Charcoal BBQ/Grilling

Honey-ec · 29-05-2009 1:31pm

bonkey wrote: »

Both times, the wind has changed direction just at the wrong moment, meaning that quite a bit of the smoke ended up heading straight for the neighbour's balcony

I love when my neighbours barbeque. Such a fantastic smell. Granted, I'm not in an apartment.

Anyway, I have loads of rosemary growing in my garden. I love to cut a few nice woody sprigs and throw them onto the coals just before I start cooking, it gives the most wonderful aromatic smoke. I've also used the rosemary "twigs" as skewers for chicken and lamb. Yum!

Our barbeque is made from an old Guinness keg. My husband made it and every time we have a barbie, people ask him to make them one. It's dead handy for taking to the beach too as it's so small.

The Sparrow · 30-05-2009 12:37pm

I picked up a Weber Chimney Starter in Homebase in Nutgrove last night for E19.99. I'm going to try it out this evening.

Does anyone have any good ideas or recipes for bbq side dishes? I normally boil a bit of corn on the cob or get a bit of potato salad but it would be good to get some new ideas.

coolguy · 30-05-2009 3:30pm

[QUOTE=Dizzyblonde;59881

Equal parts Worcestershire sauce, ketchup and honey (2 tablespoons of each), makes a lovely BBQ sauce. You could add garlic and/or chilli if you wanted.[/QUOTE]

Would this sauce be suitable for marinating meat
(chicken wings, spare ribs and lamb) ?

I d'ont think that i will marinate steak.

bonkey · 31-05-2009 8:18am

coolguy wrote: »

Would this sauce be suitable for marinating meat
(chicken wings, spare ribs and lamb) ?.

Its more a "glaze" than a marinade, but yes.

I use something similar...

2 parts vinegar
2 parts sugar / honey / maple syrup
2 parts ketchup
1 part soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce
paprika

If I have time beforehand, I dice onion and garlic, sweat them off, add everything to the pan with an extra splash of vinegar and cook it down for a little while.

If I want it spicy, I either replace 1 part ketchup with sweet chilli sauce (the one we have has great kick), or add some tobasco / ketjap manis / harissa / chilli flakes / chilli powder / chopped chilli

The vinegar is the tenderiser here, so its great for marinading tough meat. It'll cook out on the grill, leaving you with almost-exactly the same type of sauce originally mentioned.

Just make sure your grill isn't too hot, otherwise the sugar will burn. leaving you with a lovely black shell around your food.

Honey-ec · 02-06-2009 10:50am

woooo232 wrote: »

Does anyone have any good ideas or recipes for bbq side dishes? I normally boil a bit of corn on the cob or get a bit of potato salad but it would be good to get some new ideas.

Boil baby potatoes until just tender. While they're draining, melt a good knob of butter in the pan, then add 2 finely sliced cloves of garlic, two tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary, the juice of 1 lemon and a good grind of black pepper. Return the spuds to the pot and give them a good toss. Serve in a warm dish. Heaven!

olaola · 02-06-2009 11:03am

Ok, I've come to the conclusion that breadcrumbs are ESSENTIAL in burgers. They give a great light consistency and the breadcrumbs soaks up the fat so they are tastier & jucier. HAHM!

neuro-praxis · 02-06-2009 11:07am

bonkey wrote: »

2 parts vinegar
2 parts sugar / honey / maple syrup
2 parts ketchup
1 part soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce
paprika

Thanks for this bonkey, I gave it a go last night for some chicken on the barbeque. I used:

1/4 cup of soft brown sugar
1/4 cup of caster sugar
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup of teriyaki sauce (by some strange turn of events we were out of both soy sauce and worcestershire so I took a risk)
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon hot chilli powder

I left the chicken marinating for several hours and basted as I went. It was absolutely delicious. Thanks!

bonkey · 03-06-2009 9:06am

neuro-praxis wrote: »

Thanks for this bonkey,

More than welcome

1/4 cup of teriyaki sauce (by some strange turn of events we were out of both soy sauce and worcestershire so I took a risk)

Good thinking

1 teaspoon paprika

Just on this...

My wife is a paprika fiend. We've a multitude of different types (smoked, hot, sweet, chorizo-flavoured, ....) and I've found that its hard to overdo the paprika if you're a fan of the flavour...but the more you add, the easier it is to burn the glaze.

CJhaughey · 03-06-2009 9:18am

Honey-ec wrote: »

Anyway, I have loads of rosemary growing in my garden. I love to cut a few nice woody sprigs and throw them onto the coals just before I start cooking, it gives the most wonderful aromatic smoke. I've also used the rosemary "twigs" as skewers for chicken and lamb. Yum!

What is also really good for aroma is Gorse, I kid you not.
Gorse twigs are really nice smelling in the grill and give a great flavour, nearly as good as grape vine.

tscul32 · 03-06-2009 11:48am

Boil your corn on the cob, then brush with melted butter with smoked paprika in it. Skewer and char on the bbq. My 3 year old cannot get enough of these. Or brush with melted butter without the paprika and roll in freshly grated parmesan and skewer and char on the bbq.

Sweet potato, cut into thick slices and grill. I brushed them with oil (only did them once) but next time will add soem seasoning too. They caramelise and taste lovely.

Boil your baby spuds, then mix in equal amounts of honey, soy sauce and wholegrain mustard and skewer and char. They go all sticky and yummy.

