This broad and long America of ours has developed many outstanding food traditions. The Americas, as a whole, have a heritage that is at once astounding and rich beyond imagination. Her gastronomic gifts to the world are generous and numerous. It is true that many of them have returned to us after long schooling in Europe much more sophisticated and polished, but we should take pride in their origin. On the reverse side, I feel we of the Americas can walk off with the honors for the development of outdoor cookery and barbecuing.
The New England clambake, the cioppino of the California coastline, the fabulous barbecues of South America and our own Southwest have all developed from foreign inspiration. But the growth of alfresco meals as a more or less habitual procedure is, we are certain, a thoroughly hemispheric development.
Imagination, that most priceless ingredient in good cooking, enters into our outdoor cuisine in a most honest and straightforward fashion. Here are no mountains of molded salads, no bubbling vats of cream sauce, no pastry-tube designs—nothing but a predominance of honesty. This quality is something sadly lacking in the average American kitchen's character.
Those of us who were fortunate enough to have grown up in pioneer households learned a great deal of the background of outdoor cookery. This is true of all the American countries, though in a most varied way. We know that simple methods suit themselves most comfortably to outdoor living and that simplicity of menu and service is absolutely essential. The auxiliary kitchen in the out-of-doors, no matter how elaborate you make it, is no place for sole bonne femme or quenelles. It is the spot for grilled foods, for pungent barbecue sauces, for perfect roasts, for dishes cooked en brochette. It is to the house what the grill room (in the correct usage of the word) is to a large hotel.
Outdoor meals require the same careful planning as indoor cookery. Unless you are fortunate enough to have a complete kitchen in your outdoor unit with stove, grill, refrigerator, etc., be certain that when you plan your meals you also plan your steps. There are some things, despite the fun and novelty of using the grill or fireplace, that require slow, careful cooking. These things are best done indoors and added to the menu from the kitchen. Sauces, including most barbecue sauces, are much more simply prepared in the kitchen and reheated at the grill or served at once. Vegetables, with the exception of those which may be roasted or fried, may be found a little difficult to cope with on your grill. Salads, too, unless you have great working space and are definitely a show-off cook, may be prepared in the kitchen, albeit you may have the honor of mixing the dressing dramatically before the admiring eyes of your guests.
Desserts, which should be of the simplest variety for outdoor meals, are with few exceptions much better prepared in the house. Even though there may be a good oven in your cooking unit, it is no place to play with soufflés or cakes or pies. Furthermore, it is sinful to embellish hearty simple meals with such things. Fruit, either fresh or cooked, served with cheese or with the addition of a bit of liqueur to the cooked fruit, is the perfect ending to a meal in the garden. If your sweet tooth calls for something else, then settle for ice cream. Leave all the chiffon pies, monumentally iced cakes, and whipped desserts to the kitchen and dining room and give yourself a summer change.
Drinks should be hearty and plentiful, especially when you are cooking something which requires time and attention. Your audience should be given something to tide them over the strain of the watching period. Potables and munchables should be theirs, but not yours. You can relax and beam when the job is finished. Of course, if it is a roast of some kind which you are preparing—a barbecued pig, a ham, or a turkey—you will have plenty of time for relaxation and chatting, but when you are grilling over coals, every minute is important to the final result.
I am often asked what one should have in the way of condiments, herbs, and handy equipment for the barbecue pit or outdoor grill. That depends entirely upon the amount of space you have for storing and keeping things at hand. Naturally, it is obligatory to have salt and pepper handy. I find ideal a large shaker for salt which can be sealed when not in use. Have a jar of cracked pepper, which gives the same results as the freshly ground and which is much more convenient to use when cooking. Such pepper may be found under several reliable labels and is a seasoning to buy in quantity. A selection of the really vitally useful herbs and seasonings is most desirable. Thyme, tarragon, chili powder, curry powder, paprika (as a flavoring, not as a touch of color), Worcestershire sauce, and perhaps a bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce for additional seasonings. Dry mustard is a must, and a tin of olive oil is something you will want to use often. These should find a place on a handy shelf which can be covered and left that way between performances so that they do not have to be carted back and forth to the house.
If you are fortunate enough to have a refrigerator outdoors for your summer cooking, it is a blessing. If not, you will find one of the portable ice boxes a great boon to your efforts. Here you can keep ice cubes for drinks, butter, cream, and any of the foods which need cooling. Wooden or plastic trays or flat boards for raw working materials and a tray for glasses and bottles about settle the situation. A minimum of clutter in the supply division is as important as a minimum of clutter in the gadget collection.
Certainly an inventory and clearing-out from time to time of gadgets and supplies are important to your continued efficiency as an outdoor cook. And adherence to the simple, direct methods of cookery without benefit of all the time- and labor-savers, so called, will result in truly good food.
I repeat, outdoor appetites and thirsts are far more hearty than the average indoor ones, so timing is an absolute requisite. Experience proves every day that there is nothing more disagreeable than waiting overlong for food. It dulls the keenest appetite.
Provide hearty drinks for your guests and something definitely on the substantial side in the way of accompaniments for them. If you have a reliable kitchen garden or a good source of supply, you can start them no better than with a large bowl of iced raw vegetables and a bowl of appetizing sauce to accompany them. To wit:
Scandinavian Paste
Moisten ½ pound cream cheese with 3 tablespoons lime juice. Beat well until soft and well permeated with the lime flavor. Add 2 tins French sardines, mashed and blended with the olive oil from the tins, 3 tablespoons finely cut chives, ½ cup chopped parsley, and 1 teaspoon (or more) salt. Blend well and taste for seasoning. Due to variation in the acidity of the fruit, additional lime juice may be needed. And if the cheese is not so creamy and soft as desired, add heavy cream gradually to suit.
