Being
stateside in preparation for les
vacances (vacation), I thought I’d corral Elizabeth
Karmel, who I’d had dinner with last spring when we did a
special cooking event together, into grilling dinner for me. I know, it
was a little forward, but Elizabeth was the chef/consultation to Hill Country
Barbecue in Manhattan, which has the distinct honor of
pleasing even true, hard-core bbq aficianados. She’s also written a
couple of books on grilling, something I thought I knew a little about,
but found out there was more to know during a warm summer evening in New
York.
Perhaps
because I’m from California, my idea of grilling is to marinate
something, then slapping it on the grill, turning it once, until it’s
done on both sides. When she asked what I wanted to make with her, she
sent me the French Chicken recipe from her book Taming the
Flame, which she said she based on Julia Child’s Poulet grillé au diable,
the diable
(devil) referring to a hint of spice, and a lot of lively
French Dijon mustard in the sauce.
In
addition to this recipe, the book is a very comprehensive guide to
grilling and barbecuing, full of information, techniques and best of all,
a collection of terrific recipes that will have you looking at your
grill in a whole new way. Not only is Elizabeth one of the “most important”
bbq’ers in America, she was also a French major in college.
(Another
French connection: Some say that the word “barbecue” comes from the
French barbe à
queue, or “whiskers to tail,” which refers to whole animal
cooking, although others say that’s folk etymology.)
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