Sticky Fingers and Tenderloins [Paperback]

Fans of Ted Reader, the "King of the Q," whose television segments appear on Cottage Country, know better than anyone that "bizarre" and "barbeque" are not mutually exclusive, especially in a recipe collection featuring Beer Can Chicken and more cover blurbs from members of the Barenaked Ladies than from culinary professionals. Rock & roll does indeed meld with rubs and seasonings, if a bit uneasily, in this compendium of recipes for grilled meats, poultry, seafood, and side dishes. Ranging from gourmet (Grand Marnier Cornish Hens) to downright gloopy (a thrombosis-in-Pyrex, 20+ layer chip dip), Reader's collection is an inspiring mass of contradictions. Here's a chef whose own tastes encompass both trendy Cedar-Planked Salmon and old-school Russian dressing, who'll insist on opening a fresh coconut with a hammer for a Coconut Chili Chutney but will use canned creamed corn for Southern Corn & Cheddar Pudding. So if some recipes occasionally belie his having spent too long at Toronto's SkyDome Hotel designing baseball-themed menus for a famished fan base (roasting garlic to tone down flavour; advocating iceberg lettuce and bacon bits), Reader will just as often surprise with techniques such as cooking mussels on the grill by sandwiching them between two layers of soaked mustard greens or using an full, open can of beer as a vertical chicken roaster.

This unusual book may also have you running to liquor stores and ethnic groceries in equal measure--bourbon and hoisin sauce being two of Reader's food groups. Sometimes an elaborate list of ingredients goes so far as engendering that great crippler of home cooks everywhere: the dreaded mid-recipe page flip. Oddly, too, the book preaches the gospel of grilling without once discussing the how-to of building or sustaining a fire--surprising, since Reader won the 2000 Championship Auto Racing Teams chef competition largely on his BBQ prowess. Perhaps, as Sticky Fingers and Tenderloins shows, Ted Reader isn't the type to put the CART before the hoisin. --Tony Mason

"Finger-licking good"food, hot off your own grill!

A side of ribs, tender and succulent, basted with a savoury sauce, is a pleasure to eat as you lick each sticky finger (yours or your lover's). A steak, thick and juicy, grilled to perfection and crusted lightly with garlic, is a carnivore's heaven.

For this grilling guide, Chef Ted Reader has sought out the best rib and steak recipes from his travels across the Americas, finding them in lofty five-star restaurants and lowly road houses. Whether it's his Cedar-Planked Blue Cheese-Stuffed Beef Tenderloin (featured in GQ magazine) or Bourbon-Marinated Salmon Steak served with spicy corn cakes, you'll find it inside Sticky Fingers and Tenderloins.

You'll also find pork ribs, beef ribs, and lamb ribs. And, besides beef and salmon steaks, there are recipes for pork, veal, venison, chicken, turkey, lamb leg, trout, halibut, and cod steaks. Then there's the rub! Recipes abound for side dishes and classic rubs such as Peppercorn Rub, and Ancho Chili Rub.

More finger-licking good goodies:

• Soup recipes, including Crab and Corn Chowder, Fiddlehead Stew, and Steakhouse Minestrone
• Great side dishes, such as Creamed Spinach, Hush Puppies, and the Perfect Baked Potato
• A listing of great steak houses and rib joints throughout North America
• Recipes from Carson Ribs in Chicago, St. Elmo's in Indianapolis, and Joe's in Miami
• A butcher's description of cuts and a guide to all the equipment and tools needed

Ted Reader is an award-winning chef, author and product developer. He spent five years as the executive chef of President's Choice, where he helped develop such products as the PC Real Jerk Wings and PC Thick and Cheesy Burgers along with developing the recipes in the Dave Nichol Cookbook and the PC Barbecue Cookbook. He is now the host of two television shows, CTV's "King of the Q" and PBS's "The Grilling Meister," where he demonstrates his flair for making cooking easy and entertaining. His many bestselling cookbook titles include Sticks and Stones: The Art of Grilling on Plank, which won the Cuisine Canada's silver medal, Sticky Fingers & Tenderloins and Hot, Sticky and On Fire. Ted lives in Toronto.