Summer is all about barbecue and we look forward to barbecue season more than almost any other time of the year. Summer is the time to break out those delicious recipes that are packed with flavor, fire up the grill or the smoker, and get together with friends and family to take advantage of the warm weather and long days while they last. Today, we'll share ten of our favorite summertime barbecue recipes with you to provide inspiration for your next cookout.
These recipes are tried and true examples of ways to produce awesome meals on the grill. Of course, it all starts with having the right grill, the best accessories, and the proper tools that ensure success.
Now let's get into the recipes.
The Best Grilled Chicken Recipe: Chipotle Chicken Kabobs
One of our top recipes, grilled chipotle chicken kabobs, comes together quickly and easily and are just loaded up with flavor. Our twist on the classic kabob uses the Bearded Butcher Chipotle Blend Seasoning to add a smoky sweetness and combines fresh vegetables and fruit with marinated chicken breast to create the ultimate finger food for any barbecue.
Marinating the chicken in a blend of soy sauce, vegetable oil, and honey helps to give the chicken breast a bit of tropical flavor. Toss in a few heaping spoonfuls of Chipotle seasoning, mix well, and let the meat rest in the fridge overnight. Cut up your favorite veggies like onions and mushrooms, add in some fruit like zucchini and pineapple, then grill on a really hot grill for a few minutes on each side until the vegetables are crisp and the chicken is cooked through.
This recipe is ideal for big family gatherings and boisterous neighborhood cook-offs. Assembling the kabobs is lots of fun and a great way to get the younger ones involved in the process.
The Best Smoked Brisket Recipe
No summer barbecue recipe list is complete unless it’s got a brisket recipe on it. The King of Barbecue can be a daunting task, as this is a big, expensive cut of meat, but following our top smoked brisket recipe will get you pitmaster status every time.
Our smoked brisket recipe starts with a super simple marinade that makes sure the brisket won’t dry out in the smoker and uses loads of Bearded Butcher Blend Black Seasoning to give the brisket the perfect combination of spiciness and sweetness.
Smoking a brisket is an all-day affair, and the biggest thing you can do to make sure you have great results is to plan ahead and start early. A 16 to 18-pound packer brisket might require eight or nine hours. We have seen brisket that took as much as 18 hours to smoke, so make sure you have plenty of time and fuel on hand before starting out.
The Best Grilled Shrimp Recipe
Grilled shrimp are just about the freshest thing to come off a grill every summer. Whether you are doing it Aussie-style or adding prawns to your kabobs, these little guys disappear rapidly right off the fire. Our grilled shrimp recipe takes advantage of the blistering heat of the Bearded Butcher Blend Hot Seasoning and adds fried plantain chips for a tropical heat treat that is simple to make and cooks up in a matter of minutes.
The Best Smoked Ribs Recipe
Probably the most popular go-to meat at any barbecue is ribs. Beef ribs and pork ribs are affordable cuts that offer lots of meaty flavors and cook up quickly. There is also just something primally entertaining about chowing down on a massive rib bone, caveman-style. If you are not sure about the differences between baby back ribs, spare ribs, and St. Louis-style ribs, fear not, we explain it all on our YouTube channel.
We have two variations of our smoked beef rib recipe that we simply can’t seem to get enough of, and both use Bearded Butcher Blend Seasonings. One of the best ways is to make a dry rub that includes our Hollywood blend which adds sweetness and lets the ribs develop a fantastic bark. The other uses our Black blend. If you haven’t gotten ahold of a bottle of this stuff, why are you putting it off? It will quickly become one of your favorite ingredients in your grilling arsenal.
The Best Smoked Brats: Hickory BBQ Bratwurst Recipe
We get a lot of influence from Northern European recipes here in Ohio due to the large number of people who originated from that region. One of the best things about these influences is bratwurst. This German sausage is delicious on its own and is absolutely amazing smoked, then chopped with a big bowl of sauerkraut and spaetzle.
The secret to our recipe is the custom ingredients in our DIY Hickory Brats recipe. You can order the DIY kit on our website and all you have to do is add 25lbs of meat and stuff the casings. Then, smoke the sausages to perfection.
Hollywood Pork Butt Recipe
Pork butt is a cut that seems like it is meant for feeding a crowd. It is a large hunk of meat that is typically affordable. The best thing to do with a pork butt is to toss it in the smoker until it turns into delicious shredded pork. It makes for the best BBQ pulled pork sandwich around and is one of the easier recipes to make.
Simply use the Bearded Butcher Blend Hollywood Seasoning as a dry rub, completely coating the roast in flavor. Then, smoke until the roast hits its stall temp, wrap it in butcher paper, and finish smoking it. Once the internal temperature hits about 203 degrees, the meat will practically fall apart. Pile it up on a toasted brioche bun and slather on some Bearded Butcher Blend BBQ Sauce for the ultimate pulled pork sandwich.
Sweet & Savory Hollywood Pork Belly Burnt Ends Recipe
Burnt ends have been all the rage for the last few summers and for good reason. These delectable little bites of smoked pork belly are tender and juicy and make the perfect pork belly burnt ends sandwich. We use a combination of apple juice to cool the pork belly while it is smoking and a good dose of our Hollywood seasoning. You will likely notice that Hollywood is one of our favorites for any pork recipe. That is because it enhances the flavor of pork with a combo of sugar and molasses which is ideal.
Buttery Smoked Corn on the Cob Recipe
It is rare for a side dish to steal the show, but this time of year, corn on the cob will do its best to be the star. Corn is versatile and can be cooked any number of ways – but our favorite way to make corn on the cob is in the smoker. We love it so much that we created a Bearded Butcher Blend flavor just to enhance it. Of course, we are talking about our Butter blend, a mind-blowing combo of our Original recipe seasoning with the addition of sweet butter.
You can even take the smoked corn recipe here to the next level by going the extra couple of steps it takes to make Smoked Elotes Mexicanos.
Cajun Smoked Cream Cheese Jalapeno Popper Chicken Thighs
The first time that we saw this recipe, we thought ‘Whoa. That’s got a lot going on.’ Then we made it ourselves. Then we made it again, using a different seasoning. Then, we realized that despite the fact this meal combines an appetizer and an entrée, it is so good that it had to be shared with our readers.
The trick here is to smoke the cream cheese after seasoning it with Bearded Butcher Chipotle Blend Seasoning. We experimented with Hot, Original, and Cajun before settling on Chipotle as the best compliment to the spicy jalapenos. One of the more recent things we have been doing is to smoke the peppers and remove the skin, seeds, and veins before adding them to the recipe. This gives the chicken an even more pronounced chili smoke flavor.
Smoked Turkey Wings Recipe
This is another recipe that we make quite a lot during summer that uses the delicious mild smokiness of the Bearded Butcher Blend Chipotle Seasoning. The flavor profile of smoked peppers works perfectly with the strong turkey wing flavor and enhances the way smoke creates a perfectly crisp skin. Smoking turkey wings is fast and easy. Our recipe shows you how to properly cut turkey wings, how to get the best flavor, and how to tell when these snacks are properly cooked.
Ready to Get Grilling?
The long days and warm nights of summer are perfect for barbecuing and smoking. This year, take advantage of the wonderful weather and spend time with your friends and family trying out some of our top summer barbecue recipes. When you do, take a picture and shoot it over to us. We love seeing what our fans are cooking up and we love to hear about variations and experiences from all of your cookouts!
