The bbq photo & recipe thread
Discussion
Chicken Chaser said:
Just a quick question for those longer cooks, at present I fill a chimney full of briquettes and then use that emptied into the side basket. Should I be starting with less lit coals and throwing a few unlit on top to maintain the heat? Good BBQ seems to be a bit of an art form rather than just piling burgers onto direct heat!
Edited by Chicken Chaser on Friday 13th May 18:13
In summary, unlike grilling (where you have a surfeit of oxygen compared to fuel, so it burns as fast and hot as it can), you've got more fuel than available oxygen, so it can only burn at a rate that keeps temps low and allows the fuel to last much longer.
Record for me in a Weber kettle is 16 hours without needing to top up charcoal.
Sway said:
Do a search for the minion method - all will become clear.
In summary, unlike grilling (where you have a surfeit of oxygen compared to fuel, so it burns as fast and hot as it can), you've got more fuel than available oxygen, so it can only burn at a rate that keeps temps low and allows the fuel to last much longer.
Record for me in a Weber kettle is 16 hours without needing to top up charcoal.
Only ever had an odd attempt and failed miserably. How on the minion method do you prevent the food from being tainted thick strong smoke that comes off the briquettes in the early stages of lighting? Pretty sure I didn't use cheapo charcoal so that probably wasn't my issue.In summary, unlike grilling (where you have a surfeit of oxygen compared to fuel, so it burns as fast and hot as it can), you've got more fuel than available oxygen, so it can only burn at a rate that keeps temps low and allows the fuel to last much longer.
Record for me in a Weber kettle is 16 hours without needing to top up charcoal.
Tony Angelino said:
Sway said:
Do a search for the minion method - all will become clear.
In summary, unlike grilling (where you have a surfeit of oxygen compared to fuel, so it burns as fast and hot as it can), you've got more fuel than available oxygen, so it can only burn at a rate that keeps temps low and allows the fuel to last much longer.
Record for me in a Weber kettle is 16 hours without needing to top up charcoal.
Only ever had an odd attempt and failed miserably. How on the minion method do you prevent the food from being tainted thick strong smoke that comes off the briquettes in the early stages of lighting? Pretty sure I didn't use cheapo charcoal so that probably wasn't my issue.In summary, unlike grilling (where you have a surfeit of oxygen compared to fuel, so it burns as fast and hot as it can), you've got more fuel than available oxygen, so it can only burn at a rate that keeps temps low and allows the fuel to last much longer.
Record for me in a Weber kettle is 16 hours without needing to top up charcoal.
Output Flange said:
My tweak is to add berbere to the spice mix - adds some welcome heat.
Everyday is a learning day!I thought you had an autocorrect-speeeling fail on barbecue. However as I'm a level-headed chap I googled "berbere".
Do you mix it yourself or do you buy it? I don't think I've ever seen it on the shelf of any supermarket I use... But then again up until a few minutes ago I thought it was a typo.
So i'm doing my first slow cook pork shoulder tomorrow. The recipe i've gone for is off AmazingRibs.com ( http://amazingribs.com/recipes/porknography/perfec... )
Did all my prep this evening ready for tomorrow mornings cook. I'm slightly nervous about it but I think i should manage. Some photos of the prep ready for tomorrow. I'll update tomorrow evening with everything that happened throughout the day!
Did all my prep this evening ready for tomorrow mornings cook. I'm slightly nervous about it but I think i should manage. Some photos of the prep ready for tomorrow. I'll update tomorrow evening with everything that happened throughout the day!
I recently purchased this:-
It is available in some Costco stores for £455.00.
I am seriously impressed with the quality. I had read that the hinge was often loose. It certainly is not loose on mine, and I fail to see how it could be loose on any other.
Learning to use a ceramic BBQ is turning out to be a bit of an experience.
Last weekend I did a hot smoked chicken. I took me ages ( one and a half hours) to get the thing up to temperature. There is a huge amount of ceramic to heat up. However, once it is at temperature, it really holds it. You can raise the lid to inspect your food, or to add charcoal, and it will return to the set temperature within a couple of minutes.
