barbecues are great fun, I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like them. A balmy sun kissed day, the gentle drift of aromatic smoke and a cold beer in your hand.
Who could ask for anything more!
Having said that, there’s a few things you should do to ensure you have a fun time. The last thing you want is the day spoiled because of an injury or some such thing. Keeping to a few simple guidelines will ensure that any excitement is of a positive kind!
Lighting the barbecue always provides a mixture of fear, frustration and excitement. After it’s lit make sure you set aside enough time for the barbecue to reach it’s optimum cooking temperature. Be sure you take that into account.
Of course if you’re using a gas or electric barbecue you can probably avoid too much fuss or problem at this stage – ease of lighting is one of the main reasons people choose these types.
If you are using charcoal never be tempted to use lighter fluid to ease the lighting. It will permeate into the food and make it taste awful. Believe me I’ve done it often enough to know. The only thing I can suggest if you find your better half has already made a replica of Dantes Inferno is to let the coal burn for at least thirty minutes that way you won’t spoil the taste of the food.
To get everyone’s juices flowing I’d suggest adding wood chips to you barbecue. If you’re used to barbecuing and have cooked this way often you probably already knew that. If you haven’t tried it, there’s nothing better than the smell of steak sizzling over wood chips. Using BBQ wood chips will take you to the next level of barbecuing. Whether you’re using an electric, gas or charcoal model the addition of wood chips imparts the true flavour of barbecuing into your food
The secret to using wood chips is not to let them burn too quickly and you can do this by soaking them for about 15 minutes before you use them. They should be moist but not saturated.
You can choose from a multitude of flavours of wood chips for your barbecue. Mesquite, hickory, cabernet and more. I’d suggest that the more delicate the meat the milder the wood chip you use. Cherry fruitwoods go great with veal poultry and pork, Alder Wood is great with seafood. The stronger flavours of maple and hickory are best suited to Lamb and duck and possibly poultry too.
At the end of the day however it’s what you serve your guest that counts. Make sure it’s decent grub and everyone will be satisfied
Relax and have fun at your barbecue. Now where’s that bottle of ice cold beer with my name on it?