When exploring how to grill to perfection, you’ll need to know the many essential flavors of various types of grilled meats. Personally, I think simplicity is usually best. Too many conflicting flavors can take the flavor out of the meat and probably overwhelm your taste buds. With barbecue, the woods used during cooking and the seasonings used to rub and marinate the meat should add flavor but not overpower.
Among the most commonly used barbecue woods are apple, cherry and maple barbecue chips. I like to have a few varieties available. I’m also always sure to have on hand what I think are essential barbecue seasonings, spices, and basting. These items can be used in various combinations depending on your personal preferences. Making your own barbecue seasonings, brines, and barbecue sauces for any of your favorite meats will be fairly easy if you have the following list on hand.
Ingredients for basting and sauce:
Apple Juice – This is great for basting any barbecued meat, and especially useful for ribs, pork, and chicken. Apple juice and apple cider can often be used in many recipes for brines, barbecue sauces, injections, or even in the pan of water to keep meat moist.
Apple Cider Vinegar: This is a great ingredient for BBQ sauces and mops. You can also use it to thin out store-bought sauces and make a quick and simple mop or marinade. This is also a great product for seasoning pulled pork on the barbecue.
Molasses: It is mainly used to make sauces. The bold flavor and dark color give the sauce its thick texture and dark color. Molasses and apple cider vinegar are two key ingredients that I use in my personal sauce recipes.
Whiskey or Bourbon: Using these can deliver a great malt flavor and help add balance to your mops or sauces. Try a bottle mixed with half Jack Daniel’s and half apple juice to baste barbecued meats.
Brown Sugar – This is another essential ingredient in my own barbecue sauce recipes. This is a great way to add subtle sweetness to pork, chicken, ribs, or pulled pork dishes. Brown sugar pairs really well with hot or spicy flavors to add a touch of sweetness to your hot and spicy sauce.
Condiments and Spices:
Onion Powder: This is one of my personal ingredient preferences for my barbecue seasonings. The onion flavor works well with any barbecued meat.
Cumin – This is one of the most important ingredients for barbecue seasonings and chili recipes. This ingredient will add a light smoky flavor and is especially good for a pork barbecue.
Paprika – The main ingredient found in virtually all barbecue seasonings as well as chili recipes. This adds great color and flavor to any barbecued meat and the subtle flavor helps balance the other ingredients.
Chili Powder – This tasty mix can be used on any barbecued meat. This is a great way to add a little spice or heat to barbecued meat.
Garlic Powder – One of the main ingredients in my personal recipes for barbecue sauces and seasonings. This adds a subtle sweetness along with a hint of spiciness and brings balance to the spicy flavors.
Kosher salt: I personally don’t mind a really salty taste. This salt helps bring out the real flavor of barbecued meats and has a much more subtle flavor than regular salt.
Black Pepper: A very important part of any seasoning mix to get that hot and peppery kick. The bold flavor and pungent fragrance make any barbecued meat better.
The truth about barbecue is that personal preference dictates the end result more than anything else. Practice with the flavors you enjoy and try different combinations of seasonings. You’ll find some you like and some you don’t, but ultimately you’ll enjoy the journey to find the perfect barbecue. The last and most important tip here is to “cook slow and slow.” This simply means using a temperature of 325 degrees or lower (275 – 300 degrees is best) and cooking for a longer period of time. Always make sure the temperature is consistent and keep your water container full so the meat doesn’t dry out. You can even barbecue in your oven at home during the winter if you think it’s too cold to fire up the grill. Barbecuing in the oven will follow these same guidelines, but for the wood or smoke flavor, you’ll want to use a liquid smoke product instead of wood chips.
