Weber's Big Book of Grilling (Paperback)

by Jamie Purviance (Author), Sandra S. McRae (Author), Tim Turner (Photographer) "In the beginning, there was a fire..." (more)
Key Phrases: direct medium, halfway through searing time, halfway through grilling time, Direct High, Direct Hgh, Kansas City (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Armed with industrial tongs, a basting brush, and over 350 new recipes, chef Jamie Purviance and coauthor Sandra S. McRae (Weber's "corporate poet") step back behind the grill with Weber's Big Book of Grilling, the searing follow-up to the bestselling Weber's Art of the Grill. We open to a brief history of Weber and a few colorful anecdotes about the early days of the company along with a crash course on choosing a grill, featuring a breakdown of grilling with charcoal versus gas and a quiz to help you determine which grill is best for your cooking needs. Each recipe features the requisite cooking method (direct or indirect heat) and temperature level with techniques that leave plenty of room for individual improvisation. James Beard Award-winning photographer Tim Turner returns with artfully styled color photos of hot-off-the-grill dishes that will make you want to stop reading and start grilling.

Search for a favorite recipe or browse through individual chapters and benefit from Weber's grilling history with helpful guides and sidebars about cuts of meats, cooking methods, tips, glossaries, and illustrated instructions. Every barbecue lover has their favorite bottled sauce or over-the-counter rub, but "Sauces, Marinades, & Rubs" will inspire you to make your own (Crazy Cola Barbecue Sauce to an overachieving Type-A Rub) from scratch using common pantry staples. "Starters" includes a helpful chart to match up appetizers with entrées along with a recipe for Chinese Chicken Noodle Soup (yes, on the grill--the Asian marinade for the chicken becomes the base for soup). Meat is covered in chapters on beef, pork, lamb, game, poultry, and fish and seafood. Beer-Bathed Brisket gets a little help from a pint of Guinness while a half-filled can of beer props up (and moistens) Beer-Can Chicken. Baby Back Ribs with Spiced Apple-Cider Mop and Buffalo Burgers with Chipotle Mayonnaise will spice up any party, and Lobster Tails with Champagne Vanilla Sauce is every bit as decadent as it sounds. "Vegetables" includes a handy vegetable grilling chart along with sections on grilling for vegetarians and quick and easy meat substitutes. "Sides & Salads" serves up Couscous-Stuffed Tomatoes and Grilled Garlic Bread while "Desserts" wraps everything up with the basics on grilling fruit (Grilled Figs and Goat Cheese Drizzled with Honey or Peaches with Raspberry Sauce and Lemon Cream) and several different takes on campfire favorite, s'mores. Without a doubt, Weber's Big Book of Grilling will get you through the outdoor cooking season, but it will also inspire you to fire up your grill (rain or shine) all year long. --Brad Thomas Parsons

From Publishers Weekly
This book is clearly designed to sell more grills. While Purviance (Weber's Art of the Grill), food editor of Appellation magazine, and McRae, Weber's in-house poet, offer many a delightful starter, entr‚e and dessert, the corporate affiliation of this book remains pervasive, like an unsavory aftertaste. Perhaps it's the way the authors unconvincingly strive to be homey, assuring us, for instance, that ketchup as they know it is always spelled with a "K." Or that many anecdotes revolve around a Weber success story, like the time a prime rib dinner helped the company clinch a large distribution contract with Sears. But tackiness aside, the book cannot be faulted for a lack of variety from beef recipes (Stuffed Herbed Tenderloin filled with a paste of rosemary, thyme, sage and mustard, Peanut-Curry Flank Steak) to turkey (Jalape¤o-Peach Turkey Breast, Firehouse Turkey seasoned with cayenne) to seafood (Tequila Shrimp, Gingered Mussels, Parmesan Breaded Scallops). The book is well stocked with helpful charts, glossaries and lists the dessert chapter includes 11 variations of S'mores. Unhappily, though, while Tim Turner's luscious photographs occupy many a full- and double-page spreads, the recipes are crammed two to a page in small type, making this book hard to use on the fly, or in the yard. (June)Forecast: With a foreword by Today Show weatherman Al Roker (who contributes his own rub recipe to the book), lush cover images and strong brand recognition, this book should sell well, but the promotional bonhomie will turn off purists.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (May 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811831973
• ISBN-13: 978-0811831970
• Product Dimensions: 12 x 1 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (119 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #940 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

