Grilling vs Barbequing

Do you know the difference between grilling and barbeque? Did you know most backyard "barbeques" are really not barbeques at all?

Purists will argue that it's only a barbeque if the food is cooked slowly, and with indirect heat. To fast cooking over direct heat, they'd say "that's just grillin!"

And technically they're right. In simple terms, grilling is fast cooking over high heat, while barbeque means slower cooking (hours or even days) over low heat.

But as you'll see as you read through the articles on this site, I use the terms 'grilling' and 'barbeque' interchangeably. Basically, to me a BBQ means outdoor cooking over an open flame, even if the purists want to charge me with heresy for saying that!

So what's the difference between grilling and barbeque?

Pretty much any cooking that you do on your gas or charcoal grill is simple grilling. Burgers, hot dogs, sausages, steaks, chicken, pork chops...you get the idea.

These foods are not well suited to the barbeque method of cooking, which requires longs hours of slow cooking, often using a smoker.

What foods do well in a barbeque? Think brisket or ribs. (Is your belly growling yet??)

The long cooking time of barbeque lets the meat really absorb the smoke and rub flavors, and the result is a tender piece of meat that melts in your mouth.

Another plus to barbeque is that you can baste the meat in barbeque sauce throughout the cooking process. When grilling, the sauce must be added at the very end or it will burn due to the high cooking temperature.

Many BBQers use a spray bottle to give the meat a spritz of apple juice every so often. This is a great way to keep the meat moist while adding yet another layer of flavor to the meat.