The Best Barbecue Cookbooks to be Isolated With

Given that we’re now all stuck inside, I’ve found it the perfect time to go through my barbecue cookbooks and wider collection to rediscover recipes and techniques, and plan out what exactly we’re going to make during our long days at home!

It’s been a couple of years since we shared our top books, so I thought I would update my top 10 of new favourites and those that I continue to find inspiration from. I’ve linked them all up to Book Depository, which I’ve always found to have the best price and free shipping.

Aren’t Barbecue Cookbooks all the same?

Somebody said to me the other day that all barbecue cookbooks are the same. While the techniques don’t always vary, what I find interesting are the variations on flavour and ways of cooking, which is why I tend to buy so many of them.

But, this list isn’t strictly BBQ though – despite the headline! I’ve also included a number of titles that underpin the theory of cooking, and that pursue some of my new interests like fermenting and curing.

The Smoke Shop’s Backyard BBQ : Eat, Drink, and Party Like a Pitmaster

One of our favourite new barbecue cookbooks, I picked this book up in Melbourne a few weeks ago, and love it. Andy Husbands is the legend behind the smoke shop and this book of BBQ favourites, sides, drinks and more is perfect for spending a whole day on the smoker.

South’s Best Butts: Pitmaster Secrets for Southern Barbecue Perfection

This book presents different takes on a similar theme – the pork butt. Travelling through the South, the author visits a number of restaurants to get their takes on this traditional BBQ dish, and a host of others.

Ribs and Sides

We love ribs, and Adam’s book is a fantastic addition to your collection. Filled with recipes for beef, pork, lamb and even chicken ribs (yes, chicken ribs), the latest edition has a whole new lot of sides to complete the meal.

Franklin Barbecue: A Meat Smoking Manifesto

No barbecue cookbook collection is complete without this book. Equal parts theory and recipe, Aaron Franklin is the man who knows what’s what when it comes to smoked meat. You’ll find yourself going back to this one a lot.

The Science of Spice

Whilst not directly barbecue related, this book for us is a bit of a bible when it comes to working out flavour combinations. With a look at a whole lot of spice origins and combinations, it’s a great addition to your collection.

Cool Smoke: The Art of Great Barbecue

Tuffy Stone is a barbecue legend and world champion many times over, and one of the best barbecue cookbooks in recent years. His long awaited book delivered the goods as far as his process, recipes and thoughts on cooking.

Olympia Provisions: Cured Meats and Tales from an American Chacuterie

Cured meats are also a passion of ours (mostly eating…) and this book has been a great introduction into how the process works, and the history. And if you have nineteen variations of frankfurt – how can you go wrong?

Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking

If you have one book in your collection, this should be it. A tome to mastering the essential elements of good cooking, you’ll learn a raft of techniques and ideas.

Acid Trip: Travels in the World of Vinegar

We’ve recently started fermenting our own vinegars, and this book has been an excellent guide to understanding the science and origins behind them, as well as a host of recipes to try with them.

The Red Rooster Cookbook: The Story of Food and Hustle in Harlem

I love a restaurant with a history and a story, and none have that more than this Harlem institution. Amazing photography and stories, and an incredible menu shaped over the years by the people who made it what it is.