The difference between grilling and barbecuing

Two Different Methods of Cooking Meat

If you are one of the many who believe that barbecue is anything cooked on a grill, I am going to set you on the right track. In order to develop yourself into a Grill Master or Pit Master, it's paramount that you understand the difference between the two.

Grilling is the method of cooking over a fire. A hot fire! The temperatures achieved usually exceed 400 degrees. This method will cook food rapidly, and produce a slight char that adds to the flavor of the food. Foods that go well with this type of cooking are those that are fairly tender to begin with, such as steak, chicken breast, pork tenderloin, vegetables, hamburgers and fish. Basically, you're searing the outside with lesser cooking on the inside.

Barbecuing, on the other hand is a slow process of cooking meat at lower temperature using a smoker.

Grilling
Grilling has two different methods, direct heat and indirect heat.

Direct heat is as simple as it sounds. Food is placed on the grill grate directly over hot coals. This is how I cook the steak I mentioned above. Any type of food you want to cook fast with minimal smoke flavor works well with the direct method of grilling. Remember, you're cooking with fire.

With indirect heat grilling you're cooking with heat. Prepare your coals as you would for the direct heat method. Just before adding your food, slide all the coals to one side of the grill. Use a metal spatula, or one of my favorite grilling tools, a small garden hand spade. Fill a small foil pan with water and place it on the other half of the grill. Your food will be cooked over the pan of water.

This method cooks food slower. Since slow cooking tends to dry food out, the steam from the water pan will ensure that moisture is retained. I usually start out with boiling water. Add a handful of smoking chips such as mesquite or hickory onto the coals for a stronger smoke flavor.

An advantage to the indirect heat method of grilling is the ability to slow cook your food, yet just before pulling it off the grill, place it over the hot coals for a few minutes to achieve a charred appearance. This works well with chicken breasts or pork chops.

Barbecuing or Smoking
Barbecuing cooks food slow. The temperatures reached are only in the 250 degree range and are cooked for several hours. Smoking and barbecuing are basically the same thing. Fire is used to heat a chamber where the food cooks. Charcoal and smoking wood are used to create the heat. Tougher and larger cuts of meat such as pork shoulders or beef brisket are best cooked in this manner. It would be impractical to try and cook these types of meat on the grill.

Smoking can also add incredible flavor to any type of food that you can grill. Keep one thought in mind when planning your next barbecue function, anything that you can cook on a grill, can be cooked in a smoker, yet not everything you cook in a smoker can be cooked on the grill. A pork shoulder or beef brisket are examples of this. In most situations, I utilize both the smoker and the grill when preparing meat. For example, I'll fire up the grill just prior to pulling slabs of ribs out of the smoker and char them on the grill while at the same time, apply my barbecue sauce.

Grilling and smoking are not an exact science but rather an art. Serious aficionados of barbecue practice and experiment. Armed with a better understanding of the art of "Quing", it's time to start your own experimentation. Learn about marinades, meat rubs, types of smoking woods, sauces and how to buy quality meat. After that, practice and experiment and experiment and experiment.

Happy Grilling!

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