Outdoor Cooking Magic » Outdoor Cooking Tips

Competition BBQ Secrets Review

Scott — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 23:06:00 +0000

I recently got a copy of Competition BBQ Secrets to review. I've seen this ebook referred to on the Internet many times and was interested to see what it said. I'm always looking for good sources of information!

I scanned through the topics in the table of contents and it looked like it had a lot of good information in it:

Information on smokers
Woods to use
Managing your fire
Brining, marinating, injecting, sauces
Cooking tips for the big four in competition: chicken, pork ribs, pork butts, and brisket
Smoking tips for turkey
Guide to trimming spare ribs, St. Louis style
Science of BBQ
BBQ competitions

I was looking at this ebook primarily from a backyard BBQ point of view. Most of these are topics that are applicable to the backyard BBQ, but some are much less so, such as the section on BBQ competitions.

To be honest, I was disappointed that so much of the ebook was spent on the competition aspect (about 12 pages out of 74). I hadn't remembered the sales page saying much about that part, so went back and checked and it was my memory--it clearly states that there is information for those who want to compete. It isn't that none of that information is applicable to the backyard BBQer but you'll have to dig a little bit to find it and apply it. It is more directly applicable to those doing competition.

With regards to the rest of the book, there is a lot of very specific information about how Bill Anderson cooks his meats at competition. Bill is part of the Chatham Artillery BBQ Team and has done very well in competitions recently. He must be doing something right!

I've seen some complaints that all of the information in this book can be found on the Internet. That's probably true! But you'll have to search high and low and test and try many things to find the combinations that work. Bill has already done that and shares it all with you in the ebook.

Bill provides specific information about cooking time and temperatures for chicken, pork ribs, pork butts, brisket, and turkey. He also gives a number of recipes, including:

1 injection recipe
7 rub recipes
12 barbecue sauce recipes
And a few miscellaneous others

Note that there are not a bunch of recipes--if that's what you are looking for, Competition BBQ Secrets is not for you. But if you want some recipes that have done great in competitions, then it's worth checking out. I haven't tried any of the recipes yet, so can't comment on them, but I look forward to trying and testing them and see what I think. I've you've tried any of these, please let us know what you think in the comments below. I'll do the same as I try the recipes.

The one thing that I read that I completely disagreed with was a suggestion that lighter fluid be used to start the charcoal. Bill says that if you let it burn long enough, the fluid will burn off and the odor will be gone. That's not my experience, and I start all of my charcoal now with a chimney. In another part of the book, he talks about an experience where he tasted some barbecue that had a bit of an after-taste. When he checked with the cook, she said that she had used lighter fluid. His point was that you should not risk using lighter fluid to light your coals when there were other ways. I agree--use a chimney! It takes a little bit longer, but you run no risk of it affecting the taste of your food.

All in all, this book has some solid information and if it is what the Chatham Artillery BBQ Team is using during their recent success, then it's worth looking at. At the present time, the book goes for $29.95. This may seem a bit expensive, and you might even be a bit underwhelmed after reading it (I was at first), but then you need to remember that your time is worth money and Bill has shared proven tips, tricks, and recipes with you--no need to spend your time trying to figure out what works and how to BBQ. He'll easily save you that $29.95 in your time.

That doesn't even include the savings that you'll have from not having to buy meats and other related items to test and see what works. Heck, a brisket alone can run around $20, so you can easily save that money by following what Bill has found to work.

I recommend that you get a copy of the Competition BBQ Secrets ebook. You get access to it immediately (that's the beauty of an ebook) and there is a 60 day money back guarantee. With that, you can't go wrong. (Please note that if you click on one of my links and purchase Competition BBQ Secrets, I get a commission. It's not a ton, doesn't change the price you pay at all and helps me keep Outdoor Cooking Magic going.)

Enjoy!

Competition BBQ Secrets Review is a post from: Outdoor Cooking Magic

Getting Started with Dutch Oven Cooking – Buying a Dutch oven

Scott — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 14:41:52 +0000

Previously I discussed what to look for in a dutch oven. Now that you know that, we'll talk about what dutch oven brands to look for when you are buying a dutch oven and then I'll give you some suggestions of places to buy a dutch oven.

