Southern Comforts: Food Network Stars Pat and Gina Neely Whip Up Homestyle Dishes

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MOST COUPLES DRIVE each other crazy in the kitchen, but not Pat and Gina Neely. The high school sweethearts — who went their separate ways after graduation but reconnected at their 10-year reunion and married soon after — like to divvy up the cooking duties both at their Memphis-based barbecue chain and on their hit Food Network show, "Down Home with the Neelys" (Sat., 11 a.m.). The show returns for a fifth season July 4.

» EXPRESS: After four seasons, is it hard to come up with new recipes?
» GINA: We still have so much you guys haven't seen yet.
» PAT: We're just warming up! If you ask me to tell you what we'll be showing six months from now, I couldn't tell you. We let it free flow — there's no script or set direction. It's as if you were having dinner with us. What are Pat and Gina going to talk about tonight?

» EXPRESS: There are so many barbecue sauce types, from Tennessee tomato sauce to Carolina vinegar-based. Do you have an allegiance?
» PAT: Memphis is known for a tomato-based sweet barbecue sauce. But we're more than just a one-barbecue family. I'll sometimes do a Kansas City-style barbecue sauce or a North Carolina kind.

» EXPRESS: Really? No favorites?
» PAT: Tennessee is a diverse region in terms of barbecue. We found that out even when we went just 200 miles east to open our location in Nashville. People asked for pickles with their barbecue.
» GINA: Ewwwwww.
» PAT: They did! They wanted it with pickles, corn bread and mayonnaise! But, really, barbecue has become a very, very regional type of cuisine. And Gina and I try to show as much range as possible.

» EXPRESS: Between the two of you, who makes a better barbecue sauce?
» GINA: Oh, Pat's the barbecue king.
» PAT: I disagree! I can throw down on the grill, but I really think Gina's knowledge of spices and love for sugars helps create great sauces. She's made sauces with things like buttermilk and cola.

» EXPRESS: You also put barbecue sauce on dishes like spaghetti or salad.
» PAT: We'll put barbecue sauce on just about everything: chicken, turkey, beef ribs, pizza, nachos, grilled tomatoes. Really, it is the one thing we make that can be incorporated into just about anything.

» EXPRESS: A lot of couples can't share the kitchen. How do you make it work?
» PAT: People always come up to us asking for advice. We always say, "You've got to have boundaries. You do what you do and let Mamma do what she do, and don't be critical of each other."
» GINA: There's 11 ways to skin a cat. As long as you get it done, that's what matters.

» EXPRESS: What are the biggest mistakes people make when barbecuing?
» PAT: For grilling, it's that they think they can fast-cook. They've got flames jumping everywhere and they think they've got a nice fire all ready. No, it's not. What you'll get is a nice burnt meat because you've got your grill too hot.

» EXPRESS: So, grilling takes a lot of finesse.
» PAT: I'm just going to go ahead and say this: When you're making love, you've got to take your time, and when you're cooking, you've got to take your time.
» GINA: You know, the Food Network is a PG station!
» PAT: I had to say it, Baby! When people figure that out, they'll be much better grill masters.

» Recipe File: Follow the Neelys' instructions for sweet and spicy slaw.

Photos courtesy Food Network