The Thrill of the Grill: Techniques, Recipes, & Down-Home Barbecue [Hardcover]

Christopher Schlesinger (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 14, 1990

Chris Schlesinger and John Willoughby bring a unique blend of exotic spices, American favorites, humor, and infectious enthusiasm that will put the thrill in your grill and have you coming back for seconds.

Among this book's unique features:

• Sound advice on which grills and fuels to use, how to lay your fire, and how to know just when the fire is at the right temperature.
  
• Descriptions of the few cooking tools you need for carefree grilling, with instructions on how to use them.
  
• A chapter elucidating the fine art of grilling, with tips on how to get the best, most flavorful results.
  
• A chapter of innovative, full-flavored grill appetizers, eminently suitable for combining into a full meal.
  
• A one-of-a-kind section on the art of barbecuing (smoke cooking), including all-new information on regional variations, barbecue terminology, and a guide to the colorful rhetoric that is an indispensable part of this cooking style.
  
• An original chapter called "Sambals, Blatjangs, and Salsas," or the "sauces" of grilled foods, easily put together with raw ingredients.
  
• Recipes for exotic beverages that are just the thing to wash down a spicy meal.
  
• Simple down-home desserts, perfect after grilled foods.
  
• 32 pages of four-color photographs of the recipes in the book.
  
• A pantry section that provides you with techniques for creating recipe ingredients such as braised garlic and roasted peppers; tells you what prepared ingredients you should have on hand; and describes the variety of chile peppers and exotic fruits and vegetables used in the book.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In his jacket photo, ace grill chef Chris Schlesinger has the look of Howdy Doody with a stomach full of barbecue. It's a speechless kind of look. Schlesinger, however, is not a speechless kind of guy. Starting with the motto, "Brown food tastes better," Schlesinger and his writing partner, John Willoughby, show the reader exactly why that is. The ride lasts nearly 400 pages.

It's hard to imagine a pre-Thrill of the Grill time in American culinary life, so mighty has the impact been. It's a book with a built-in virus of insidious and infecting qualities that will have even the least interested among us out at the grill, getting the fire glass-melting hot, trying a few ideas like Grilled Shrimp with Pineapple-Ancho Chile Salsa, or Grilled Chicken Rubbed with Ethiopian Berbere (hot, hot, hot), or Grilled Swordfish Steaks with Yucatan Orange-Herb Paste, or maybe Beef Heart Grilled and Marinated in the Peruvian Way (or maybe not).

Actually, that right there--beef heart--is rather telling. Who else in their right minds would include grilled beef heart in their cookbook? These guys, Schlesinger in the lead, breaking trail, will go anywhere, do anything, and bring it all home to grill and eat.

The sheer love of food pours off these pages--the way it tastes and feels, the way super spices fire up your nervous system, the way the juices run down your forearm and off your elbow--and that's the way it should be. Relaxed. Determined. Thrilled. And with Thrill of the Grill tucked under one arm, you are sure to have the time of your life every time you fire up your grill and start cooking.

Plan on buying a couple of copies. This is one of those cookbooks that will get so grease- and sauce-splattered it will become unreadable. --Schuyler Ingle

From Publishers Weekly

The "new wave" of grill cookery pits smoky tang against searingly hot seasonings. And fans of the capsicum genus will find plenty of it here: tabasco, serrano, jalapeno and habanero permeate recipes, with fresh ginger and garlic running a close second. Schlesinger, co-owner of the East Coast Grill in Cambridge, Mass., and coauthor Willoughby, a contributor to Cook's Magazine , seek raw, strong savor in what they serve. Some preparations are basic: grilled toast canapes, chicken hobo pack (a Boy Scout campground favorite) and barbecued bologna--"the cutting edge of new barbecue"--are well suited to beginning grillers. More intricate are the accompaniments suggested. Not all cooks, for example, will want to concoct their own banana-guava ketchup. And the authors' version of Valley-Girl-speak--they provide "Totally Awesome Rosemary-Grilled Rabbit with Cumberland Sauce," and their grills, they say, "just wanna have fun"--may amuse or annoy. Yet their enthusiasm for good times and good grilling is catching. Photos not seen by PW. Advertising; author tour; first serial to New Woman.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Cookbooks; 1 edition (June 14, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688088325
• ISBN-13: 978-0688088323
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 7.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #459,661 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

51 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Spiral bound version not the same as hard-copy version, August 10, 2000

By 

Geoffrey W. Schultz (Marlborough, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Thrill of the Grill (Spiral-bound)

I'm not going to try to add anything to the already wonderful comments on this cookbook. However, I would like to point out that the spiral version is nothing like the hard-copy version. The format is completely different, with the recipies being printed on 5x5" cards that are spiral bound and are designed to flip over a built-in easel to aid in cooking while cooking.

There are no pictures of any of the end results. I must admit that I get inspired by looking at pictures, so the lack of them really reduces the usability/desirability of this book.

I had seen the hard-copy,which I loved, before purchasing the spiral bound version which got exchanged for the hard-copy version.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Love it, love it, love it, June 19, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Thrill of the Grill: Techniques, Recipes, & Down-Home Barbecue (Hardcover)

The negative reviews of this book seem to fall into two categories: those who were expecting a book on barbecue and those who quibble with minor errors in the text. Admittedly, this book is not the bbq bible it has been hailed by some to be. Its main focus is on GRILLING. If you want a barbecue book (slow cooking with smoke), get something else. If you want fabulous grilled food with interesting and different flavors, this book is for you. The second criticism - that there are errors in the text - is also valid. Along with the previously mentioned shrimp problem, he occasionally calls for "skinless, boneless chicken breasts" that should be grilled until the "skin is brown and crisp." But really, live a little! Don't slavishly follow the recipe and panic when there's an inconsistency. His whole point is to be creative when you grill! And any inconsistencies are far outweighed by the ease and quality of the recipes, the entertaining writing style and the outstanding flavor of the food.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My first grilling cookbook and still the one must have, June 29, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Thrill of the Grill: Techniques, Recipes, & Down-Home Barbecue (Hardcover)

I have at least a dozen grilling/barbecue cookbooks and if I could only keep one this would be it. It's a classic IMHO. It covers grilling and barbeque and does justice to both. The pork rub (for shoulder/ribs) is great. I would recommend "License to Grill" as well.