New Books for the New Year: Barbecue: Smoked & Grilled Recipes from Across the Globe

Hugh Mangum shows you how to fire up a fabulous barbie with Spanish sardines, Ghanian goat, Australian cabbage and Marmite, and even Icelandic cheesecake.

With each new year comes a new promise or pledge; to get in shape, go for that promotion, maybe even reduce screen time a little. But this year Phaidon.com has decided to pursue a far loftier ideal – we’re going to completely revolutionise our barbecue game before summer's here.

Hawker Wings, Singapore. Photography: Nico Shinco

We’ve been inspired by Barbecue: Smoked & Grilled Recipes from Across the Globe, the debut book from Hugh Mangum. Mangum, for those of you who haven’t crossed paths yet, is pitmaster, live fire expert, and founder of the much-loved Mighty Quinn’s barbecue restaurants.

Smoked Brisket, United States. Photography: Nico Shinco

Phaidon commissioned Hugh to scour the world in search of the greatest dishes and techniques for cooking food over fire and smoke. Whether it be barbacoa of Mexico, pork satay of Indonesia, ash-cooked vegetables of Spain, or Australian snags—every country celebrated in this comprehensive collection represents a tradition, technique, culture, and style of cooking over fire. And, trust us, every single dish is delicious.

Cheddar and Jalapeño Biscuits, United States. Photography: Nico Shinco

Hugh’s back story is all smoke, no mirrors. He left a successful music career – he was the drummer in Jakob Dylan’s Grammy-award-winning band The Wallflowers - to enroll at the French Culinary Institute. With his wife Laura, he bought a barrel smoker and began cooking at food markets including Smorgasburg in New York City. Their success led to Hugh becoming an executive chef and pitmaster in Pennsylvania, then opening the first Mighty Quinn’s restaurant in New York in 2012 which now has locations in New Jersey, Florida, and Maryland.

Grilled Cabbage and Vegemite, Australia. Photography: Nico Shinco

Barbecue: Smoked & Grilled Recipes from Across the Globe is a master class in how to cook with fire and smoke, featuring 270 recipes from 80 countries across the world. In addition, there is a chapter of contributions from 16 exciting guest chefs known for their love of live fire cooking. It also alerted us to the concept of ‘sexy fire’.

Fire Chicken, Korea. Photography: Nico Shinco

“You can take the best or worst cut of meat and make it taste really good if you know how to manage your fire,” Hugh says. “We call it a sexy fire: it’s not blaring or blazing, but it’s not dead. There’s a bed of embers, a glow, a log or two giving some smoke. You need to get familiar with the fire first—it’s like looking before you leap.”

Smoked Skyr Cheesecake with Blueberries, Iceland. Photography: Nico Shinco

The book features ribs, steaks, whole chickens and hogs, burgers, tacos, and fried chicken, clambakes, and paella. There are also recipes to complement the barbecued fare—including slaws, pickles, cornbreads, baked beans, and a sweet potato casserole.

Each recipe has a headnote, plus there are more than 100 mouth-watering images from New-York-based photographer Nico Schinco.

Berbere Ribs, Ethiopia. Photography: Nico Shinco

Recipes include American Smoked Brisket, German Bratwurst, English Cumberland Sausages, Bolivian Grilled Beef, Italian Porcetta, Mongolian Lamb, Singaporean Shrimp Skewers, Angolan Grilled Fish. Like us you might be surprised to find some desserts too, including Icelandic smoked cheesecake and skillet mocha brownies.

In the opening section, Hugh walks readers through essential (and nonessential) equipment, wood and charcoal properties, ideal temperatures, and using direct and indirect heat. There are also the traditional Phaidon icons highlighting vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, dairy-free, and nut-free dishes.

In the final chapter, you’ll find 16 chefs from around the world, all experts in cooking over live fire, each selected by Phaidon to contribute a recipe each. They include Elizabeth Karmel from the American South, Sean Sherman from the indigenous American midwest, Jessica Rosval (a Canadian from Italy), May Chow from Hong Kong, Monique Fiso from New Zealand, Ross Dobson from Australia, Renzo Garibaldi from Peru, and Tomos Parry from Brat in London.

Hugh’s co-author, Shana Liebman, has a degree from the Institute of Culinary Education and an MFA from Columbia University. She’s written about food and culture for many publications including New York magazine, The Independent, Salon, and most recently, Food52. Take a look at Barbecue: Smoked & Grilled Recipes from Across the Globe and preorder it here. It ships in May.