I also marinade salmon in orange juice, soy and brown sugar.

frisket · 06-06-2009 11:54am

Been using charcoal for years, switched to gas recently...but made a mistake. *Never* buy a gas barbie that doesn't have a bed of lavarock under the griddle. I got a Newbury 2-burner from B&Q and it works OK but it's basically gas burners under cast-iron plates, so the fat and juices drip down into a tray, instead of onto lavarock, and there's nowhere to throw a handful of woodchips for that smoky flavour.

Has anyone ever retro-fitted a tray of lavarock onto a gas barbie that didn't come with one?

WindSock · 25-05-2010 10:59am

Just bumping this thread as it's BBQ season again :cool:

The Sweeper · 26-05-2010 2:07am

Front page of C&R forum is hilarious - "BBQ Sauce" "BBQ Coals" "BBQ Grilling"... you'd know Ireland was finally out of the eight month long winter ye had!

Dinkie · 26-05-2010 10:15am

My tip is to put tin foil under the coals (non gas bbq). When the coals have cooled down, simply gather up the foil. No messy bbq (we go camping so want things easy to clean and tidy up)

Planet X · 26-05-2010 7:46pm

Charcoal on fire

Smokin'

Leg of Lamb,

Planet X · 26-05-2010 7:49pm

Ribs,

Texas Dry Rub & Mustard.

I ended up having a few chillis instead.................

JPA · 26-05-2010 8:20pm

Could you go into some details about cooking up some ribs like that Planet X?
Times, technique etc.

Planet X · 26-05-2010 8:36pm

Texas Dry Rub, picked it up off Texas BBQ, Forum,http://www.texasbbqforum.com/ , somewhere on the site. Google it will do also. Just a bunch of spices really. Obviously, the longer the "rub" is on the better. Overnight. Indirect cooking, ie, not over coals but to one side. this way is great as you can do, the leg of lamb etc. In that Weber I can do two beer can chickens comfortably.
Ribs probably an hour or so. Relatively thin piece of meat as opposed to the carcass of a chicken which would take "up to" two hours. Joint of meat the same, up to two hours.
A big convert to indirect charcoal cooking. At last I can cook a dozen or so pieces of chicken, drumsticks, oyster thighs etc together in a Weber Kettle without the outside being cremated and the inside still raw, which was always a problem when cooking directly on top of charcoal.

No burgers n sausages for me thanks!

olaola · 27-05-2010 3:51pm

Planet X wrote: »

Charcoal on fire

OMFG! That looks fantastic. I'm droooling!

One thing to note though, in all these pics - not one has any sunshine. Hardcore BBQers! Rock on!

Alun · 27-05-2010 5:01pm

Planet X wrote: »

Charcoal on fire.

Was thinking on getting one of those for my Weber as everybody raves about them, but I'm a bit unclear on how they work and how using one would be significantly different to piling up the charcoal in a big heap which is what I do currently.

Planet X · 27-05-2010 5:05pm

Alun wrote: »

Was thinking on getting one of those for my Weber as everybody raves about them, but I'm a bit unclear on how they work and how using one would be significantly different to piling up the charcoal in a big heap which is what I do currently.

You just stuff a sheet of newspaper in the bottom mesh section, put a light to it and it takes off. Benefits? No chemical lighter liquids or lighter cubes. Cheap way to get it going.

Planet X · 27-05-2010 5:11pm

olaola wrote: »

OMFG! That looks fantastic. I'm droooling!

One thing to note though, in all these pics - not one has any sunshine. Hardcore BBQers! Rock on!

Thank God you don't need sunshine to BBQ, otherwise I'd only have a few per year. Had 5 already this year. If it's raining I stick it in the back shed (big) and leave the door open. Bring the food inside and get stuck in.

Kenny_D · 27-05-2010 6:35pm

Just noticed the tinfoil in where your coals are. Is there soaked woodchips inside? Must try get some of that rub mix. That lamb looks amazing!

Planet X · 27-05-2010 8:58pm

GStormcrow wrote: »

Just noticed the tinfoil in where your coals are. Is there soaked woodchips inside? Must try get some of that rub mix. That lamb looks amazing!

Soaked pieces of wood, yep. Apple wood from the garden.

The Sparrow · 28-05-2010 3:49pm

Great pics Planet X!

I noticed that the woodchips only seem to be in the last pic. So do you only add them at the end?

Planet X · 28-05-2010 11:40pm

Nah. I just throw them in.........whatever.
Apparently, the Yanks, I've heard, wrap them up like I did.
Since, I've gone and put them in raw.
Not sure it makes a fiddlers............
It's all about the prep.

Spices. Planning the day before.
Hoummus.
Babaganoush.
Rough salad from your garden.
Cheap sauce.
Don't invite the neighbours (been there) never get an invite back.

What?

The Sparrow · 29-05-2010 1:08am

BTW where did you pick up the racks of ribs and how much were they?

I'm near enough to Stillorgan too but I've looked in a couple of butchers and not seen any.

nice1franko · 29-05-2010 2:07am

I don't know what the baba g is but I like the cut of your jib.

Keep going where you're going, it'll be good.

CJhaughey · 29-05-2010 9:37am

Babaganoush is a kind of aubergine paté, very tasty especially on a kebab made with BBQ lamb;)

Toto Wolfcastle · 29-05-2010 10:48am

The Sparrow wrote: »

BTW where did you pick up the racks of ribs and how much were they?

I'm near enough to Stillorgan too but I've looked in a couple of butchers and not seen any.

Any decent butcher should be able to order them in for you if they don't have them.

*Charcoal* BBQ/Grilling

Comments

Charcoal BBQ/Grilling