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barbecueMeathead's Ruminations:
Thought for Food

Food is like sex, only you can talk about it in polite company. My ruminations, "Thought for Food" appear irregularly and covers a wide range of topics, from food, cooking, drink, and barbecue, and occasionally, politics. Don't get me started.

2011-6-6 What's risker than raw hamburger? Raw sprouts!

2011-5-25 New USDA Recommended Temps Change Little and are Still Mindboggling. The USDA has just revised its recommended cooking temps for safety and pay no attention to flavor, texture, and juiciness.

2011-3-10 Google's New Recipe Search creates a pain. Here's how Google is trying to help make recipes easier to find, the unintended consequences, and how food bloggers can get in.

2010-2-10 Remembering Stuart Miller, the definition of bon vivant.

2009-10-16 Who Killed Gourmet Magazine? The beloved 68 year old grande dame of culinaria, died on October 5, 2009. And the obits say I killed her. Here's a thorough autopsy.

2009-04-30 The Air Force paid $328,829 for a portrait of Air Force One. Here's how they could have done it for $6.

Meathead goes Meatless. Call me Potatohead.

Why on earth would a barbecue guy nicknamed Meathead decide to become Potatohead for a 30 days? Why would I violate my well publicized motto "No rules in the bedroom or dining room"? Because the way we grow meat has to change. Click here to read my detailed explanation and concerns and follow my attempts to live without meat for a month.

Words of wisdom for a blogger

"The Internet is full of old growlers, of course, and if you opine on public issues, you'll get anonymous mail calling you a baby killer, torturer, tool of Satan, cat strangler and babbling idiot, which you accept as your due, like the static electricity you collect walking across a carpet. A slight shock, but it doesn't turn on any light bulbs." Garrison Keillor, 4/14/2010

2009-03-24 Thirty years after Three Mile Island, a lesson for today's economists. I remember March 28, 1979 and its lessons vividly. 30 years after the near melt down of a fail-safe nuclear power plant, there are lessons for economists and regulators at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

2009-03-20 US vs. EU food fight is Obama's first foreign policy test. Seems the EU started a food fight and now Obama has to finish it. Apparently they have a beef with our cattle because most have been given hormones, so they EU won't let it be imported. So, as a final shot in the foot of his legacy, on January 13, President Bush decided that he'd hit them with a 300% tariff on French Roquefort cheese and a 100% levy on Belgian chocolates, Irish oatmeal, Polish fruit juices, truffles, foie gras, many bottled waters, and a shopping list of other gourmet goodies nobody can afford to buy anymore anyhow. The Bush taxes were to take effect March 23, but last week Obama gave them another month to chew it over with his trade reps.

2009-03-01 Something is beeping (from the Huffington Post). It is 3 a.m. and something with a battery somewhere in the house is crying out for a change like a child with dirty diapers.

2009-02-17 Best hot dog gone (from the Huffington Post). The best hot dog in the town famous for hot dogs, perhaps the best hot dog in the nation, Best's Kosher Franks, has been chewed up and spit out by the conglomerate that swallowed it whole.

2009-02-15 Save Mr. Beef (from the Huffington Post). Another Chicago icon in danger.

2009-01-22 Obama's To Do List (from the Chicago Tribune). I am filled with optimism and dread for the Obama presidency. All our hopes and expectations riding on those skinny shoulders! How can he accomplish it all? How can he help but disappoint? Think of all that we want him to do. The list is impossible. We all have our lists. Here's mine:

2009-01-08 No Meat for a Month? No way! (from the Huffington Post) Chicago's health commissioner, Dr. Terry Mason, wants everyone to join him in going vegetarian for the month of January. First city officials tried to ban foie gras, then trans fats, and now another one wants us to lay off meat for 8.3% of the year? Not this Meathead.

2008-12-28 Lessons From Marley. There are two powerful teaching opportunities in the new movie "Marley & Me" and the film gets a PhD in one and flunks the other. Read this if you want to bring kids or if you have an incorrigible dog.

2008-11-30 An open letter to charities (as published in the Chicago Tribune). I give money and time to charities. And I'm fairly generous with both. But when I give money it is on my terms. Click here to read my latest rant from the Chicago Tribune, "An open letter to charities."

