The TCM of BBQ

Now that summer is here people are taking to their grills and cooking food outdoors over fire. It’s such a fun, communal and primal thing to do. Using high heat to sear foods like hamburgers, steaks or vegetables is known as grilling, and it can be done inside on a cast iron skillet or outside on a Weber or the like. This can be distinguished from barbecue, the low and slow method that uses charcoal and wood to create amazing flavors and textures. Barbecue is more difficult, complex, and elemental than simply grilling, and it actually teaches me about medicine in ways that textbooks cannot.
 
 
Getting it right is a delicate interplay of various factors that require attention and understanding. Each of the Five Elements are represented in the process of creating great barbecue. Wood is the fuel that gets the whole thing going. I like to use hardwood charcoal briquettes as the main heat source, with wood chips to add smokey flavor. Since the Wood element is the mother of Fire, the type of fuel will have a direct impact on how the heat is held and maintained. Fire is transformational in nature, and has the magical quality of turning things into what they’re truly meant to be. In this case, Fire changes a piece of raw meat into a symphony of flavor. Of course the next element, Metal, is equally important since it represents the airflow and the vents that control it. The kettle itself and the grate that the food sits on are also made of metal. Water is represented by the moisture in the food which carries the minerals and nutrients. The meat must be cooked enough so that the muscle fibers release their fluids but not so much that it dries out. Lastly, Earth is the final product, the meal, the context in which it’s consumed and the body and soul that receives its nourishment. 
 
Each experience with barbecue has the potential to be fun and rewarding, yet there are also lessons to be learned. Some cuts of meat are more forgiving than others, but a brisket has little room for error. When doing barbecue, attention to detail, flexibility and humility are helpful attributes to have. Practicing Chinese Medicine is similar.