Soaked, Slathered, and Seasoned: A Complete Guideto Flavoring Food for the Grill

There are several books that I consider essential for the outdoor chef. Among them are the Jamie Purviance/Weber quartet. For reasons set forth below, I add this book, and Ms. Karmel's "Taming ther Flame" to my shelf of "must haves".What makes this an "essential book"?First, it is unique; almost all grilling books have some recipies for rubs, mops and sauces, but this book is dedicated to them. In my opinion, it is these items that make or break what comes off the grill.Second, the recipies are simple and easy to follow, yet the ones I have tried produce real "flavor bombs". They are intense, yet well integrated into the dish they go with. They support rather than overwhelm.Third, the book is a teaching tool. Even the experienced chef will learn new techniques, and aquire new and useful information. For example, I learned asbout the differences in paprikas, and why different ones are preferred over others. Where I live, paprika is generic in the market, so learning about the differences, and going online to get them, produced improved results.Fourth, and most important for most of us, it enables us to put more consistantly well flavored food in front of family and friends. Using this book has enabled me to improve much of what I cook, and I have been at the grill for a whole bunch of years.My older son got this for me as a Christmas gift, when I was two weeks post hip replacement; I think he thought that it was time for the old man to get back to the essentials. Well, his ploy worked! We moved some snow to get at the grills and I started using these recipies. It's been a whole lot of fun!There's one other plus, and I'm old enough to mention it without being called sexist: Ms Karmel is kind of cute.If producing consistantly high quality food from the grill is your thing, I recommend this book to you without reservation. You'll find yourself using it a lot!

I bought a copy of this book when I stumbled on it here on Amazon, having never seen it before and knowing little about it. It did not take long at all to realize that this is the most useful book on grilling I have ever seen.The subtitle of this book says it all concisely: "A Complete Guide to Flavoring Food for the Grill". This is not a how-to book on grilling. Rather, it is more of a guide on flavoring food. There are a few complete recipes with step-by-step instructions (such as Pork Tenderloin with Mustard-Molasses Glaze) but the large majority of the content is formulas for flavoring foods on the grill.The formulas are broken up logically by type, as follows: Marinades, Brines, Sauces, Glazes, Mops, Sauces/Relishes/Jellies, Sweet Sauces, Rubs/Spice Blends, Vinaigrettes, Butters, Pestos/Tapenades and finally Dipping Sauces. There is a wide variance in the combinations of flavors that the author uses to create her formulas, so there is something for everyone and there's a recipe for any conceivable food for grilling. The author also includes a short list of what foods will benefit with each formula, which is a great help in narrowing down which to use when the decision may otherwise be difficult.I have not tried a lot of the formulas but I have tried a few of them for specific dishes where I wanted "something different" and so far every one I have tried has been a huge success with my family. As a result I tend to reach for this book before I go after any of the other grilling books I own.This is a great book for anyone wanting to really master flavorful grilling. It is not an in-depth study on the art of grilling and it covers only the most basic grilling techniques, but with the basics in hand anyone can create wonderful, flavorful grilled foods using the formulas provided in this book.

For me to give a cookbook a five star review, it's because the photos are stellar. I'm highly visual. I want to see what the end result will be, which gets my brain motivated to want to make something. The photos in this book are sparse, and just okay-- but nothing stellar. With that said, I'd give four stars to the writing and recipes. I did find the BBQ basics interesting, and I did learn some new tricks and tips. I'm still exploring work with mops, glazes and sauces, so that is why I bought the book. I just have to read each recipe, thoroughly, and try to visualize the balance of all the flavors and just make them. Bottom line, I'm not saying I didn't like the book. So far, my all-time beloved BBQ book author is Steven Raichlen, author of The Barbecue! Bible and How to Grill. I so appreciate his photos, which are abundant and mouth watering. I bought the book used, for just a few dollars, so I'm glad I took a risk and bought this.

This book focuses on how to prep your food before it hits the grill. It covers everything from rubs to brines. The book is well written and organized. If you like to grill, I highly recommend getting this book.

Perfect for me with all needed recipes and bbq options...so glad I purchased this book

If you do grilling, smoking, and like to experiment with different ways of cooking the same meat, this is a really nice reference to those techniques in one book. I wish it was in a larger format for us older grillers, but it is still a good source for those different rubs, sauces, butters, etc.

Originally bought this book for tips on starting to try smoking meat but found so much more w recipes sauces glazes list keeps going. Great book A+

Excellent tips for anyone just starting to smoke meats to the full blown expert! She gives lots of tips and hints that would help even the seasoned pitmaster. A very good "go to" book for anybody that enjoys cooking.

I am sold on this chef's books. The detail is there in instructions and explanations. I have this one and Taming the Flame and have told many of my cronies (fellow smoke, grill and BBQ aficionados) to get these. You need nothing else.Doug Murray