Dutch Oven Brands

There are several well-known Dutch oven brands that meet the criteria that I've laid out above. You can certainly find other off-brands, but the following brands are recognized as producing quality cast iron cookware and, in general, you won't go wrong by purchasing one of the these dutch oven brands.

Lodge

Lodge Cast Iron has been making cast iron cookware for over 100 years. In fact, some of the skillets, griddles, and dutch ovens made over 100 years ago are still in use today. A Lodge cast iron skillet was listed by Esquire magazine as one of the top items all men should own!

Lodge dutch ovens come in 8 sizes, ranging from a 1 qt, 6 5/8" diameter dutch oven to a 12 quart 16" diameter oven. Lodge dutch ovens also have the advantage that they come already pre-seasoned so that you don't have season it before you start using it.

Quite simply, you won't go wrong by buying a Lodge dutch oven. They are probably the highest quality, most popular camp style dutch oven made. As long as you get one that is made for camping (with the flat, rimmed lid), it will have all the characteristics of a good dutch oven as I described above.

Camp Chef

Camp Chef is another popular manufacturer of dutch ovens. Camp Chef is known for their camp propane stoves, but they also make a quality dutch oven as well. Their dutch ovens also come pre-seasoned and provide great quality for a great price. The Camp Chef Lewis & Clark 12-quart Dutch Oven is one of the more popular of the Camp Chef models.

Like Lodge, you won't go wrong by buying a Camp Chef Dutch oven.

MACA

The last Dutch Oven brand that I'll discuss is MACA. Like Lodge and Camp Chef, MACA also makes a high quality dutch oven. They tend to be a little bit more expensive, but that may be due to the fact that MACA dutch ovens appear to be built with a bit more metal than the other brands. This provides the advantage of significantly reducing burning, and the ability to absorb, distribute and retain heat better than most other dutch ovens.

A heaver lid provides more pressure which keeps the moisture inside the oven, making your dish tender and moist.

MACA dutch ovens are usually deeper than other Dutch ovens, which gives you a bit more versatility. Where a 12" Lodge oven is either 3.75" or 5" deep, a 13" MACA dutch oven is 6.5" deep. You can feed a large crowd with what you can cook in them, or even do a Thanksgiving Turkey, whole racks or ribs, or a large ham.

You can even order MACA dutch oven with a custom cast lid as as a gift.

My Recommendation

In general, my recommendation for getting started with Dutch oven cooking would be to buy a 12 inch Lodge cast iron dutch oven. You might find cheaper ovens, but you will join thousands of other Dutch oven enthusiasts that know and trust Lodge. You'll get a quality, versatile Dutch oven that will serve you well for years on end.

Try the other brands after you have wet your feet and learned dutch oven cooking with a standard, well-known brand.

Where to Buy a Dutch Oven

You can purchase a dutch oven locally, buy on the internet, or you might be lucky enough to find one at a garage sale or have one passed down to you. If you find one at a garage or estate sale, just use the suggestions about what to look for in a dutch oven to determine if it's worth buying.

If everything is good except that it needs reseasoning, that can certainly be done. If there are more serious issues (cracks, warping, lid doesn't fit, etc.) steer clear of it.

Local stores that carry Dutch ovens include:

Walmart
Cabelas
Cal-Ranch
Gander Mountain
REI
Sportsman's Warehouse
Bass Pro Shops

and I'm sure there are more (let me know about other well-know stores in your part of the country in the comments below and I'll add them).

Of course, you can also buy Dutch ovens online. You can find them at the following places:

Obviously, the big disadvantage of buying online is that shipping can be costly for Dutch ovens, due to their weight. However, a number of online stores have free shipping (like Amazon, which will ship free with their Super Saver Shipping as long as you are willing wait 5-8 business days for delivery) or can ship free to local stores, like Wal-Mart. So if your local store doesn't have the model you want you can buy online and have it shipped to your local store for free.

That's about it for buying a Dutch oven. If you don't have a Dutch oven currently, I hope that you'll get one soon and join me in the great activity of Dutch oven cooking.

