Exploring barbecue from around world

Steven Raichlen may be most recognized as the host of the weekly PBS how-to programs “Primal Grill” and “Barbecue University.” But as a journalist and author, Raichlen has won five James Beard awards and his best-selling books include “The Barbecue Bible” and “How to Grill.”

Raichlen’s new book, “Planet Barbecue!” (Workman Publishing, $22.95), is a tour of some 60 countries, with 309 recipes that explore the diversity of food and culture from around the world, while illustrating a multitude of “live fire” grilling techniques.

Raichlen will be in Atlanta on June 29 as part of the “Planet Barbecue!” tour. Recently, he called from his home in Miami to talk about the book and his lifelong barbecue journey.

Q. How did you first get started on this barbecue quest?

A. I got a degree in French literature and then I won a Watson Foundation fellowship to study medieval cooking in Europe. I say that sort of tongue-in-cheek but in fact both of those things were instrumental in leading me to my whole fascination with barbecue. My work came from a double realization: First, grilling is the world’s oldest cooking method; second, people grill almost everywhere but they do it differently almost everywhere.

Q. Would it be safe to say that “Planet Barbecue!” is the culmination of your lifelong barbecue journey?

A. Yes. It’s certainly the biggest, most ambitious, and hardest book that I’ve ever done.

Q. How long did the research take and where did it take you?

A. I started in earnest five years ago and the travel took three years and covered 53 countries. I was on the road roughly four months a year. Then there was a year of testing recipes and writing the book.

Q. For purposes of the book, barbecue is defined a bit more broadly than we might define it here in Georgia or around the South, right?

A. Absolutely. In the South, it’s low and slow cooking. But this book embraces the barbecue grill. It embraces a general principal of cooking, which is using live fire. It embraces any number of iconic dishes, from pork shoulder in North Carolina to spiessbraten pork steaks in Germany to skewered beef satays in Singapore. It embraces a meal cooked and eaten outdoors. Finally, it embraces a kind of communal celebration.

Q. What’s an example of one of the more unusual barbecue methods you discovered?

A. I organized a trip to Colombia to experience lomo al trapo, which means beef tenderloin in a cloth. It’s wrapped in salt-packed cotton cloth and roasted on a bed of embers. You cook it until it’s charred and black and looks something like a mummy. But then you whack it open with cleaver and inside there’s this incredibly succulent piece of meat.

Q. There’s an interesting Atlanta connection in the book with Rafih Benjelloun and Imperial Fez.

A. I had an army of informants who helped me ferret out the places I needed to go. Rafih was fantastic in helping me with Morocco. He arranged for his son to take me around Marrakech. Anywhere I went, I would say the name Rafih and doors would open. I think the guy is like the unofficial mayor of Marrakech. His lamb recipe in the book is a really wonderful technique, studded with ginger, garlic and onion and basted with a garlic spice sauce called charmoula.

Q. So what’s the takeaway from your experience researching and writing “Planet Barbecue!”?

A. To paraphrase Brillat-Savarin, the famous French food philosopher, I would say, “Tell me what you grill and I’ll tell you who you are.” Grilling offers this incredible window into culture. It’s something we all do and we all love. And if something tastes great baked, fried or sautéed, it probably tastes even better grilled.

Book signing

Steven Raichlen’s “Planet Barbecue!”

6-9 p.m. June 29. Sur La Table Perimeter Mall, 4400 Ashford-Dunwoody Road, Suite 2310. 678-441-9120, www.surlatable.com .

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Recipes

These three recipes from Steven Raichlen’s “Planet Barbecue!” are flavorful examples of the wide world of cooking with fire. Grilled lamb from Morocco by way of Atlanta and grilled eggplant salad from Israel capture the exotic spiced essence of the Mediterranean and the Middle East. Easy and tasty Bacon-grilled Enotake Mushrooms are a fun Japanese bar snack.

Introductions are adapted from Steven Raichlen’s “Planet Barbecue!”

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Méchoui of Lamb With Berber Spices

Hands on: 3 hours Total time: 3 hours, including up to 21/4 hours for grilling Serves: 8 to 10

Call him Mr. Mayor. Almost everyone else in Marrakech and Fez does if they are even remotely involved with the food or hospitality business. I’m talking about Rafih Benjelloun, the Fez-born chef with a bigger than life personality who runs the Imperial Fez and Ibiza restaurants in Atlanta. Rafih was my go-to guy when I planned my research trip to Morocco, and Rafih was the guy who made sure I visited the right place at the right time. So when it comes to the big kahuna, the pièce de résistance of Moroccan grilling, barbecued lamb, I can think of no better guide than Rafih. In keeping with his Fez roots, he takes a two-step approach, studding the lamb with onion, garlic, and ginger then basting it with what he calls the “mother of all Moroccan sauces”: a sort of garlic, cumin, and cilantro vinaigrette called charmoula.

