Cheater BBQ saves the day for all who love barbecue and rue the end of summer These recipes 'cheat' in the sense that they bring the unique taste of barbecue indoors, sparing those who have sworn allegiance to BBQ from standing in sub-freezing weather with smoke stinging their eyes and snow freezing their feet. "Ovens and slow cookers are barbecue-ready with the turn of a knob," state the authors, Mindy Merrell and R. B. Quinn. "Think of them as barbecue pits without the fire, delivering steady, low heat without tinkering or trouble."
The book offers" Cheat Sheets" a series of pages designed to show the BBQ devotee how to transition from outdoor to indoor equipment. Avoiding smoke indoors, the authors freely substitute liquid smoke which they inform us has actually filtered out some of the "eye-burning, cough-inducing carcinogens generated during traditional wood burning." (If we cheat on carcinogens, we are not cheating at all. _ Imagine the fun of a Super Bowl party when the weather indoors is warm and the outside chilly, but barbecue magically appears. Go, team.
This book is complete. There are barbecue sauces, rubs and home-smoked salt blends to start the fun. There are sauces with a zingy chipotle taste, ones with Asian flavors and classic "Nashville Crossroads" sauce. There are dry rubs to bring classic flavor or Jamaican Jerk, even some deeply spiced Indian flavors.
We all look for the perfect BBQ recipes for pork, poultry, beef and lamb and seafood and the authors have chapters for all with "cheat-sheet" advice at the front of each chapter. If you love pork, you'll find recipes such as Ultimate Cheater Pulled Pork, Hot Pot Country-Style Ribs, All-Day Crock Dogs in Smoky Beer Broth. If it's poultry you like you'll find Smoked Whole Turkey in a Bag, Gunsmoke Chicken, Cheater Super Pollo. If your mood turns to beef or lamb, you'll find recipes such as Texas Beef Ribs, Hobo Crock Chuck Flanken, House Lamb Shanks. Of course there are brisket recipes (four great ones) and burger recipes, and if seafood is the order of the day, there are recipes for Dry-Rubbed Oven Shrimp Skewers, Smoky Shrimp and Sausage Ball, Tied-Up Trout and Catfish Sticks.
The authors don't forget great sides, and have recipes for beans and slaws, for Oven Packet Vegetables, Cheater Sweet Pickles and Penos, Cheater Fajita Onions and even an enticing Oven-Charred Pineapple Salad.
Breads and desserts make up one chapter, with such recipes for the staple cornbread without which barbecue is incomplete, for smoky desserts, such as Toasted Marshmallow Sauce, A Big Pan of One-Pot Brownies, for Smoky Figs and Broiled Peaches.
Merrell and Quinn also provide what they call "Two-Timing Recipes" which provide leftovers for the next day or the freezer. These include recipes for such dishes as Choucroute Garni Asian Noodle Bowls, Tortilla Soup, even a Ranch-Style BBQ Cornbread Pie.
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