A book on making sauces (and rubs)? Theory?

[tcaptain]

Hey guys,

I have a few BBQ books so far.  I have the KCBS 25th Anniversary Cookbook, I have Paul Kirk's Championship BBQ which I enjoy very much and a couple of others.  I plan to pick up the BBQ Bible soon.

One thing I have been looking for is a book on developing flavors.  I love making my own rubs and sauces (I got a good base through Paul Kirk's BBQ course) and I wanted to learn more.  Every sauce and rub book I find seems to only have recipes.  I want to read up on more the theory behind it you know?

I wonder if anyone's found anything like that?

 

[kathrynn]

I got the Paul Kirk one for a Christmas present this year.  Love it too.  I have just picked one up at Costco yesterday by Southern Living (love the mag and the cookbooks)...haven't cracked it open to read yet....it's titled....."ALL FIRED UP...Smokin' Hot BBQ Secrets from the South's Best Pitmasters"....and t features Troy Black (don't know who that it...but its ok)

Kat

 

[jirodriguez]

Ummmm.... I don't know... how about Jeff's book, made with the help of some of SMF's finest!

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/121962/jeffs-new-book-is-available

It really is a great book.

 

[chef jimmyj]

 This is what you are looking for. Not BBQ specific but will give an overall idea on what combination of Herbs and Spices work best together...JJ

 

[tcaptain]

 This is what you are looking for. Not BBQ specific but will give an overall idea on what combination of Herbs and Spices work best together...JJ

I've been eyeing that one for a long while...I didn't really think it would help with sauces though (maybe rubs).

I just splurged and picked up this and the BBQ Bible on my Kindle.   I was reading the reviews and I worry about the formatting a little but I just checked in the cloud reader and it looks pretty decent for a cookbook (some I've picked up in the past are a real mess), so the 1 star reviews don't seem overly accurate.

I've just browsed the first few pages on my Kindle HD itself and it seems readable...though they are overly fond of colors and fonts (whatever happened to keep it simple?).

I've got my bedtime reading for tonight.  I'm planning to season my new smoker this weekend and throw on a chicken, it'd be nice to do something original with it for the family (and myself hehe).

 

[chef jimmyj]

Very little New in food has be created in the last several years with the exception of Molecular Gastronomy, everything else that is unique or cutting edge is reformulating the classic flavors. Everything Fusion, the hottest trend in Los Angles Food Truck scene Korean/Mexican Fusion. Alabama White BBQ Sauce...It's nothing more than Coleslaw Dressing that somebody started putting on chicken. Learn how flavors work then whether it's Rubs, Sauces or anything you cook you can create any combination you wish. Sweet and Heat, Sweet and Salty, Hot and Sour or a balance of all. How do you take a Sweet and Spicy KC style BBQ Sauce and add Depth...Add Coffee for a Bitter note and an Earthy musk. Making a pot of Chili? The Classic Chile Pepper and the main ingredient in commercial Chili Powder is ground Ancho Chile and Cayenne. But add some Pasilla, New Mexican, Cascabel, Guajillo and/or Chipotle and Chili goes from ok to Great with waves of spicy heat rather than one pinch. Along the same line, the biggest difference between a batch of Texas Red and Cincinnati Chili is the addition of Cinnamon, Allspice and a touch of Clove. Look at International dishes and flavors to expand and compliment what you know. We recently talked about Secret Ingredients with the now more common addition of Asian Fish Sauce to add Umami to virtually any dish. I put a splash in almost any savory dish or sauce I make, Meatloaf, Chicken Soup, Turkey Gravy and Tomato Sauce. It does not taste Fishy but makes the other flavors sing. People will wonder, " Why doesn't my Meatloaf taste this good!?! "...JJ

 

[rtbbq2]

Once you grasp which spice and food combinations make food go from good to excellent, your cooking raises the bar to outstanding.  While it does help to have professional training, many are self trained and do an outstanding job. The Flavor Bible is on my birthday list. Glad all you cooking guru's are here to help me out when I need it.........

 

[tcaptain]

Well I've been reading the Flavor Bible the last couple of days.  I gotta say it was worth the money.

Overall impression is that it's a great reference book.  It gives a lot of ideas for combining flavors in different ways, beyond the classics too.

I have a few specific impressions:

The first couple of chapters are eye opening.  I enjoyed the different takes from different chefs.   The tone overall however was a tad condescending (in my opinion) and a little hippy dippy.   I found myself rolling my eyes are few times and thinking "yeah yeah we get it lady, cooking is SPIRITUAL get on with it"  (I'm not saying it's not, but it's a point that was hammered home a bit too much)

Despite the above quibble, I kinda wish that section had been even larger.  It was an interesting read, and it gave me new ideas.  

Otherwise, the ingredient list is clear and practical.   Although it's be cool to have an application with cross-referencing with that info :)

A note on the Kindle version:

- there are quite a few one star reviews that talk about how bad the Kindle version is.  I bought the kindle version and I will eventually get the hardcover too (it's a pretty nice book).   If you have a barebones black & white Kindle, I can see how the book COULD be very hard to read and use.   I have a Kindle HD so it wasn't QUITE as bad.   One thing they SHOULD do is update the ebook to maybe include the ingredient list in the table of contents that way you don't have to scroll back through it whenever you are looking for something.

 

[rtbbq2]

The BBQ Bible is a good book. I just got it for my birthday. Haven't tried the recipes yet but by looking at some of the ingredients I can tell it's going to be a great addition to my sauces rubs and marinades. I will be picking up the Flavor bible soon. Thanks for sharing JJ. There is also another book, the Spice Bible that I want to check out. Here is the link. I wonder if anyone has this book?

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/spi...=pla&ean=9781584796954&isbn=9781584796954&r=1

 

[daveomak]

RT, morning.....   I have the Flavor Bible....  Very interesting how they put it together...   Getting recommendations from Chef's on how they seasoned their food... what they used etc.. I enjoy using it and tasting the different flavor profiles you can put together...

 

[hillbilly jim]

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• hillbilly jim
• Mar 15, 2017