For the lamb:

1 bone-in leg of lamb (4 to 5 pounds)

1 medium white onion, cut in half crosswise, each half cut into 3 wedges

4 cloves garlic, peeled and cut lengthwise into 4 or 5 slices

1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and cut crosswise into thin slices, each slice cut in half

Coarse salt (kosher or sea) and freshly ground black pepper

For the charmoula:

1 medium onion, coarsely chopped

3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

1 (2-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped

1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

3 tablespoons sweet or smoked paprika

2 teaspoons coarse salt (kosher or sea), or more to taste

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or more to taste

1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

To prepare the lamb: Using a sharp chef’s knife, deeply score the leg of lamb on all sides in a crosshatch pattern. The cuts should be about 1 inch deep and 2 inches apart. Break the onion wedges into individual layers. Insert the pieces of onion and the slices of garlic and ginger into the cuts made by the scoring, pushing each in as deeply as possible. Generously season the leg of lamb on all sides with salt and pepper.

To prepare the charmoula: In a heavy mortar, pound the chopped onion, garlic and ginger to a paste with a pestle. Add the cilantro, paprika, salt, cumin and pepper and pound them into a paste. Work in the olive oil and enough water to obtain a thick but pourable sauce (about 11/2 cups). If you don’t have a mortar and pestle, purée the onion, garlic and ginger in a food processor, followed by the cilantro, paprika, salt, cumin, and pepper, then work in the olive oil and water. Taste the charmoula for seasoning, adding more salt and/or pepper as necessary; it should be highly seasoned. Transfer the charmoula to a saucepan and let it simmer over medium heat until richly flavored, about 5 minutes.

To prepare the grill: If you are grilling, using the indirect method, set up the grill for indirect grilling, place a large drip pan in the center, and preheat the grill to medium. Place the leg of lamb, fat side up, in the center of the grate over the drip pan and away from the heat. Cover the grill and cook the lamb until it is sizzling and dark golden brown, depending upon the grill and the size of the leg of lamb, 11/2 to 21/4 hours.

If you are using a rotisserie, set up the grill for spit roasting, following the manufacturer’s instructions, and preheat the grill to medium-high. Place a large drip pan under the spit. Starting at the fatter end, thread the leg of lamb lengthwise on the rotisserie spit, parallel to the leg bone, using the forked prongs of the spit to hold it in place. When ready to cook, attach the spit to the grill and turn on the motor. Spit roast the lamb until it is sizzling and dark golden brown, depending on the grill and the size of the leg of lamb, 11/2 to 2 hours.

After 30 minutes, start basting the lamb all over with the charmoula, basting it every 20 minutes. If you are using a charcoal grill, you may need to add fresh coals after the lamb has grilled for an hour.

Use an instant-read meat thermometer to test for doneness, inserting it into the thickest part of the leg but not touching the bone or the spit. When cooked to well-done, the internal temperature should be 190 to 195 degrees. (Moroccans prefer their lamb well-done.)

Transfer the grilled lamb to a platter. Loosely tent the leg with aluminum foil and let it rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Strain the lamb drippings into what remains of the charmoula sauce. Bring the charmoula to a boil and let boil until slightly thickened and richly flavored, 3 to 5 minutes.

To serve: Carve the lamb so that each person gets pieces with both meat and the outside crust. Spoon the charmoula on top and serve at once.

Per serving: 570 calories (percent of calories from fat, 75), 29 grams protein, 6 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram fiber, 48 grams fat (14 grams saturated), 108 milligrams cholesterol, 565 milligrams sodium.

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Bacon-grilled Enotake Mushrooms

Hands on: 30 minutes Total time: 30 minutes plus time to pre-heat the grill Serves: 4

Enotakes are the Modiglianis of mushrooms — long slender beauties with toothpick-thin stems and ivory-colored caps (they look like oversize straight pins). Their flavor is mild and woodsy, and best of all, enotakes come in cork-shaped clusters that are perfect for wrapping and grilling. The Japanese grill them in bacon and the contrast of sweet mushrooms and salty meat is a knockout.

4 clusters of enotake mushrooms (each about 1 ounce)

4 slices of bacon (about 4 ounces)

4 pieces of butcher’s string (each 6 inches long)

Pull most of the spongy base off each cluster of enotakes, leaving enough intact to hold the mushrooms together. Wrap each cluster crosswise with a slice of bacon, tying it in place with a piece of butcher’s string.

Set up the grill for direct grilling and preheat it to medium-high. Leave one section of the grill fire-free for a safety zone.