Steven Raichlen, a national barbecue treasure and author of The Barbecue! Bible, How to Grill, and other books in the Barbecue! Bible series, embarks on a quest to find the soul of American barbecue, from barbecue-belt classics-Lone Star Brisket, Lexington Pulled Pork, K.C. Pepper Rub, Tennessee Mop Sauce-to the grilling genius of backyards, tailgate parties, competitions, and local restaurants.

In 450 recipes covering every state as well as Canada and Puerto Rico, BBQ USA celebrates the best of regional live-fire cooking. Finger-lickin' or highfalutin; smoked, rubbed, mopped, or pulled; cooked in minutes or slaved over all through the night, American barbecue is where fire meets obsession. There's grill-crazy California, where everything gets fired up - dates, Caesar salad, lamb shanks, mussels. Latin-influenced Florida, with its Chimichurri Game Hens and Mojo-Marinated Pork on Sugar Cane. Maple syrup flavors the grilled fare of Vermont; Wisconsin throws its kielbasa over the coals; Georgia barbecues Vidalias; and Hawaii makes its pineapples sing. Accompanying the recipes are hundreds of tips, techniques, sidebars, and pit stops. It's a coast-to-coast extravaganza, from soup (grilled, chilled, and served in shooters) to nuts (yes, barbecued peanuts, from Kentucky).

Average Customer Review: ( 71 customer reviews )
Write an online review and share your thoughts with other customers.

There is grillin under bricks, on a rotisserie, in a pit, smoked, and rubbed and pulled and flamed seared, with hog or beef or oysters,corn, beans, even meatloaf. Then there's brats and burgers and every fixin that goes so well with these.
They're all here. This is truly a source for them all. One doesn't have to travel all over to discover them, just pick and choose on a BBQ journey around the country cooking through this one. Or if you desire to visit a site or region, this even provides the places and addresses to find personally.

I like to try different stuff that I've never had before, so for me thus far I've tried: "Alabam BBQ Chickens with White BBQ Sauce." Who has ever heard of WhiteBBQ? But this is soo good! The horseradish, vinegar sauce is a hit, a triple at least! Also into the ribs, so a marinated in apple cider, with a "Magic Dust" rub really caught my eye and mouth, and you've just got to try the "Apple City Championship Ribs". And finally, a Tuna "London Broil" with Wasabi Cream Sauce. This is fantastic dish with a dry rub, and the contrasty taste of seared tuna with cream sauce is rich and superb, even for squeamish sushi avoiders. And what BBQ is there without dessert, say "Smoked Alaska." This is a treat, not as hard as one would think.

This is such a thorough book it will take many years of grilling to explore all its varieties and offerings, but many of us will and should! There is outstanding bibliography and sources. Join in the fun!

17 of 17 found the following review helpful:

I can't find a better BBQ book out there!Jul 18, 2005
By Steven
Wow! What a piece of work this book is!

Upon first receiving this book I was slightly dismayed. I took a quick stroll through, observing the layout and I was less then impressed. That is - until I really sat down and started reading. There may not be pretty pictures of the dish results, nor are there pictures of how to prepare each dish step by step, what there is however, is a giant tome of BBQ greatness and a whole lot of history with each recipe.

I really enjoy this book because it's not just another recipe book. The book starts out by teaching you the history of American BBQ. There are epic pictures peppered throughout this book showing the real BBQ culture. Author Steve Raichlen shares some of his personal stories, like this story about a really tough salmon bake where he had to feed roughly 600 people... but how he did it is truly obscene - it's great!

Do you cook BBQ for breakfast? (not including camping trips)
Are you tired of the plain ol' burger, chicken and steak meals?
Do you enjoy BBQ so much that you want to start learning every single aspect of it?
Does your wife think you hate her cooking because you BBQ so much?

If you answered yes to the above questions then this book is for you.

20 of 21 found the following review helpful:

Lots of info, but recipe layout could be improvedSep 26, 2003

"BBQ U.S.A." is an interesting book, no question about it. It offers a lot of information on all aspects of BBQ'ing, smoking and grilling, and is chock full of historical tidbits, helpful hints and anecdotes. Where the book suffers is in the layout of the recipes. These are divided into categories such as birds, pork, beef etc. However, the recipe pages are so loaded with sidebars, photographs of various BBQ masters and anecdotal stories that it becomes more difficult than it should be to flip through a section to find a recipe you're looking for, or to compare recipes within a section. A less-cluttered recipe area would have been helpful, or at least a recipe index at the beginning of every chapter so one could quickly locate a recipe.

It's frustrating to see cookbook authors/book designers who fail to understand that the most important aspect of any cookbook is presenting the recipes in an easy-to-read typeface and format. Take a look at Jean-Georges Vongerichten's "Simple to Spectacular" to see how it should be done.

11 of 11 found the following review helpful:

For the BBQ enthusiastJul 01, 2003
By Luke Navarro
I very rarely read cookbooks from cover to cover, especially those the size of BBQ USA, but this is one I couldn't put down. A thorough mix of recipes, restaurants and BBQ lore this is more than a cookbook, it is a culinary history of America.
You may be wondering why you should buy this book, especially if you already own some of Raichlen's other books. (Barbecue Bible, How To Grill, etc.) This book has two advantages over his previous books.
First, this book is about barbecuing as much as it is about grilling. In his typical manner the author does cover techniques for how to grill just about any food that can hit the plate. This is interesting but I am just not sure that I need that many grilled dishes. Instead I like to work on the art form that is American BBQ - taking a worthless hunk of meat and through the judicious application of smoke and fire turning it into a scrumptious meal that will draw friends and neighbors to you backyard. This book finally has a good coverage of traditional American BBQ. For example, this book has five recipes for pulled pork. Each one is a regional variation with different ingredients and cooking methods. There is good discussion on the benefits of each of these variations leaving the home cook with information that he can use to create his own recipe. You will find the same thorough treatment given to ribs, brisket, etc.
Second, this book is about the USA. Now I don't mean to be ameri-centric but BBQ is one of those things that is part of our national personality. Our BBQ shacks and backyard pit masters are a part of our heritage, a heritage that should be appreciated and passed on. BBQ USA is a storehouse of the history, importance and meaning of BBQ to those who make it and those who eat it. It is a call to get together with friends and share time over good food and good conversation.
By the way, this book is not an introduction to grilling. If that is what you are looking for try How To Grill.

See all 71 customer reviews on Amazon.com