This weekend I did a slow cooked pork shoulder. I decided to use some twigs to get the thing up to temperature quickly. However, it got to 180C, and I had to wait for it to cool down. I will probably use some twigs in future because it will save me an hour, and the twigs cost nothing.
If anybody is thinking of buying one of these, do not go alone to the shop. It weighs 110Kg. You will need two strong people and a transit van.
There is one small niggle. There are two grilling racks. The supports for the top one are a few inches in from the edge. This means that you cannot put a drip tray near the back. The supports for the top rack are in the way. I had to add charcoal a couple of times yesterday, and each time I had to move the pork so that I could raise the hinged sections of the racks. This was annoying, so I will have to modify my upper rack, or find something to replace it with. If I haven't explained myself clearly, just ask and I will take photos to show what I mean.
I have a question. Do I need a heat deflector? I did the pork yesterday without a deflector and it turned out fantastic. I don't see why I would need a deflector.
Here is a picture of the pork:-
It is available in some Costco stores for £455.00.
I am seriously impressed with the quality. I had read that the hinge was often loose. It certainly is not loose on mine, and I fail to see how it could be loose on any other.
Learning to use a ceramic BBQ is turning out to be a bit of an experience.
Last weekend I did a hot smoked chicken. I took me ages ( one and a half hours) to get the thing up to temperature. There is a huge amount of ceramic to heat up. However, once it is at temperature, it really holds it. You can raise the lid to inspect your food, or to add charcoal, and it will return to the set temperature within a couple of minutes.
This weekend I did a slow cooked pork shoulder. I decided to use some twigs to get the thing up to temperature quickly. However, it got to 180C, and I had to wait for it to cool down. I will probably use some twigs in future because it will save me an hour, and the twigs cost nothing.
If anybody is thinking of buying one of these, do not go alone to the shop. It weighs 110Kg. You will need two strong people and a transit van.
There is one small niggle. There are two grilling racks. The supports for the top one are a few inches in from the edge. This means that you cannot put a drip tray near the back. The supports for the top rack are in the way. I had to add charcoal a couple of times yesterday, and each time I had to move the pork so that I could raise the hinged sections of the racks. This was annoying, so I will have to modify my upper rack, or find something to replace it with. If I haven't explained myself clearly, just ask and I will take photos to show what I mean.
I have a question. Do I need a heat deflector? I did the pork yesterday without a deflector and it turned out fantastic. I don't see why I would need a deflector.
Here is a picture of the pork:-
As anyone with a Chargriller smoker knows it's best to elevate the fire basket. On the US forums this is often done using a vegetable basket from Lowes, obviously not available in UK.
However I was in Aldi and spotted this..
£4.99 fits perfectly.
Great - saves me from messing around with expanded steel!
I'll give it a first run at smoking tomorrow.
However I was in Aldi and spotted this..
£4.99 fits perfectly.
Great - saves me from messing around with expanded steel!
I'll give it a first run at smoking tomorrow.
Modified portable bbq for Le Mans
I bought this cheap SS portable bbq from Amazon (ES 23 euros) for use at Le Mans (we will have 6 to feed) but thought there was scope for a little modification
So I fitted a rotisserie to it.....
I used an old curtain rail hook to support the free end.
The grill folds open and has 2 grill areas.
Trial run yesterday... using Aussie Heat beads.
Starter using the Aussie method ..
Lid semi closes while in rotisserie mode
One and a half hours and the bird was done with an even 80C throughout.
Time to do the other meat.
Da da
Chicken was moist and delicious. This was just a trial run but all set now for Le Mans - result
I bought this cheap SS portable bbq from Amazon (ES 23 euros) for use at Le Mans (we will have 6 to feed) but thought there was scope for a little modification
So I fitted a rotisserie to it.....
I used an old curtain rail hook to support the free end.
The grill folds open and has 2 grill areas.
Trial run yesterday... using Aussie Heat beads.
Starter using the Aussie method ..
Lid semi closes while in rotisserie mode
One and a half hours and the bird was done with an even 80C throughout.
Time to do the other meat.
Da da
Chicken was moist and delicious. This was just a trial run but all set now for Le Mans - result
So started at 7am yesterday and got the bbq out, meat with the spices on it.
left it for 8 hours monitoring it on the wireless thermostat which i have to admit was well worth the money.
