Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ

Summer is upon us – and not going anywhere soon. In this sweltering season, the most appealing option for food prep is one that doesn’t heat up the kitchen. For many, that makes outdoor cooking the season’s best move.

The backyard barbecue has come a long way from lighter fluid and a pack of hot dogs. Today there are infinite variations on the cookout to suit every budget, taste and setup. With the help of some local pitmasters and BBQ aficionados, we explore some of the tastiest ways to fire up the grill this summer.

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ
Cochon Butcher. While this place might be known and loved for its killer muffaletta and other delicacies, don’t forget it’s a butcher at heart – and the array of cured meats, sausages, and fresh cuts is top-notch.

The Equipment

Ever since humans cracked the whole fire situation, we’ve been finding ways to heat food with it – and every chef with an open flame has a preferred method. Some are quicker, easier, and more economical than others, and all have their champions. Let’s break down some of the most popular options for outdoor cooking, along with pros, cons, and expert feedback.

Charcoal

Does anything summon the summer feels like a pile of briquettes glowing beneath a grate? Just the smell of a neighbor’s charcoal heating up makes the mouth water – before anything gets cooking. Charcoal fans applaud its high heat potential, sense of control over the cooking process, and the tasty char it brings to food. Charcoal grills are also often portable and relatively inexpensive – a great option for folks who don’t grill too often. And as with any sport, there are ways to up the degree of difficulty (like using a chimney starter to get things hot).

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One of charcoal’s biggest boosters is Chef Tung Nguyen, who serves up his barbecue inspired delicacies at Slow & Pho in St. Roch Market and is a decorated Hogs for the Cause participant. At home, Nguyen swears by the Weber Kettle charcoal grill: “The spaceship looking one. Mr. Reliable.” He likes the long-lasting burn of charcoal and the fact that “you don’t have to pay attention to it too much, especially when you’re doing other sides. With wood, you have to keep checking on it.” His charcoal of choice? Texas Original Lump – “or any lump – they last longer and have a cleaner burn.” He adds wood chunks for flavor, with the variety depending on the protein he’s smoking: for brisket, something woodier like hickory; for pork, a fruitier wood like cherry or apple.

Chef Shannon Bingham of Devil Moon BBQ and Brewery Saint X turns to a Weber Smokey Mountain at home. “It’s pretty rare that I want to spend all day smoking brisket or pulled pork at home, but when I do, the Smokey Mountain is my go-to cooker,” said Bingham. “It maintains heat super well and burns through wood at a slow and efficient rate so I don’t have to spend all day tinkering with a fire box.”

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ
McCord Butchery. This Metairie spot should be high on the list for all things cookout. They’ve got the meats, including specialty cuts, and a beautiful selection of fish and seafood, from tuna and salmon to crab cakes.

Flattop grills

In New Orleans, flattop grills/griddles might be more closely associated with Camellia Grill than the backyard. But flattops are taking off as a great option for making fare like smashburgers and tacos al fresco. Cooking on a flattop feels a bit like bringing the kitchen outside, with no worries about shrimp or veggies falling through the grates of a traditional grill. Flattops can also contain burners for multiple heat zones, accommodating a range of food, from proteins to sides. And because the cooking surface is sealed off, you don’t have the fear of eyebrow-singing flare ups. Like a cast iron skillet, a flattop needs to be seasoned for optimal performance. They are typically used with propane, but some models are fueled by charcoal or gas.

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You can also hack a flattop by placing a flat cooking surface or cast-iron skillet atop a different kind of grill. That’s the preferred method for Sean Josephs, Pinhook Founder & Master Blender (and avid outdoor cook). As he said, “My favorite thing about cooking outside is simply enjoying the weather, not heating up my kitchen, and avoiding filling my house with smoke! To this end, cooking on a large cast iron skillet over a propane burner might easily be the technique I use the most when I cook outdoors. Burgers, steaks and a piece of fish are the three things I cook most regularly, as I value the crust and sear
one can achieve on a ripping hot cast iron surface more than I care about the flavor of wood smoke. That said, I do like to smoke a steak or a pork chop on my Green Egg and then finish it on the cast iron to build a great crust and get the best of both worlds.”

