Patio Daddio BBQ - Musings of barbecue, cooking, and life -- served hot, fresh and saucy

As an alternative, you can use meaty beef short ribs. These are the small rectangular pieces that are cut from the chuck/plate primals. They cook a little faster and provide the same beefy rib flavor.

Ingredients
8-10 Beef short ribs, large and meaty
1 can Root beer
1 cup Your favorite BBQ sauce
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce

Seasoning
1 Tbsp Kosher salt
1 Tbsp Chili powder (I used Gebhardt's)
1 Tbsp Black pepper, ground fine
1 Tbsp Garlic salt
2 tsp Granulated onion (not onion "powder")

Method
Mix the seasoning ingredients well in a small mixing bowl.

Put the ribs in a large baking dish

Coat the ribs with the Worcestershire sauce just enough to wet them.

Dust all sides of the ribs liberally with the seasoning, cover and refrigerate two hours.

Start your fire and prepare for indirect cooking at 325º.

Add two small chunks of fruit wood (apple or cherry) and one small chunk of hickory to the fire about 10 minutes before you're ready to cook. Wood chips soaked for 30-60 minutes will work well, too. If you're using a gas grill, make a smoker pouch.

Cook the ribs indirect, bone-side-down, for two hours.

Note: The meat on my ribs was about 1 1/2" thick, and they were about 3-4" long. You will have to adjust your cooking times according to the size and meatiness of your ribs.

Dump the root beer in a large disposable aluminum foil baking pan and add the ribs (on their sides).

Cover the pan with heavy-duty foil, return to the cooker, and cook indirect another hour.

Remove the ribs from the pan, return them to the cooker, and cook indirect another 20 minutes.

Glaze the ribs with the barbecue sauce during the last ten minutes of cooking.

Remove the ribs from the cooker, tent with aluminum foil and let rest 10 minutes.

Serve and enjoy.

Ingredients
3 large Cucumbers, peeled and sliced about 1/8" thick
1 medium Red onion, halved and sliced about 1/8" thick
1 jar (4 oz) Diced pimentos, not drained
1/2 cup Granulated sugar
1/2 cup White vinegar
1/2 cup Rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp Dried parsley
1 Tbsp Dried tarragon
1 Tbsp Dried dill
1 Tbsp Garlic salt
1 Tbsp Seasoned salt
1 Tbsp Black pepper, ground fine

Method
Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl.

Toss to combine all the ingredients, until the sugar and salt are dissolved.

Cover and refrigerate overnight (or at least three hours), tossing occasionally.

Serve and enjoy.

One of the complaints that I have read about this book is that Adam's recipes are "too complicated" and that they use "too many fancy ingredients". I disagree with those sentiments and prefer to look at it differently. This is a cookbook that will push the bounds of your typical backyard live-fire cooking. The techniques and layering of flavors will push you out of your comfort zone, and the beautiful photographs make you want to try the recipes.

I could go on and on about how good this book is, but the "Smoke, Char, Baste, and Brush Your Way to Great Outdoor Cooking" subtitle really sums it up nicely. If you want to expand your horizons and learn to take your barbecue and grilling to new heights, get this book.

Ingredients
2 large Top sirloin steaks (1 1/2 lbs each)
4 Tbsp Butter, cut into four equal pats
2 Tbsp Gebhardt's Chili Powder (available at many grocery stores)
1 Tbsp Kosher salt
1 Tbsp Garlic salt
2 tsp Worcestershire pepper (or plain black pepper -- see the note below)

Method
Note: If you can't find the Worcestershire pepper, just rub the steaks with a little Worcestershire sauce before seasoning.

Mix the seasoning ingredients in a small bowl.

Dust both sides of each steak liberally and pat the seasoning to ensure it adheres well.

Let sit covered at room temperature for an hour.

Fire your grill up to 500* and let the grates get rocket hot.

Swab the grates quickly with canola oil.

Grill to desired doneness.

Remove from the grill, top each steak with two 1 Tbsp pats of butter and let rest five minutes.

Chow down!