69 of 69 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars We Refer To This Book As "The Bible"!, July 20, 2004

By	John G. Gleeson Sr. (Frederic, Mi USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The first time I tasted grilled food, many years before Weber existed, I remember wondering why all meat was not cooked over charcoal. As I got older, I started grilling a bit but the recipes were the staples: burgers, steaks and chicken.

Then I purchased a Weber charcoal kettle, which came with some neat, out of the ordinary recipes. I started experimenting, and branched out into growing fresh herbs to season the food. There are now four Weber grills on my deck, including the little "Smokey Joe", for little projects and The Summit gas grille for the big ones.

As a result of a couple of major cooking projects I did for the neighborhood, I was given this book. I didn't know whether it was a thank you, or a subtle way of saying that my cooking needed improvement. What a horizon expanding book it is! If there is anything outside its covers that is needed to teach the novice or improve the good cook, I don't know what it is.

Recipes? Yep, and not a single loser out of 350. Grilling advice? Yep, everything from buying to using to maintaining your grill. There's a section on the uses of fresh herbs, including reduction formulas for the use of store bought seasoning. There are explanations as to why fresh ground black pepper and Kosher salt are preferred.

I have used this book exhaustively since I got it, and have given it as gifts to many, many friends, all of whom are as enthusiastic about it as I am. Simply put, if grilling means burning meat to you, save your money. But if you enjoy the looks of friends and family when you place a truly outstanding meal on the table, get this book.

Cooking seems to intimidate some guys. I don't know why. But Weber's book takes the fear out of cooking, and after a couple of successes, generates a bit of enthusiasm for the next time, both for the cook and the eaters.

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 100X better than the first book (and that's saying A LOT!), September 13, 2003

By	Donovan Kruger "donovankruger" (Denver, CO United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I can't say enough about this Weber book. I purchased this one, and the first one ("Art of the Grill") at the same time, fully expecting to like the first one more. Well, as it turns out, the Big Book of Grilling has been used upon every single grill day (at least 3 days/week) as apposed to the other one, which has only been used a few times.

The Art of the Grill (the first book) contains some very involved recipes that are very tasty, but not any of the practical cooking tips. The Big Book of Grilling, however, highlights the following:
* Tips on what to look for when selecting the best cuts of meat at the grocer/butcher.
* Explaining cooking tips such as when to use direct heat vs. indirect heat cooking, and how to make those cross-grill marks on your steak!
* A wide variety of homemade marinade recipes.
* Helpful charts at the end of the book which you can quickly reference when you quickly need to know how long to cook something no matter if it's a porterhouse steak or even a bunch of asparagus.
* Great side stories, like how to cook enough ham sandwiches for the town of Peoria, IL.

Just overall, this book has been a godsend when it comes to my grill. I have an older Weber 3-burner model that allows me to easily switch from direct to indirect heating, but the book also compensates for the charcoal users out there. I highly recommend this book to anyone who needs a book full of great grilling ideas and suggestions, or who at least needs a great grilling reference book.

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Big Followup to His First Grilled Effort, May 17, 2001

By	rodboomboom (Dearborn, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

There must of been many of us who used Purviance's first effort "Weber's Art of the Grill" because here comes its successor.

Big describes the difference. Quality recipes, photos and grilling basic advice are all here, but now more of it. Also, more informal recipes I'm discovering which probably will allow its usage more than just the occasional weekend bbq blast.

So far, pigged out on Greek Garlic Chicken, Disappearing Tenderloins with Pico de Gallo, Grilling A Monster Fish, plus great side dishes of veggies and grilled fruits and desserts.

Worthy to become a classic standard! Next to my Weber all the time!