Gas

Gas grills have become the weeknight workhorse of outdoor cooking. They start at an affordable price point for a basic model, though the bells and whistles (and sticker price) can grow as hefty as a porterhouse for those looking to invest. The beauty of gas is the speed – you basically push a button and go, which makes gas a great option for getting dinner on the table fast. It’s also cleaner than other options, with no ash, etc. However, you do need to keep the propane stocked, which involves a little planning, to avoid the supreme disappointment of having your food ready to go – and no fire down below.

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ
Devil Moon
Barbecue Chef and pitmaster Shannon Bingham infuses Louisiana flavor into every platter at this CBD stop.

Pizza ovens

The outdoor pizza oven is no longer the purview of restauranteurs or pie-making experts. With the advent of small outdoor pizza ovens (like the popular Ooni brand), anyone can fire up a parade of pizzas for a crowd. These outdoor pizza ovens offer very high heat fueled by wood or gas, heating a pizza from above and below for even cooking. They range from very affordable to very expensive. When making pizzas for a crowd, it can feel like a never-ending churn because those pies disappear fast. But it’s hard to beat fresh customized pies. Josephs is a believer: “Of all of the outdoor cooking I do, making a pizza on an Ooni is easily the fastest and easiest of all of the dishes that I prepare, and yet time and time again, pizza never fails to elicit the most ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs.’”

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Pellet grills/smokers

Pellet grills and smokers use wood pellets as fuel, and they are a great option for low and slow barbecuing and smoking (though it is also possible to achieve high heat cooking/searing with some models). These might appeal to chefs who prefer a more hands-off approach to outdoor cooking, as these models require less monitoring of fire and air flow to regulate temperature than charcoal cookers or wood-burning smokers. Pellet grills also give off less smoke than charcoal models, while still infusing food with a smokey flavor. One of the best-known brands in this arena is Traeger, though there are now many makers (and price points).

McCord uses a pellet smoker in his butcher shop for smoking or grilling: “The pellets are easy to use, and it is also controlled by an app on my phone – so it is almost foolproof!” Bingham has a Traeger pellet smoker at home. “Pellet grills are kind of sacrilege in the BBQ community, but they make food taste smokey enough,” he said. “And you can’t beat the convenience of flipping a switch and turning a dial for a speedy weeknight meal.”

Kamado grills

Kamado grills are domed cooking vessels (a model that civilizations throughout history have played on in some way, though Kamados trace their particular evolution to Japan). Two well-known makers are Kamado Joe and The Big Green Egg (which celebrates its 50th birthday this year and has developed a cultlike following of “Eggers” or “Eggheads”). The pros of the Kamado grill include fuel-efficient convection cooking that allows for a wide range of food prep, from high-heat searing to smoking, and its compact, sleek appearance. Kamado grills can be pricey at the high end, but there are also a range of lower cost models. Sam McCord, of McCord Butchery, is a fan, using a Big Green Egg at home for “almost everything” from grilling and smoking to pizzas and desserts.

What’s Cooking?

Meats

For many outdoor cooks, nothing beats meat. But it can be intimidating to invest in a pricey cut, particularly for grill novices. Nguyen recommends shorter cooking proteins like pork tenderloin or chops when you’re not looking for a big commitment of time or money: “People don’t want to invest money into a brisket because ‘What if I mess this up – I just threw away 100 bucks!’” His advice? “Start with a $20 rack of ribs or a pork tenderloin (the ‘filet mignon of pork’), which takes about an hour to smoke. Then with a little practice, cooks can play around with marinating the meat overnight or injecting it.”

For Bingham, pork ribs are the cookout go-to because “they don’t break the bank or require any special equipment, and it only take a few hours and a few ingredients to come out really tasty.”

