We knew you loved ribs. But even in this community of smoke-obsessed barbecue fanatics, we were blown away by the response to the Barbecuebible.com Rib Contest.

More than 1100! of you submitted recipes (1144 to be exact)-and your unabashed passion for bones embraced everything from pork to beef to lamb ribs. Not surprisingly, baby backs were the most popular, but plenty of you came up with killer ways to cook spare ribs, country-style ribs, rib tips, and beef ribs, long and short.

The seasonings were unbelievably varied, ranging from the familiar to the exotic, to the downright bizarre. The short list of flavorings you proposed includes ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise (sometimes all three in a single recipe); blackberry, kiwi, mango, papaya, cherry preserves, cherry extract, and believe it or not, anchovies; coffee, tea, root beer, cola, and, of course, every imaginable type of beer. Some of you marinated your ribs in bourbon, tequila, rum, or Wild turkey; others used coffee, tea, pickle juice, vanilla (both beans and extract), cocoa powder, chocolate, chocolate syrup, coconut milk, coconut extract, and peanut butter. One aromatic recipe called for 20 cloves of garlic; another called for both Pepsi and Hershey’s Syrup. Nurse, an insulin shot, please!

Many of you favored double, triple, or even quadruple layers of flavor, starting with a marinade or rub (or both), followed by a mop, squirt, spray, or basting sauce, followed by a glaze or barbecue sauce applied at the end.

The cooking methods you used were as varied as the flavorings. Some of you cooked the ribs low and slow in a smoker or on the grill using the indirect method and lots of wood smoke. Others grilled them directly over the fire. Many of you boiled the ribs first, or baked them in the oven or even blasted them in the microwave, giving them a quick sizzle over hot coals just before serving. Some of you preferred your ribs with a little chew to them; others so fall-off-the-bone tender, you could eat them without teeth.

Given such incredible creativity, diversity, and inspiration, you can well imagine selecting a winner wasn’t easy. (Actually, it was pleasurable torture, requiring the judicial acumen of King Solomon and a superhuman effort to not overeat). We tested the winning recipes right here in Miami.

Ultimately, we’re all winners, because everyone has access to the winning entries on this web site. Peruse these recipes and you’ll get ideas you’ll want to try for everyday eating, special occasion showmanship, and everything in between.

And now for the winner. Envelope please.

The winner of the 2004 Barbecuebible.com Lip Smackin’ Rib Recipe Contest is:

Grampa’s Stick to Your Ribs BBQ’d Pastrami’d Short Ribs, submitted by Jasmina Shane of Bayside New York.

Jasmina’s ribs were sufficiently out of the box to feature a pastrami rub (flavored with star anise, no less) and beef short ribs, which were slow-smoked over hickory until tender, but not soft. A cider vinegar ginger ale mop kept them moist, and an apple mustard “barbecue sauce” made a unique accompaniment. A+ for originality and fine execution. Jasmina will receive a Weber® Summit® Silver A gas grill for her victory.

I also want to call your attention to our five runners-up, whose recipes were very nearly as original and excellent. For their efforts, they’ll receive an autographed hardcopy edition of How to Grill.

Middle East BBQ Ribs, submitted by Jacob Esho of Des Plaines, Illinois. Elegant in their simplicity, featuring a slab not often used in America, lamb ribs.

Hearty Ribs with Sweet Bourbon Sauce, submitted by Lillian Julow from Gainsville, Florida. Interesting ale marinade and not-too-sweet bourbon barbecue sauce.

Big Bubba B’s Apple Back Ribs, submitted by Hugh Bernstein of Baltimore, Maryland. Richly flavorful and amazingly tender.

Peanutty Baby Pork Ribs, submitted by Renata Stanko of Lebanon, Oregon-one of more than a half dozen entries to use peanut butter.

Weber Woodbridge Workman Wosemary Wibs, submitted by the Barbecue Board’s own Vincent Brown of Canton, Georgia. A brine, rub, wrap, mop and dipping sauce give these ribs great complexity and depth of flavor.

Finally, I’d be remiss if I didn’t hand out a few honorable mentions (which involve not a prize, but the glory of good recipes):

Loanne Chiu of Fort Worth, Texas, for Tea and Whisky Railroad Ribs

Mary Shivers of Ada, Oklahoma, for Orange Sesame! Baby Back Ribs

Diane Nemitz of Ludington, Michigan, for North Coast Rib Roast, flavored with Michigan cherry concentrate.

Diane Halferty of Corpus Christi, Texas, for Backwoods Bayou Blackberry BBQ-featuring a sauce made with fresh blackberries

Bill Knutson of San Francisco, California, for Baby Back Ribs with Lemongrass Mead Sauce

News and Views

“Indoors-it’s the new outdoors!” With this battle cry, Workman Publishing proudly announces the publication of Steven’s new book, Raichlen’s Indoor Grilling. Two years in the research and writing, the book covers every sort of indoor grilling system, from the fireplace and built-in grills to grill pans and contact grills, like the George Foreman.

