if not us, then who?
if not now, then when?

Hey, it's cool. Barbecue is conducive to strong opinions, but they're just that: opinions. Discover for yourself what you like and what you don't. I'm all for trying new things, making mistakes, and learning from them. How do you know boiling ribs is bad if you've never tried it? I had my fair share of disasters and ill-conceived barbecue experiments before settling on my own philosophy and tastes. And from time to time, I'll myself cheat a little bit. I'm generally against foiling, but every once in awhile, usually for brisket, if things aren't quite coming along as quickly as I had hoped, I'll foil the brisket for a couple of hours. Or if I know somebody in the party is more for fall-off-the-bone textured ribs (like my mom), I'll foil those as well to get that extra soft texture.

As for the rest, my aversion to liquid smoke is actually not as bad as my aversion to Burger King. (I will occasionally begrudgingly use a barbecue sauce with liquid smoke in it. For instance, if I'm really lazy, I'll cut Sweet Baby Ray's spicy hot sauce about 50-50 with apple cider vinegar.) This is not to say I won't eat BK if somebody throws me a burger, but I'd rather have a McDonald's quarter pounder to a Whopper any day of the week and twice on Sunday. I thought I was the only person on earth who hated Burger King, until on another message board a poster agreed, writing that he was long convinced BK "seeks to evoke nostalgia for barbecue made by dads who put the food on before the lighter fluid has had a chance to burn off." That's exactly what a BK burger tastes like to me.

I've been reading these last few posts with trepidation because my dad always put a drop or two of liquid smoke in his sauce (the world's simplest sauce: tomato paste, salt & pepper, the drop/s of liquid smoke. Add EVOO if grilling chicken).

I do think it's wrong to put any kind of BBQ sauce on or into a burger, though. Might as well forget the burger and pour the sauce on a bun and eat that.

Effing hilarious

Let me clarify my stance on Liquid Smoke. Some BBQ folks are adamantly against Liquid Smoke or "Natural Smoke Flavoring" in pretty much any application and any form. I don't share quite this level of distaste. My main objection to it is when it's used as a condiment for meat that someone's lovingly spent half the day on smoking. They've spend all this time creating a subtle, clean smoke flavor, why would they want to drown it out or overwhelm it with additional "natural smoke flavor"? Besides, when I smoke, the majority of my wood is oak, which is not as aggressive a flavor as the hickory used for Liquid Smoke.

Now, if you're just throwing some things on the grill and want some of that smoke flavor, I guess Liquid Smoke is okay. But for barbecue? Why are you barbecuing in the first place if you're just going to slap liquid smoke over the end product anyway?

I'm with you on the barbecue sauce on burgers. I actually go so far as to disliking bacon on burgers, because to me, the bacon completely overwhelms the rich, beefy taste of a good hamburger. And nothing should go into a burger, ever. Just give me very loosely packed, freshly ground quality beef (usually chuck, although ribeye or short ribs make for great burgers, too. I want at least 20% fat. None of this lean sirloin crap, please).

Once again, this is for my standard of what a great burger is. I'm actually a completely unfussy eater and will happily devour anything you put in front of me, especially if you made it yourself.

Man, I have really been on a beef rib kick lately.

Biggie and other bbq aficionados, advice is needed.

I just moved into a swell new place that has a backyard (something I've not had since I've been in the city). Now that I have space, I was looking to possibly buy a grill so that I can start doing my own thing. I have a pretty good idea of what sort of grill I'd be getting, but was wondering if there's a good time to buy one. Would now or the next few months be a good fit, as it's getting colder, or is there no such thing as a 'good time' to buy a grill?

Now is a decent time because a lot of places like Lowe's, Home Depot, Target, and Menard's have their grills on sale.

What type of grill are you getting?

i'm not sure exactly which kind, but i know i'd like something that can possibly double as a smoker (does such a beast exist?).

my buddy just got one a few months back and loves it. i've witnessed him use it on a number of occasions and the thing is quite nice (i don't remember what it was exactly, but i know it's a good size and in the lower price range)

however if you have any recommendations i'm all ears. my only requirements are i can throw wood chips in it and its manageable in both size and price.

Chargriller makes affordable cookers with offset fire boxes. This is what I began smoking on.

Pros - Price, can use as a charcoal grill or as a smoker

Cons - You need to do a number of modifications to it to get it to perform efficiently as a smoker, and even then it is a fuel hog.

I love it as a grill, and still use it almost daily for that purpose. I've since moved on to a Weber Smokey Mountain for smoking, though.

My latest addition to grilling and barbecuing:



(I actually got a proper sausage stuffer now.)

Derek, now's the time to buy not only because they're on sale, but also because they're seen as a 'seasonal" item by those stores and your selection will be nil as fall/winter approach.