2008-10-30 Italian Culinary Trends (as published in Restaurant Hospitality). I have just returned from two weeks in northern Italy. Since Italian culinary concepts have touched practically every cook in North America, I looked for what was new that might find its way into our repertoires. I was also interested in what is changing in the way Italians dine.

2008-10-28 A simple request for Christmas. Dear Santa: Since Christmas comes soon after the elections, I'm hoping that you'll deliver my gift a little early this year. I only want one thing, but I have a very specific list of features it must have: I want a good president. That means I want a president who...

2008-08-19 How will Chicago top Beijing's Olympics (as published in the Chicago Tribune)? Easy! Here are some ideas for how we might show the world what Chicago culture is all about.

2008-07-22 Just stay home if you're that persnickety (as published in the Chicago Tribune). So the City of Chicago has demanded that the actors in the hit musical Jersey Boys stop smoking on stage, no doubt to remind the world of the time we busted Lenny Bruce for using naughty words and when we fined chefs for serving foie gras.

2008-07-07 Stopping the email lies (as published in the Chicago Tribune). In the past year email hoaxes have forced me to tell two dear friends that I never want to hear from them again. Both seem compelled to send sham news to me and everyone else they know. Although they do not own mainstream broadcast networks, they are broadcasters, a fact they do not seem understand, and their emails contain a form of computer virus that, instead of destroying files, destroys the truth.

2008-06-07 Coalition of the Weeding (as published in the Washington Post). I have adopted the Bush Doctrine. I am planning pre-emptive attacks against an adversary so insidious that it menaces not only my own home but threatens to destabilize my entire neighborhood.

2008-05-16 Robert Mondavi, the art lover. The thing that always impressed me about Bob was that you could talk to him about anything, art, music, politics. So many winemakers know only winespeak. And, in fact, on the numerous occasions we met, we rarely talked wine.

2008-05-12 The future for foodies. Some things you might find at the National Restaurant Association Show. Or not.

2007-12-11 Food and the Flicks. Give your Netflix account a workout. Here's a compendium of movies with food in a leading role.

2007-07-20 Funny food at Moto. I have just had some of the most amazing smoked pork I have ever tasted. And it was not at Memphis in May or served on butcher paper south of the Mason Dixon Line. It was at a cutting edge restaurant with a Japanese name in Chicago.

2007-05-01 Meathead makes the College Football Hall of Fame. Meathead has been named the chief judge of the Kickoff Riboff and he reminisces about his brief career as a linebacker at the University of Florida.

2007-03-12 Fie on foie gras bans. State Representative Robert Molaro (D-21st) has proposed a ban on foie gras in Illinois. Apparently he has not paid attention to the the fallout from a similar ban in Chicago or the facts that have been revealed in the debate surrounding it. He is either gullible or just publicity hungry, in which case, he should not force feed his silliness on the citizens of Illinois.

2007-03-09 Ernest Gallo: A conundrum. Ernest Gallo died March 6 at age 97, but when I had dinner with him in 1978 he was at the height of his powers, running the largest wine selling machine in the world, and, after a long dinner, in one telling sentence, he demonstrated why he was such a conundrum, why he was both hallowed and hated.

2007-03-06 Sending the illegals home. A letter-writer to the Chicago Tribune, Leon Crews, said "Send all illegal immigrants home." Why didn't I think of this sooner? Obviously I'm not listening to the right talk shows! I think I've figured out how this can work.


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Read this before posting a comment please:

1) If you are looking for info, please use the table of contents or the search box, at the top of every page.

2) Don't ask me any questions that involve temp or time unless you tell me that you are using a digital thermometer! Bi-metal dial thermometers are often off by as much as 50°F! If you are not using a good digital you have no idea what the temp really is so I can't help you. If you are still using a dial thermometer, please read this article about thermometers, then buy a good digital, and then, if the problem persists (chances are it won't), hit me with your questions. Then, please tell me everything I need to know to answer your question. Like the type of cooker you are using. Remember, I am not a mind reader.

3) Please don't ask me "What grill (or smoker) should I buy?" Read my Buyer's Guides and the buying checklists and follow the links. I've shared just about everything I know. Pay attention to the awards I have given my faves. I cannot pick the right cooker for you any more than I could pick the right car or spouse for you.

