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We’re definitely
into the barbie season right now even though our weather's going
through those familiar summertime ups-and-downs...
For you would be
fire starters, here are my top tips:
Allow
about 40 minutes from lighting to cooking. When ready the coals
should be glowing and covered in a grey powdery layer of ash. Cheap,
chuck-away barbies work fine.
To
test the temperature place your palm
10-12cm above the coals and if you can keep it there for a couple
of seconds only, it’s really hot. 3-4 seconds and it’s a medium
heat, which is perfect.
 Be
brave and go for whole fish such as sea bass, bream, mackerel
or sardines. Score the larger ones a couple of times down the side
with a
sharp knife before cooking.
Vegetables
work really well on the barbie, particularly red and yellow
peppers (avoid the green ones as they’re not ripe), courgettes,
aubergines and fennel. Don’t baste the peppers with oil until after
they’re cooked, allowing their own natural juices to come pumping
out.
Corn
on the cob is the business: wrap in foil for a no-charring effect,
or cook in their husks for partial charring and barbie naked for
a full char. Baste afterwards with melted butter & black pepper.
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Nigel
Barden
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Toast
slices of thick crusty white bread (not your stick jobs – sorry,
baguettes if you’re posh) over the coals and then rub with half
a cut garlic clove and smear with olive oil. For the à la Romana
effect, pile high with freshly chopped tomatoes, shredded fresh
basil and black pepper.
To
reduce the heat quickly, damp the coals down with splashed water
and to increase the temperature, pile the coals together, placing
new ones around the outside.
Keep
cooked and fresh grub separate - otherwise the likelihood of
late night vomiting can be high!
Now
don those shorts and get out there in what's left of the sunshine...
The Bardenmeister
More
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