In addition to grilling in the traditional way, McCord likes to reverse sear larger/thicker steaks and chops (that means cooking gently over indirect heat then searing over high heat). And he keeps it simple when it comes to meat, adding just coarse sea salt and cracked black pepper: “Our steaks and chops at our shop are USDA prime and wet aged for 28-30 days, so I like to let them speak for themselves.”

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ

Fish and Seafood

Nguyen is a big fan of putting fish and seafood over charcoal, from Royal Red shrimp on skewers to speckled trout infused with fruity wood smoke, as well as oysters, squid and cuttlefish. He builds on the traditions of Vietnamese barbecue and quick flash grilling (“flip it constantly for an even cook”), accented with fish sauce or a mix of lime, salt and pepper.

McCord often cooks fish “on the half shell.” As he described, “We cook it with direct heat with the skin and scales still on so that it acts like a barrier between the heat and the fish, thus protecting the flesh of the fish, giving it an incredibly juicy and flavorful result.”

Seasonings/rubs/sauces

Nguyen relies upon Kosmo’s Q line of rubs: “They have everything you need for any protein.” McCord’s secret weapon for killer meat is a careful approach to the cooking fat: “I love to sear in beef tallow and finish with grass fed compound butters or herb butters, whichever applies to what I am cooking. The beef tallow is so much healthier than seed or vegetable oils and also more flavorful.”

Embrace creativity

While burgers and potato salad will never go out of style, it’s fun to play around with cookout fare. For Nguyen, that means incorporating Asian flavors into American style BBQ (e.g., curry mac and cheese or nestling pulled pork in roti naan instead of Texas toast, hoisin-based barbecue sauce rather than Carolina style).

McCord never tires of trying new approaches: “The last time I cooked a beef brisket, I smoked it for an hour, then braised it in Guiness Beer in a cast iron skillet on the Green Egg for a few hours. It was sooooo good!”

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ
Slow & Pho. Chef Nguyen combines Vietnamese cuisine and American BBQ for something truly special.

Where to source your stuff

McCord Butchery. This Metairie spot should be high on the list for all things cookout. They’ve got the meats, including specialty cuts, and a beautiful selection of fish and seafood, from tuna and salmon to crab cakes. A curated selection of sauces, rubs, and accoutrements helps offer direction, and they sell wine and spirits, so you can get everything you need for a spirited gathering in one spot. McCord’s even has potatoes by the register in case you want to add baked spuds to the menu. 210 Veterans Blvd. A, 504-264-7314, mccordbutchery.com.

Cochon Butcher. While this place might be known and loved for its killer muffaletta and other delicacies, don’t forget it’s a butcher at heart – and the array of cured meats, sausages, and fresh cuts is top-notch. 930 Tchoupitoulas St., 504-588-7675, cochonbutcher.com.

Chris’s Specialty Foods. Another butcher in the neighborhood tradition, Chris’s supplies Lakeview (and beyond – they’ve got multiple locations, and they ship) with meats, seafood, and more that make any grilling event special. Chris’s offers an impressive array of ready-to-cook meats marinated, stuffed, seasoned – or plain – making even a last-minute grill session easy to pull off. 6251 West End Blvd., 504-309-0010, chrisspecialtyfoods.com.

Gourmet Butcher Block. This Gretna spot has been serving up meaty goodness for years (John Madden helped popularize their Turducken), and they’ve also got a vast array of everything for the grill – from burgers to specialties and prepared foods. 2144 Belle Chasse Hwy., 504-392-5700, thegourmetbutcherblock.com.

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ
Chris’s Specialty Foods

To wash it down

All that grilling works up a thirst, for chefs and guests alike. Though Nguyen calls himself “a basic Miller Lite or High Life guy” when it comes to cookouts, he enjoys playing with bright beverage pairings for guests that balance a heavy, fatty or salty meat. This might mean a “citrus-forward fruity cocktail” like his Tropical Pimm’s Cup (recipe in sidebar) or some version of a Moscow Mule. For wine lovers, though many favor red with meat, he recommends a fruit-forward sauvignon blanc.

