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.

Orange Molasses Barbeque Sauce

Ingredients:

1 10 oz. Can Condensed Tomato Soup
1 8 oz. Can tomato Sauce
1/2 cup. Molasses
1/4 cup. Cooking Oil
1/2 cup. Vinegar
1/2 cup. Brown Sugar
1 tbsp. Minced Onion
1 tbsp. Seasoned Salt
1 tbsp. Dry Mustard
1 tbsp. Grated Orange Peel
1 1/2 tsp. Paprika
1/2 tsp. Black Pepper
1/4 tsp. Garlic Powder

Instructions:

Combine all the bbq sauce ingredients. Bring to a boil using a medium size saucepan stiring til blended, reduce heat to simmer. Cook about 20 minutes, uncovered. Store any unused sauce in the refrigerator, covered after cooled.

This Caribbean Rum BBQ Sauce is great for those summer nights by the pool with cocktails.

INGREDIENTS

1 tsp. vegetable oil
3 slices home made bacon bits
1 medium onion, minced
1 small can tomato sauce
1/2 cup dark rum
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/8 tsp. chili sauce

DIRECTIONS

Saute vegetable oil and minced onion over medium high heat. Cook it until the onion is tender. Add the bacon bits tomato sauce and dark rum to the pan with the onion. Reduce heat and Simmer for 2 minutes longer. Add in the lemon juice, brown sugar, and chili sauce and simmer your finished Caribbean Rum BBQ Sauce for about 8 more minutes.

This is a robust flat iron steak recipe your father is sure to love. This is a great steak when grilled on the BBQ.

Ingredients:

12 8 ounce top blade steaks
1 1/2 pounds Red Onions

Marinade:

24 ounces. House Beer
2 tbsp. Tabasco Sauce
2 tbsp. Chopped Onions
2 tbsp. Brown Sugar
5 fl,ounces. Olive Oil
8 fl,ounces. Balsamic Vinegar
2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
6 fl,ounces. Beef Broth

Instructions:

Mix all of the marinade ingredients, in a large container with a lid. Add your steak into the container one by one to insure coverage. Cover the steak and refrigerate for 4-6 hours before grilling. Put the steak onto the grill and place the flat iron on top. Grill your fathers steak for about 10 min. on each side using this method. Slice the red onion into thick slices, and grill them alongside your flat iron steak. Place them on top of your steak as garnish.

Click To Order Rachael Ray’s 11 Inch by 9 Inch Hard Anodized Orange Rectangular Skillet with Cast Iron Flat Press

Try This Fantastic Yankee Brisket Pulled Barbecue Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

4 lbs. beef brisket or chuck roast or pork shoulder

2 cup. Water
3/4 cup. Liquid Smoke

2 cup. Chopped Onion
1/4 cup. Cider Vinegar
2 tbsp. Spicy Mustard
1 tbsp. Dark Molasses
1/4 tsp. Hot Pepper Sauce
3 tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce
1 cup. Ketchup
1/2 cup. Chili Sauce
1/2 Lemon Sliced
1 tbsp. Salt more or less to taste
1/4 tsp. Black Pepper

Recipe Instructions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Put the meat on a rack in a roasting pan, fat side up. Pour water and liquid smoke around the meat. Seal the pan with foil and place in the oven. Roasting the brisket for 4 hours or until tender, turning once. Uncover for the last 30 minutes to brown. Remove from the oven and let meat cool uncovered till the meat can be handled by hand. Save the pan juices and refrigorate. Remove meat from refrigaration and Trim away any remaining fat. Pull the meat into small shreds with a fork. Remove pan juices from refrigoration and remove the hardened fat from the pan juices. Placing fat in a large pot melt 3 tablespoons of the hardened fat over medium heat, add the onions and saute until tender. Add all the remaining ingredients in recipe above and 1 cup of the pan juices. Simmer and stir well for 20 minutes over on low heat. Add the pulled meat to the sauce and simmer very slowly, uncovered for 1 hour, stirring frequently. Add more juice if necessary to keep meat moist. Now go enjoy your Yankee brisket pulled barbecue with friends and family.

Tongue Twister Rib Rub

This tantalising tasty tongue twisting rib rub recipe can’t be beat.

Recipe Ingredients:

1 1/4 cup. Granulated Sugar
1 1/4 cup. Brown Sugar
1/2 cup. Salt
1/4 cup. Black Pepper
1/4 cup. Paprika
2 tbsp. Parsley Flakes
2 tbsp. Oregano Flakes
2 tbsp. Rosemary Ground
2 tbsp. Thyme Ground
2 tbsp. Onion Flakes

Recipe Instructions:

Place all of the ingredients in to food processer blend till smooth and pour in airtight container, store in pantry for latter use. use a shaker to apply to ribs, chicken, pork or steak.  As you can see, although it is named rib rub, you can also use it on many other types of barbecue.

Here is one more fantastic dry rub recipe-enjoy this New Orleans Style Rub

Recipe Ingredients:

2 Tbsp. onion powder
2 Tbsp. garlic powder
2 Tbsp. dried oregano
2 Tbsp. dried basil
1 Tbsp. dried thyme
1 Tbsp. black pepper
1 Tbsp. white pepper
1 Tbsp. cayenne pepper
5 Tbsp. paprika
3 Tbsp. salt

Recipe Instructions:

Combine all of these ingredients in a container with lid for storage sprinkle generously or hand rub, hold for 24 hours in your refrigerator covered with plastic wrap befor grilling or oven baking good for all protine food items.

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.

Marinade For Barbecue Chicken Or Turkey

INSTRUCTIONS:

1/2 cup. Dry Vermouth
1/2 cup. Fresh Orange Juice
1/2 cup. Fresh Lemon Juice
1/2 cup. Fresh Lime Juice
3   tsp. Minced Garlic
1/4 cup. Minced Yellow Onion
1/2 cup. Minced Fresh Parsley

INSTRUCTIONS:

Mix all ingredients together and pour into a air tight container mixing well and chicken or turkey to the marinade for several hours or overnight.  marinade will Keep 2 weeks in the refrigerator.  Makes 2 cups.

Robust Tennessee BBQ Sauce
1 Cup ketchup
1/2 Cup Cider Vinegar
1/4 Cup Worcestershire sauce
2 Cups Water
1 Med. Chopped Onion
1/2 Cup Lightly Packed Brown sugar
1 Teaspoon Celery Seed
1/2 Teaspoon Salt

Combine all of the ingredients into a small saucepan. Bring the entire mixture to a full boil on medium high setting, stirring constantly. Reduce the heat and simmer the sauce until it becomes thick. Let it rest a few minutes before applying it to your barbecue