Then 8.5 hours later it was ready for shredding with my bear claws
Not bad for my first time and i've certainly learnt a lot about when to add more coals, how many coals, when to open the flaps, how taking the lid off, grill with meat and water off to put more coals on is a pain in the arse but overall it was great for a £3.50 piece of meat!
left it for 8 hours monitoring it on the wireless thermostat which i have to admit was well worth the money.
Then 8.5 hours later it was ready for shredding with my bear claws
Not bad for my first time and i've certainly learnt a lot about when to add more coals, how many coals, when to open the flaps, how taking the lid off, grill with meat and water off to put more coals on is a pain in the arse but overall it was great for a £3.50 piece of meat!
don4l said:
I recently purchased this:-
It is available in some Costco stores for £455.00.
I am seriously impressed with the quality. I had read that the hinge was often loose. It certainly is not loose on mine, and I fail to see how it could be loose on any other.
Learning to use a ceramic BBQ is turning out to be a bit of an experience.
Last weekend I did a hot smoked chicken. I took me ages ( one and a half hours) to get the thing up to temperature. There is a huge amount of ceramic to heat up. However, once it is at temperature, it really holds it. You can raise the lid to inspect your food, or to add charcoal, and it will return to the set temperature within a couple of minutes.
This weekend I did a slow cooked pork shoulder. I decided to use some twigs to get the thing up to temperature quickly. However, it got to 180C, and I had to wait for it to cool down. I will probably use some twigs in future because it will save me an hour, and the twigs cost nothing.
If anybody is thinking of buying one of these, do not go alone to the shop. It weighs 110Kg. You will need two strong people and a transit van.
There is one small niggle. There are two grilling racks. The supports for the top one are a few inches in from the edge. This means that you cannot put a drip tray near the back. The supports for the top rack are in the way. I had to add charcoal a couple of times yesterday, and each time I had to move the pork so that I could raise the hinged sections of the racks. This was annoying, so I will have to modify my upper rack, or find something to replace it with. If I haven't explained myself clearly, just ask and I will take photos to show what I mean.
I have a question. Do I need a heat deflector? I did the pork yesterday without a deflector and it turned out fantastic. I don't see why I would need a deflector.
Here is a picture of the pork:-
£455 for an Aston, that is impressive! It is available in some Costco stores for £455.00.
I am seriously impressed with the quality. I had read that the hinge was often loose. It certainly is not loose on mine, and I fail to see how it could be loose on any other.
Learning to use a ceramic BBQ is turning out to be a bit of an experience.
Last weekend I did a hot smoked chicken. I took me ages ( one and a half hours) to get the thing up to temperature. There is a huge amount of ceramic to heat up. However, once it is at temperature, it really holds it. You can raise the lid to inspect your food, or to add charcoal, and it will return to the set temperature within a couple of minutes.
This weekend I did a slow cooked pork shoulder. I decided to use some twigs to get the thing up to temperature quickly. However, it got to 180C, and I had to wait for it to cool down. I will probably use some twigs in future because it will save me an hour, and the twigs cost nothing.
If anybody is thinking of buying one of these, do not go alone to the shop. It weighs 110Kg. You will need two strong people and a transit van.
There is one small niggle. There are two grilling racks. The supports for the top one are a few inches in from the edge. This means that you cannot put a drip tray near the back. The supports for the top rack are in the way. I had to add charcoal a couple of times yesterday, and each time I had to move the pork so that I could raise the hinged sections of the racks. This was annoying, so I will have to modify my upper rack, or find something to replace it with. If I haven't explained myself clearly, just ask and I will take photos to show what I mean.
I have a question. Do I need a heat deflector? I did the pork yesterday without a deflector and it turned out fantastic. I don't see why I would need a deflector.
Here is a picture of the pork:-
hondafanatic said:
Output Flange said:
My tweak is to add berbere to the spice mix - adds some welcome heat.
Everyday is a learning day!I thought you had an autocorrect-speeeling fail on barbecue. However as I'm a level-headed chap I googled "berbere".
Do you mix it yourself or do you buy it? I don't think I've ever seen it on the shelf of any supermarket I use... But then again up until a few minutes ago I thought it was a typo.
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