Recommend me a barbecue

EdwardTeach

EdwardTeach

EdwardTeach

Soldato
Joined
18 Mar 2010
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I interested in cooking some food outside this summer. I want something suitable for cooking on a small scale e.g just a few burgers/kebabs etc for me and my family (2 adults, 2 kids). Preferably quick to get hot and easy to tidy up. I might be wrong but I feel like some barbecues are more geared towards cooking on a large scale e.g for a barbecue party. Probably have a preference for charcoal, as gas is kind of cheating.

I was looking at this tabletop barbecue But I think it might be a little large.

Obviously also interested in normal free standing barbecues.
 
I like my little Weber,
They are slightly bigger now as ours is 10 years old.
Still going strong and always been outside without a cover.
 
Oil drum, electric hack saw (NOT an angle grinder#) and some steel rebar/mesh/sheet with holes punched through.

(If you are not up to welding legs onto the half oil drum afterwards, just prop it up on bricks)

(#Do NOT use an angle grinder on an old oil drum! Even the tiniest amount of residual vapour will blow you into the next dream of Brahma!)

Job done! :p
 
From experience Orionaut? :p

I'll have to remember that as my first port of call would be a grinder!

What do you plan on doing with the BBQ? If it's regular cooking of meat in general then charcoal is a pain. If it's just 2-3 times a year at the weekend with friends then charcoal is probably a good call. I've used a mix of charcoal and gas, and up until 2 months ago was using charcoal for about 6 months. It was annoying spending 20 minutes preparation just to cook four burgers.

Since then we got a Weber gas BBQ and it's a lot less hassle, but has it's own quirks. Weber BBQs are designed to only cook with the lid down and as such don't provide enough direct heat to actually properly sear a piece of meat! Weber's are apparently supposed to be used like a convection oven, not a BBQ. :confused:
 
Very happy with our 47cm Weber, it's big enough for our uses!

A chimney starter makes life a lot easier (or lazier, depending on how you look at it) for igniting the coals.
 
Cooking with the lid down and controllable vents give much better results imho and also opens up the world of smoked meats like pulled pork etc. You can still have it hot enough to sear, but much less likely to have a black crunchy thing that raw on the inside.
 
Webber kettle - great bbq, big enough for a party but like any bbq you can just put enough coals for a few bits of meat.
 
EdwardTeach said:
I interested in cooking some food outside this summer. I want something suitable for cooking on a small scale e.g just a few burgers/kebabs etc for me and my family (2 adults, 2 kids). Preferably quick to get hot and easy to tidy up. I might be wrong but I feel like some barbecues are more geared towards cooking on a large scale e.g for a barbecue party. Probably have a preference for charcoal, as gas is kind of cheating.

I was looking at this tabletop barbecue But I think it might be a little large.

Obviously also interested in normal free standing barbecues.
Click to expand...

If you're looking at something in that price range, and want a table-top BBQ, you simply won't be able to beat a Weber for the quality and usability.

Have a look here:

http://www.riversidegardencentre.co.uk/weber-bbq/weber-charcoal-bbq/weber-smokey-joe.html

Any of those would be absolutely perfect! Get a chimney starter as well for £15 and starting it will be a breeze. You don't have to use a full chimney for that little grill. I have the green one and we used it twice this weekend. I also have a MasterTouch 57cm but the little one was purchased for camping and it's also perfect when I'm doing burgers and sausages and don't want to wheel out the larger grill :)

http://www.riversidegardencentre.co.uk/weber-smokey-joe-premium-spring-green.html

http://www.riversidegardencentre.co.uk/weber-portable-chimney-starter.html
 
Yup, another Weber fan here.

Had mine 2 years, an absolute pleasure to use and great for small BBQ's or large. Made particularly easy with the chimney starter.
 
Also have a Weber here (small), been outside for years with no cover in all sorts of weather and its held up superb. Very good quality.

Doesn't see much action now though as the gas one is so convenient.
 
57cm Weber as others have said.

I also do long smokes on mine fairly easily.

Don't get the 47cm, unless you're a family of pixies
 
Another vote for the Weber 57cm.

All of my barbecuing is done on either a gas Weber Genesis E-310:

http://www.riversidegardencentre.co.uk/weber-genesis-e310.html
53fcf3415e74a_genesis-e310-black.jpg


Or a charcoal Weber 57cm kettle:

http://www.riversidegardencentre.co.uk/weber-one-touch-original-57cm.html
545274a16a2c8_kettle-22.jpg
 
Amp34 said:
Since then we got a Weber gas BBQ and it's a lot less hassle, but has it's own quirks. Weber BBQs are designed to only cook with the lid down and as such don't provide enough direct heat to actually properly sear a piece of meat! Weber's are apparently supposed to be used like a convection oven, not a BBQ. :confused:
Click to expand...

Where on earth did you hear / read that? That's just not true. You can grill perfectly on a Weber 57cm both with the lid and without. I do it all the time, and when I was growing up my father did the same and his Weber is over 25 years old! Food cooks quicker and more evenly internally with the lid on, obviously, but you can sear, cook and grill however you like. It's all about how you set the coals up more than anything else! When I do large cuts of meat, the lid is always on, but for burgers and sausages, if I feel like standing by the fire attending the meat then the lid stays off, and if I fancy just sitting down for a bit to relax then the lid goes on.
 
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FerretBoy said:
Cooking with the lid down and controllable vents give much better results imho and also opens up the world of smoked meats like pulled pork etc. You can still have it hot enough to sear, but much less likely to have a black crunchy thing that raw on the inside.
Click to expand...

Learn to cook properly then. :p

Something like a steak, burger or the one i just cannot do any more on this BBQ, calamari is much better done with the lid up and direct heat.

The calamari especially is awful, it just dries out rather than sears nicely around the edges.

The option of both lid down and lid up is a better bet. Just turn the flame down a bit if there is too much heat. Basically lid down doesn't work properly when you'r cooking something that just need a short time of high heat, rather than a slower even cook.

You can actually buy a fair few gas BBQs with sear plates on the side now. I didn't realise at the time of buying quite why they were needed as all the previous gas ones seared fine on the main compartment.:p

As Abyss points out though, the best option is one of each. Coal for when you want the perfect steak and have the time, and gas for when you're just cooking that piece of meat for dinner 3 times a week or when you want to cook something for a long period of time.
 
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