BBQ Cooks

Why is it that every BBQ I’ve been to recently has the worst cooks incinerating food.
What on earth makes them think I like a black piece of meat on my plate, surely they’re not stupid enough to think their captive dinner guest prefer it charred?
Went hungry last night and got pissed instead.

because nobody wants to give their guests food poisoning and only BBQ’s about twice a year so has no real idea.

Because you went to a shit BBQ.

Because they know you are an ungrateful **** so do it to annoy you?

Its easy to tell when a bbq will be shit…..

Gets impatient waiting for coals to go white.
The chef doesnt have/use a meat thermometor.

Years ago a mate spent £50 on some fillet steak from the butcher then his gf proceeded to burn the **** out of it on the BBQ. She did this 1hr before anyone arrived as part of her pre-cook method.

Really couldn’t get my head round it.

The chef doesnt have/use a meat thermometor.

I don’t use a meat thermometer and my bbq food isn’t shit, but I’m not a chef. But I do know how to cook food without burning it or serving it raw. My approach is slow and low, decent charcoal preferably English as its light and doesn’t burn too hot and not using any fuel to light the coals.

If need a meat thermometer to cook everything on a bbq then you’re not a very good ‘chef’. In my experience I know a bbq is going to be shit when I see a gas bottle, that’s just cooking on a griddle outdoors.

I like a charcoal BBQ and love long, slow cooked meat. It’s well worth the prep and wait. Slow cooked beef rib is a massive favourite here.

You don’t need a meat thermometer to make good BBQ!
Shit BBQ cooks don’t understand indirect cooking. Direct is for searing really.

In my experience I know a bbq is going to be shit when I see a gas bottle, that’s just cooking on a griddle outdoors.

Funny, I see the opposite. If you can be bothered to **** about with charcoal you clearly don’t BBQ very often.

I BBQ on charcoal often (at least weekly, maybe more in the summer). Chimney starter makes it very easy and quick. 10-15 mins and you’re ready to rock. Similar time to pre-heating an oven.

In my experience I know a bbq is going to be shit when I see a gas bottle, that’s just cooking on a griddle outdoors.

I guess you haven’t been invited to many good places then… If you can’t work out how to cook then it doesn’t matter how you cook it.
I loved being able to to a perfect BLT on the webber gas BBQ

That is dedication Wrecker! I am a lazy gas barbecueist but quite a fan of smoking on it (just trimmed our apple tree to get some smoking material for this afternoon’s chicken).

here’s a few tips.

only use proper lumpwood charcoal, never anything self lighting or briquettes.

Stop messing around lighting it, get a black & decker hot air gun and within 3 minutes its lit.

pay attention to the coals and where is hot and where is not, do n’t try to cook over full heat all the way, by all means sear it but then cook at a more gentle pace just away from the heat.

Come down to my restaurant and shadow me for a week, and I’ll make you a BBQ god amongst men.

Quite.

I suppose you can tell internal temperatures of things just by looking at them.

The correct internal temperature makes a huge difference to brisket and shoulder turns it from a tough shit meat into a nice tender meat.

Although maybe doesn’t apply if your doing the traditional British ceremony of cremating sausages and burgers.

People don’t think about it and tend to think of a bbq as ON or off. Most people don’t get enough practice and are crap cooks in the kitchen but think a grill is where a man adds fire to meat and makes it tasty.

anyone who is considering cooking with fire should really watch Episode 3 (series 1) of Chefs Table on Netflix, let Francis Mallmann be your guide.

I would think that an incompetent BBQist is probably just someone who can’t cook anyway. Cos BBQing is a man’s job whereas cooking is for women innit.

Having said that, I can’t remember the last time I attended a poor bbq – only go to one or two a year probably, and the organisers have usually been somewhere between pretty competent and expert.

I use a gas BBQ and a meat thermometer*. I am frequently complimented about how tasty my BBQ food is.

* Mainly to prove to people that you can have beautifully seared outers, fully cooked on the inside and don’t need to use lumpwood charcoal purely to convert your meat back into charcoal.

feature just starting on Countryfile.

only use proper lumpwood charcoal, never anything self lighting or briquettes.

I use both, and IMHO (I don’t have a restaurant!), quality briquettes (heat beads and similar) are fine. Lumpwood can be hit and miss when buying; even the weber stuff I bought has an unacceptable amount of slag in, and it burns quick (I imagine you already know that).

I suppose you can tell internal temperatures of things just by looking at them.
The correct internal temperature makes a huge difference to brisket and shoulder turns it from a tough shit meat into a nice tender meat.

As far as I am aware, we aren’t talking about low and slow or smoking here. Do you use a meat thermometer when cooking a joint, sausage or whatever in the oven? What the hell is wrong with a burger? Even the US BBQ comps have burger categories.

Of course you can cook outstanding food on gas, if it can be cooked well indoors over gas then it stands to reason that it can be outdoors too. It’ll not taste the same (not saying better) as over charcoal though.

