We all have fond memories of great barbecues. It is hard to say no when one of our friends or a family member invites us to a barbecue. The thought of the food on the grill with the smoky aroma all around is admittedly hard to resist. The barbecue has been a traditional get together meal for decades and it will be here for many more.

There are many different methods for cooking a great barbecue meal. Some prefer to use a dry rub seasoning on the meat while grilling, others like to marinate the meat for a day or so before cooking it, some people enjoy adding wood chips to the grill for added smoke flavor, and some just like their food smothered in lots of barbecue sauce.

Traditional barbecue sauce is a blend of tomato sauce and vinegar. You can use ketchup in place of those two items. If you like, cider can be used either in place of or in addition to the vinegar. Then, the creativity really kicks in, flavors and spices are added to give each sauce its own distinctive taste.

For sweet barbecue sauces, brown sugar or honey are usually added. You can also use fruit or jelly to sweeten a sauce. To make it spicy, you can add any type of pepper or hot sauce that you like, cayenne will give it a milder flavor while you can really spice it up with something like Habanero sauce. Any combination of herbs and seasoning can be used in your barbecue sauce, garlic and onion powder are very common but for added flavor you can also use something like fresh cilantro. Another ingredient that is often put into a good barbecue sauce is smoke flavoring. This can be used in place of wood chips in the grill. Mustard is also used in the making of several barbecue recipes.

Marinades are also very popular. Try out several different methods with this as well. A good marinade can either be made by adding water to one of your barbecue sauce masterpieces or creating something entirely new. Try a soy sauce, brown sugar and sesame for something different. Don’t be afraid to experiment and try new things. Then, you just soak your meat in it overnight in the refrigerator to let it really soak in the flavors.

The key to making the perfect barbecue sauce is to make it the way you would like it to taste. Add any ingredients you like, switch them up and use a lot of variety. Try new things especially if you have a few favorite herbs or flavor preferences.

This Marinate steak Sauce Recipe is the best steak marinade sauce I have ever tasted

Ingredients Needed:

1/3 cup. Sherry
1/3 cup. Soy Sauce
1/3 cup. Vegetable Oil
4 tbsp. Honey
2 tbsp. Grated Ginger Root
1 tbsp. Garlic Minced

Prep Instructions:

In a medium bowl mix and whisk together sherry, soy sauce, vegetable oil, honey, ginger, and garlic. Marinate steaks for at least 4 hours before grilling.

Lemon Chicken Barbecue Sauce

Recipe Ingredients:

1 tsp. Minced Garlic
1/2 tsp. Salt
2 tbsp. Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
2 tbsp. Chicken Stock
1/2 cup. Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice
2 tbsp. Chopped Onion
1/2 tsp. Ground Black Pepper
1/2 tsp. Dried Thyme

Recipe Instructions:

Combine garlic, salt and oil in small bowl. Stir in remaining ingredients and chill for 24 hours before using.

This is an especially good marinade for chicken prior to barbecuing. Marinate for several hours, then barbecue over low coals for 25 to 30 minutes or until done, turning frequently and basting occasionally with
rest of sauce.

Blended Fruit Barbecue Ribs

5 Pounds Pork Ribs

INGREDIENTS:

1-16 ounce. Caned Apricots
1/4 cup. Brown Sugar
1 tsp. Chili Powder
1/2 cup. Catsup
1/2 cup. White Vinegar
2 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce

INSTRUCTIONS:

Place the ribs in a large Dutch oven and cover them with water. Bring to a boil, cover, then reduce the heat and simmer for 35 minutes longer. Remove and drain the ribs, and arrange in a large shallow dish.

Combine caned apricots and remaining ingredients in container for an electric osterizer; blending until smooth. Pour sauce over ribs, turning to coat them well. Cover and marinate in refrigerator for about 8 hours, turning occasionally. Remove the ribs from the marinade and place them on a broiler pan, reserving marinade for basting. Bake at 425 degrees for 40 minutes, basting the ribs till done.

One of the favourite cooking methods in Argentina is, without a doubt, grilling. This style of cooking is derived from the original Argentinian Gaucho tradition of cooking fresh meat over a charcoal fire.

To add flavour and tenderise the meat, Argentines often marinate meats in Chimichurri. Food without Chimichurri just wouldn’t be tolerated in Argentina especially grilled meat to which it adds an amazing flavour.

Argentine Chimichurri

1/3 packet of garlic salt
6 chilli peppers
2 sachets bouquet garni
1 large onion
tub of dried peppers
1 pint (500ml) of vinegar
2 pints (1 litre) oil

Boil all the ingredients, excluding oil, together in the vinegar for five minutes.
Wait until the mixture cools.
When the mixture has cooled, add the oil.
Store in refrigerator.

When you’re ready to barbecue or grill, marinade meat in chimichurri overnight. Barbecue, grill or cook in the oven. Enjoy!

Many thanks to friends who gave me this recipe whilst we were living in the Falkland Islands.

BBQ Food is the Mental Cue that summer is Here

Winter is over, spring has sprung, and summer is on its way. Its the perfect time to take the cover off of the barbecue grill and get grilling. BBQ food is the perfect start to a great summer. As the smells of neighborhood grills begin wafting down the streets of towns all across America, there is a theme that permeates the breeze. Summer is here; its time for fun in the sun.

There is nothing that takes me back to my childhood quite like BBQ food. The smells, the flavors, and most importantly, the feeling of quality time spent with family and the knowledge that we are building memories for our children to someday share with their children. If you think about it, you can have BBQ food of some sort, almost any night of the week. As long as you are willing to use your grill, which has the benefit of keeping the heat of cooking on the outside of your home.

Here are some great grilling ideas that will enable you to have BBQ food almost anytime you want.
1)Veggies taste better when cooked on a grill. You can also have fun mixing flavors and seasonings. Kraft had a great idea of butter mix-ins for vegetables, I also like to marinate mine in Italian dressing and grill them in foil packets.
2)Almost any meat you can purchase will taste better cooked on a grill. I even enjoy smoked sausage cooked on a grill with BBQ sauce.
3)Make it a great night by allowing family members to make their own shish kabobs.
4)Have theme nights for your BBQ food, you can do Italian BBQ, Mexican BBQ, Caribbean, be creative and have fun.

The real beauty of BBQ food is that it is an excuse we use to build lasting memories of good times with family and friends. There is no reason we cant make meal times special each and every day, not just during the summer months.

3 lbs. boned loin pork in 1 piece
1/2 c. soy sauce
4 tbsp. cider vinegar
2 tbsp. oil
3 tbsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 cup packed brown suger
1 tsp. curry powder
1 tsp. oregano flakes or fresh chopped
1 tsp. chopped onion

1. Split meat lengthwise to half thickness, combine all the ingredients in shallow bowl mix well untill sugar has dissolved. Add meat, marinate covered 4 hours turning occasionally for equl coverage. 2. Remove and drain meat and place it in shallow roasting pan. Roast at 350 degrees for 1-1/2 hours basting with remainning marinate occasionally. Remove from pan and cool. To serve cut pork in diagonal thin slices and place on a serving plate, Serve with toothpicks and Chinese mustard. or for freeze wrap in plastic wrap and foil for cold sorage or freezing for later use.