Josephs tends to alternate sips of Pinhook orange wax (their “everyday sipper”) and a beer (often an IPA). “They really are a great pairing, and I like to go back and forth between something cold and carbonated and bourbon, which is kind of the comfort food of spirits and just fits with the wafting aromas of outdoor cooking.”

McCord enjoys an Old Fashioned while cooking. When the weather is hot, he opts for “a nice glass of chilled Rosé wine – it reminds me of being in France.” Bingham turns to Brewery Saint X beer: “Our brewers do an amazing job with lagers that are perfect for outside day drinking at a barbecue. Our schankbier lager, All The Best, is a personal favorite at only 3.5%. Past that, I really enjoy lower ABV, refreshing cocktails like a Pimm’s Cup or a paloma. And lots of water!”


Grilling by the book

There is no shortage of literature on the art and science of barbecue, but some cookbooks are better than others. Here are a few we recommend:

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ

Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling: Goldwyn, Meathead, Blonder

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ

Rodney Scott’s World of BBQ: Rodney Scott and Lolis Eric Elie

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ

How To Grill Everything: Simple Recipes for Great Flame-Cooked Food: Mark Bittman

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ

Flavors of the Southeast Asian Grill: Classic Recipes for Seafood and Meats Cooked over Charcoal: Leela Punyaratabandhu

Accessories

The outdoor cooking industry has naturally spawned a galaxy of accessories, some of which are actually useful. Nguyen favors heat gloves that allow him to handle meat or charcoal while cooking. McCord keeps an evolving gadget collection that includes heat proof gloves, grill brushes and scrapers, digital thermometers, pizza stones, cast iron pots and skillets. When using a charcoal grill, Bingham keeps a leaf blower nearby: “You can cook steaks and other proteins low and slow to get some nice smoke and then hit the coals with the leaf blower to get the fire ripping hot for a final sear that would be really hard to achieve otherwise, and it keeps me from having to take a two-zone approach to the coal bed.”

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ

Canvas Grilling Apron This grilling apron from Nola Boards is sturdy enough handle the heat. Nola Boards

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ

Weber Black Premium BBQ Glove Set Gloves allow grillers a hands-on experience. The Home Depot

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ

 

Griddle Caddy for Blackstone Griddles Grill caddies are available for most models of equipment and offer a handy way to corral utensils, ingredients, etc. Amazon.com

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ

 

Grill Brush Stainless Steel Barbecue Cleaning Brush A heavy-duty grill brush is key for keeping the grates clean. Amazon.com

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ

BBQGuys Signature Charcoal Essentials Gift Set Gift the gift of grill tools, like this set from BBQ Guys (which has a design center in Baton Rouge – a worthwhile road trip for those looking to trick out the ultimate grilling setup). BBQGuys

Mastering the Art of the Backyard BBQ

Smoke Remote BBQ Alarm Thermometer The many varieties of thermometer technology (like smart remote thermometers) suit various grill setups – or tendencies to wander off. ThermoWorks.com

Bug Off!

Nobody wants ants at a picnic, or flies at a cookout, or mosquitos… ever. So here are a few options for keeping the bugs at bay when you’re hanging outdoors this summer.

Off! Mosquito Lamp. Light this 10 minutes before you plan to be outside, and this lamp uses heat-activated diffuser technology to emit a mosquito-repelling substance called metofluthrin. No odor, and it protects a 10×10 square foot area for up to 6 hours.

Dartagnan Mosquito Repellant Incense Sticks. These peppermint, lemongrass and citronella-powered sticks are a straightforward and natural way to ward off mosquitoes. Just stick one end into the ground and light the other…

Try some plug-in power. The Thermacell E-Series Mosquito Repeller uses a naturally occurring pesticide to ward off mosquitos within a 20-foot radius.

 

 

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