Reddit Reddit reviews Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling

We found 32 Reddit comments about Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.

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Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling
Meathead The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling
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32 Reddit comments about Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling:

u/Athomeacct · 23 pointsr/DiWHY

So, grilling food imparts heat from a constant fuel source to a food product via 3 important methods: convection, conduction, and radiation. Grilling is unique in that it uses 3 methods, whereas other cooking methods typically use 1 or 2.

  1. The food is placed on the grill and the lid is put on. This is convection: the literal transfer of heat from the charcoal to the food, due to air molecules being heated around the food. An oven uses this process as well.

  2. The food touches a hot metal grill grate. This is conduction: the literal transfer of heat from a hot surface to the food. Your stove and a hot frying pan will use this method.

  3. The heat literally strikes the food constantly due to the excessive release of energy generated by charcoal. This is radiation: the emitted transfer of energy molecules from coal to food due to close proximity. Your microwave uses this to heat food at higher (but safer) radiation levels, but feeling the heat from a bonfire on a cold day would also be an example of this method.

    (Sources: Web 1,2,3, also Book)

    The above picture is spinning the meat fast enough that you can see flames rising from the charcoals. That's... not a good thing. The meat isn't sitting above the heat long enough to receive any radiation before being moved and is moving so fast that it is generating wind. Ever run past a bonfire? Did it make you feel a lasting warmth when you did? No. The air around the fire is being lowered in temperature by this contraption, making food take longer to cook. Like a lot longer. So that's radiation gone.

    Moving that fast and generating enough heat to make the grill frame hot enough for conduction would require it sitting there a long, long time. But the gyroscope effect of the grill grate causes all the heat to be concentrated towards the center while all the other meat is rotated around. So any meat in the middle will be cooked much more thoroughly than the rest. So conduction is possible in the middle, but the fringe won't get as much heat, and some parts of the edge could be more cooked than others, depending on (I'm assuming) the random movements of the gyroscope.

    That leaves convection. Now, convection is possible for any appropriate length of time and heat... on a flat surface. This gizmo is spinning the shit out of that meat and the food isn't always a close distance to the heat source. When you set up a grill in your backyard, you set the food on a flat surface and it gets some quality time really close to the heat- literally, like inches. Good grillmasters have more than one heat source in their grills by pushing the charcoals to one side and switching their food between the two heat zones whenever they need to change the temperature. It's called the two-zone method and it'll change the game in your backyard grilling. Anyway that's a massive temperature change and we're talking inches here, and this device puts the food a solid foot or two away from the heat at random times.

    Chicken needs an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit to be considered safe for consumption. On a standard grill this is easily and efficiently achieved without sacrificing any specific desires by the grillmaster to have it cook slower or faster, or to have it be more or less tender due to the time taken to cook it.

    This device would fail to be more efficient, would fail to use the advantages that a charcoal grill offers in the first place, and would fail to offer a consistent, manageable temperature for all parts of the food placed in it.

    tl;dr, The chicken is probably raw on the inside.
u/FubarFreak · 5 pointsr/videos

I strongly recommend this book really good information about the basics and science of grilling/smoking. It has drastically improved my grilling abilities.

u/BillWeld · 5 pointsr/smoking

This. Electric is convenient but makes inferior BBQ. Just work down this list and stop when you've spent enough money.

u/carmaugh · 4 pointsr/cookingforbeginners
u/drink_all_the_beers · 4 pointsr/BBQ

Consider Meathead's (from Amazingribs.com) book.

https://www.amazon.com/Meathead-Science-Great-Barbecue-Grilling/dp/054401846X

I got it for Christmas and it does a good job of explaining things in a simple, straightforward and organized manner.

u/fakewiig · 3 pointsr/biggreenegg

Stopped by to say the same thing.
He has a book...
Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling https://www.amazon.com/dp/054401846X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_AX3QzbGVD8240

u/LaGrrrande · 3 pointsr/AskMen

To build off of what /u/capilot said about Amazing Ribs, I recommend that you buy Meathead's book (The guy behind Amazing Ribs). It's the same information as the site (With some extra), but presented in a much more logical, easily digestible manner. It's almost like a textbook on techniques and busting myths about grilling, smoking, and cooking in general. Hell, I think I got about halfway through it before he even gets to the recipes.

u/opiate46 · 3 pointsr/biggreenegg

Meathead rarely disappoints. He's got a good book I've enjoyed looking at. Also his [website] (http://www.amazingribs.com) has plenty of good stuff as well.

u/packermatt7 · 3 pointsr/pelletgrills

I like Meathead’s bbq cookbook (and his website for that matter). You don’t need a pellet-specific book.

Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling

Amazing Ribs

u/chikin · 3 pointsr/smoking

I got a WSM a couple of years ago. I also got the Meathead book at the same time. Using the recipes in there my friends and family always want me to cook for parties. Get a wireless thermometer and it's great.

u/bitter_pink · 2 pointsr/TFABGrads

Make this, double the marinade if you’re a monster like me, and cry because it is so damn good.

We’ve discussed doing this in lieu of thanksgiving, no joke.

Also, check out Meathead’s book about grilling. It goes a lot into the reasoning and science about why one cooks things certain ways, and it’s totally helpful and interesting. We went from clueless to extremely capable.

u/Laithina · 2 pointsr/suggestmeabook

If you like to grill I would highly recommend checking out Meathead's book: Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling https://www.amazon.com/dp/054401846X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_9jzbBbK1XJ734

The principles learned in this book can be applied damn-near everywhere except baking.

u/ojzoh · 2 pointsr/Cooking

If he doesn't have it already, this is probably the best book on barbecue and grilling

https://www.amazon.com/Meathead-Science-Great-Barbecue-Grilling/dp/054401846X

u/fizzbeotch · 2 pointsr/smoking

allthingsbbq and HowToBBQRight are great youtube channels to watch to get you started. I also recommend Meatheads Book.

u/woodbuck · 2 pointsr/Cooking
u/High_Speed_Chase · 2 pointsr/BBQ

Buy Meathead's book.

Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling https://www.amazon.com/dp/054401846X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_YBcDzb7V60BMC

u/abe_the_babe_16 · 2 pointsr/smoking
u/Room234 · 2 pointsr/grilling

Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling https://www.amazon.com/dp/054401846X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_6x-iDbX7XM674

It's what to do, and then an explanation for why as if you're a mechanical engineer. Knowing the physics behind what to do helps me remember rules of thumb better.

u/ipxodi · 2 pointsr/smoking

One of the best "reference" sites is Meathead Goldwyn's amazingribs.com. He also just released a book -- more technique than recipes, although there are a bunch.

Another really great smoking book is Franklin Barbecue. This one is much more about the technique and has only a few recipes. But reading it helped my understanding of the process and really ramped up my game. (and I'd already been smoking for several years.)

And of course anything by Steven Raichlen - http://www.projectsmoke.org

Meathead's Book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/054401846X

Franklin book: https://www.amazon.com/Franklin-Barbecue-Meat-Smoking-Manifesto-Aaron/dp/1607747200

Good luck -- smoking is a lot of fun and you never quite "get there" -- you are always learning something new...

u/IBiteYou · 2 pointsr/ShitPoliticsSays

> Memphis barbecue is the best.

-_-

Them's fighting words!

I'm not originally Texan... but I took up the barbeque when I moved here, because it's so good.

https://www.amazon.com/Franklin-Barbecue-Meat-Smoking-Manifesto-Aaron/dp/1607747200

Good guide. Also have Raichlen's Project Smoke book.

https://www.amazon.com/Meathead-Science-Great-Barbecue-Grilling/dp/054401846X/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=H87A4VHWKNSF2FK8EX2J

I should get that one.

u/doobielong · 1 pointr/FoodPorn

It's a great book by a great guy, I'd highly recommend it if you're into grilling or meat in general really.
https://www.amazon.com/Meathead-Science-Great-Barbecue-Grilling/dp/054401846X

u/MIBPJ · 1 pointr/sousvide

According to this book the flavorants in smoke don't adhere well to cooked meat.

u/B1LLD00R · 1 pointr/BBQ
u/speakajackn · 1 pointr/BBQ

Smoking can really be broken down into a couple different things.


  • Building/maintaining a fire to provide a consistent temperature
  • Butchery, removing silverskin and unnecessary fat from your product
  • Seasoning - a great place to start is as simple as it gets, Salt and Pepper. A great cut of meat can stand on it's own without adding 30k different spices. I'm a huge fan of the dry brine method, which is where you salt whatever cut you're doing 12-18 hours prior (obviously excluding products that don't require being salted, like sausage), and allowing it to dry age in the fridge. This provides a dry exterior which lends to creating a nicer crust.

    I would highly recommend starting off with a small/inexpensive cut of meat, and working up. Top Round is a great choice. Pork Chops, Polish Sausage... get those down and move up to a rack of ribs, or a pork shoulder. Once you're confident with those, move on to a Brisket.


    Once you're happy with those results then try different things like injections, various spice rubs.


    My preferred books are:


    Franklin BBQ - A Meat Smoker's Manifesto & Meathead: Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling
u/selector37 · 1 pointr/KamadoJoe

Not Kamado specific, but super useful:

Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling https://www.amazon.com/dp/054401846X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_Hj4IDb1ZBC3AV

u/moogerfooger29 · 1 pointr/grilling

Oh man. I've been at smoking for only a couple years now, but Meathead's book is so ridiculously helpful and interesting. I've only read through the first 50 pages or so, but it's ridiculous. A must read.