Anderson Edward Charles - Wood-fired cooking : techniques and recipes for the grill, backyard oven, fireplace, and campfire

Copyright 2009 by Mary Karlin
Photography copyright 2009 by Ed Anderson
Foreword copyright 2009 by John Ash

All rights reserved. Published in the United States by
Ten Speed Press, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group,
a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
www.crownpublishing.com
www.tenspeed.com

Ten Speed Press and the Ten Speed Press colophon are
registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.

The Aztec Grill, Beehive Oven, Big Green Egg, La Caja China,
and SoJoe Fire Pit are registered trademarks. Used by permission.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Karlin, Mary.
Wood-fired cooking : techniques and recipes for the grill,
backyard oven, fireplace, and campfire / Mary Karlin; photography
by Ed Anderson.
p. cm.
Includes index.
Summary: A collection of 100 contemporary recipes for
the range of wood-fired cooking options, including globally
inspired Indian, Mediterranean, Italian, American, and
North African recipes for cooking over live flame and embers
Provided by publisher.
1. Barbecue cookery. 2. Cookery, International. I. Title.
TX840.B3K3656 2009
641.76dc22

2008041621

eISBN: 978-1-60774-133-6

Cover design by Nancy Austin
Food and prop styling by Jenny Martin-Wong

v3.1

Cooking with fire kindles an ancient and primal memory in human beings. According to anthropologists, fire provided the spark for modern human evolution, but not because it allowed our ancestors to eat meat. Rather, it was the ability to cook hard roots like carrots, potatoes, and beets that caused hominids to turn an important evolutionary corner almost 2 million years ago. Not only did we change physically (among other developments, our teeth became smaller, since cooked food was easier to eat), but fire was the genesis for creating flavors that we didnt know existed when only raw food was consumed. Once this wider range of tastes was discovered, our innate curiosity and desire for more and different taste experiences set about an exploration that continues to this day. Who we are then is in large measure a result of our learning to cook our food.

The ingenious ways that humans have adapted fire for cooking are amazing. From cooking food impaled on a stick or fixed to a plank over a campfire, to the creation of various types of earthen ovens, to todays high-tech stainless steel grills, there is a technique for everyone and every budget.

Almost everyone has a fond memory of cooking over fire, even if it was just smores on a camping trip. I remember the fishing trips with my grandparents in Colorado. Wed go out for three or four days at a time, camping near streams and cricks and fishing all day for native trout. We brought little else with us, just coffee to wake us up in the morning, cornmeal to dust the fresh fish with, and bacon fat to cook them in. The tool of choice was a Dutch oven with feet that allowed you to set it right in the hot coals: simple but very effective. And once the fish were done, we could scour out the same pot and use it to make a grunt with wild berries. Ill never forget how wonderful that food tasted.

Ive had the chance to watch Marys cooking with fire evolution over the years as she experimented with every fire tool and technique she could find. As she developed her skills, she began to teach, and her enthusiastic students begat a whole new generation of fire aficionados. I was pleased to share part of that journey with her.

Cooking with fire has a magical and powerful ability to connect us to each other. Kudos to Mary for giving us all a taste of the delicious possibilities of wood-fired cooking.

John Ash

To all of the fired-up bakers, chefs,
and everyday cooks who make and share
extraordinary wood-fired food.

Thank you to Northern Californias numerous talented bakers, cooks, chefs, farmers, and artisan food purveyors for sharing your passions and influencing my style of cooking and living. A special thanks to Alice Waters and Joyce Goldstein inspiring me with their authenticity and heart for cooking and sharing simple, good food.

I thank Allan Scott, the endearing guru of wood-fired brick ovens, for getting me hooked on fire and sparking my quest for an oven. Heart-filled thanks to my best friend, Bert Archer, who found his inner baker by building my brick oven and pushed me to write this book.

A giant thanks to my family at Ramekins Cooking School for their love and support; thank you for introducing me to many talented culinary educators and for helping me to find my teaching voice. A big hug of thanks to Suzanne Brangham who unknowingly jump-started this book.

My infinite gratitude to Peter Reinhart for his ever present guidance and generosity. A toast to the guest contributors: Bruce Aidells, John Ash, Georgeanne Brennan, Linda Carucci, Tim Decker, Fran Gage, Cheryl and Bill Jamison, Deborah Madison, John McReynolds, Peter Reinhart, Tom Romano, Jerry Traunfeld, Joanne Weir and Paula Wolfert. I am honored you are part of this.

I am eternally grateful for the generosity of these manufacturers who shared their knowledge and products: Aztec Grill, Big Green Egg, Forno Bravo, La Caja China, NapaStyle, Pacific Coast Brick Ovens, SoJoe Fire Pits, SpitJack, and Wood Stone Ovens.

A special thank you to my team of recipe testers: Kay Austin, Suzy Foster, Nancy Lang, Lisa Lavagetto, Stephen McBurney, Sally McComas, John McReynolds, Annie Simmons, and Eileen Tyson. Good job! An added hug to Kay, Sally, and Annie for assisting me at the photo shoot.

A special nod of gratitude to Aaron Wehner and Lorena Jones at Ten Speed for embracing this topic and having faith in my vision. Thank you to my editor, Melissa Moore, for her thoughtful suggestions, skillful organizational eye, and unwavering enthusiasm. Applause to the blazing creative team: Ed Anderson, photographer extraordinaire; Jenny Martin-Wong, talented stylist; and Nancy Austin, keen designer.

Other nods of thanks to: Dianne Jacob for being a great coach and helping me develop my writing voice; Georgeanne Brennan and Diane Phillips for being my big sisters; Paula Wolfert being my mentor; John Ash for sharing the journey; Toni Allegra for supporting my teaching vision; Kathleen Hill and Sally Bernstein for encouraging my writing; Sue Simon, James Cribb, and Sonoma Dog Camp for caring for Ginger; Priscilla Hoback for sharing her horno, friends, and great food; Ann Funsten for allowing me to build my oven; the special friends who gather with me at the fire; and my students, who continue to explore and share their wood-fired experiences.