Review: More BBQ and Grilling for the Big Green Egg & other Kamado-style cookers

More BBQ and Grilling is written by Eric Mitchell an award winning pitmaster who has been cooking on the Big Green Egg since 2000. He and his wife started the team, Yabba Dabba Que!, and compete in competitions throughout the North East. They have competed in both the Jack Daniel
s World Championship Invitational and the American Royal where they earned a perfect score for their crème brûlée.

I don't own a Kamado-style cooker but the recipes are easily adapted to other cookers and grills. If you have a Big Green Egg or similar cooker this cook book is great. Eric gives you the information to set up your your cooker correctly to get the temperatures you want. The last chapter talks about care and set up of your kamado-style cooker from purchase to use. The recipes cover everything from appetizers to desserts.

First Thoughts

When I got More BBQ and Grilling for the Big Green Egg & other Kamado-style Cookers I thought, "Great, I don't have a BGE I can test on." But I shouldn't have worried. The recipes are easy to follow and to adapt to other cookers. The book has great pictures and the instructions are easy to follow. Eric gives directions on how to set the BGE for the best outcome of the recipes. The recipes range from starters to sauces to rubs to desserts.

The kabob page.

I made the Colombian Steak Kabobs and chimichurri sauce. Both were excellent. The chimichurri sauce is great to but on steak, burgers, venison and other meats. Below is the recipe for it.

CHIMICHURRI STEAK SAUCE

Chimichurri is a sauce originating from Argentina and served with grilled meats, especially beef. It is used in Argentina like we use ketchup in the United States. It can be used as a marinade, and other variations include fresh cilantro, diced jalapeños or a pinch of cayenne. Its flavors accent the grilled meat well and a little goes a long way.

Makes about 1 cup (240 ml), or 4 to 6 servings

½ cup (120 ml) olive oil
3 tbsp (45 ml) red wine vinegar
1 tbsp (15 ml) lime juice
2 tsp (6 g) fresh garlic, minced
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 cup (40 g) flat leaf parsley, chopped
½ cup (20 g) fresh oregano leaves, chopped

In a large bowl, mix all of the ingredients together except the fresh herbs. Whisk well, until ingredients are incorporated. Add the fresh herbs and mix thoroughly. For best results, refrigerate for 1 hour before serving.

The book great for making an entire meal on the BGE. The last chapters are devoted to setting up, caring for and cooking on your BGE. For a novice and experienced cooker there is a lot to learn and experiment with.

Pursuing the book

More BBQ and Grilling for the Big Green Egg & other Kamado-style cookers is laid out in a fairly logical manner. The chapters go in this order, but are not named this,

• Beef and lamb
• Pork
• Chicken and turkey
• Seafood
• Appetizers and bites
• Salads, sauces and veggies
• Pizzas and breads
• Casseroles, braises and stews
• Desserts
• About the Egg

My biggest quibble is that the section about the BGE is at the very end. I would have started with this as it has a lot of useful and helpful information about maintaining your Egg and adjusting the dampeners for cooking.

The final chapter.

In each of the recipes Eric tells you how to set the dampeners on the Egg to get and maintain the proper temperatures. He shows that anything you cook in the oven you can cook on the Egg once you learn how it works.

Final Thoughts

This is a great cook book for both experienced cooks and those just starting out. It has great recipes that can be adapted for other cookers and made on the Kamado-style cookers. On the Gibbs Ribs scale* I give this a full-rack of ribs. It would be a great addition to any pitmasters cookbook shelf, and would help keep friends and family well fed.

*When I do reviews, books or otherwise, I rate the items with ribs (they are my favorite BBQ dish). A full rack is great and a single rib is poor. I will tend to stick to a full rack, half rack or one rib.