Fun with fire

It doesn’t take a pyromaniac to burn things well

By Jill Strauss

HOT STUFF: use your fire wisely, or don’t use it at all.

I’m a marshmallow when it comes to cooking with fire. In fact, a marshmallow is the only thing I can properly cook by a campfire or in front of a woodstove. I’m not sure which I find more intimidating, the flames or the smoke, but I do admire those who aren’t afraid of unpredictable situations, and I adore the way food tastes when it has been masterfully grilled over an open fire or lovingly barbecued in a closed pit. I know I’m not the only one who is thinking about lip smacking spare ribs and finger licking jerk chicken with all the fixings right now. The unusual heat wave we experienced last week has induced my Cape Porpoise neighbors to lug out their hibachis and uncover their kettle cookers. Everybody’s got grilling or barbecuing on the brain.

Every live fire aficionado knows, I am told, that there is a difference between grilling and barbecuing. In grilling, the food is placed within a few inches of the direct heat of a fire and is cooked by conduction, the goal being to concentrate the juices in the middle while searing the outside. The intense heat needed for grilling makes it impossible for any food to remain on the fire for very long without dissolving or incinerating.

Take grilled foie gras, for example. Sam Hayward, live-fire chef extraordinaire from Fore Street, likes to cook a thick slice of natural Muscovy foie gras over apple wood. The end result, he says, is a buttery and slightly spiced duck liver that melts in your mouth. But if foie gras is left too long in a blazing hot skillet, it completely melts in the pan. You probably should not try this at home since foie gras is pretty pricey, but a well-marbled rib-eye steak is usually less expensive and, since it does not cook quite as quickly, it’s easier to monitor.

That being said, timing is everything when it comes to grilling and since the length of time depends upon how much radiation you’re getting from the embers (which partially depends on how many coals you used to begin with) the only way to get this technique down pat is to practice it a lot. One wonderful steak recipe for the grill comes from Hayward’s mentor, George Germon, co-owner (along with wife Johanne Killeen) of Al Forno restaurant in Providence, Rhode Island. I’ve tasted this dish, called “Dirty Steak,” and it is a knockout. You can find the exact recipe in Julia Child’s In Julia’s Kitchen with Master Chefs or in Germon’s cookbook Cucina Simpatica, but essentially, you should create a fire in your grill using unadulterated natural wood charcoal. (The charcoal you choose is critical, says Hayward, who hates traditional American briquets since most are composed of “ground-up construction,” petroleum binders, and other unsavory ingredients.)

When the fire burns down, and you’re only brave enough to hold your hand four inches above the glowing coals for one second, place the seasoned two-inch steak directly on the coals. Let it cook for four minutes, turn with tongs and let cook on the other side an additional four minutes. Transfer with your tongs to the rack (which should be three to four inches above the coals) and cover loosely with foil. Let it rest for eight to 10 minutes and the juices will be reabsorbed into the meat as the intense residual heat from the fire finishes the cooking.

Timing is also important when it comes to barbecuing, but, as Jonny Saint Laurent, owner/chef of Uncle Billy’s Barbeque on Newbury Street, learned from his buddy Chris Schlesinger, owner/chef of the critically acclaimed Massachusetts restaurant East Coast Grill, “slow and low is the way to go.”

Large cuts of meat such as pork shoulder should be rubbed with spices and cooked in a covered kettle over indirect heat for about five hours until the internal temperature reaches 190 degrees Fahrenheit. Very slow cooking causes the connective tissues of large cuts of meats such as pork shoulder to tenderize and dissolve. Once the pork shoulder has cooled, Saint Laurent says pull out the bone in the shoulder of the pork, save it for stock, and pull apart the cooked shoulder with a fork. Then squirt on some Killer Gene’s Tar Heel Vinegar Sauce and a little barbeque sauce and you’re good to go. (See Uncle Billy’s Downeast Barbeque Book by Jonathan Saint Laurent and Charles Neave for details.)

Now if just thinking about standing over a hot flame all day makes you want to wilt, there are some smart alternatives. You could make a reservation at Fore Street or Uncle Billy’s, and eat a soul-satisfying meal while you watch other people split wood, stoke fires, and sear flesh. Then you could come home and light a modest fire in your grill. While the fire dies down, you could go look for a sharp stick. Spear a puffy marshmallow with the stick and hold it approximately six inches above the smoldering remains. Remember to turn your stick occasionally. When the marshmallow is golden brown, or burnt to a crisp, depending on how you like it, carefully slide the cooked morsel from your stick, and plop the gooey mess into your mouth. Now, honestly, what could be a more fitting end to a perfect live-fire meal?

Jill Strauss can be reached at straussj@adelphia.net.