Roasting

First off - why use the BBQ to roast meat?

a) because it it so simple

b) it frees up the oven to cook other things

c) the meat comes out tender and moist

d) most of the fat drips away i.e it is healthier

e) because you can

Here I am cooking a piece of prime Aberdeen Angus. The principle works just as well with lamb, pork, ham etc. and of course that Christmas turkey.



		To cook a joint you do need a BBQ that has a hood. You also need to be able to cook indirectly. You need to make sure that you have enough fuel to complete cooking. I am using charcoal so I’ve filed my chimney starter with enough charcoal for both baskets. This should burn for over an hour before it needs topping up.



				Once the charcoal was well alight I placed it in the baskets either side of a drip tray. I then placed the meat directly on the grill above the drip tray. I could of course have used a joint rack. The heat from the charcoal circulated around the meat once the lid has been replaced.It didn’t sear the meat and burn it. The temperature probe was placed well into the meat to measure the cooking temperature.


		Using my wireless thermometer I took the remote unit away to where I could enjoy the sun! In this case I set the meat style to well done which meant that the temperature had to reach 77 degrees centigrade. You can of course use a normal meat thermometer but don’t leave it in the meat!




	All that was left to do now was sit back and relax and let the BBQ do the work. Cooking times will be about the same as they would be using a conventional oven. The exact time varies because of wind and the ambient temperature. On a windy day the charcoal will burn quicker and hotter. On a cold day the cooking time will be longer. It doesn’t matter though because you’re cooking by temperature so once the correct temperature is reached - the meat is cooked no matter how long it takes. By the way there was one essential ingredient missing here - a large glass of wine!

	Once the desired temperature was reached - the meat was ready to be removed. On this occasion I left the meat on a serving tray to cool. I then added more charcoal and cooked the vegetables. Half an hour later we had roast beef with roasted potatoes, corn on the cob and kebabs with peppers, onions and mushrooms.

		NB the aroma whilst that beef was cooking was wonderful.