The next article will be about how to season a dutch oven. While many dutch ovens come pre-seasoned now, there will still be occasions when you may need to know how to season a Dutch oven.

See below for all the articles in this series on Getting Started with Dutch Oven Cooking:

Be sure to sign up for the Outdoor Cooking Magic Newsletter to be notified when the next article is ready!

And if you have any suggestions or comments on buying a dutch oven, please share those with us in the comments below.

Getting Started with Dutch Oven Cooking – Buying a Dutch oven is a post from: Outdoor Cooking Magic

Outdoor Cooking – How Many Ways?

Scott — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 18:37:15 +0000

There are lots of ways to cook outdoors! We usually think of the big four (grilling, dutch oven, barbecue, campfire), but I can think of a bunch more. And there are lot's of variations on each of the big four. Let's see how many we can name.

Barbecuing

Low and slow. That's the motto of barbecue. Low heat and cook it slow. This is often done with smoke to give added flavor to the meat that you are cooking

Grilling

Usually involves higher heats and cooking things faster. Done with propane or natural gas, charcoal, fire, even electric.

Dutch oven Cooking

Using a cast iron pot over coals to cook almost anything. There are dutch oven recipes for just about everything that you could cook indoors.

Campfire Cooking

A general category for all sorts of cooking. I usually associate it with camping. it can be done in a variety of ways, including a dutch oven on a campfire, holding a hot dog on a stick over the fire, or cooking right on the coals. There are also a bunch of other ways that are listed below that also involve a campfire.

Foil Cooking

This method involves wrapping a dish into aluminum foil and cooking in the coals of a campfire. Could include the typical foil dinner, but can also include vegetables like corn on the cob, or desserts, like banana boats or foil apples.

Deep-Pit Barbecue

A variation of barbecue, but is cooked underground in a way that allows it to be left unattended without danger of fire spreading. Was often used by pioneers to cook hundreds of pounds of meat at a time. Hunters or campers may use in our day to allow them to have a hot meal ready for them when they return from a day of activities.

Wood Plank Cooking

Roasting food on wood planks that have been soaked in a liquid. The wood protects the food from the direct flames of the fire, but permeates the food with a wonderful smoky flavor. Can be done on the campfire or on the grill. This is a favorite way to cook salmon or other fish, but works well with all types of meat, including beef, chicken, sausage, lamb and can be used with vegetables as well.

Stone Slab Cooking

This is definitely a primitive method! You can use stones found in the outdoors, or get your own from a masonry supplier. The stone is heated on the fire, and the food is cooked right on the stone. You can cooks lots of different types of food on a stone. A pizza stone is what is used to cook great pizzas. Imagine cooking that pizza on a real stone right over the fire!

Spit Cooking

Food is attached to wooden or metal shafts which are suspended over a fire and slowly turned. Everything from small pieces of meat on a rotisserie to whole animals on a 4 x 6 foot bed of coals with a motorized spit can be cooked in this way.

Reflector Oven Cooking

These ovens are pad of sheets of metal in such a way that the indirect heat from the flames of a fire are reflected down onto the food. You can cook cakes, rolls, pizza, fish, and much more with a good reflector oven.

Steam Pit Cooking

Popular in beach areas, this method of cooking is done by digging a fire pit, lining it with stones, and building the fire directly on the stones to heat them up. Then wet grass, leaves, seaweed, are placed on the hot rocks and food is placed on top. Another layer of wet grass, leaves, or seaweed is placed on top of the food and then the whole pile is covered with soil or sand to insulate it and keep the steam in. Lobsters, clams, fish, vegetables are ideal for this type of cooking. The food is essentially steamed. You've heard of a clam bake? That's done with a steam pit!

Fireless Cooking

This is a bit of a misnomer, as it does require heat to get the whole thing going. This is essentially the outdoor cooking crock pot method. Get the food started and hot, and then place the pot in some type of insulated container and allow it to finish cooking very slowly over a long period of time. Ideal for having food ready to eat when you come back from a day's activities while camping.

