‘Open Flame' exhibits the art of barbecue

Joining me were chefs Jermiah Duddleston of Gourmet Grille at Buy for Less, Mark Ridener of Cheever's Cafe and pitmaster Russ Garrett, also known as the Smokin' Okie.

To show what can be accomplished in your own backyard, Garrett demonstrated in great detail the process of achieving barbecue perfection from choosing the right cuts and cutting the meat correctly.

Moinks (a blend of moo and oink) was his first dish, a simple precooked meatball wrapped in bacon, cooked, dipped in sauce then finished over a flame to caramelize the sauce.

Before the moinks rolled out, Ridener dazzled the crowd with bacon-wrapped jalapeno-stuffed quail breast, which was glazed in a spicy-sweet barbecue sauce. This specialty of Cheever's sister restaurant Iron Starr Urban BBQ was the perfect way to start an upscale cookout. To go with the quail, he stirred up some sweet potato salad with mustard dressing.

I prepared Double-Pork Pinwheels and roasted corn and avocado slaw.

Duddleston created a couple of kebabs to break up the barbecue monotony, sharing chicken, pineapple and onion on one and spicy shrimp on the other.

morning.

The next “Open Flame” will be Tailgating Goes Gourmet from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 18, at the American Propane's cabana. If you'd like to attend, call American Propane at 843-6868.