Michael Symon's New Cookbook, Cooking Out, Available for Pre-Order

James Beard Award-winning chef Michael Symon to release his latest cookbook in March. Credit: Clarkson Potter

To the millions of fans who follow Michael Symon’s every move, March 25 can’t arrive soon enough. That’s when his newest cookbook, Symon’s Dinners Cooking Out: 100 Recipes That Redefine Outdoor Cooking, will be released in hardcover. This is the James Beard Award-winning chef’s ninth cookbook, and the eighth that Scene Dining Editor Douglas Trattner has served as co-author. Three of those books, Fix It with Food, Carnivore, and 5 in 5 landed on the New York Times best-seller list.

In this latest book, Symon builds on the wild success of his outdoor cooking show, Symon’s Dinners Cooking Out, which has been airing for five seasons. The cookbook features fan-favorites from that show alongside a slew of new recipes.

What is unique about this collection of recipes is that every item is prepared on the grill, including desserts.

“What I love about this book is that despite owning every conceivable type of grilling and smoking equipment on the market, Mike uses for this book an unassuming charcoal kettle grill – the kind that 50 percent of home cooks have at home,” says Trattner.

The recipes range from fresh and fun starters like Grilled Halloumi and Watermelon Kebabs and straightforward entrees such as Grilled Swordfish with Salsa Fresca to an elegant Tomato Tart Tatin. Cooking techniques employed include direct-heat setups, indirect-heat setups and a combination of the two. Long cooks, such as the one used in the Pastrami-Smoked Pork Belly, utilize the Snake or Minion Methods.

Symon even boils water for pasta on the grill – a move he will defend with passion.

“When I’m cooking outside—filming or not—the last thing I want to do is split my time between my indoor kitchen and the grill,” he says. “I truly believe that anything that can be made inside can be made outside on a standard charcoal grill. Yes, I will admit that it might be easier to do some things indoors, like boiling water for pasta or baking a finicky cake, but where is the fun and adventure in that?!”

The book can be preordered now for delivery beginning in March.

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