Whether the meat’s pastured, grass-fed or straight from the
supermarket, everyone wants it to turn out delicious on the grill.
And three South Valley chefs shared their tips for grilling and
barbecuing success.
Whether the meat’s pastured, grass-fed or straight from the supermarket, everyone wants it to turn out delicious on the grill. And three South Valley chefs shared their tips for grilling and barbecuing success.
Gary Goularte, a retired Hollister police officer who ran a catering business for years, is adamant that there’s a difference between barbecuing and grilling.
“Barbecue is long, slow cooking,” Goularte said.
On the other hand, grilling is quick cooking over hot coals or flame, best for burgers, hot dogs, shrimp, vegetables, shish kabobs and steaks less than one-inch thick, Goularte said.
Whatever your definitions, Lou Katen, owner of San Martin Meats and Catering, said the best way to ensure a successful barbecue is to use quality ingredients.
“Start with good meat,” Katen said.
For hamburgers, Katen advised using ground beef with 20 percent fat.
“Most of (the fat) is going to cook off anyway,” Katen said. “Just season the ground beef lightly with salt, pepper and garlic powder.”
Dave Bozzo, chef and owner of the Gilroy Grill at the Gilroy Golf Course, said it’s important to consider your fuel.
“If you cook with charcoal, they’re going to like it,” Bozzo said. “If you cook with oak, they’re really going to like it.”
Goularte, who likes to barbecue with mesquite as a base and add flavored woods such as hickory, apple or almond, said gas grill owners can still get the flavor of wood smoke into their meat.
“Put some wood chips in a small metal pan in the grill,” Goularte said, and he advised backyard chefs to dampen the wood with water to prevent the wood from catching fire.
“Don’t use high resin woods, such as pine.”
All three barbecue gurus advise backyard chefs to add flavor to their beef, pork, or poultry with marinades or rubs.
“My favorite is garlic salt and pepper,” Bozzo said, noting that he generally rubs the meat with seasonings about an hour ahead of time.
Katen has a special rub, called San Martin Rub, that he uses for catering jobs. However, the recipe is a closely guarded secret.
Katen suggested backyard chefs make their own barbecue rubs with salt, black pepper and garlic pepper.
If a spicy rub is desired, pump up the heat with cayenne pepper or crushed chilies. Depending on the meat and the chef’s preferences, flavors from rosemary to dry mustard, lemon pepper or paprika can be added to the rub.
“You can get creative,” Katen said. “If it pleases you, it’s good.”
To barbecue Goularte-style, first marinate the meat in a vinegar-, enzyme-, citric acid- or alcohol-based marinade. Salad dressings are typically vinegar-based, yogurt and milk are enzyme-based, citrus fruits such as limes are citric acid-based and tequila makes a great alcohol-based marinade, Goularte said.
The meat doesn’t need to swim in the marinade. Goularte suggested coating the meat with a little bit of oil to help it retain moisture, then dipping it in the marinade and allowing the excess to drip off. Chefs can add a favorite rub at this point.
Allow the meat to marinate for 24 hours in the refrigerator or five hours at room temperature.
The low-and-slow style of barbecue Goularte advocated typically takes three hours over temperatures of about 225 degrees. The meat is done, Goularte said, when the connective tissue gelatinizes, creating a tender entree.
Cook beef to 140 degrees, pork to 180 degrees, boneless chicken to 165 degrees and bone-in chicken to 180 degrees, Goularte said. To minimize cooking time, be sure the meat is at or near room temperature when it goes onto the heat.
Whatever rub, marinade, cooking fuel or type of meat backyard chefs choose, Katen offered some important words of advice: “There’s no such thing as bad barbecue.”
