Cooking on a BBQ

The first thing to say is don’t think just burgers and sausages. They taste great barbecued but there is so much more you can cook on a BBQ. Sometimes we cook the meat on the BBQ and the vegetables on a hob but I prefer is possible to cook the whole lot on the BBQ. Whilst you have the heat on the BBQ - use it to cook everything. Obviously some vegetables are difficult e.g. peas but onions, potatoes, courgettes, mushrooms and peppers are very easy to cook.

Often we put the vegetables in foil parcels with some butter and let them steam. Or we cook them in foil trays over indirect heat. Slice the vegetables thin enough to cook quickly though and make sure you plan your timing. If you are cooking roast or jacket potatoes these need a lot longer than most meats so they go on first.

Those salmon steaks, for example, only need a few minutes on direct heat so they would go on just before the other food was finished.

Because barbecuing is not a precise art we often have a spare plate ready in the oven to put anything that is finished onto whilst the rest of the food is cooked.

To get that characteristic seared look make sure that the grill is hot and avoid turning the food more than once.

Wilf’s tip

Make sure you have enough fuel before you start cooking.

My daughter made the mistake, when she tried to barbecue some home made burgers, of assuming that there was enough gas in the cylinder to cook them. The gas ran out half way through leaving her with some very raw burgers and a grill that took twenty minutes to burn the fat off when the cylinder was replaced!

I often drizzle oil onto meat as it is cooking to keep it moist but not if I am cooking directly. If you drizzle oil on direct heat you will have a flare up which will leave your food black.

If you are cooking vegetables on the kitchen stove to go with your barbecued meat - do make sure they go on at the right time. You don’t want dried up meat waiting for the potatoes to boil or overcooked vegetables waiting for the meat. Baked potaoes will cook in ten minues if you microwave them for ten minutes first and just use the BBQ to crisp their skins.

Be aware that the more you put on the BBQ - the longer it will take to cook. Put the food that takes the longest on first then move it to a cool spot whilst the other food is cooking. Be wary of putting food on warming racks in the hood of a BBQ. The top of the hood is the hottest spot so the food will continue to cook there.

If you are cooking more than one course on a charcoal BBQ close the lid and the vents enough to keep the charcoal just lit.when you have finished the first course. If necessary add more charcoal at this stage. When you are ready to start again - open the lid and the charcoal will quickly come back up to temperature. If you let it burn out though you will be faced with an embarassing wait as you have to re-light the BBQ.

Don’t foget that a hooded BBQ can be used to bake bread and cakes as well as meat and vegetables.