Buy BBQ Recipes

Review by John Dawson:

It’s not often that I find a cookbook that is actually fun to read. They are usually very utilitarian, with little literary meat on the bones. This is clearly not the case with America’s Best BBQ. I don’t know what I enjoyed more, the authentic and varied recipes, or the barbecue stories and lore that they are steeped in.

While the book is historical, it also has an incredible variety of recipes. It includes everything from starters like Volcanic Goat Cheese, Rocky Mountain Oysters, and Fried Cheese Stick Grits, to Burgoo, to mutton ribs, and all the barbecue standards in between. The range of recipes is excellent. Even better, most of the recipes are from the originators themselves.

I found the following statement from the introduction very interesting.

“Each joint in this book is, in our view, one of the best in America. They are all on the same playing field, with varying strengths and weaknesses. That aside, we have each named our Top Ten joints in the back of the book.”

Barbecue is very competitive and often chock full of ego, as is the restaurant industry generally. It’s very refreshing to see the authors give their honest opinions about what they feel are the best.

If you love barbecue, its history, and great recipes, I wholeheartedly recommend this book.

Review by Spudman:

To call this book a cookbook would be like equating Ted Williams with all other baseball players. America’s Best BBQ contains recipes collected by the authors in their travels and networking. The book itself is more like a piece of Americana, a glimpse of a subculture that most of us only know superficially.
Davis and Kirk not only share some incredible recipes, but also introduce us to fascinating people and interesting places the reader might want to visit in his or her travels.
I really like the design and look of the book. It takes on its own ambience as one of the barbecue joints within might. There’s plenty here to whet the reader’s appetite and sate his curiosity. Open to any page and find classic neon, well-worn signs, incredibly vivid food photographs, simulated spots of BBQ sauce, brown paper, and more pig icons than you’ve ever seen in one place.
Like barbecue cooking, this book is meant to be enjoyed slowly so that one can taste all of the flavors proferred by the authors.

At the end of the book is a lengthy discourse detailing the pros and cons of gas vs. charcoal grilling with a tableful of tips for both schools of cooking. This section is so informative that I read it twice.

America’s Best BBQ is obviously a work of love by the authors, a down home friendly book. I don’t have interest in trying rattlesnake meat or bull testicles, but within the covers there’s probably something of interest for most readers.

Review by John Dawson:

It’s not often that I find a cookbook that is actually fun to read. They are usually very utilitarian, with little literary meat on the bones. This is clearly not the case with America’s Best BBQ. I don’t know what I enjoyed more, the authentic and varied recipes, or the barbecue stories and lore that they are steeped in.

While the book is historical, it also has an incredible variety of recipes. It includes everything from starters like Volcanic Goat Cheese, Rocky Mountain Oysters, and Fried Cheese Stick Grits, to Burgoo, to mutton ribs, and all the barbecue standards in between. The range of recipes is excellent. Even better, most of the recipes are from the originators themselves.

I found the following statement from the introduction very interesting.

“Each joint in this book is, in our view, one of the best in America. They are all on the same playing field, with varying strengths and weaknesses. That aside, we have each named our Top Ten joints in the back of the book.”

Barbecue is very competitive and often chock full of ego, as is the restaurant industry generally. It’s very refreshing to see the authors give their honest opinions about what they feel are the best.

If you love barbecue, its history, and great recipes, I wholeheartedly recommend this book.

Review by Spudman:

To call this book a cookbook would be like equating Ted Williams with all other baseball players. America’s Best BBQ contains recipes collected by the authors in their travels and networking. The book itself is more like a piece of Americana, a glimpse of a subculture that most of us only know superficially.
Davis and Kirk not only share some incredible recipes, but also introduce us to fascinating people and interesting places the reader might want to visit in his or her travels.
I really like the design and look of the book. It takes on its own ambience as one of the barbecue joints within might. There’s plenty here to whet the reader’s appetite and sate his curiosity. Open to any page and find classic neon, well-worn signs, incredibly vivid food photographs, simulated spots of BBQ sauce, brown paper, and more pig icons than you’ve ever seen in one place.
Like barbecue cooking, this book is meant to be enjoyed slowly so that one can taste all of the flavors proferred by the authors.

