A Chef's Guide To Buying A Barbecue

into any store specializing in barbecues for sale andtray could be placed. The food is cooked on an upper
one is immediately faced with an astonishing andlevel and any fat falls into the tray below for easy
bewildering display of different models at widelydisposal and without creating flare-ups. Much later the
differing prices. How do you choose the one that is'barriers' were replaced by baskets that can be
right for you?heated together and then moved apart, making both
It helps to know the principal difference betweendirect and indirect cooking possible from one heat
them. The truth is, for all the different shapes andsource.
sizes there are basically only two barbecue models;Kettles differ from flatbeds in one other important
flat bed or kettle. Which one you choose will dependaspect - food is always cooked in them with the lid
very much on what you want it to do and the sizeclosed and direct heat is only ever used to cook lean
of it will be determined by the number of people youpieces of meat such as steak and chops. Even these
intend to cook for. If you entertain a great deal, youshould be cooked on a preheated cast-iron grill that
may find yourself ending up with both types. So let'scan be bought as an optional extra and fits on top of
take a look at them.the upper grill.
Flat Bed BarbecuesHeating is most often charcoal but can be gas and
These are most often rectangular in shape, may usedespite popular belief either will produce the same
either gas, electricity or charcoal as a heat sourceresult; the true barbecue flavor comes from the way
and may or may not have a hood that turns themin which meat is cooked and any added flavoring
into a conventional-style oven. They range in sizematerial, such as hickory chips, not from the heat
from a single burner to a massive range that maysource itself.
include a wok stand, separate hotplate and even aElectric kettles are available but are not very popular
plate warmer.and are expensive to run.
The important thing to understand about them isWhich Will You Choose?
that, without exception, they cook by the directFor family use and entertaining smallish groups of
method, even when being used as an oven. Whatfriends, there is no doubt in my mind that the kettle
that means is that the heating elements are alwayswins hands down. The standard size of 57cm
directly under the food being cooked. This can create(22.5ins) will handle two large chickens, a large beef
problems when foods with a high fat content, suchor pork joint, two legs of lamb or a turkey with ease.
as sausages, are being cooked because of flare-ups.Steaks will depend on the size, of course, but four to
These can occur even when the lid is closed,six at a time is probably about right.
imparting an oily taint to the food.If you want to cook large quantities of steak,
You can get round this to some extent by alwayschicken wings, sausages and similar food, then you
cooking your meat on a hotplate placed on the grillmight find a flatbed will suit you better and that is
over the heat source. The problem that remains iscertainly the case if you want to turn your outside
that the fat has to be disposed of and the platearea into a replica of your kitchen, with all the
cleaned after each use.add-ons that many of the more expensive flatbeds
A second disadvantage is that, except for the veryhave as standard.
expensive models fitted with a fan, when the lid isIn terms of flavor and succulence, the flatbed cannot
closed as it would be for roasting a joint, all thecompete however. I find the kettle is also easier to
heating is still directly below the meat, which can leadkeep clean, especially if you use disposable drip trays
to an uneven result. It also makes it difficult, in thethat are readily obtainable from the supermarket and
case of a charcoal barbecue, to add extra fuel duringwhich can also be used for cooking vegetables and
cooking if that should turn out to be necessary.even cakes and desserts.
Barbecue KettlesAs for quality, buy the best you can afford. In the
When these put in an appearance in the 1950s theycase of a kettle, make certain it is coated with
caused something of a sensation. Originallyvitreous or porcelain enamel and that the parts likely
manufactured by Weber, what really caused a stirto come into contact with the food are of stainless
was the fact that they were, and still are, round tosteel. Anything else will rust because of the high heat
the point of being almost spherical. Nothing like theminvolved in the cooking process.
had ever been seen before in Western cooking andMost flatbeds make extensive use of cast iron and
in some eyes the shape was seen as little more thanthis is, on the whole, a high maintenance material, so
a gimmick. But in fact the design was brilliant both inbe certain you are prepared for this before parting
concept and execution, for it was this 'roundness'with your cash. Flaky rusting particles do not make
that gave the kettle its unique edge over thefor great seasoning or a particularly appetizing look.
competition. Not only did it behave just like aThey are also indigestible.
convection oven, it let the user take full advantageFinally, when you get your new barbecue get a good
of indirect heating, thereby allowing the meat tobbq cookbook at the same time and really learn the
cook quickly and evenly in its own juices.best way to cook with the design of your choice. It
The results were sensational and remain so today.has been my experience that a great many owners
The indirect heating was achieved by placing twoof expensive barbecues simply do not know how to
small barriers opposite each other at the side of theuse them. With the proper guide you will astound
lower grill. These could be filled with charcoal and lit,yourself as well as your family and friends.
leaving a broad gap between them into which a drip