Sneak Peek: "Man The Grill: Why Do Men Dominate The Grill?"

[Clint Cantwell]

We all know that men consider the grill to be their domain. But why do so few women cook outdoors and could that soon change? Meathead has all of the answers in his new article "Man The Grill: Why Do Men Dominate The Grill?". Pitmaster Club members get a sneak peek by visiting https://amazingribs.com/man-the-gril...ate-the-grill/.

[Huskee]

Where I grew up, dad ran the grill because mom didn't want him in the kitchen messing it up so he got the dirty stinky job outside at the grill. My mom would also NEVER crawl underneath the old Malibu to do an oil change, nor did my dad even know the first thing about ironing something, but he could take the iron apart to fix the short. In all of my friends & family groups except one the men are tasked with the grill/smokers. In one group the husband does all the cooking, even inside, because the wife hates cooking. In my cousin's family the wife grills because the husband hates any cooking, even grilling.

In my house my wife grills on occasion, but she doesn't care for it as much as indoor cooking. I fry and bake but I don't care for it as much as outdoor cooking so it all works out good for us.

[FireMan]

Ya wanna know what I think do ya? If we narrow it down to the good ol’ USA it’s about money. Fostering a lifestyle that is then marketed, yes advertising, advertising, advertising. Bein outside, charcoal dust, grease, heavy cleaning, in some cases walk in & out of the abode, mebbee swillin a beer & while swillin yer doin somethin are all deemed a guy thing. Not exclusive to the male sex, but as advertised, who wants the dirt & grime when you can have a nice clean, convenient, efficient environment close to all the other duties of home life. Huskee mentioned the oil change phenomena, (I still change my oil) who works on cars? Although today, more & more guys can’t change a tire.
Now if we’re talkin membership here, I think it’s about cookin & not a guy or a gal thing. Just look at the diversity of dishes that is presented on this forum. I can not speak for other cultures, but cookin for the fam is a Mom thing. The culinary arts does seem to be dominated by the male side of things. Why the interest there is what it is, I don’t know.

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

It's kinda awesome reading through that and noting little bits where I recall the pit discussing this topic all nicely wrapped up into a coherent form.

I also find it interesting that since we had that initial discussion, I'm noticing on a lot of the cooking competition shows that there are a lot more ladies competing in grilling or outdoor cookoffs, and/or female chefs/pitmasters/restauranters competing in general cook off stuff liked Chopped or similar.

[fzxdoc]

I am teaching my married daughter to grill. Many cooking skills are handed down, much like treasured recipes, and for me, grilling and smoking are skills that need to be passed down. Since she is the intuitive cook, her skills on the grill are much better than her husband's, who doesn't have all that much interest in cooking but will do it "on demand".

That said about my daughter, with a baby and pre-schooler and very busy careers, neither she nor her husband are interested in smoking or having live fire around the little ones. I have a standing offer to purchase their first cooker/smoker whenever they have the time and interest. In the meanwhile, my daughter continues to hone her skills on their gasser and I continue to supply them with all sorts of smoked meats.

My married stepdaughter and her husband have no interest in grilling except for the occasional hot dogs and burgers for a pool party. They get a supply of smoked goodies from me as well.


Kathryn

[CandySueQ]

I think this was an interesting history read. It's by no means comprehensive though. While I believe I am still the only habitual, solo female competitor on the KCBS circuit, if you go to Texas, female cooks are plentiful! In many cases, the wife didn't like the hubby's flavor profile, so she tried her flavors on the judging. IBCA rules have related competitors cooking on separate pits.

On the thermostat front, I am one of many, many females that find gas grills intimidating! Pellet grills are not. I believe that the proliferation of inexpensive pellet grills will push more women out on the patio. I see more women purchasing pellets...

On the Hall of Fame front, I can't believe that Meathead made the Hall of Fame before I did...
(That's a joke, folks!)

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

My wife will use our pellet grill ONLY if I fill it, set it, and clean it. She knows how to turn it on and off, but she doesn't really have an interest in using it. When we had a gasser she used that quite often, especially when I was out of the country. Just curious if you would entertain one of these gassers coming out that operate like a pellet grill? Or is it the hazard you're more wary of?

