The 11 Best Grilling Cookbooks of 2023, Picked by a Chef
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Whether you want to learn the basics or challenge yourself, these cookbooks won’t disappoint.
Food and Wine / Alli Waataja
When it’s time to take off the cover and fire up the grill, there are a few things you’ll want to have on hand. A good meat thermometer will ensure your proteins are cooked to perfection. A tool set prevents burns by arming you with tongs and spatulas that are the appropriate length and thickness for use on a grill. And a grilling cookbook can serve as everything from light inspiration to help you craft your own dishes to a surefire way to create a crowd-pleasing meal by following recipes closely.
The best grilling cookbooks are friendly enough to be used by novices and grillmasters alike. Additionally, they’re full of crisp photos and clear instructions. If you’ve been looking to up your grilling game but have been unsure how to begin, we’ve got a host of cookbooks that can do the trick to get you going. From straightforward step-by-step books to more niche recipe collections, these cookbooks are full of fire — and can help you master the flames.
Michael Symon’s Playing With Fire: BBQ and More from the Grill, Smoker, and Fireplace
For anyone who loves cooking meat, Iron Chef, restaurateur, and co-host of The Chew Michael Symon provides all the knowledge you need to do it well on a grill. Playing With Fire goes in depth about different types of woods, meat cuts, marinades, and more.
The recipes are inspired by Symon’s travels throughout the United States seeking the best barbecue it has to offer, as well as the offerings at his restaurant, Mabel’s BBQ. With less common choices, such as whole grilled fish, you’ll learn everything you need to get started on crowd-pleasing proteins. Deemed a top book of 2018 by Food Network, Eater, Publishers Weekly, and the Chicago Tribune, this cookbook has earned the praises of culinary legends such as Jacques Pepin.
Price at time of publish: $16
Full Title: Michael Symon's Playing with Fire: BBQ and More from the Grill, Smoker, and Fireplace: A Cookbook
Author: Michael Symon, Douglas Trattner
Number of Pages: 240
Ebook Available: Yes
Serial Griller: Grillmaster Secrets for Flame-Cooked Perfection
An excellent choice for a grilling cookbook that can take you through a meal from start to finish, Serial Griller offers delicious entrées and side dishes, pairing each recipe with a story. Recipes are designed for all culinary skills, meaning that even if you aren’t fully comfortable over an open flame, this book can be useful in honing your grilling skills. And unlike many grilling books that focus only on American recipes, author Matt Moore incorporates influences from other countries, featuring a lot of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern ingredients. His writing has been lauded by the National Barbecue and Grilling Association.
Price at time of publish: $14
Full Title: Serial Griller: Grillmaster Secrets for Flame-Cooked Perfection
Author: Matt Moore
Number of Pages: 320
Ebook Available: Yes
Related:The 5 Best Gas Grills of 2023, Tested and Reviewed
Flavors of the Southeast Asian Grill: Classic Recipes for Seafood and Meats Cooked Over Charcoal
Author Leela Punyaratabandhu brings you from the kitchen to the outdoors with traditional recipes that span numerous countries, including Vietnam, Thailand, Burma, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Lovers of Southeast Asian cuisine will enjoy the focus on roadside barbecue, as the recipes range from those familiar to many, such as chicken satay and sticky rice, to less conventional, including grilled stingray on banana leaves. While you can use a standard grill, there are also tips and techniques for other smoked-oriented methods, like clay jars. While plenty of the recipes are simple enough for those with basic culinary skills to create, others are complex enough to challenge more experienced grillers.
Price at time of publish: $14
Full Title: Flavors of the Southeast Asian Grill
Author: Leela Punyaratabandhu
Number of Pages: 224
Ebook Available: Yes
Flavor by Fire: Recipes and Techniques for Bigger, Bolder BBQ and Grilling
Impress friends and family with fun grilled foods, like chicken lollipops and coffee-crusted elk medallions, from this cookbook. In Flavor by Fire, author Derek Wolf breaks down proteins one at a time, giving you lots of information about the taste and texture and the most important elements of each. Recipes employ all types of tastes, from sour to savory, and interesting ingredient combinations abound. There are also tutorials on many different cooking techniques, from brining meat to the role alcohol plays in marinades. Even the side dishes and condiments pack a full punch of flavor: Think buffalo chive butter to accompany lobster and a pineapple teriyaki sauce for pulled pork.
Price at time of publish: $25
Full Title: Flavor by Fire: Recipes and Techniques for Bigger, Bolder BBQ and Grilling
Author: Derek Wolf, Steven Raichlan
Number of Pages: 208
Ebook Available: Yes
Rodney Scott's World of BBQ
Rodney Scott has been barbecuing since childhood, and South Carolina barbecue is his clear passion. Full of classic Southern barbecue sides like macaroni and cheese and potato salad, this book will help you throw the best authentic backyard barbecue. You don’t need strong cooking skills thanks to the in-depth lessons that walk you through every step of making hush puppies, cooking a whole hog, and more. Heralded by chefs like Marcus Samuelsson, Danny Meyer, and Michael Symon, World of BBQ is a go-to way to learn about American outdoor cooking, from rubs to ribs.