Stone Boiling Cooking

I saw this on a show the other night. You can cook food by dropping a heated rock into a pot of water with the food. The heated rock will get the water boiling and cook the food. As it cools you can return the rock to the fire and replace it with another rock that has been heating.

Solar Cooking

Cooking by the sun. There are several ways to do this but the most successful ways seems to be a method that concentrates the suns rays onto a container that contains the food to be cooked.

Box Oven Cooking

Lining a cardboard box with tin foil, starting charcoal briquettes which are placed in the bottom of the box. A wire rack is suspended above the coals and the box closed to keep the heat in. It takes a longer to cook this way, but you can do rolls, cakes, pizza, pies, and many other dishes that you would normally cook in the oven at home this way.

Tin Can Cooking

Layer your dish (meat, vegetables, etc.) in a tin can (like a number #10 can), cover with foil, and cook in the fire.

Pie Iron Cooking

Pie iron cooking is done with double sided cast iron cookers that can hold a variety of different types of food for cooking over the fire. You can cook hot sandwiches, hamburgers, pastries, meat pies, omelets, and many other dishes this way.

Clay Cooking

If you live where there is lots of clay, you can wrap your food in clay to cook in the fire. You can cook baked potatoes with this method.

Well, this is just a start. There are lots more ways!

For a book that gives details and recipes for many of these, see Cooking Backyard to Backcountry.

P.S. What other ways can you share with me? Leave them in the comments below.

Outdoor Cooking – How Many Ways? is a post from: Outdoor Cooking Magic

Recent Outdoor Cooking Activities

Scott — Sun, 30 May 2010 03:43:41 +0000

This summer I'm going to be working regularly on going through my recipes, cooking them, and adding pictures to those recipes--something I should have done before. I hope you look forward to seeing those! I think it helps to see what the dish really looks like when you look at one of my recipes.

So I'll be cooking outdoors as much as I can (hopefully 2-3 times week), taking pictures, and in some cases, updating the recipes on this site. I'll make periodic posts to point you to those updated recipes.

Last week, I cooked Dutch Oven Pork Chops. They were awfully good. My family downed them pretty quick!

Then yesterday I did Dutch Oven Cowboy Stew. This is one of my favorites and is super easy to do.

I look forward to documenting, with pictures, more of my cooking this summer. I'm just afraid the summer will be over before we know it!

Let me know what kind of outdoor cooking you are doing this summer in the comments below.

Recent Outdoor Cooking Activities is a post from: Outdoor Cooking Magic

Best Barbecue Around

Scott — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 17:42:57 +0000

Would you like to be able to barbecue like the pros? To cook barbecue that will have all your guests talking? It is a whole different game to barbecue like that. There is so much more to it than a sauce or a seasoning. There is an art to it and you can create a barbecue masterpiece.

All over the country there are barbecue competitions where the best barbecuers compete. They know the secrets for cooking competition style barbecue. You don't want your ribs to be tough, your chicken to be rubbery, and your brisket to be barely edible. To make the best, it takes years of trial and error to find the right combinations that will make your barbecue stand out.

If you want to know:

The detailed and exact way to cook championship level ribs, chicken, brisket, and butts
About different types of smokers and how to use them
How to choose the right wood for your barbecue
How to use marinades, brines, injections, and rubs
How to use finishing sauces and glazes

then checkout Competition BBQ Secrets. It will give you all this and a whole lot more.

Best Barbecue Around is a post from: Outdoor Cooking Magic

Nine Ways to use Zip-lock Bags to Make Outdoor Cooking Easier

Scott — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 16:49:28 +0000

Zip-lock bags are extremely helpful when cooking outdoors. They come in a variety of sizes from 1 pint to 2 gallons. There is no need to buy expensive ones for most uses. You should be able to find off-brands at grocery stores, discount stores, or dollar stores. Here are some ideas and tips for using zip-lock bags to make your outdoor cooking job a little bit easier.