[CandySueQ]

I used to have gasser. It always ran out when I was in the middle of cooking something! I know when the coals are going out or there aren't enough pellets.

[Meathead]

I agree! I am not worthy!

[smokin fool]

My wife and daughter want nothing to do with BBQing/smoking until the final product shows.
Afraid of the propane gas and lighting charcoal.
My mother on the other hand is all in, pass the lighter....lets cook.

[Murdy]

I think there was a practical side to this division of labor/activity in the post WWII nuclear family when men typically spent their weekdays working away from the home for 9+ hours while women generally took care of the house. Women were home during the week; therefore, they cooked the week's meals. This sort of cooking is utilitarian in nature--keeping the family fed. Men, who were working, couldn't start dinner after they got home from work and have it done at a reasonable time (particularly in the era before many modern conveniences made cooking easier (i.e., microwaves). Grilling, on the other hand, is often a recreational activity, something you do on weekends, when men were home and women were probably sick of cooking after having done it all week, so they weren't interested in recreational cooking. This might also explain why men are often drawn to gourmet cooking.

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

that's an interesting take I don't think any of us covered in the other thread.

[WillTravelForFood]

For some couples where one partner is not up to doing fancy things in the kitchen, they feel that they can still contribute to a meal by handling the outdoor cooking while the rest of the meal comes together inside -- think along the lines of "sharing the meal prep" and participating in the household task.

Plus, playing with fire is fun.

[rickgregory]

"One reason more women don’t grill, I think, is because there were no thermostats on grills so controlling the temperature was tricky, and good cooking, after all, is all about temperature control."

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

I read this as more of "why use the grill where I have to get all finicky with controls and vents, when I can just make a temp controlled meal with the stove with a turn of a single dial" but definitely can see why that statement would stand out as is.

[fzxdoc]

That one got a big eye roll from me as well! Good Lawd. I have worked diligently to know my outdoor cookers' temperature management needs, just as I know the temperature swings of my indoor ovens.

K.

[cgrover60]

Well in our house it's slightly different. My wife is a credentialed chef who cooks anything regardless of technique way above my pay grade. My thought has always been she defers to my grilling and smoking because she then doesn't need to yet she did ask for her own grill for when she wants to. Works for me.

[Jfrosty27]

My wife is a fully capable griller on the gasser. In fact, when we were young and I was fully engaged in building my career, she did all of it because I just didn’t have the time or was traveling leaving her to feed herself and our son.

I really only took over fully about 8 years ago. I love doing it and she is happy to let me. Her attitude is sure I can cook and grill but why should I if you’re going to cook and wait on me?
We’re both happy with that arrangement.

[rickgregory]

I think MH does cover this in the linked article as do several of you above - this is mostly the way grilling was pitched in the early to mid 20th century and so it's become "the way things are" in the US out of inertia.

[Bogy]

In my family, my grampa was the one who cooked T-bones with his charcoal grill. Grandma owned a cafe and cooked many a T-bone on the griddle, but at home Grampa cooked them outside. My dad would do the outdoor cooking, mom had no desire to cook outdoors, the kitchen was her style. My wife has indulged my cooking outdoors for a long, long time. As I've spent more time here, she appreciates it more and more. But for the 45 years we've been married it's been more a matter of who was home to cook than who was male or female. I had done more cooking than my wife when we got married. Her mom did ALL the cooking, my mom was fine with letting me cook. Our kids grew up not knowing for sure who would be cooking dinner that night. None of them ever starved. Our son now does the outdoor cooking, but he probably does as much cooking total as his wife dies, or more. One daughter is fine with letting her husband cook outdoors, although before he started working from home she would start the pellet burner when he told her to. The other daughter asked me to show her how to grill, but now that she is married her wife does most of the grilling. In their situation, if they are going to have grilled/smoked food, a woman is going to have to do it. Overall, in my family outdoor cooking has leaned toward the male doing it, but overall, the cooking gets done by whoever is available, and in recognition that some of us have "specialties" that we are responsible for.

[CaptainMike]

I like this.

[JCBBQ]

My wife is happy to have me make my cooking mess outside. And she’d rather me have to do the cooking if we’re having that kind of food. Division of labor. For the most part.