Another and slightly more sophisticated drink accompaniment which spells summer is one that contains prosciutto and fruits. Thin strips of prosciutto shaved practically transparent may be rolled around ripe melon cubes, lightly salted, and dotted with freshly ground pepper. Or wrap strips of this well-flavored Italian ham around ripe figs—the wedding of the flavors is palate joy!
A general necessity for extensive outdoor cooking would seem to be a barbecue sauce. Everyone has his favorite. The one given here is a good workable sauce that is also versatile and which may be enhanced with additional flavors to suit a variety of dishes.
Barbecue Sauce
Heat ¼ cup olive oil in a deep kettle. Add 12 finely chopped shallots and cook until transparent. Blend well ½ cup strained honey, 1 cup white vinegar, 1 cup tomato purée, ¼ cup thick steak sauce, and 1 tablespoon Worcestershire. Add this mixture to the shallots and allow it all to come to the boiling point, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon.
This next I consider a delightful main course for a summer meal in the garden. With a huge green salad and perhaps some tortillas or a crisp French loaf it makes a most satisfying dinner or Sunday lunch.
Glazed Broilers
Naturally you will plan half a broiler for each person, or if they are squab size, a whole one. Split the cleaned broilers and brush well with melted butter and a good sauce (the one given above is ideal). Place the birds in a broiling rack and secure. This dish may be prepared on either a vertical or horizontal grill. Just before placing each chicken on the fire, brush again with the sauce. Place the bone side of the chicken against the heat first and switch to the skin side when the broilers are half done. These should take 25 to 30 minutes to cook. Brush them frequently with sauce to be certain that each broiler is coated with it and definitely glazed.
This grill is a case of choosing your own combination and insuring a little variety and novelty in your repertoire of outdoor productions. Our choice is lamb chops, kidneys, sausages, hamburger patties, and eggplant.
Mixed Grill
You will need two broiler racks, one for the slower-cooking foods and one for the faster-cooking ones. In one rack place 6 loin lamb chops 1½ inches thick and 6 sausage patties or 6 large pork sausages. Brush them well with butter or barbecue sauce and place in front or over the coals. In the second rack place 6 1-inch slices of eggplant well brushed with butter, 6 small hamburger patties which have been marinating in barbecue sauce for ½ hour, and 6 lamb kidneys, membrane removed, which have been soaking in milk for 2 hours.
When the chops and sausage are ready to turn, add the second broiling rack with the eggplant, kidneys, and hamburgers. Brush them well with melted butter and allow the chops to cook slowly and the other things as rapidly as possible, turning them frequently. Sprinkle well with salt and freshly ground pepper. Serve one of each to each person. A good coleslaw is perfect with this meal—and plenty of cold beer. A nice variation for the grilling fans.
Spitted Turkey
Turkeys of 8 to 12 pounds are most successful for outdoor cookery. Clean the bird, remove the pinfeathers, and use great care not to puncture the skin.
You may, of course, go traditional and stuff the turkey, but I feel it is unnecessary for the outdoor meal. Instead place a good hearty sprig of parsley and a few leaves of tarragon inside the bird and secure it to the spit. Butter the outside well and place it on the rack. Baste and turn the bird frequently.
For basting: to ½ cup melted butter add 1 cup warm chicken or turkey broth, 1 cup white wine, and ½ teaspoon thyme. Keep this basting fluid warm and baste or brush the bird frequently with the mixture. It is difficult to gauge the time, for practically each outdoor unit has a different degree of heat. A medium-sized turkey, unstuffed, should take from 1¼ to-1½ hours. If you can catch the drippings from the pan, be certain to use them for the sauce.
Sauce for Spitted Turkey
Chop the gizzard, all gristle removed, the liver, and the heart very finely. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon flour and salt and pepper to taste. Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a skillet and brown the giblets well, adding ½ cup sliced mushrooms if you wish. Then add the drippings from the turkey, if available, or ½ cup chicken broth and allow the sauce to simmer for 2 minutes. Add 1 cup heavy cream mixed with 2 egg yolks and stir over a low fire until slightly thickened. Add 2 tablespoons Madeira to this sauce for a specially pleasant flavor.
Serve with French bread, roasted corn, and a crisp green salad. A bottle of well-chilled vin rosé is a delight with this meal.
Roasted Corn
Carefully slip back the husks from some ears of tender corn. Remove all the silk and dampen the husks thoroughly with salted water. Fold them back over the ears of corn and secure with a small piece of string. Roast over coals until the corn is thoroughly heated, but not dried out. Turn frequently and brush with additional water if needed. Do not allow the corn to char and parch, for tough kernels of corn are not pleasant. On a vertical grill, place the ears in the broiling rack. I needn't add that you must have ample butter and salt and pepper for corn.
Barbecued Ham and Eggs
Choose 1-inch slices of good smoked ham, allowing half a slice per person.
Mix together 2 tablespoons dry mustard, 1 tablespoon grated horseradish, 2 tablespoons chopped parsley, 2 tablespoons chili sauce, 1 teaspoon salt, and enough red wine to make a smooth paste. Brush the ham slices generously with this mixture, place in the broiling rack, and broil slowly, turning them frequently. Brush with additional sauce, if desired.
Serve with eggs prepared to taste. We prefer either fried eggs or scrambled—either of which is a perfectly simple operation on the grill. Hash-browned potatoes, sliced tomatoes, onions, and cucumbers with a good French dressing, and good rolls or dark breads make this a memorable meal.
On a vertical type of grill you may cook the eggs in the dripping pan and have the true barbecued flavor from the ham. Add a little butter to the dripping pan, break the eggs into it, and allow them to cook from the reflected heat and be flavored by the drippings.