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Things are different in the United States. Smoky Hale
(author of The Great American Barbecue and Grilling Manual) states firmly:
"Barbecue, whatever the origin of its name, means slow cooking in the
dry heat of wood coals". Noted American restauranteur and writer Chris
Schlesinger in the foreword to Smoke & Spice, defines barbecue in culinary
terms as: "A process whereby a large cut of tough meat is cooked by the
smoke of a hardwood fire at low temperatures (around 210 degrees F or
less) for a long period of time with doneness determined by the meat's
tenderness".
While most dinkum Aussies will argue that barbecuing
involves charring steaks, chops and sausages in the shortest time possible
over the hottest fire imaginable, I think we should make some allowances
for the Americans - for two reasons:
1. They have had a name
for what they have been doing for the past few centuries. The word barbecue
(barbeque, BBQ or bar-b-q are just variations on the theme) only started
to be widely used in Australia after the Second World War. No doubt, it
was introduced by the many thousands of United States servicemen who passed
through Australia during the Pacific campaigns.
2. They have to drink
their beer.
What we have traditionally done in our backyards is
termed 'grilling' in the States. This placing of food directly over high
heat is, not surprisingly, often termed 'direct' cooking in some barbecue
books.
What happens inside a closed kettle barbecue (or a trolley
barbecue with a hood) at temperatures of 150 degrees C or more is termed
roasting. This is also referred to as 'indirect' cooking as the food is
not placed directly over the heat source.
If food is cooked at lower temperatures for long periods
(measured in half days or days rather than hours), the result is similar
to what the American purists call barbecue and which I refer to as slow
smoking.
While I will try to adopt these terms wherever possible
because they are more descriptive of the cooking process involved, I cannot
bring myself to use 'grill' or 'pit' in reference to the equipment involved.
You simply have to draw the line somewhere.
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