Smoking Meat 101: The Ultimate Beginner's Guide

Just received but the recipes look delicious! I included a photo of the variety of meals as I am not a fan of buying recipe books if it’s filled with food I won’t eat. Hopefully this helps some of you!
I will come back and update my review after we’ve cooked a few meals.

For a book that's titled "Smoking Meat 101: The Ultimate Beginner's Guide," I thought this book would have more basic information in it. Yes, it covers some of the most essential basics, but it leaves a lot of stuff out. The vast majority of this book is comprised of recipes, and a lot of them are very good. But without knowing exactly *how* to smoke foods, having success with the recipes might be a stretch; or at least something that will require some trial and error. I think better books to learn the basics from are Aaron Franklin's "Franklin Barbecue: A Meat-Smoking Manifesto: A Cookbook" and Jeff Phillips' "Smoking Meat: The Essential Guide to Real Barbecue."

There are quite a few introductory books about smoking, and honestly it's hard to get past anything by Steven Raichlin. We all need to learn the essentials, such as choosing the right type of smoker and which wood to use. However, once you have the basic techniques under your belt, what matters is acquiring a solid collection of recipes... and this one is pretty darned good.

One of the problems with cookbooks for smokers is that they assume you want to feed a crowd. In many cases, that makes sense; if you're going to spend the whole day preparing a meal, you want to get the most out of it. On the other hand, one definition of "forever" is "two people and a turkey." It's just the two of us here, so even when I account for leftovers, it's hard to justify making a huge brisket.

That's one reason I like this cookbook. While its 75 recipes do include plenty that advise "serves 8-12" such as "low and slow smoked brisket" or "beyond basic Boston butt," there's a lot of choices for smaller crowds. Moreover, not everything requires that you get started at the crack of dawn. For example, "sweet and spicy leg quarters" serves four, takes 15 minutes of prep time, and smokes for 1.5 hours. That may not make it easy for a weeknight supper, but at least it doesn't blow your whole day.

The cookbook is organized as you might expect, with chapters dedicated to smoking fundamentals; poultry; pork; beef; fish and seafood; other meats and vegetables; rubs, sauces and more. The instructions include serving size, brining or marination time (if appropriate), prep time, smoke time, temperature, and recommended wood. It's clear and readable, but no photos, which I know matters to some people.

I am quite pleased with the recipes, too. So far we made a pork roast that used a spice rub that'd make me say, "Wow, I couldn't guess what's in that!" if I didn't know. It was served with sweet and sticky plum sauce that, well, I've never had anything like this in a BBQ joint. Two thumbs up. Next up is the aforementioned leg quarters (which gets perky from lime, garlic, ginger, and ground coriander). The ingredient list for the "Bacon-weave cheesesteak fatty" is long, but hey I'm in favor of anything that'll let me wrap something in bacon.

All in all, I like this cookbook. I expect it to earn several badges of honor: food drippings all over its pages!

(Yes, Dad jokes.)
I can't recommend this book enough to anyone who is involved in cooking with a smoker.
I've only recently started with smoking for meals and I REALLY wish I had this book to avoid the pitfalls of inexperience. (I could have used my first smoked chicken as a weapon.)
There are many items of wisdom in this book not just for the beginner but experienced smokers can always use wisdom from another smokemaster. There is just as much instruction and knowledge about what to do as there are recipes. And there are a lot of recipes.
The book has thicker paper for the pages for frequent turning and recipe ingredient wiping and the photos and illustrations are nicely done.
There is Information about how a smoker works, wood chip selection, whats best to use for which cuts of meat and how to get an exceptional product out EVERY TIME.

I've been thinking about buying a smoker for awhile now but I had been hesitant to take the plunge because I honestly didn't know much about them. I was impressed with this book which is basically a beginner's guide to the whole smoking process. Not only did it answer some of the questions I had, but also taught me plenty of stuff I didn't know.

The author breaks down the different types of smokers on the market, how a smoker works and why it differs from a grill. Also included are descriptions of the smoking gear and equipment you will want to have handy as well as the various wood types and what to cook with it. There are over 75 recipes in the book and they are broken down into categories like poultry, pork, beef, fish and seafood, other meats and vegetables and rubs, sauces, and more. The many different cuts of meat are listed along with descriptions and there's plenty of tips as well as sections in which the author answers some of the most frequently asked barbecue questions. There's also a nice chart for the different types of meat with smoking temps and times if you feel like experimenting on your own.

