It looked like a charcoal marble at first glance and it stopped me dead in my tracks. It was a carbonized crab apple on a Stone Age hearth in the southwest of France -- visceral proof of the common bond we moderns share with our prehistoric ancestors: our passion for -- make that obsession with -- live-fire cooking.
So why bring up this archeological curiosity and its link to our primal ancestors now? Because October is National Apple Month, and it's time to celebrate the contributions this storied fruit has made to American barbecue.
Substantial those contributions have been. Apples possess a natural affinity for pork, which probably gained the fruit admission to the barbecue world in the first place. As for how else apples and apple-based products can be used by grill and smoke masters? Let me count the ways:
As a base for barbecue sauce:
- For a sweet, Missouri-style sauce, try out my Spicy Apple Barbecue Sauce -- inspired by B.B.'s Lawnside in Kansas City.
As a fuel and smoking agent:
- Many pit masters swear by the sweet smoke apple wood produces -- among them, three time Memphis in May Grand Champion Mike Mills of the Apple City barbecue team and of the 17th Street Bar & Grill with locations in Murphysboro, Marion, and O'Fallon, Illinois. Burn whole apple logs in your pit or light apple wood chunks in a chimney starter.
- Barbecue for Breakfast
- 8 Tips for Gold Plate Tailgating
- Try the Great American Hamburger Recipe
- A Yankee Grills Bratwurst
- The ONLY Ribs Recipe You'll Ever Need: First-Timer's Ribs!
- Grilled Sausages -- No More Flare Ups!
- The 10 Best Steaks for Unleashing Your Inner Caveman
- The 10 Secrets to Grilling a Perfect Steak
- How to Prepare Flank Steak
- How to Make Professional Grill Marks
- 8 Must-Try Regional Barbecue Sauces
- The Pull of Pork & Its Sauces: 12 Must-Read Tips
Steven Raichlen is the author of the Barbecue! Bible cookbook series and the host of Primal Grill on PBS. His web site is www.barbecuebible.com.