Book Review: Barbecue Secrets Deluxe!

Edited by Tara Fitzpatrick

By Rockin' Ronnie Shewchuk
Whitecap Books, $29.95 CDN

There's nothing like 394 pages of “the very best recipes, tips & tricks from a barbecue champion” to get you fired up for spring and summer's barbecue promotion possibilities. Barbecue Secrets Deluxe!, the new book by Rockin' Ronnie Shewchuk, contains more than 200 recipes plus guidelines on grilling, barbecuing and planking.

While a good barbecue step-by-step is great, what really makes this book stand out are the zippy flavors in extra menu items it offers to accompany your barbecued meat.

One chapter, Bombastic Blasts of Flavor: Rubs, Marinades, Sauces, Salsas & Spreads, includes flavored butters, fruit-centric salsas and many styles of brines and marinades to dress up whatever protein you choose.

In many chapters, Shewchuk seems to wander pretty far from basic barbecue, but with all the creative recipes and varied flavor profiles, it's a good thing he did. One section on grilled quesadillas includes a quick-glance list of variations, including “Funky,” “Heavenly” and the use of “Tropical” cheese-based fillings for quesadillas.

Another chapter, The Burger Connection, has enough ideas for you to finish out the rest of this year with a “burger of the month” promotion. Especially juicy looking are the Beef Burger with Herbed Butter Core and Caramelized Onions and the Asian Chicken Burger.