Barbecuebible.com’s Info@Workman, aka Amy Lewis, caught up with Steven in Miami to interview him about the new book.

AL: Most people associate you with barbecuing and grilling outdoors. What prompted you to write an indoor grill book?

SR: The short answer is Workman Publishing in New York City. There are literally tens of millions of people who live in apartments or condos in major urban areas. Condo regulations, local fire codes, or simple lack of space prevent them from grilling outdoors. I wanted to write a book that would help apartment dwellers bring those explosive flavors from the outdoors, indoors.

AL: Where does indoor grilling fit in the history of barbecue?

SR: With contact grills and countertop rotisseries, indoor grilling might seem of recent coinage, but in fact, it belongs to a venerable tradition that began with our cave-dwelling forebears. The ancient Romans cooked on indoor hearths, which they called foci. These were so central to human happiness, they gave us our modern words “focus” and “foccacia.” Even for much of American history, most cooking was done in the fireplace.

AL: So how do grilling outdoors and indoors differ?

SR: Outdoor grilling always uses live fire. In general, the cooking temperatures are higher and it’s easy to flavor your food with wood smoke. Some indoor grilling methods, like fireplace grilling or built-in gas grills, use live fire. Others use heated grill grates or plates or electric heating elements to achieve a similar effect.

AL: What sort of grills do you cover?

SR: Every available indoor grill. The short list includes Tuscan and fireplace grills, built-in (range top) grills, grill pans, free-standing grills, contact grills, countertop rotisseries, and stovetop smokers.

AL: Is it hard bringing those “outdoor” flavors indoors?

SR: It depends on the grill. Fireplace grilling is virtually the same as grilling over wood in an outdoor grill. A built-in grill works quite similar to a gas grill. On the other hand, it’s more challenging to indirect grill or smoke foods indoors. In some recipes, I “indirect grill” pork shoulders and ribs in a countertop rotisserie. In others, I’ve created smoke-flavored bastes and marinades to achieve the smoky taste of true ‘que.

AL: Is there anything you can’t do on an indoor grill?

SR: Well, I’ve never barbecued a whole pig indoors. But the book features several spit-and smoke-roasted pork shoulders; smoky baby back ribs, a magnificent spit-roasted rib roast and even a whole Moroccan spiced leg of lamb you roast in the fireplace. And thanks to the advent of indoor smokers, like the Camerons Stovetop Smoker cooker, you can smoke salmon, ribs, briskets, turkeys, and even beer can chickens, indoors.

AL: Is there anything you can grill indoors that you can’t do outdoors?

SR: This is the first book in which I’ve focused extensively on sandwiches. Panini machines and contact grills, like the George Foreman, are among the world’s most popular indoor grills, and they’re terrific for grilling sandwiches. The sandwich chapter contains recipes for Italian paninis, French croque monsieurs, Cuban media noches, and other great pressed and grilled sandwiches.

AL: Where do the recipes come from?

SR: As in all my books, my travels are a great source of inspiration. This book features recipes from yakitori masters in Japan (and incidentally, the barbecued chicken recipe I used to defeat the Iron Chef in Tokyo), from fogolar (indoor hearth) chefs in Italy, from asadors (pit masters) in Argentina, and of course from grill jockeys and chefs from across the U.S.

AL: Tell us about the photography.

SR: Some people regard indoor grilling as a second-class citizen or unworthy shortcut. I wanted to show the ability of indoor grills to turn out serious, intensely flavorful, and drop-dead-gorgeous food. The 16-page photo spread introduces you to the 7 types of indoor grills and how to use them, and shows you some of the fantastic dishes you can make on an indoor grill.

AL: What did you enjoy most about writing the book?

SR: It forced me to think out of the box and adopt a whole new mindset. Indoor grilling presents a new set of challenges: how to achieve the searing heat of a grill indoors; how to indirect grill and smoke indoors; how to achieve the robust, gutsy flavors associated with outdoor, live-fire cooking. These challenges sharpened my creativity. I rediscovered the ancient art of fireplace grilling and acquired an unexpected respect for panini machines and indoor rotisseries.

AL: Will you be touring with the new book and where can readers meet you?

SR: Workman Publishing has planned an extensive publicity tour for me. Over the next six months, I’ll be visiting 25 cities in the United States and Canada. Check out my schedule to see when I’ll be in your area. I’d love to meet as many of you as I can when I’m on tour.

AL: So what’s next?

SR: In the short term, a little much-needed R & R. After that, several exciting projects for the coming year. In May, the third season of Barbecue University, taped on location at the Greenbrier, starts airing on PBS. Speaking of Barbecue University, we have 4 sessions of the school slated for 2005 (for a schedule, click here). I’ve also started work on a book on smoking, and the Rib Contest has inspired me to consider writing a book on ribs.