Lack of practice by the sounds of it, it’s not that hard. First BBQ I cooked was just like that – black sausages, uncooked in the middle meat… but then you learn. Main things are a) wait til the charcoal is ready and b) lift the meat off if there’s any actual flame. (Or damp the flame down).

Although I will admit that I do now cook my ribs for 45min in the oven in a foil covered dish first, then BBQ to get the nice finish. Speeds things up loads, too, which is great when entertaining.

The chef doesnt have/use a meat thermometor.

Steaks never on bbq long enough to need one plus any chicken always precooked then finished on bbq

After years (decades) of coals and/or wood chips I am now signed up to proper gas bbq. My American neighbours always swore by them and it means you can bbq midweek and cook for larger numbers of people with consistency

OP yes I can feel your pain, nothing worse than turning up looking forward to a nice bbq then being faced with incinerated food

How does gas allow you to BBQ midweek anymore than charcoal?

Get better friends. Not had a burnt bbq in years, it’s not complicated.

Less planning, 5 seconds to start it. Less than 5 minutes to get hot enough to use.
About 30 seconds to “clean” it. After each use. And 10 minutes once every 4-6 weeks to clean it properly.
Bottle of gas costs about 20-25 quit where we are and will last 3 months of cooking 3 or 4 times a week.

Some people i know manage to BBQ once or twice a day for the entirety of their 4, 5 or 6 week summer holiday.

I like standing on the deck cooking stuff.

So you save maybe 10 mins.

Only Singletrack World could make cooking a barbecue appear so difficult .

Went to plenty of BBQ pits in the states. Didn’t see any running on gas. Nuff said….

15 minutes to clean, light and get a bbq ready to cook? Hmmmm.

And charcoal isn’t free either. 2 or 3 quid a bag here. That’s two goes for me.

I clean mine at the end of cooking session, a starter chimney means coals are ready in no time. Of course they’re not free, I still fail to see how it’s any more difficult.

Having used gas for a long time it means it’s just there, turn on go do something else come back when it’s at the perfect temp or adjust. Cook what you want but if your just doing sausages and burgers might as well do them inside. Quicker and easier for something dull.
Sardines work well, some nice marinated chicken, range of veg, halloumi and much more. So many people choose to knock gas as if it’s a threat to their manhood which is just a little sad really. Again a bad cook cant cook on either. Having of imagination also makes for a lame bbq, what sausage again don’t tell me it’s made better by using testing fancy white rolls 🙄

Agree with the other posters – it’s practise makes perfect with BBQing.

Me and the missus BBQ 3 or 4 times a week during the summer (sometimes more – twice a day at weekends). Gas during the week, then sometimes the smoker one day at the weekend. Do a lot of veggies on the BBQ too so it’s not just meat. We both come from families that BBQ regularly.

Smoked a pork shoulder today, took 9 hours. Am slicing it so I have sandwiches for the week. Yum!

I use a digital thermometer, always for smoking but sometimes for grilling too. Stuff I cook all the time I don’t need the thermometer. Steaks are a good example – sirloins from a supermarket I can judge myself, but if I get a really thick one (did a flat-iron last week) it’s harder to judge because I do them less frequently.

Gas isn’t BBQ.

I don’t mean lumpwood by Big K or similar, I mean the proper stuff.

I use this stuff made by Dan

https://hotsmoked.co.uk/charcoals/nettelfields-artisan-charcoal.html?SID=loj5g6im6rfg51pcq3d92cppi0

One bag will last my Primo XL about 24hrs L&S or about 6hrs grilling (raising and lowering temps by opening the top vent for searing).

In my ProQ Excel 20 one bag will give a good 8hrs when lit minion style (with heat gun)

I’ve tried pretty much every type of charcoal, coconut, braii, heatbeads, BigK (all types), etc etc and there’s no substitute for the proper stuff. I do this every day, and I’m in the Good Food Guide, trust me I know what I’m talking about 🙂

I’ve just checked your site out MrNutt. It’s a shame Devon is so far away that looks damn good.

Gas isn’t BBQ.

I don’t mean lumpwood by Big K or similar, I mean the proper stuff.
Burning meat on a fire isn’t cooking either.

. I do this every day, and I’m in the Good Food Guide, trust me I know what I’m talking about

But you still can’t accept that a good chunk of the world happily BBQ’s on gas. You might not like it but the rest of us get along just fine.

Because proper BBQing is like proper cooking, is an art and takes practice.

I actually don’t know how people screw up so much though. Even bascially; get it hot , put meat on and turn meat a lot is all most folk need to do.

Gas isn’t BBQ.

Better tell these guys then, seeing as you’ve just undermined their entire business. I’m sure they would be highly entertained by a snobbish pom telling them they don’t know what they’re doing 😆

https://www.barbequesgalore.com.au/

But you still can’t accept that a good chunk of the world happily BBQ’s on gas. You might not like it but the rest of us get along just fine.

I presume you use wood on your gas grill to get the smokey flavour?

It’s the quality of the meat and cooking that imparts the biggest influence. If I’d had charcoal BBQ I wouldn’t have had time to have 40 BBQs this year.