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• by:
• Editors Of Cook's Illustrated,

What are the best steaks for grilling? Is it possible to make barbecue chicken that won't dry out on the grill? Can you make really good ribs at home? Are grilled turkey burgers worth the bother?

In Cook's Illustrated Guide to Grilling and Barbecue the editors have fired up the grill to find the answers to these questions and more--all to help you become a better outdoor cook. The editors step behind more than 450 recipes to really examine outdoor cooking--and they start with the basics. Are charcoal grills better than gas models? When should you use briquettes and when should you use hardwood charcoal? What can you do when your fire peters out--or when flare-ups occur? The editors have lit more than 6,000 fires in answering these questions and more.

The Cook's Illustrated Guide to Grilling and Barbecue also contains more than 300 illustrations that show you the basics, step by step, such as how to light a charcoal fire, check the fuel level in a gas tank, and form burgers that won't puff up on the grill. You'll learn how to slice a T-bone steak, butterfly a chicken, and even flip a side of salmon on the grill--without it breaking apart.

The editors also share the results of their testing on equipment necessary to outdoor cooking, such as instant-read thermometers, grill brushes, and tongs as well as brand tastings of supermarket barbecue sauce and mail-order beef tenderloin, among others. Quick tips offer clever methods if improvising such as using a pair of tongs and aluminum foil when a grill brush isn't handy, or fashioning a homemade ash scoop out of a plastic milk jug for clean, speedy clean-up.

Whether you are a novice outdoor cook or aspiring pit master, let this encyclopedic examination of one of America's favorite past-times be your guide to foolproof, fun grilling and barbecue.