Top 5 Best Barbecue Books for 2023
Practice will lead to success. Even if you are an amateur now, you can become a professional by practicing hard, of course, with the right guidance.
So, if you’re serious about your barbecue hobby, want to level up your skills or compete in a barbecue contest in the future, it’s time to buy best barbecue books to get started.
Anyway, you want to host delicious barbecue parties for family and friends at the weekend, right?
Whether you tend to buy or not, just skim through my review and decide later.
Best Barbecue Books 2023
1. Weber’s Ultimate Grilling: A Step-by-Step Guide to Barbecue Genius
If you are new to barbecue, you will probably find this book extremely useful.
The author has not rushed to introduce complex grilling techniques but focuses on the basic steps and details, for example, the four T’s (temperature, time, techniques, tools).
The book features 125 recipes, 200 techniques and tips, and 750 instructive photos.
Its author, Jamie Purviance, has been working as a food writer for publications. “Weber’s Ultimate Grilling” is the knowledge accumulation of his 20 years as Weber’s master griller and teacher.
With 352 pages of colorful pictures, infographics, illustrations, and tips, this book will definitely improve your barbecue skills to the next level to treat families and guests with delicious and various dishes every weekend.
2. Smoke: New Firewood Cooking
If you are serious about firewood cooking projects in general, including barbecue, this book will be very helpful.
The author is an extremely passionate and enthusiastic person and you will feel this clearly through the recipes shared across the pages.
It offers a lot of basic knowledge about traditional southern barbecue so you can apply it right next weekend.
Besides, it requires a real commitment to follow every step from this book because there are many unique recipes with ingredients that need a lot of time to prepare to bring satisfactory results in form and flavor.
This book comes with well-designed print and visual layouts.
Pros
- Inspiring content
- Covers all kind of foods
- Well-designed cookbook
3. Diva Q’s Barbecue
This cookbook is packed with many full color photography and nice layouts, which make you feel hungry even just by looking at them.
Like a dedicated author and barbecue enthusiast, Danielle covers everything you need to know from smoker types and their usages to wood options, temperatures, marinades, beef, fish, pork, veggies, side dishes, even paired drinks for pellet smoker recipe.
As far as I know, Diva Q is the face of BBQ Crawl show and one of Canada’s top barbecue experts.
This book will inspire and help you improve your backyard barbecue greatly. The instruction is clear and easy to follow. There will be no more bad barbecue from now on.
Pros
- Easy to follow recipes
- Most recipes were even paired with a drink
- Offers a lot of helpful tips
Cons
- For those who are advanced barbecuers might find it a bit too simple
4. Franklin Barbecue: A Meat-Smoking Manifesto
As a winner of many barbecue awards out there, a top pitmaster and an owner of the most popular restaurant in the country, Aaron Franklin has got many things to share.
Throughout the book, you will see the reflection of the author’s personal journey from the very first days to mastering the barbecue skills, including smoker, wood, fire, meat, rub and time.
Under the guidance of Aaron Franklin and his coauthor Jordan Mackay, you are exposed to the philosophy behind cooking.
Additionally, the book introduces basic steps to set up a barbecue business such as building your home smoker, choosing the right wood, creating perfect fires, selecting fresh meat, and of course, cooking delicious barbecue.
Pros
- Hard-won insight and pro tips of a BBQ pitmaster
- Full of interesting, sharing and inspiring stories
- Great book on brisket and smoking meats
Cons
- It’s more of an inspirational book, not a “how-to” cookbook and doesn’t contain many recipes
5. The Brisket Chronicles
The book is written by Steven Raichlen, one of the most prominent and trusted authors in the community of barbecue lovers. The Brisket Chronicles is one of my favorite books when it comes to making corned beef and pastrami.
It’s a safe bet whether you are a newbie or an experienced barbecuer, this book can bring you a whole new world of brisket. It covers everything you need to know about this topic.
Right at the beginning of the book, the author has given many suggestions that work well to keep your briskets tender and succulent. He then shows you different types of grills or smokers you can use and many different cooking styles and methods.
Pros
- Comprehensive guide about brisket
- Understandable cooking directions
- Satisfying recipes for smoking food lovers
Cons
- If you want more “how-to” instructions rather than recipes, you can try purchasing another book
Best Barbecue Books – Buying Guide
The selection process of best barbecue books can be simplified by focusing on the following factors to help you decide what’s right for you:
Content
The most important thing when choosing a book that’s right for you is content. You need to know that you are looking only for barbecue recipes or background information or both.
You prefer an electric smoker or wood pellet one. You want more about rubs and sauces or brisket. Do you care about side dishes and pair drinks recipes?
Author
To avoid returning the book, you can actively find out about the author before buying and see if you are suitable for the author’s style of cooking and characteristics.
Currently, there is a lot of information on the website, online articles or Youtube channels that help you somewhat contact with the author and give a general impression.
Writing Style
The book’s preview can help you capture a bit of the author’s writing style to see if you can digest the provided knowledge and make them useful for your barbecue learning.
Printing and Binding Quality
Quality of photos, illustrated pictures, visual layouts, and printing plays an essential role in helping you get more excited to practice the recipes in the book.
I am also interested in whether the book is bound carefully and can lay flat.
Format
You can choose different book formats to suit your budget and personal preferences.
Electronic books have two options: Kindle and audiobook while printed books are available in hardcover, paperback and spiral-bound copy.
Conclusion
My review showcase 15 best barbecue books which ring a bell among the fire pit community, so you can refer to.
I hope you find it helpful and finally buy your suitable book to guide you toward your goals step by step.
And my favorite book is Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling for its comprehensive, inspiring, and useful knowledge about barbecue.
Share your thoughts about best barbecue books below. I am looking forward to hearing from all of the barbecue enthusiasts around the world.