I really picked up on home bartending as my cause, because I feel like home entertaining is a vanishing art, and because there are very few websites out there that are specifically geared toward home cocktail-making.
Barbecue 101: Rubs, Sauces, and Marinades Overview
Barbecue cooks have individual preferences about the proper meats and sauces to use, which differ from region to region. The various seasoning methods produce different results, and can be divided into three main categories: rubs–wet and dry, marinades, and sauces. Following are descriptions of each, along with cooking suggestions and recipes. Although barbecuing is one of the oldest cooking methods on earth, remember that the rules are not set in stone. Use these guidelines as a base, then create some classics of your own.
2015 Bartels Harley-Davidson Chili Cook-off
I finally took the plunge and broke my chili competition cherry. Not only that, this was my first time making chili that didn’t magically appear when I opened a can labeled “Hormel.” Or, I should say, “chile” since I made a chile verde instead of the red stuff. Bartels Harley-Davidson held their annual chili cook-off in Marina del Rey yesterday and I thought I’d buck tradition with a little mean green.
Meet Steven Grasse: History in a Bottle
“You’re Steve Grasse?” the tattooed brand ambassador for Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum asked him. “Yeah” Steve responded, nonchalantly.
That question is particularly interesting because outside of a very small corner of the liquor industry, nobody knows who this Steve guy is.
Firewater: Beverage Etiquette Solved at Last
The other day Burn! barbecue contributor extraordinaire Mike Stines and I were talking about The Pope of Peppers and just how much more he knows about chile peppers than we ever will. Dave never ceases to surprise me and now he’s solved a modern problem faced by many a chilehead: what beverage in the blue Hell is right to serve with spicy food?
Rib Sauces
No matter how you cook your ribs – in a smoker, an oven or slow-cooker – a great barbecue sauce can accentuate the flavor. The best sauces for ribs tend to be thick and sticky so they hold to the ribs. Remember that any sauce that contains sugars (like tomatoes do) will burn at temperatures above 265 degrees F. If you are cooking at temperatures above this, wait until the ribs are cooked before applying the sauce. This will prevent burning so you can avoid blackened ribs.
Meet Charles Tanqueray: History in a Bottle
Gin mastermind Charles Tanqueray can be a mysterious player in the world of liquor. Nearly 200 years after he crafted one of the world’s most lasting booze brands, there are few details about Charles that follow his green barrel-shaped bottles around the world. In a phone interview, Tanqueray’s current Master Distiller Tom Nichol gave me some insight into the legendary man.