AL: So where can people find your new Indoor Grilling book?

SR: Hopefully at bookstores everywhere and online in our Barbecue Shop

Grills, Gear, and Fuels

While we’re on the subject of indoor grills, let me tell you about two terrific new grills I discovered while researching Indoor Grilling.

The first is the VillaWare Uno Pro-press Contact and Panini Grill, a contact grill/panini machine that actually gets hot enough to sear steaks and chicken. The squared off grill ridges give you well-defined, tack-sharp grill marks, while the built-in thermostat lets you vary the heat according to whether you’re grilling a panini or searing a veal chop. Unlike most of the contact grills on the market, this sleek, stainless steel machine feels substantial and looks cool-even macho. An essential for indoor, and even outdoor grillers, and available at fine cookware shops.

The second is the Spitjack Hearth Rotisserie, modeled on an antique Italian rotisserie and newly imported in the U.S. When it comes to cooking a whole chicken or leg of lamb, there’s nothing like spit roasting. The Spitjack sets up right in your fireplace, so you get incredible smoke flavors from the wood. It comes with a wind-up mechanism (or alternatively, an electric motor) to turn the spit, an adjustable rack, and a drip pan to catch the drippings. For information, visit the
web site
Note: photos of both the VillaWare Uno and Spitjack can be found in Steven’s new book.

RECIPES

To get you warmed up for indoor grilling, and just in time for Thanksgiving, here are a couple of my favorite recipes.

Turkey “Steaks” with Cranberry Kumquat Relish
Serves 4.

“Thanksgiving in a grill pan.” That’s one way to describe these citrus and coriander rubbed, flash-grilled “steaks” cut from the meaty breast of the turkey and served with a raucously flavorful cranberry kumquat relish.

For the lemon coriander rub:
2 strips lemon zest (each 1/2 by 1-1/2 inches-remove them from the fruit with a vegetable peeler), roughly chopped
2 teaspoons coriander seed
2 teaspoons white peppercorns
2 teaspoons coarse salt (kosher or sea)

For the turkey “steaks”:
1 1/2 pounds turkey “steaks” (cut crosswise from a turkey breast roast; each about 1/2 inch thick)

1 to 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Cranberry Kumquat Relish (recipe follows)

1. Make the rub. Place the lemon zest, coriander, pepper, and salt in a spice mill or clean coffee grinder and grind to a fine powder.

2. Rinse the turkey “steaks” under cold running water and blot dry with paper towels. Lightly brush each turkey steak on both sides with olive oil. Sprinkle on both sides with rub, gently patting the spices into the meat with your fingertips.

3. Preheat your grill pan until hot over a medium flame.

4. Arrange the turkey “steaks” in the grill pan. Grill until cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes per side, rotating each steak 90 degrees after 1 1/2 minutes to lay on a handsome crosshatch of grill marks.

5. Transfer the turkey to a platter or plates. Place a spoonful of Cranberry Kumquat Relish in the center of each, serving the rest in a bowl on the side.

Cranberry Kumquat Relish
This is one of the few dishes I learned to make from my mother-a ballet dancer with a professed aversion to cooking. Appropriately, it requires no cooking for the simple reason that the cranberries and kumquats are served raw in all their astringent glory.

Makes about 2 cups

1 12-ounce bag fresh cranberries
6 kumquats or 1 small orange
1/2 cup shelled pecans or walnuts
1/3 cup light brown sugar (or to taste)
3 tablespoons port wine (or red wine)
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1. Pick through the cranberries, removing any with blemishes or any stems. Cut each kumquat in quarters and remove the seeds. Place the kumquats and pecans in a food processor and coarsely chop, running the machine in short bursts. Add the cranberries, sugar, and cinnamon and coarsely chop. Add the port and honey and pulse the processor just to mix. The relish should have some chew to it. Correct the seasoning, adding honey or cinnamon to taste.

Note: For an unconventional but electrifying touch, add 1 to 2 seeded jalapeno chilies when you puree the cranberries and kumquats.

MAILBAG: YOUR QUESTIONS AND QUERIES

“The Perfect Thanksgiving Turkey in BBQ USA calls for madeira for the red eye gravy,” writes Ron Heaton. “We looked at the grocery store and didn’t see it. Is this a wine, and is there a substitute?”

Madeira is a sweet, red wine from a Portuguese island. It was very popular in Colonial America. You should be able to find it at most liquor stores.
If not, you could substitute marsala or port, or simply leave it out.

So that’s it for this issue. Thanks to everyone who participated in the rib contest and who post such interesting questions and comments on the Barbecue Board.

Steven Raichlen
Miami, Florida