Before I describe this book, there is something you need to know about me.I am not your usual "grill guy".To the contrary, while I have grilled my entire adult life, it was a technique that I never took too seriously.I'm an excellent all around cook, so the grill was just another one of the tools in my arsenal.
However, my real passion is traditional, hardwood smoked barbecue - something that you really can't buy at a restaurant or make on a grill.It is a unique blend of art and science that is slowly being replaced by gas fired cookers that sort of flavor the meat with wood smoke rather than cooking the meat with it.If you have had the real thing, then you know the difference.Words alone will not describe it.
Because of this, the grill to me was only another tool based on inferior fuel sources.Gas versus charcoal?Who cares, there is nothing that special about the taste of either.They both allow you to keep your kitchen cool, be outside and get grill marks on your food.Sorry, I don't feel the magic.
This was my stance until a week or so ago when I caught an article in the New York Times about grilling with wood.The article really brought the whole problem I had with grilling into focus - grilling with gas or charcoal doesn't really add that much desirable flavor.But grilling with wood ......... that is something I could work with.In the article, they made brief mention of Francis Mallmann's new book Seven Fires - Grilling the Argentine Way.They baited me just enough to know that I had to have it because Memorialday was close at hand and offered the opportunity for some experimentation with wood grilling.
I have collected cookbooks for years, which includes a large section dedicated solely to (real) BBQ and grilling.They all pretty much read the same, some good old boy is telling you how to cook meat and make some sides to go with it.Mallmann's book breaks that mold.
First, the book is as much about culture and a passion for food as it is about cooking with wood.Secondly, it is well organized and thoughtful - giving a glimpse to the experience and mastery of the author. Lastly, it is a work of art - beautiful photographs showing not only prepared food, but of the people that enjoy it and the gorgeous land that inspires it.I'm a tough critic of food and books about it, but I can honestly say I found it inspirational.It speaks to the heart first, the stomach second.Passion is thekey ingredient for exceptional food.
I read the book cover to cover my first day, used the next day to strategize my cooking setup to utilize the principles and on the third and fourth days we cooked with wood. The recipes are straightforward, have small ingredient lists and turn out just as described.Day One was Pork Tenderloin with Burnt Brown Sugar, Orange Confit and Thyme.Day Two was Chicken Chimehuin (flavored with garlic, rosemary, lemon juice and lemon confit).In a word, extraordinary.
My bottom line:buy the book and be prepared to never see grilling the same way.
If you want to read about my first wood grilling experience and see pictures of the results, visit http://cincyhounddog.blogspot.com/2009/05/hound-goes-gaucho.html
Product DescriptionA trailblazing chef reinvents the art of cooking over fire.
Gloriously inspired recipes push the boundaries of live-fired cuisine in this primal yet sophisticated cookbook introducing the incendiary dishes of South America's biggest culinary star. Chef Francis Mallmann—born in Patagonia and trained in France's top restaurants—abandoned the fussy fine dining scene for the more elemental experience of cooking with fire. But his fans followed, including the world's top food journalists and celebrities, such as Francis Ford Coppola, Madonna, and Ralph Lauren, traveling to Argentina and Uruguay to experience the dashing chef's astonishing—and delicious—wood-fired feats.
The seven fires of the title refer to a series of grilling techniques that have been singularly adapted for the home cook. So you can cook Signature Mallmann dishes—like Whole Boneless Ribeye with Chimichuri; Salt-Crusted Striped Bass; Whole Roasted Andean Pumpkin with Mint and Goat Cheese Salad; and desserts such as Dulce de Leche Pancakes—indoors or out in any season. Evocative photographs showcase both the recipes and the exquisite beauty of Mallmann's home turf in Patagonia, Buenos Aires, and rural Uruguay.
Seven Fires is a must for any griller ready to explore food's next frontier.
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Seven Fires: Grilling the Argentine Way (Hardcover)
A narrative of a year spent inside the kitchen of an ambitious young chef in the Languedoc region of France. This is not a cookbook, it is a story of one man's dream as he follows a year of working in the kitchen, visiting suppliers, investigation that region of France (on the Med, not too far from the Spanish border). It's a story of love. Mr. Moon has clearly discovered where he wants to be and has been able to arrange his life so that he can be there. 
