbecue but not a lot of good recipes for my taste.

I love Steven Raichlen's show, so when I needed a gift for my brother-in-law, this book was an easy choice. He takes barbecue seriously, and the quality and variety of information in this book make it a fantastic addition to any grill master's library. The cost was excellent for what you get. A true barbecue bible.

Great gift for my dad. Lots of recipes. Pages look nice. No damage.

Christmas gift for my boyfriend. He enjoyed makign some meals from it

Just a great book and no need in my wasting my time here with over 100 reviews in front of me. Just buy the book, it is top shelf in every regard. After getting this book, I ordered two others from the same author. Got BBQ Bible, BBQ Bible sauces/rubs/marinades, and Grilling... something or another. All three are great. The BBQ and Grilling are both big 400+ page books but not the same type of books. Grilling is about know how, what grill, technique, etc.. and some recipes along the way. More of a general how to cook every kind of meat/fish/etc.. book. The BBQ Bible is loaded with recipe after recipe. So buy both books is what I am saying here. If you take BBQ serious, be sure to get the BBW Bible sauces/rubs/marinade book as well. Tons of info in this book.

Owning quite a few cookery books already, it occurred to me that I didn't have anything at all for BBQs. Asking around and reading reviews I decided to go for this one. And I was not disappointed. Yes, there aren't that many photos. Yes, the measurements are American. But there is a conversion table at the back so it's not a problem, and the recipes are so good, sausages and burgers are now a thing of the past on my gas BBQ. On my first go I made 6 different things from it. They were very easy to follow, and they all came out divinely. I now feel I can invite people for a proper meal rather than the same charcoaled menu they have experienced up to now. It gives details on rubs, marinades, meat, vegetables, as well as really nice salads. If there was only 1 book to buy on Barbecue food, this is it.

If you are an amateur barbecuer, then this is a great book to buy. Learnt quite a few things.....some neat tips and tricks and some great recipes too!!

E' un bellissimo libro che dà molte informazioni sul bbq, che riguardano la storia, la filosofia, i metodi di cottura, la manutenzione ed una serie di ricette che derivano da tutte le parti del mondo. Direi che è un libro che non può mancare nella biblioteca di un griller.

So many recipes that you won't know which one to cook. Loads of help on how to BBQ and it has got me out on the grill. The recipes have been internationally research and this is what I love about this book. I have tried some great dishes from this book, that have tasted really authentic. I find it easy just to think of which country you want to cook from and look in the index under that country name. Its also not just meat the salad and side dishes are almost better than the meat. Also a cocktail section of international cocktails, and very good they are too.

Steven Raichlen es una garantía escribiendo sobre BBQ. Aquí encontrarás más de 500 recetas de todo el mundo, con consejos para técnicas de asado, desde lo más básico, hasta más complejas como el ahumado y la elección del combustible a emplear. Hay recetas de pollo, pescado, postres, vegetales. Etc… lo mejor es que podrás elegir tu receta a cocinar, dependiendo tu gusto y también considerando tu bolsillo. Un libro que todo amante de la parrilla debe tener disponible para su consulta.