4) If you have problems posting with Internet Explorer, please read this. If problems persist, send me a note.


Barbecue & Grilling Accessories


Important Info About This Website

AmazingRibs.com is all about the Zen of barbecue, grilling, and outdoor cooking, with great BBQ recipes and techniques: Barbecue baby back ribs, spareribs, pulled pork, beef brisket, steak, burgers, chicken, smoked turkey, lamb, barbecue sauces, burgers, steaks, rubs, and side dishes, with the world's best buying guide to barbecue smokers and grills. It is written, photographed, illustrated, and coded solely by Meathead.

AmazingRibs.com is published by AmazingRibs, Inc., a Florida Corporation.

Our philosophy about food is simple. First of all it must taste great. It must be easy to make and emphasize fresh seasonal products with a minimum of processed ingredients. We think that people need to know why as well as how, so we spend a lot of time explaining things, and we believe that there are no rules in the bedroom or dining room.

Gold Medal for barbecue & grilling awardAbout Product Reviews and Best in BBQ Gold, Silver, and Bronze Medals are highly recommended products. Awards are based on features, quality, and value. Rest assured that when we recommend a product, it is really because we like it, not because someone has paid us to say so or because the company is an advertiser or sponsor. We purchase most products we review although occasionally suppliers send us samples. We have always been transparent about when we are reviewing a product sample, even before the Federal Trade Commission Required it in 2009.

About links on this site. Other than clearly marked ads, links and recommendations on this site are all products, services, and websites we truly admire, and are never paid endorsements. Your suggestions are always welcome. If you would like us to link to your website, click here to read our links policy first.

Federated media Advertising on this site. AmazingRibs.com is one of the 100 most popular food websites in the US according to comScore, Alexa, and Quantcast. It is by far the most popular barbecue website in the world and pageviews double every year. Advertising on AmazingRibs.com is a great way to build your brand or make direct sales. I keep a strict wall between editorial and advertising, so, for current pricing and availability of prime space, contact my agency, Federated Media, by clicking the logo at right. Click here for analytics, stats, demographics, and advertising options.

Our Privacy Promise. AmazingRibs, Inc. promises to never sell or distribute any info about you individually without your express permission, and we promise not to, ahem, pepper you with email or make you eat spam. Click here for more details of my privacy promise.

Disclaimer. The information on this website is for educational purposes only. All material within comes without warranties of any kind. The authors are human and capable of mistakes, omissions, or errors, so we make no guarantees as to the accuracy, completeness, or safety of the information. Under no circumstances are we liable for any damages that result from use of the site (so you can't sue us if you don't like a recipe or if you burn your tongue on hot ribs, OK?).

Copyright © 2011 by AmazingRibs, Inc. Unless otherwise noted, all text, recipes, photos, and code are owned by AmazingRibs, Inc and fully protected by US copyright law. This means you need written permission to republish or distribute anything on this website. But we're easy. To get reprint rights, click here. Note: Some photos of commercial products such as grills were provided by the manufacturers and under their copyright.


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Hot Stuff Barbecue & Grilling Award
AmazingRibs.com Best in BBQ Gold Medal Winners

Here are three great products that have earned The AmazingRibs.com Best in BBQ Gold Medals. These are not ads!

GrillGrates Take You To The Infrared Zone

GrillGrates are the best new product I have tested in years and the best thing to happen to beef since salt and pepper. The base superheats, eliminates hot spots, and blocks flareups. This is the concept behind the expensive new infrared grills. A must for gas grills. Click here for more about GrillGrates.

barbecue grill grates

The Smokenator: A Necessity For Weber Kettles

If you have a Weber Kettle, you need the amazing Smokenator and Hovergrill. The Smokenator turns your grill into a first class smoker, and the Hovergrill can add capacity or be used to create steakhouse steaks. Click here to read more.

Weber Barbecue Smokenator

ThermoWorks Pocket Thermometer - No More Guessing

A good thermometer is why I never serve overcooked or undercooked food. This one has a very thin tip with a tiny thermocouple so it gives an accurate reading in just six seconds. I cannot recommend it more highly. It will improve your cooking overnight and pay for itself in a hurry. And it is inexpensive. Click here for more about thermometers.

barbecue & grilling thermometer
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