Pre-measure ingredients and put in zip-lock bags. For example, if you know you need 2 cups of flour for a recipe, measure those 2 cups into a zip-lock bag at home, label it, and all you have to do at the campsite is dump it in. This works great for rice, pasta, sugar, flour, instant mashed potatoes, powdered drink mix, and almost any other similar ingredient.
Pre-measuring and storing in zip-lock bags also works great for seasonings. Measure all the seasonings for a particular dish into a zip-lock bag. You don't have to take all the individual seasoning containers, nor worry about leaving one behind.
Put all the zip-lock bags and other ingredients for each meal into a large zip-lock bag (1 or 2 gallon). This keeps everything for the meal in one place. Add copies of the recipes, if needed, to the bag and you are ready to go.
Pre-mix ingredients and put in zip-lock bags. Cooking pancakes for breakfast? Mix all the dry ingredients together in a zip-lock bag, label it, then add the liquid ingredients to the bag and mix up when ready to cook. No dishes to wash. No cleanup. Just toss the empty bag in the garbage.
Zip-lock bags are perfect for marinating meat before you grill. You can even freeze the meats with the marinade, which allows you to get them ready far in advance.
Use zip-lock bags for leftovers and store in cooler. One great idea is to make omelets for the last breakfast with all the saved leftovers (depending on what you have). Just add eggs the zip-lock bags and mix up.
Precook rice or pasta at home and store in zip-lock bags. This makes it much easier to cook at the campsite, because all you have to do is heat it up.
Precut meat and store in zip-lock bags. You won't have to worry in camp about the messy cleanup needed if you do it at home. If you want to really save time, you can even pre-cook the meats and store in zip-lock bags until you need at camp. Just heat up and you are ready to go.
Precut vegetables and store in zip-lock bags. Cooking while camping can be more time consuming, but this tip will save you time by allowing you to do it ahead of time at home.
Store snacks in zip-lock bags. Trail-mix, snack mix, pretzels, dried fruit, etc., store great in zip-lock bags. You can even make separate bags for each member of your family or group so there isn't any quibbling over portions

Nine Ways to use Zip-lock Bags to Make Outdoor Cooking Easier is a post from: Outdoor Cooking Magic

Dutch Oven Cooking Recipes

Scott — Wed, 07 Jun 2006 12:12:35 +0000

Although it had been a dying art, there has recently been a resurgence in Dutch oven cooking. Recipes can easily be found in many locations. Here are some of the best sources of Dutch oven recipes:

Your own set of recipes is another place to find sources for Dutch oven cooking. Recipes that are your favorites are usually easily adapted to the Dutch oven. You can use your Dutch oven to simmer, stew, boil, bake, steam, fry, roast, etc. See Dutch Oven Cooking Tips for tips that will help you use your recipes in your Dutch oven. Try your own recipes and see how great they taste in a Dutch oven.

If you have a favorite you would like to share, please send it to recipes@outdoorcookingmagic.com. We'll give you credit for the recipes we use, including a link to your website, if you have one. We will also collect recipes into an eBook. We have a goal to collect at least 500 Dutch oven recipes. If you share your recipe with us, we'll send you a copy of the eBook when it is finished.

Dutch Oven Cooking Recipes is a post from: Outdoor Cooking Magic

Crafting the Perfect Barbeque Pit

Scott — Fri, 26 May 2006 16:57:52 +0000

By Clark Covington

Cavemen weren’t always barbaric in their daily lives, between gathering food and knocking one and other over with big sticks they utilized the outdoor oven known as at barbeque pit. Our cave brothers knew what they were doing when they smoked turkey and chickens over the hot coals of the pit, they were unknowingly crafting a cooking method still utilized today. The barbeque pit is a great way to cook food, gather with friends, and create some spice to that boring yard of yours.

Barbeque pits are traditionally used by restaurants, cooking enthusiasts, and outdoorsmen, but they are becoming more popular in our backyards. The location of the barbeque pit is the first essential ingredient to making this outdoor oven work for you and your family. I wouldn’t recommend putting the barbeque pit in your front yard if you live on a busy street, the next door neighbors might think you’re trying to send smoke signals to the sky for rescue. Then again if you live on a farm, or ranch, a front yard barbeque pit might be just what the doctor ordered. The most logical way to pick a location for the barbeque pit is away from leaves, trees, and anything that can catch on fire. That being said it can also be a trendy looking landmark if you put it in the center of your backyard, as long as the pit won’t cause anything near it to catch fire.

