The techniques to become real barbecue professionals
If you think that barbecue is only placing sausages and steaks on a red-hot grill, you are wrong! Barbecue is a way of cooking meat that include different cooking techniques, more or less suitable, according to the type of meat to cook and the final result that you want to obtain. Try these three techniques that we suggest and you will be pleasantly surprised by the final results.
Barbecue: direct cooking hot & fast
It is maybe the easiest and the most spread barbecue technique ever. It requires short cooking times and high temperatures. The technique Hot & Fast is a way of direct cooking, meat is placed on the grill, on the fire or embers which heat arrives directly on the food.
The temperature is very high, above 250°C and the skill is on the ability to not burn the meat turning it over at the right moment, seasoning it with aromas and spices. For this cooking it is possible to use a gas or charcoal barbecue, but of course the embers are the best choice.
Which meat to choose for the hot & fast cooking? For sure, the result will be satisfactory for lean meat pieces like fillet or beef rump, but also fish and vegetables. Thin pieces of meat need a lower temperature to give time to cook perfectly the inside without burning the external part. With this technique it is possible to obtain the beloved external dark and crispy shell that hide a juicy and soft inside. It occurs thanks to the so-called Maillard Reaction that create the external caramelization of the sugar that give this crispiness and the typical smoked taste.
Barbecue: indirect cooking low & slow
Low temperature and slow cooking, this indirect cooking technique is suitable for the pieces of meat that have to be cooked very well like chicken, turkey breast, ribs and pork shoulder. The meat isn’t in direct contact with the heat but it is cooked by convection; the temperature is around 140°C and it is like the grill be a oven, this is the reason why it is necessary to close the grill with a lid, moving the embers on one side and meat on the other. It is possible to place a bowl of water inside it to maintain the level of humidity.
In this way meat is cooked slowly and gently, the heat has time to arrive in the middle of the meat cooking and making it soft and juicy, whereas the external shell doesn’t risk to burn. The result will be surprising, but be prepared for hours and hours of cooking.
Barbecue: smoking
Cooking meat with the smoking techniques can give great satisfactions to the palate and it doesn’t require great efforts. It is important to choose the right wood and the cooking time. Grill has to be set as for the indirect cooking with the charcoal only on one side and it is necessary to add a bowl with water on the side to keep the temperature low.
It is time to add on the embers some wood flakes, soaked in the water in advance, to give a kind of smoking aroma to the meat. It is important to close the lid, opening it as little as possible.
There are many type of wood suitable for the smoking technique: cherry wood is fruity and suitable for all the meats, apple tree wood is delicate perfect for chicken and pork, so that maple that is sweetish. Oak give a strong taste and it is suitable for beef, pork and big pieces of meat, whereas wood flakes that come from whisky barrels are perfect for the pork meat.
