Speaking Volumes | Summers are for grilling. Check out these cookbooks at Manatee library
As we gear up for summer, most of us are likely planning how to spend more time outside with loved ones as we finally reconnect after a long year apart. One of the most popular summer activities is gathering as a family around the grill for a backyard barbeque.
Open-flame cooking can be traced all the way back to the days of our cavemen ancestors. Outdoor barbecues were popular throughout the course of history due to the lack of fire safety when cooking indoors and the ease of feeding a crowd. However, by the beginning of the 19th century, they had largely fallen out of favor. Barbecuing became something mostly done only by professional smokers who could be hired to cater large events.
Home barbecues experienced a new surge of popularity in the 1950s with the introduction of modern outdoor metal grills. In 1952, George Stephen of the Weber Bros. Metal Spinning Company created a grill by modifying a Weber-manufactured harbor buoy. Stephen began selling the grill commercially and by the end of the decade, Weber’s production had shifted completely to grill manufacturing. Backyard cookouts and outdoor grilling became an iconic aspect of suburban life.
Grilling has advanced far beyond just burgers and hot dogs. There are many cookbooks available at the library to help you step up your grilling game this summer. In “Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling”, Barbecue Hall of Famer Meathead Goldwyn debunks grilling myths like bringing your steak to room temperature and soaking your wood chips. With the help of a food physicist, this cookbook introduces the science behind grilling up the perfect piece of meat and ensures you’ll cook up the perfect bite each time.
For those interested in moving away from standard barbecue fare, “How to Grill Everything: Simple Recipes for Great Flame-Cooked Food” by food journalist Mark Bittman contains numerous unexpected grilled recipes. From Korean short ribs to rosemary olive oil bread, this cookbook sets out to prove almost anything tastes better from the grill.
When trying to impress guests, there is no greater role model than Martha Stewart. In her cookbook “Martha Stewart’s Grilling: 125+ Recipes for Gatherings Large and Small”, the famed homemaker provides the essentials to grilling and strategies to master traditional dishes such as shrimp kebabs and pulled pork.
Don’t think grilling is just for meat eaters. “VBQ: The Ultimate Vegan Barbecue Cookbook” by Nadine Horn introduces 80 delicious recipes that require no animal products, including grilled potato salad, grilled bok choy, and tofu ‘steak’. This cookbook ensures that there is an option for all the guests at your backyard barbecue this summer.
Your library is online: www.mymanatee.org/library. Free masks at all library locations. Manatee Libraries are fine free! Please note that lost/damage fees still apply.
Speaking Volumes is written by members of the staff at the Manatee County Public Library System. Katie Fleck is the assistant supervisor of information services at the Central Library.