Tools for backyard grilling and barbequeing

Backyard barbeques have been around forever, or so it seems.  In reality, it all started with the American Indians.  The Indians were preserving meat in the sun when the early Spanish explorers arrived.  The explorers soon learned that although the process preserved the meat, it ended up full of bugs which led to spoiled meat.  The Indians were taught to build fires and hang the meat on racks over the fire.  Smoke from the fire kept the bugs away and the heat preserved the meat.  The Indians called this process "barbacoa" and "barbeque" was born.  As Europeans and Africans migrated to the United States, they brought cattle and pigs and replaced the racks and fires with smoke houses and pits.  However, in fact, this was not a new concept.  Polynesians had been cooking pork this way for thousands of years.  This new method worked well in the New World where slow cooking reduced the toughness of poor cuts of meat.  Because there was no refrigeration, meat that was not eaten immediately after slaughter had to be preserved by smoking.  The pit barbeque became popular and whole hogs were cooked in the pit.  Through the years, the barbeque grills were developed, improved and became a big part of cooking.  Initially the barbeque grills were primarily used for picnics or camp side cooking.  During the 1940's, the middle classes moved to the suburbs, and it was only a short time later that backyard grilling became popular.  We know that both men and women enjoy backyard grilling, but research has confirmed that men seem to dominate the world of backyard grillers.  Maybe it's all that raw meat, fresh air and fire?  But no matter who the backyard griller may be, this portable grill and smoker will be a hit!