Harold McGee: no BBQ expert

Hungry Celeste

While I have nothing but respect for Harold McGee (author of "On Food & Cooking", et al), it's clear he knows bupkus about BBQ--read this piece from the NY Times and tell me why we shouldn't all school him on how to cook ribs over charcoal:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/30/dining/30curious.html
Here's his blog, too, where he admits that a rib rack will improve things a bit: http://news.curiouscook.com/2010/08/curious-cook-in-new-york-times-smoky.html

thirdeye

Well, I wouldn't go that far..... but after reading that article, I'll agree he is not as "on top of" his Weber kettle as he should be.

For indirect cooking, most folks position the charcoal on the sides of that cooker(their grates actually have hinged doors for adding more coals during long cooks). Now, they sell curved charcoal baskets that clip to the sides of the kettle, which actually allow for a fair amount of space in the middle of the grate for indirect cooking.

I can actually make some pretty good chicken on a kettle.