Price at time of publish: $16
Full Title: Rodney Scott’s World of BBQ: Every Day Is a Good Day: A Cookbook
Author: Rodney Scott, Lolis Eric Elie
Number of Pages: 224
Ebook Available: Yes
Project Smoke
Love smoked foods, but don’t own a smoker? Project Smoke can help you transform your home grill into one, enabling you to whip up smoked dishes that span appetizers to desserts. Part of author Steven Raichlen’s 14-book grilling series, this book is all about getting the most out of your smoking. Learn about what woods to use; the proper way to light a fire; the differences between hot and cold smoking; and how to apply those techniques to unexpected dishes. Desserts even include a smoked cheesecake! A book accompaniment to Raichlen’s TV show with the same name, you can watch the series come to life by making these recipes at home.
Price at time of publish: $18
Full Title: Project Smoke: Seven Steps to Smoked Food Nirvana
Author: Steven Raichlen
Number of Pages: 336
Ebook Available: Yes
Related:The Best Smokers for Slabs of Ribs, Whole Chickens, Pork Butts, and More
Franklin Barbecue: A Meat-Smoking Manifesto
It’s all meat, all the time in Franklin Barbecue, the debut cookbook by heralded barbecue chef Aaron Franklin. This self-taught grill master is a James Beard Award winner and was inducted into the American Royal Barbecue Hall of Fame in 2020. In Franklin Barbecue, he shares techniques to help you achieve the best possible open flame-cooked meats. Lovers of brisket will rejoice at the in-depth information provided about perfecting that cut by the chef that Anthony Bourdain deemed the best there is for barbecue. Learn how to source meat, turn your grill into a smoker, and craft grilled and smoked meat dishes large and small.
Price at time of publish: $15
Full Title: Franklin Barbecue: A Meat Smoking Manifesto
Author: Aaron Franklin, Jordan Mackay
Number of Pages: 224
Ebook Available: Yes
How To Grill Everything: Simple Recipes for Great Flame-Cooked Food
Mark Bittman brought us How to Cook Everything and How to Bake Everything, among others, so it’s no surprise that his How to Grill Everything cookbook is a staple for aspiring grill masters. With a whopping 1,000 recipes and recipe variations, if you can grill it, you can find it in this book. Recipes span slow cooked to quick, including everything from pizza to cheeseburgers. Encompassing nearly 600 pages, How to Grill Everything has all the instructions you need to spend the warm months making endless delicious meals on the grill.
Price at time of publish: $17
Full Title: How to Grill Everything: Simple Recipes for Great Flame-Cooked Food: A Grilling BBQ Cookbook
Author: Mark Bittman
Number of Pages: 576
Ebook Available: Yes
Weber's Ultimate Grilling: A Step-by-Step Guide to Barbecue Genius
Possibly the most famous brand in the world of outdoor cooking, Weber’s Ultimate Grilling will take you from an amateur griller to a seasoned one in a straightforward manner thanks to its step-by-step instructions. Of course, you don’t need to do your grilling on Weber cookware to benefit from the many lessons in this cookbook. Learn how to master the basics, such as salmon filets and chicken wings, as well as more complex “flavor bomb” recipes. There are lots of tips and illustrations throughout to keep you engaged, and it makes a great gift for anyone just starting out with cooking on the grill.
Price at time of publish: $14
Full Title: Weber’s Ultimate Grilling: A Step-by-Step Guide to Barbecue Genius
Author: Jamie Purviance
Number of Pages: 352
Ebook Available: Yes
Related:The 7 Best Pellet Grills for Smoking, Searing, and More, According to Our Tests
Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling
Thanks to the input of a physicist and food scientist, Meathead teaches you the science behind what works best when grilling. But don’t worry, it’s written with a sense of humor, so you can learn how to make grilled foods taste their best while still being entertained. Common myths — like that meat should always be seared — are busted as you discover the ins and outs of topics like calibrating a smoker, preventing proteins from sticking, and terminology like “reverse sear.” Recipes have lighthearted names, such as Simon & Garfunkel Chicken, which, with an author who uses Meathead as a first name, shouldn’t be any sort of surprise.
Price at time of publish: $18
Full Title: Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling
Author: Meathead Goldwyn, Greg Blonder
Number of Pages: 400
Ebook Available: Yes
Bludso's BBQ Cookbook: A Family Affair in Smoke and Soul
If you’ve ever been to a Bludso’s BBQ location in person, you know all about how quintessential their barbecue is. And if you haven’t, well, luck is in your favor thanks to this cookbook that lets you create its famous recipes from the comfort of your backyard. Hailing from Compton, California (where author Kevin Bludso opened his first restaurant location), recipes for Texan favorites, such as rib tips and banana pudding, are featured in this diverse book. If you want to master grilled foods with accompanying sides that taste as heavenly as your favorite roadside barbecue stand, Bludso’s BBQ Cookbook is exactly what you need.
Price at time of publish: $18
Full Title: Bludso’s BBQ Cookbook: A Family Affair in Smoke and Soul
Author: Kevin Bludso, Noah Galuten Eric Wolfinger, Demetrius Smith
Number of Pages: 288
Ebook Available: Yes
Our Expertise
Contributor Ariane Resnick is a special diet private chef, a certified nutritionist, and a lifestyle writer with two decades of culinary and literary experience, and her work has been featured in Simply Recipes, The Spruce Eats, Clean Plates, Huffington Post, Verywell, and more. For this article, she conducted market research and drew on her experience of grilling and writing cookbooks.
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