Caravan Outdoor Cooking Options

[C0ffin D0dger]

Having just returned from our first proper trip away in the 'van something I thought it might be good to upgrade is our BBQ options.

Currently got a cheapo Aldi/Lidl BBQ which I bought a few years back for camping, fine for what it is but now we've got the van and therefore a bit more space for carting stuff around I thought it might be time for something better. I like cooking on charcoal so definitely want that as an option. Quite like the look of the Weber portable range, either a Smokey Joe or a Go Anywhere, favouring the Go Anywhere at the moment as I think it would give a greater cooking area and packs down nicely. Would also get one of the Weber compact chimney starters as I've got a full sized one for the barbecue at home and it's simply brilliant. The thing I don't like about the Webers is that they're both quite low down and I'd prefer something a bit raised so I can tend to it more easily from my chair, seems like they do a nice table / stand accessory for them in the U.S. but not in the U.K.?

I'm also starting to "get" why folk buy / use the Cadac style outdoor gas cookers. A first I thought why as it's just a gas powered griddle / hotplate and not a proper BBQ but then the folk opposite us on our recent trip not only used theirs for dinner but breakfast too and I was very envious of the smell of bacon, sausages, eggs etc. drifting our way in the morning. Having suffered a downpour after lighting our BBQ I also understand the versatility of having a gas option. My caravan does also have an external gas point.

So what do you have / recommend and why?

Edited by C0ffin D0dger on Wednesday 6th June 13:01

[C0ffin D0dger]

Thanks for all the replies so far. Seems like a Cadac + a Weber Go-Anywhere is probably the way I'm heading. My wallet is not liking it though

Didn't really appreciate upon purchasing our first caravan at the start of the year just how many various accessories we "need" I guess the main thing is it's all transferable if we change to a different van in future.

So far, Kampa Air Awning (+ "carpet" etc.), pair of aluminium Kampa loungers, kettle, toaster, melamine dining set, extra gas bottle, and other stuff I can't think of. Luckily the dealers threw in a starter pack with the basics.

[C0ffin D0dger]

Antony Moxey said:

Interesting thread. We’re looking at a Cadac for when we take the motorhome to France this summer. We’ve discounted the smallest one as it’s simply too small but are really stuck on whether to get the medium sized one or the big one, with the main sticking point being is the bigger one really worth double the middle sized one (give or take if you look at Go Outdoors offers at the moment)?

It is a bit of an odd pricing structure, after all the medium to large is only ~46% increase in cooking area but nearly twice the cost. It is a more powerful burner in the bigger one too I guess and you get a storage thingy on the bottom but even so.

Problem is I'd be going for the bigger one anyway as having more capacity has always got to be a good thing hasn't it

[C0ffin D0dger]

That said there's 10% off on eBay today and the cheapest big one is £192 - 10% = £172.80

Slightly better but unfortunately I don't want to spend anymore until payday

[C0ffin D0dger]

If anyone wants one I just ordered a Weber Go Anywhere from Riverside Garden Centre with an offer of a free chimney starter so saved myself £15. Lovely jubbly

https://www.riversidegardencentre.co.uk/weber-bbq/...

So that's part 1 of my caravan cooking sorted, saving for the Cadac.

[C0ffin D0dger]

Thread resurrection alert...

Took the plunge on a Cadac Carri Chef 2 before our Easter break, it came with the paella pan but I also ordered the Grill 2 Braai plate. What an utterly brilliant thing, as well as the standard BBQ did a stir fry one night, spaghetti and meatballs another, and a morning fry up. Well pleased with it, sure it will see lots of use of the coming years.

[C0ffin D0dger]

Chicken Chaser said:

I'll probably get a pizza stone for it but I'm just not sure whether to go for the combi option of the Paella pan the chef pan or the skottel?

I struggled to decide on this also. In the end I went for the Paella pan as the chef pan looked a bit shallow and I had visions of spilling the food over the side of it but in reality I'm sure either would have been fine. Also Go Outdoors had an offer on and didn't do the chef's pan combo. The only thing I'd say against the Paella is that if you want to use the lid it sort of sits on top of the pan but not onto the actual Cadac due to the handles. With the chef's pan it would completely cover it. I'm sure the skottel has some uses but I wrote it off as from what I understand it isn't non-stick and it's recommended to use a liner with it if cooking something messy.