Barbecue vs. Grilling vs. Smoking
Summer is here and lots of meals are being cooking either on the grill, on the barbecue pit or in a smoker. But there seems to be a bit confusion about each of these food preparations.


First of all, grilling is not the same as barbecuing. Think of grilling as fast good; barbecue as slow food. To grill means to cook quickly over a fire that'* close to the product being cooked, as in grilling hamburgers, hot dogs, steaks, and fish. It'* what takes place when your neighbor'* backyard burgers nuke themselves to cinders in a burst of flame. It'* quick cooking over hot coals, designed to sear the meat to hold in juices that otherwise would be boiled out by the hot coals. It'* fine for burgers and dogs, but it'* not barbecuing.

On the other hand, smoking is a process by which a product is slow-cooked with the fire being away from the product. There is liquid (which can be anything including but limited to water, beer, wine, or even Dr Pepper in between the heat source and the product being smoked. The meat is cooked in hot, moist air, and therefore tends to retain more of its original water content.

Now, barbecue is a combination of grilling and smoking, but closer to smoking. Barbecuing is a different position from grilling, gentle by comparison, that uses lower temperatures and no direct flames. Hot smoke does the cooking, gradually adding its own flavor to the meat, which remains naturally moist.

Grilling is probably one of the healthiest method of food preparation since most of the fat content is burned off over the hot coals and fresh herbs and spices are all that is needed to bring out the true taste and flavor of whatever you're preparing. And there'* just nothing better than something cooked outdoors over an open fire.