Known best as America’s master griller, my friend Steven Raichlen went back into the kitchen for his latest cooking guide — 
Man Made Meals: The Essential Cookbook for Guys is for men and the way they cook, written in the easy-going and entertaining voice like his 30 other books. Those other cookbooks have won many awards, including five James Beard ones, and includes the The Barbecue Bible and How to Grill (each with more than 1 million copies in print).
I caught up with this prolific writer recently just as he was heading to Europe. Steven stopped and took a moment to respond to our Guest Foodie questions.
Which food product or gadget would you never give up? My Lumatongs. Barbecue tongs with a flashlight built in one handle, so you can see what you’re grilling at night. (And we all grill at night.) Designed them myself because all the other grill tongs out there are too short.
What do you like to serve when you entertain? A big hunk of protein that I can carve for everyone at the table. 
Depending on the time of year and where I am, this might be a smoked brisket, spit-roasted prime rib, heritage pork shoulder, wood grilled whole beef tenderloin, rotisserie leg of lamb, bourbon brined turkey, etc. The idea that big cuts of meat serve a lot of people with minimal work. The cooking time is forgiving. And carving one roast for many people creates a sense of community. I also try to serve local: smoked oysters, swordfish, and grilled lobster when we’re in Martha’s Vineyard; spiny lobster or Key West pinks (shrimp) when we’re in Miami.
Describe your “last meal?” Maryland steamed crabs. I grew up on them and the pepper and spice paste in which they’re cooked will send you out of this would with a bang. They also take a long time to eat, prolonging the final moment.
What food is your secret guilty pleasure? Pleasures don’t make me feel guilty. Especially not food pleasures.
What is your go-to neighborhood restaurant? Salumeria 104 in Midtown Miami. It’s not really in my immediate neighborhood, but the pasta is made from scratch, the salume sliced paper-thin to order, and I love their vitello tonnato.
What is one food product most people don’t know about, but should? Pistachio flour. On those rare occasions when I pan-fry fish, not grill it, I love the nutty crust it gives a fish fillet cooked a la meuniere or a veal or pork chop 
cooked a la milanese. it also makes a hell of a gelato.
Describe your worst kitchen disaster and how (if possible) you saved it: I once set a chicken on fire during a taping for NPR. Sprayed it with wine, then dusted it with chopped herbs and said that’s how they do it in Tuscany. It was delicious.
Who was your most influential mentor? For grilling: the Basque grill master Bitor Aguinoziz of the restaurant Extebari in Spain. The guy builds a fresh fire for every item he grills.
For food writing, Anne Willan.
To follow Steve on Twitter, click here.
– bonnie tandy leblang
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