What are the most crucial elements of the perfect barbecue grill? Your average grilling enthusiast will tell you that durability and special features are the most important elements. However, Expert barbecue cooks are more concerned with versatility, functionality, design, and tradition; these elements make Santa Maria grills perfect in the opinion of many grillmasters. First, take a look at what makes Santa Maria grills so respected in the world of barbecue grilling.
The Santa Maria Grilling Tradition
When you use a custom Santa Maria grill by JD Fabrication for your cookout, you are helping to preserve a regional culinary tradition rooted in the Santa Maria Valley of California. To explain these grills from concept to cookout, you have to reference the establishment of Mission Santa Ines in the 1770s. The Jesuits and Spanish settlers who laid the foundations of Santa Maria were primarily from the Basque Country, Galicia, and Asturias. These regions, located in the north of Spain, are known for their strong cattle ranching and horsemanship traditions. The settlers brought certain culinary traditions that played a major role in developing the Santa Maria-style barbecue.
Cowboy culture in the American West did not solely emerge from Andalusian vaqueros; it also features contributions from the Spanish north, where outdoor cooking was a staple of life in the range. You also have to consider the cuisine of the native Chumash, whose use of mesquite to smoke meat was complemented with regional seasonings such as epazote and sage also influenced Santa Maria grilling.
The Spanish settlers used red oak at home and found California coastal oak to be an ideal equivalent. Some Chumash techniques for cooking fish and game over earthen pits filled with hot coals were also adopted, and there’s also the Mexican influence of seasoning with garlic, cumin, oregano, and other spices that make the Santa Maria-style barbecue savory.
Evolution of Santa Maria Barbecue Grills
As Santa Maria developed, the earthen pits used for cooking on the range and at the ranch became more sophisticated over time. Cooks from Mission Santa Ines started building structures over the pits to make them more efficient and ergonomic. Grates were later introduced and elevated along with other enhancements, such as a system to adjust elevation. Other elements such as fireboxes, vents, firebrick, and rotisserie systems were added over many decades until Santa Maria grills became efficient enough to become full-fledged outdoor kitchens and barbecue systems.
It should be noted that the viceroyalties of Nueva España and Río de la Plata corresponded and communicated during the 18th century. Hence, the Spanish missions in California were aware of the burgeoning gaucho culture developing in the pampa regions of Argentina, where settlers from the Spanish north were forging an outdoor grilling tradition that became bigger and more widespread than the one that formed in Santa Maria.
This explains the similarities between the Gaucho and Santa Maria grilling systems. When you cook with a custom Santa Maria grill by JD Fabrication, you will find some elements of gaucho culture in the design; in fact, JD Fabrication also manufactures Argentine-style grills.
Modern Santa Maria Grills
A Santa Maria-style barbecue requires a grill that can be either freestanding, built into an outdoor kitchen, or towed with a trailer. This grilling tradition started with pork on a spit, but a rotisserie system with an electric motor is not a strict requirement of Santa Maria grills; it can be as simple as a single-hand crank. The fuel will always be wood or charcoal, never gas.
As for the grate, the stainless steel round rods must spin independently, but an interesting alternative involves an Argentine V grate that allows you to manage barbecue drippings for basting cuts of chicken, meat, or fish. Needless to say, a Santa Maria grill must allow grill masters to adjust the elevation of the grate through a cable and clamp mechanism. For temperature management and safety, the bottom of the grill must be lined with firebrick material.
Santa Maria grills are a popular choice for backyard barbecues and cookouts; professional pitmasters also use them, and they can be installed on a commercial kitchen island. JD Fabrications in Santa Maria manufactures grills certified by the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF) for restaurant use.
