Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson for August 06, 2020

Hate it when the chef can’t take a little constructive criticism.

He’ll probably spit in it too.

picky eater even when it comes to BBQ, isn’t he?

Open mouth insert foot…..

This happen when you criticize the cook .

If you do it right, and don’t overuse the lighter fluid, it’s fine. You won’t taste it at all.

GASOLINE, on the other hand…

Of all the things Dad has to put up with, he also finds out he’s got the one kid in a million that doesn’t like grilled hamburgers.

Just be glad he used the lighter fluid on the burgers, kid.

If Calvin is THAT picky, he probably won’t be able to eat again.

With all the criticism he gets from Calvin, Dad is beginning to develop an inferiotity complex.

For once the parents clamped down on the little cretin!!

Wow. Complains about all food. It’s amazing he eats anything

He who mocks outdoor cooking must pay the price.

That’s the response I would have gotten as a kid. :D

It’s a mistake giving Calvin that much time to think up what to do next!

In other words, “Good night, Calvin!”

I am King of the Grill. I have a smoker that I’ve had for 25 years. Along the way I’ve made many a smoked delicacy. That’s true barbecuing where you let the smoke do the work. Putting the meat over the coals is grilling. Mostly I do a combination of both: char the meat over the coals on each side to seal in the juices then move it over to “slow cook” it.

My specialty is smoked turkey: it takes all day to cook an I need a shower to get the smokey smell off my body, but in addition to the smoky flavor, the meat comes out very tender and juicy. My sister is willing to travel 700 miles to see me if she knows I am preparing it.

“A smart Alec and his tongue often go hungry” :D

Calvin, PM me. I can help your dad. Over 40 years of experience on Weber grills!

Calvin failed to complain about the occasional bird droppings. Has he gotten used to them or is the outdoor cooking so bad that they’re unnoticeable?

The thrill of hickory…

and the agony of burnt meat!

My grill has a propane side and a charcoal side, I only use the latter for big groups, so not at all this year. 10th anniversary bash got 86’d.

Snarky does not get snacks.

Why is the chef dressed like a golfer?

Took me many years to outgrow my Calvinistic tendencies. But it still happens, if I don’t keep up my guard, and I cringe when I hear myself recidivate.

More for dad!

Join us again tomorrow when Calvin reports on hot dogs.

Poor dad. He gets no love from his family for liking to grill and camp.

We used to go to the park and pick a stone fire place. Dad would go into the woods and find a dead stick and build a wood fire. Such memories!

Between Calvin being ungrateful and Dad not taking criticism, I got nothing clever here.

I never use lighter fluid to start charcoal.

Dad: “Let me clarify, WE eat in an hour. YOU eat torrow. Maybe.”

Better watch where you’re squirting that lighter fluid, Dad! Wouldn’t want to light something else by accident!

Love outdoor BBQ flavor.

Oddly, I don’t remember ever seeing this particular strip before. And I almost ALWAYS remember the ones where Calvin suffers the consequences of his own obnoxiousness.

M’mm m’mm! Nothing tastes better than a burger after holding a child accountable for bratty behavior, lighter fluid or not!

Neighbors on all sides of me barbecue frequently. That’s fine but I don’t understand why my house has to smell of lighter fluid.

Calvin’s mouth is almost the same in every panel.

somehow, “biting the hand that feeds you” springs to mind

Hell’s Kitchen

I would say that Calvin’s dad sounds like he’s from the Roger Fox school of grilling, but I think Calvin and Hobbes predates Foxtrot? So maybe it’s the other way around?

Calvin is on hie was to being a vegetarian. (Or a veterinarian, depending on how spell-check is working today)

My dad’s burgers were always crunchy. Didn’t seem right.

Don’t worry, Calvin. I’m sure Hobbes will share his tunafish sandwiches!

Looks like neither one can handle character building.

Dad used clear lamp oil in a pump spray on the briquettes, never tasted it in the meat.

If you let the charcoal get completely grey before putting the meat on the lighter fluid will be all burned off & won’t taint the food’s flavor.

I have never BBQ’d a hamburger or hot dog. I do teriyaki salmon.

I agree with Calvin, if a burger is burned outside, raw inside, I would throw it away.

Perhaps Calvin was NOT being sarcastic.

That’s exactly why Hank Hill recommends using Propane. Taste the meat, not the heat. :-)

This, unfortunately, is the exact description of my brother-in-law’s so-called “barbecuing” style. He’s so cheap, he tries to save his briquettes by plunging them into a coffee can of water. If he had a Weber Kettle, he could close all the vents and the briquettes go out, plus they stay dry and sterilize the inside of the grill at the same time. His son bought him one, but he won’t use it. He loves those cheap flat grilles and is too stubborn to change, so it’s the coffee can for the leftover briquettes. Unfortunately, when they get wet like this, they won’t burn until they’ve completely dried out FOR YEARS. Meanwhile, he wants to have another “barbecue”, so he floods everything with lighter fluid. Vicious circle. Anything he “cooks” tastes like lighter fluid as a consequence…

Don’t ya’ hate it when Calvin’s right?

That’s the way my neighbors cooked. Until they got a propane grill. Then the food was just charred.