At the end of the book is a lengthy discourse detailing the pros and cons of gas vs. charcoal grilling with a tableful of tips for both schools of cooking. This section is so informative that I read it twice.

America’s Best BBQ is obviously a work of love by the authors, a down home friendly book. I don’t have interest in trying rattlesnake meat or bull testicles, but within the covers there’s probably something of interest for most readers.

Review by H. Row:

Just write BBQ USA! Raichlen traveled the WORLD in search of BBQ recipes (over 500!) in The Barbecue Bible. I graduated from burgers, steaks and grilled chicken breasts to Tandoori Chicken, Thai, and how to grill a whole fish ifrom the 556 pages!
So, again, how do you top the definitive work on open fire cooking? BBQ USA! 774 PAGES of over 425 recipes from all over the US, INCLUDING THE comprehensive history of BBQ in the US thanks to KC Masterpiece originator, Dr. Rich Davis. There are pages and pages of biographical info on BBQ icons and institutions in the United States and even one recipe from Canada! And more pictures.
I personally feel that even as a novice, you actually could pick up this huge volume and begin almost anywhere, any recipe and be successful. The book covers the basics in the beginning chapter. Choosing and using grills and accessories and even includes basic and more advanced techniques to grilling. You’ll probably see someone disagree with that statement. I defy the naysayers to name a better bbq book WRITER. Raichlen may not be in front of PBS, or Food network cameras as much as Hirsch, Flay, et al. Steven Raichlen just writes the most comprehensive books on BBQ anywhere!
I must also mention a trend I’ve noticed in some other cookbook writers (some very well known) that are releasing cookbooks that rearrange recipes from their previous books and call them new and sell them based on their well known names. I looked through the indexes of BBQ Bible and compared it to BBQ USA. There are no or none that I could find repeats that appear in both books.
One other thing we as Americans can be proud of is our BBQ!
God Bless our Troops
I enjoyed this book, not only for the great food recipes but the great stories and history presented. If I were stuck on a deserted island with just my Weber and Raichlen’s books on BBQ, I wouldn’t want to be rescued.
John Row

Review by rodboomboom:

Want more out of BBQ? This is surefire one stop source! 774 pages of BBQ source that is, with info and recipes and techniques and history, with all the regional tricks and traditions covered, explained and recipes provided. There is grillin under bricks, on a rotisserie, in a pit, smoked, and rubbed and pulled and flamed seared, with hog or beef or oysters,corn, beans, even meatloaf. Then there’s brats and burgers and every fixin that goes so well with these.
They’re all here. This is truly a source for them all. One doesn’t have to travel all over to discover them, just pick and choose on a BBQ journey around the country cooking through this one. Or if you desire to visit a site or region, this even provides the places and addresses to find personally.I like to try different stuff that I’ve never had before, so for me thus far I’ve tried: “Alabam BBQ Chickens with White BBQ Sauce.” Who has ever heard of WhiteBBQ? But this is soo good! The horseradish, vinegar sauce is a hit, a triple at least! Also into the ribs, so a marinated in apple cider, with a “Magic Dust” rub really caught my eye and mouth, and you’ve just got to try the “Apple City Championship Ribs”. And finally, a Tuna “London Broil” with Wasabi Cream Sauce. This is fantastic dish with a dry rub, and the contrasty taste of seared tuna with cream sauce is rich and superb, even for squeamish sushi avoiders. And what BBQ is there without dessert, say “Smoked Alaska.” This is a treat, not as hard as one would think.This is such a thorough book it will take many years of grilling to explore all its varieties and offerings, but many of us will and should! There is outstanding bibliography and sources. Join in the fun!

Review by Eltear:

Excellent resource for serious outdoor cooks.

Never knew BBQ was such big business, or how much I did not know about great grill cooking. Fun story, many many tips (basic AND advanced) step by step from the Masters in this movie.

I may not be ready for the big time but these secrets helped make me queen of the grill at my house. Highly recommended.

Review by Rebecca:

Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R2MOXBVTNQ0DRT Check out this trailer to a one of a kind BBQ DVD: 3 BBQ World Champions Unite To Share Their Encyclopedic Knowledge of Barbecue

BBQ Secrets – The Master Guide To Extraordinary Barbecue Cookin’

Now You’re Cookin’: Inside the World of Championship Barbecue