There are color photos in the book but only about 10-15 which runs slightly below the usual amount included in my other recipe books. And while I was excited to learn smokers can be used for other food items besides meats, I wish there would have been a couple more vegetables recipes in the book. Just a slight criticism though as overall this is a book I definitely recommend.

I have often been curious as to how those BBQ pros do the magic they do when smoking some great Q. Having recently embarked on the KETO lifestyle, it made me all the more curious, because thankfully, KETO embraces the meat lover in us all!

I'll be honest, I am by no means a culinary expert. I can barely boil water without burning it! But the way that Bill has laid out this book and the clear and concise way he presented everything is so easy to understand, that even a village idiot like me can now produce what I would consider a pretty darn good piece of smoked Q that I would be proud to present to my friends!

It was awesome because the book walked me step by step through the process of smoking meat. From picking out the right smoker, to determining what wood to use and why, and sprinkling the book throughout with terminology that a newbie like me could easily understand, the book was a joy to read and hard to put down! I especially loved the chapter breakdowns of all the different meats and the subtle differences with how to cook each one properly. Bill also did a masterful job of explaining the rubs and sauces to give your new found expertise that added flair that really puts your handiwork over the top with your guests!

Overall, if your looking for the one definitive book to both guide and educate you through the meat smoking process, simply put, look no further. You will not be disappointed! The only thing I can say of a critical nature would be that I was hoping for more photos of the finished products. Being a visual learner, I like to have an idea of what the item I am making should look like after I am done. But with that being said, I truly believe this book should become a staple on your book shelf if you have any interest in learning the art of smoking meat from a professional like Bill.

In full disclosure, I did receive an advanced copy of this book from the publisher, but the thoughts and opinions I have expressed were completely unbiased and untainted by that fact and the opinions expressed are my own.

I am interested in buying a smoker because of experiences with eating other people's creations so this book attracted me with it's beginner level promise and the promise that it would help me make choices in purchasing my own smoker. This part of the book was right on target and I feel ready to make a pretty informed purchase after reading it. I really liked how, interspersed with the recipes, there was added information based on what recipe you might be trying out and what you might need to know. I felt that the structure of the book was very good in that it threw only as much at you as needed as you became more immersed in the learning process of smoking meat. My rough guess is a little over half of the book is recipes and the rest is information which seemed pretty well-balanced to me considering this is called a "beginner's guide." The tone of the book is somewhat playful and very genial. This was a middling aspect for me, but it did make the prospect of starting to smoke my own food less daunting because it felt like something which is casual.

Cooking with smoke is different than just grilling and the results are very different. If you compare a rack of smoked ribs to straight grilled ribs you’ll understand the differences very clearly – there’s more to it than just smoky flavors. This book serves as a good primer how how to cook with smoke. It’s not an absolutely comprehensive tome that covers everything you could ever know, but it’s a great starting point.

The book covers all of the basics – the tools you need, different types of wood and when to use them depending on what you want to cook, techniques, smoke times, and even different cuts of meats. It provides several chapters of recipes including poultry, beef, seafood and vegetables, and it even has a chapter just for sauces and rubs.

What this book does not have is a bunch of pictures. There’s a few, but they are the exception rather than the rule. If you want a book full of pictures, this isn’t it.

This is a nice starting point for someone looking to cook with smoke instead of just grilling. The differences are significant and this book makes the methodology and techniques easy. It’s not going to turn you into an overnight expert, but it will get you started down a good path.

Smoking Meat 101 is a technique guide and cookbook by Bill West aimed getting the most out of smoking and using meats. Released 9th July 2019 by Rockridge, it's 206 pages and available in paperback and ebook formats.

The book follows a logical progression. The introduction includes information about what smoking is, when & why to use the technique, meat and wood selection, and other basic info. The next sections include recipes and techniques for specific meats and cover poultry, pork, beef, fish & seafood, and other meats & vegetables. There are 65 specific recipes as well as a large selection of rubs and sauces which will allow for a huge number of mix-and-match combinations. The book also includes a good selection of resources and links for further reading.

Worth noting for Kindle Unlimited subscribers, this book is included in the KU subscription to download and read for free.The ebook format also has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.

Summer is barbecue and grill season and these recipes are timely, easy to make from relatively easy to source ingredients, and some are fancy enough for party fare.

Five stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Bill is obviously passionate about, and has a thorough knowledge of his craft. As a husband and dad that has not mastered the art of grilling, this would be a go to for me to learn the basics. I highly recommend you pick up a copy!!

Chris Russo