AVOIDING BBQ BOO-BOOS

Hints and tips on how to make your barbecue go with a swing

Let’s face it, we’ve all cocked up a barbecue session on at least one occasion – and it’s nearly always when using a charcoal barbecue. The most common fail with charcoal barbecuing is when the host lights it too late. You know the scenario. Your guests have arrived for lunch at 12.30pm, expecting to eat at around 1pm when they notice you haven’t even started preparing the barbecue, let alone lit it. This is a bad thing. They will get so ravenous they might eat the tablecloth.

This miscalculation inevitably leads to the second most common issue with charcoal barbecues: not waiting long enough before starting to grill. Lump wood charcoal takes about 25 minutes to reach optimum cooking temperature while briquettes take up to 40 minutes before they’re ready to grill on. Once lit, you’re looking for a uniform grey appearance before placing the meat or veg on the grill. If you jump in too soon, chances are the food will be infused with a gentle hint of lighter fluid and other chemicals. If the charcoal is still flaming – a complete no-no – you run the risk of the food being coated in black soot, which tastes awful.

If the charcoal seems excessively hot, hold off for a while or you can be sure the skin of your chicken legs will be carbonised in a thrice, while the centre isn’t cooked. When charcoal grilling, the best rule of thumb is to cast your mind back to previous experiences when you noticed that the coals were at prime cooking temperature after the food had already been cooked, served and eaten.

Gas and pellet grilling generally cause fewer mishaps because temperatures are so much easier to control. However, always check to see how much gas or pellets you have left well before the day of the barbecue or you might find you don’t have enough to complete the cooking process and that would be a disaster. Thankfully, modern gas bottles have a simple gauge on top that gives a rough indication of the amount of gas left.