Customer Reviews

She-Smoke: A Backyard Barbecue Book

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I write online about grilling and barbecue (Barbecue Master blog and Yes You Can Grill web site), so I'm pretty picky about my grilling and smoking books.

She-Grill is one of the best outdoor cooking books I've seen and used.

Julie covers all the basics, so that your outdoor cooking turns out. This book does include recipes, but the the overviews and tips are the beauty here. Whether it's charcoal or gas or high heat on a grill or low and slow on a smoker, it's all here.

There are some family stories as well as history, so you can literally take this to bed in the evening and read and pick up all the info you need to know to rock the grill.

I only have a few barbecue books that I recommend to others. Most are fairly good and have some decent recipes. She-Smoke includes good recipes, but it's a good general guide covering about everything you'd need or want to know to be a success cooking outdoors.

Barbecue is largely the domain of men, so the title of this book was immediately intriguing. I've never really thought of barbecue and grilling as having a gender bias, it just seems that men naturally gravitate to it. I think it's one of the last vestiges of true old-school masculinity, but I digress. Bias or not, in the book Julie tries to help the ladies feel comfortable at the grill.

The book is full of the typical barbecue recipes, and Julie brings some new things to the table. I especially found her "Pacific Northwest Salmon Bake" very interesting. That was certainly unexpected, but it certainly fits given her Seattle roots.

Where I found this book to really shine is in her in-depth explanations of the basics of barbecue and grilling. She covers all of the fundamentals, from meat cuts, to skinning ribs, to carving brisket, to fire tending and cooking times. She offers clear directions and step-by-step instructions throughout.

My only complaint about the book is its lack of photos, thus the four stars. Instead, it contains hand-drawn illustrations. They get the job done, but sometimes you just need to see the real thing. One thing that people generally need in a cookbook is to know how the final product is supposed to look. In this case you'll have to lean heavily on your imagination.

The bottom line? If you have wanted to learn your way around the grill or smoker, this is an excellent place to start. Julie does an outstanding job of flattening the learning curve and providing solid instructions. However, this book isn't just for novices. It's also worthwhile for intermediate and even experienced cooks. I recommend it.

Whoa, this is one most excellent book about barbequing. I've got men to feed and this book heaps on taste to the bland, boring meat-fest that we used to call barbeque. Honestly it's transformed me as an at-home-cook. I'm the diva of the backyard barbeque now. Smoked chicken, salmon, pork, whatever. Do you want to leap above the everyday and serve down-home chow with a gourmet twist? Run, don't walk to your local bookstore and snag a copy of She-smoke.

Julie Reinhardt's She-Smoke is one of the most delightful, readable cookbooks I've ever encountered. How often does one find a cookbook that's worth reading in entirety from cover to cover? This well-researched book is filled with cultural and culinary history, humorous anecdotes, wisdom for those concerned about animal welfare, detailed and useful information about the barbecue process, mouth-watering recipes that are tried and tested, references, and more. The well-organized layout and thoughtful illustrations are pleasing to the eye. Regarding the concern about not having photos...in this case, I think the book is actually better off without photos. The illustrations do a much better job of explaining the steps when compared to actual photos. Think about it, barbecue is not exactly photogenic! For anyone who wants to throw a barbecue for family and friends, this all-inclusive resource will help you succeed from start to finish. One other note: although this book is written with a theme to attract women to the art of barbecuing, this is definitely a great resource for any man cooking outdoors!

Here is a summary of each chapter:

Pre-chapter: "The difference between 'Cueing and Grilling" - Even at the age 0f 41, I learned something new!

Chapter 1: Tools of the Trade - Explains barbecue equipment, what to look for in a grill or smoker, different types of grills and smokers, everything you need to know about fuels, wood chips, charcoal, and fire starters, barbecuing tools and utensils, how to sharpen knives, understanding gas grills.

Chapter 2: Playing with Fire - all about how to get the fire and smoke going and keeping it controlled, whether it's charcoal, gas, direct heat, indirect heat, or campfire.

Chapter 3: Barbecue Smoke & Mirrors - interesting history about barbecue and an explanation of American regional differences in barbecue.

Chapter 4: Meat Mixology - information and recipes for rubs, marinades, sauces, brines, glazes, and spicing up your food.

Chapter 5: Grilling Basics - the art of cooking over flames/direct heat. Includes helpful tables on cooking times and temperatures for different meats and fish. Recipes in this chapter include standard grilling foods, such as kebabs, steaks, chicken, seafood, and grilled vegetables. There are also interesting recipes, such as "Grilled Eggplant Rolls with Goat Cheese & Roasted Red Peppers," "Grilled Polenta," and "Fire-Roasted Corn Salad with Lime-Cumin-Honey Dressing."

Chapter 6: Pork - now getting into real barbecue (slow-cooking and smoking methods). Carolina Pulled Pork, Smoking on a Weber/gas grill/electric smoker, using a pressure cooker to speed up the process, pork ribs, loins, and a section all about barbecue competitions.

Chapter 7: Big & Beefy - everything you need to know about brisket; smoked burgers and meatloaf.

Chapter 8: Birds for Birds - how to cut a chicken; barbecuing/smoking chicken, duck, and turkey; hot wings; consumer information about chicken definitions (natural, free range, pastured, and organic)

Chapter 9: Julie's Soapbox - More consumer information about the meat industry and Julie's preaching of why we should be willing to spend more money on meats for the sake of humane treatment of animals. Understanding practices that go on in the meat industry (did you know they've use plastic pot scrubbers for roughage for cows?), how to read labels, understanding who raises your meat.

Chapter 10: The Pacific Northwest Salmon Bake - This chapter is awesome and takes you into another world of Native American culture and their scrumptious salmon barbecues.

Chapter 11: Smokin' the Kitchen Sink - recipes for smoked cheeses, dips, spreads, onions, eggplant, tomato bruschetta, seafoods, and even smoked tofu!

Chapter 12: Holiday Barbecue - complete guide to making a smoked whole turkey for your holiday feasts.

Chapter 13: Accompaniments & Sweet Endings - lots of recipes. Slaws, potato salads, Caprese salad, cucumber salad, biscuits, Johnnycakes, hushpuppies, Jamaican black beans with sweet potato, cowboy beans, candied cayenne pecans, sweet tea, apple tarts, blackberry cobbler, chocolate cream pie, peach pie.

Chapter 14: Theme Menus - this is where it all comes together, using recipes from the book. Pick your party! Classic Carolina Pork Pickin' Party, Texas Two-Step Party, Jamaican Island Party, Pacific Northwest Salmon Bake, Pacific Rim Menu, Fall Dinner Party, Winter Dinner Party, Spring Dinner Party, Summer Dinner Party.

Appendix: Glossary of barbecuing terms; Resources - other great barbecuing books, historical books, sustainable farming books, barbecuing websites and blogs, barbecue associations, equipment suppliers, wood and charcoal suppliers, online bulk spices/salts/barbecue sauces.

I am so pleased with this book.
As someone who is new to smoking and outdoor cooking, it can be confusing to sort out all of the various techniques and tips out there.
The author of this book explains the various methods, points out the pros and cons of each and lets you know her choice.
Everything is explained in easy to understand terms and allows you to pick and choose, instead of indicating that her way is the only way.

There are so many interesting recipes and different methods to try.
This book will likely remain on my bookshelf for as long as I can cook.
It's a keeper!

Julie really hit a homerun with this "grillin" book. She obviously did a lot of research and presented everthing in a very readable way. She gave us a lot of information about grilling as well as good recipes. Great grilling book!