Paul has outdone himself this time. This is the best BBQ "how to" in print.

I love to cook, especially out in my backyard with the smoker. If this is you, then you will want this book. It has a plethora of recipes that will make you the envy of your neighborhood. It also explains the differences in slow smoking and grilling. You cannot go wrong in buying this book!!!

I bought this book under unusual circumstances. The day before I bought it, I complained to my sister I have way more recipes from cook books and newspaper clippings that I could ever possibly make. And I'm trying to eliminate more meat from my diet. So with a glut of recipes and a desire to eat less meat, it would only make sense for me to buy a book with 575 recipies devoted to grilling and slow smoking of dead animals. But I'm really glad I did!

Kirk shares a number of his barbecuing insights, which have definitely improved the results of my periodic attempts at ribs and chicken. The chapter on mustard slathers is a technique I've never seen before and the results I had using mustard slathers with salmon and ribs following Kirk's advice turned out pretty good. The fish marinades for salmon, tuna, and swordfish all turned out well. The marinades had good flavors, but showed the proper restraint that is important when cooking fish. The Jack Daniel's Marinated Salmon was awesome, although I smoked it with pecan rather than grill it as Kirk suggested.

And that illustrates the beauty of the book. Paul Kirk really encourages experimentation, and then provides an excellent guidebook to do just that. There's just a tremendous amount of creativity and originality in this book, and I found it infectious. There is seemingly no flavor Kirk ignores. The fact that all the recipes turn out good to great is even better! I'm not sure this is the best source for an authentic Tuscan Grilled Tuna, and I didn't try this recipe out, but I suspect it's pretty good, and I'm glad Kirk shared it with us.

I judge a cook book on how it improves my cooking, and this has made a big difference in my results with barbecue ribs and chicken, and also for grilled fish, and for that reason, it is highly recommended.

This book has some very useful information about the art of barbecuing and contains a huge variety of recipes for a huge variety of dishes. I was actually expecting more recipes for BBQ sauces and rubs which is why it did not get the top rating. I believe this book will take years to sample all of the interesting dishes but think that it will be worth the effort.