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 Steven
Raichlen on Sauces
For many people, the sauce is the soul
of the barbecue. Barbecue sauces can be used for mopping or
basting but are most commonly served over on the side of the
finished dish. They vary from dish to dish and region to region,
and there are probably as many different types of barbecue
sauces as there are individual grill jockeys. As for condiments,
they include the salsas, chutneys, and relishes used by pit
masters from Albuquerque to Bombay to give food hot off the
grill a final bit of jazz.
How to Use Sauces
Sauce is barbecue's lifeblood. This statement might be disputed
by ornery Texans (who would argue that the essence of true
barbecue is long, slow cooking and wood smoke). For the rest
of the world it simply isn't barbecue without the sauce. But
what sauce? Sauces vary from region to region, stirring strong
emotions when local traditions are violated. In the United
States alone there are more than 700 commercial barbecue sauces,
and I've sampled hundreds more abroad. So, picking a sauce
to include here was a bit like picking the 10 best rock songs
of the century. Entertaining, but all but impossible.
The barbecue sauce here can be used during grilling--for slathering
on meats or chicken--as well as for serving with the finished
barbecue. Sugar-based sauces should be applied toward the
end of the grilling to keep the sugar from burning.
Basic Barbecue Sauce Recipe
This is the type of sauce that most people in the United States
think of as barbecue sauce: Brown sugar and molasses make
it sweet; liquid smoke makes it smoky--there isn't a Kansas
City pit boss around who wouldn't recognize it as local. Slather
it on ribs and chicken, spoon it over pork shoulder, and serve
it with anything else you may fancy. You won't be disappointed.
Makes about 2-1/2 cups
2 cups ketchup
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
2 tablespoons prepared mustard
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
1 tablespoon of your favorite barbecue rub
2 teaspoons liquid smoke
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Combine all the ingredients in a nonreactive saucepan and
bring slowly to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat
to medium and gently simmer the sauce until dark, thick, and
richly flavored, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer the sauce to clean
(or even sterile) jars and store in the refrigerator. It will
keep for several months.
How
to Grill: The Complete Illustrated Book
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