Once you have selected the perfect location for your barbeque pit, it’s time to start digging. Typically you would want to dig about 5 feet into the ground, and create a circle big enough to house whatever size metal grill you will be topping your pit off with. Once the hole is dug you want to line it with wood, or charcoals of your choice. Be sure to choose the correct wood or coals because this is what will generate that smoked flavor. Many wood fanatics go for hickory or oak woods to burn in their pits, while charcoal is usually basic grocery bought coals.

You don’t need a toga and a wooden club to be able to cook on your new barbeque pit. Many get the idea that Neanderthal ovens are meant for Neanderthal foods, this is not the case. Feel free to toss on some vegan burgers, or exotic tilapia fish. Whatever is your delight will be cooked to perfection on your in ground barbeque pit.

The final step is making the pit a family friendly by adding wooden stools in a circular fashion a few feet back from the pit. This will take roasting marshmallows to the next level.

Clark Covington is a professional writer who provides information on gourmet steaks and gourmet seafood for A1 Gourmet.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Clark_Covington
http://EzineArticles.com/?Crafting-the-Perfect-Barbeque-Pit&id=175073

Crafting the Perfect Barbeque Pit is a post from: Outdoor Cooking Magic

What does it take to design and build your own fire pit?

Scott — Fri, 26 May 2006 16:56:10 +0000

By Nicole Martins

There are many alternatives to creating a fire pit other than buying a firepit model that is ready-made and requires some simple assembly. If you are a do-it-yourselfer looking to design and build your own fire pit you don't need a fancy set of blueprints, just a vision of the type of pit you are looking to create.

What does it take these days to build fire pits for outdoor campfires and barbequing?

The answer is not a lot. In terms of cost, building a wood burning pit can cost next to nothing and require no more than a few hours of physical labor (especially if you have materials such as rock or brick on hand) to see the fireplace complete.

First pick a safe area for your fire pit, away from any structures that can catch fire and definitely out of the way of backyard traffic. Be sure to check with you local fire department for information and codes. You need to know what the rules are before getting started. Getting going will entail quarrying up some fieldstones or brick to line the inside dirt walls of the pit once you've dug the hole. Not to get ahead of ourselves here, but you will need a good old shovel and some back strength to excavate soil. Position your fieldstone or brick around the holes perimeter and extend these materials above ground. The purpose of installing these materials is to keep wind down and the soil away from the fire.

You can also build a stucco pit above ground or think of other creative ways of building your pit; magazines or the internet are a great source for tips and ideas. When considering a design you'll want to keep with the look of your home and other existing structures. If you don't have time to dream up design ideas or if you had something more complex in mind, you can order a set of plans online complete with material list, for only a small fee.

Once you have finished building, be sure to keep safety in mind. An in ground hearth is a permanent outdoor fixture. You may want to keep it covered when not in use; you can find inexpensive scrap metal and have it cut to fit. Another option is to buy a basic fire pit which should include cover, spark screen, log grill and such and then build your stone or brick wall around it (see http://www.outdoor-fireplaces-and-patio-heaters.com/outdoor-fire-pit.htm ). This limits the chances of children or pets accidentally running into an exposed fire pit and getting burned.

If you want to build a gas fire pit, shop for either gas fire logs with or without embers or choose a simple metal fire ring: both ideas will allow you to design the housing for the fireplace and come up with your own plan.

Whatever you decide, either to build your own or buy one manufactured, a fire pit is a beneficial addition to your outdoor space, allowing you to grill outdoors or to stay warm on cool evenings.

Nicole Martins is a contributing writer and researcher to Outdoor Fireplaces and Patio Heaters, an online resource providing you with information and reviews of popular outdoor heaters, fire pits and fireplaces. Read more about: Building Your Own Firepit

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nicole_Martins
http://EzineArticles.com/?What-Does-It-Take-To-Design-And-Build-Your-Own-Fire-Pit?&id=297294

What does it take to design and build your own fire pit? is a post from: Outdoor Cooking Magic