Cooking outside on a BBQ is a skill most of us are acquainted with however cooking inside a Barbecue Lodge is, for some, a very different prospect! Here are our top tips and advice on how to get the best results.
First, set yourself up for success by investing in the right kit. Cast iron skillets and pans are ideal for use over open fire cooking – they are robust, retain heat amazingly and they can be placed directly onto the hot coals. In order to get the most out of your pan or skillet, after use apply a thin layer of oil to the surface – this will help to keep the equipment from rusting. There are also health benefits – cooking with cast iron means you need less cooking oil and they naturally fortify your food with iron – win win.
Because cooking in a Barbecue Lodge requires an open fire, and cast iron pans become incredibly hot, it is advised (if not vital) that you invest in a pair of BBQ safety gloves. These will keep your hands protected whilst you handle the pans and some can even withstand handling hot coals and grates. Being gloves, you are able to grasp things fully – and therefore safely. Please do not use use a household oven glove for this job!
Pans and gloves (and maybe safety goggles) at the ready, its time to turn our attention to BBQ utensils. Once more, factoring in the fact that the fire is an open one, it it important to opt for utensils with long handles. These will allow you to cook with ease and control, whilst avoiding the heat and fire. Also, the long handles mean that you are distanced somewhat from any sizzling oil or fat . Use the utensils and gloves to bank charcoal around the sides of the main fire, where it can quietly heat up, meaning that you have extra hot coals should you need them.
Barbecue Lodges are ideal for cooking, eating and relaxing in – but they do not always have a huge amount of prep space. Make your life easier by prepping as much as possible in your main kitchen, so that ready to cook food can be brought in without needing huge preparation inside the Lodge. This means, putting marinated meat onto skewers the night before (which also helps keep wooden skewers from drying out), cutting and chopping anything that needs to be cooked, and getting salads and sides in dishes ready for serving. You could even premix and chill a cocktail in your fridge to enjoy later in your Lodge as an aperitif!
Finally – take time to get the charcoals really hot – this will mean that food is cooked more evenly. Not all foods will benefit from going directly onto the heat, so have some aluminium foil on hand to wrap up anything that requires a little bit of protection. For cooking meat and poultry, inserting a food thermometer is a safe way to check that things are cooked through properly.
Armed with these starting tips, we hope you will feel on your way to whipping up gourmet feasts sooner than you can say ‘pass the matches’… enjoy and, most importantly, have fun.
