by Lenna Gonya

Created on: April 14, 2010

Ask any barbecue aficionado how they grill their ribs and you are likely to be told in no uncertain terms that they do not grill, they barbecue.

Grilling and barbecuing are two very distinctly different forms of cooking. One is over high heat, and usually fairly fast, and the other is a slow process which takes time, patience and preparation.

Most of us grill. This is what we do in the backyard when we cook hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, chops and vegetables. The heat for grilling is usually somewhere around 400 degrees.

Grilling is done over an open, very hot fire and it is usually a fairly quick process. The outside of the grilled food is seared by the fire and this gives it a smoky flavor.

This process of cooking can be done on a grill grate right over the hot coals. Steaks, burgers, chops and fish can be done this way. If you want to cook the food quickly, this is the way to do it.

Grilling can also be done indirectly by starting the coals, moving them over to one side, and adding a pan of water directly to the hot area around the coals. You can set your food in a pan over the water, and the food cooks slowly, as with an electric slow cooker. You can actually brown the meat first over the open coals and then finish the slow cooking over the water.

Barbecuing is a long slow process which takes several hours over a lower heat, usually about 250 degrees.

Ribs, chicken and tougher pieces of beef or pork are cooked this way to make sure that they come out tender. These same pieces would be tough cooked over high heat.

Smoking is somewhat the same, except you may want to throw in some kind of sweet or aromatic wood chips into the fire to get that smoky flavor.

Most people who barbecue, also smoke their meat, either on the grill or in a separate smoker before they barbecue or sear them on the grill. Of course anyone who takes their barbecuing seriously has their own special sauce recipe, and their own unique method of cooking.

Serious cooks have techniques that include special marinades, seasoning meat rubs, and sauces that are rigorously protected and kept secret, sometimes for generations.

Whichever you do, grilling or barbecuing, the results are sure to be a big part of your summer cookout menu and a big hit with your family and guests.

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