Turn Up the Heat
B.C.’s first female BBQ Pitmaster, a bronze-medal winner as Canada’s representative at the Jack Daniels World BBQ Championships, and an instructor at her speciality food store and cooking school, Well Seasoned, Angie Quaale knows her way around the grill
Angie Quaale’s hot tips for a better BBQ this summer.
W hen the weather heats up it’s time to fire up the grill. Have your best barbecue ever this summer by sticking to my B.C. barbecue guide — from choosing quality local products, to using the right tools and thinking outside the box, these five tips will have you grilling like a pro.
1. Start with high-quality, local ingredients. Local crops are picked at their peak of ripeness, and artisan products like cheese are hand-crafted for the best flavor. Livestock is processed in nearby facilities and typically the farmer has a direct relationship with processor where they can oversee the quality, unlike animals processed in big industrial facilities. Starting with the best ingredients will give you the best end product. 2. Make friends with your butcher. My butchers name is Carlo, he is a heck of a nice guy — he cuts a great steak and killer pork chops. He can tell me where the meat came from and usually the name of the farmer that raised it. I like that. It is incredibly important to me to know where my food comes from. Carlo’s beef, chicken and pork are all locally raised by reputable farmers, he grinds his own meat, and makes and smokes his own sausage. Find a butcher shop near where you live, walk in and introduce yourself to the butcher. Ask him what he recommends, he won’t let you down.
3. Start with four basic but high quality pieces of equipment: tongs, basting brush, meat thermometer and a grill brush. Just like when you cook indoors, you need to have the right tools for the job. You should have a great pair of tongs, long enough to reach the back of your grill but not so long they become unwieldy, a silicone basting brush, a grill brush to keep your grill clean and a good digital meat thermometer — it is the only way to know for certain when your food is properly cooked.
4. Think outside of the box — grill something different! Your BBQ isn’t just for burgers! You can cook practically anything on your BBQ — in fact, you should treat your BBQ like it is an extension of your kitchen and use it as a grill, a roaster and an oven. From pizza to oysters, tofu to quesadillas, peaches to pound cake — weather it is breakfast, lunch, dinner or dessert your BBQ is an incredibly versatile appliance.
5. Make your own burgers. It’s easy and homemade burgers just taste better. When you know your butcher, you know you are getting the freshest ground meat possible. Try using a mixture of 80 percent ground beef and 20 percent ground pork. The pork adds extra flavor and moisture to the burger. Don’t use extra lean beef, it makes for a super dry burger and most of the fat from a regular grind will render off while it is cooking — it is the fat that keeps your burger flavorful and moist. And great burgers don’t have to always be meat. Try a marinated portabella mushroom burger, a lentil burger or a fish burger — there are as many great burger ideas as there are days in the year!