Why my Barbecue is better than yours: tips you need for the next season
Winter is officially over and this season's barbecue tallies are in. Time to face the reality - most you of just managed to cling to a burnt meat bonanza while others crashed and burned. Are you itching to know what the secrets are for 'The Best Barbecue Ever?'
Time to pick up some tips from the best then!
PICK YOUR PLACE - ROOFTOP, PORCH-TOP OR OUT IN THE FIELD?
Are you one of those lucky home dwellers whose old time house has an ample front or back yard? No? Then ask your apartment caretaker/flat owner nicely and you can score a cosy rooftop deal (with promises to send some food over).
If that does not work, beg the friend who has ample roof or yard space. If all else fails, make amends for a barbecue picnic, at least there will be no need to keep an extra food portion for uninvited guests.
KNOW THY MEAT AND MARINADE
Good food begins with great ingredients. Get freshly cut and prepared meat, beginners opt for chicken while intermediates tend to go for a 'deshi-style' beef steak. Thanks to food channels on TV and YouTube, there is always a billion and one ways to make the perfect marinade. Want a short-cut? Buy pre-marinated meat, no harm no foul!
DON'T BE A PYROMANIAC
You are not playing with fire here; you are cooking food that has to be edible. If setting things on fire is your speciality, this is where you rein it in.
Coal is the essential cooking fuel and it is not at all hard to get it. Any neighbourhood kitchen market sells it and the sellers are quite eager to give their advice. It is a good idea to take a seasoned 'barbecue-er' if this is your first event.
Also getting the right grill is crucial as it plays the vital part in cooking. Decent grills are available in the super shops as well as in places where regular kitchen utensils are sold. You can even go online and have it delivered at home.
CREATE A BARBECUE AMBIENCE
You have the perfect place, the food and the equipment, the night could not have been better; you are confident this is the one barbecue that needs a Michelin Star.
Go the extra mile, try a Korean Theme - call it a Gogigui; throw it Australian Style and fire up the 'barbie' (not the dolls), or even try a Mexican style fire pit. Make the guests participate in some form of the cooking process, pack in some music for a fun evening. Do what you do best to make sure that it does not turn into a flat, food and gossip-only affair.
Some barbecues are meant to be scene sizzlers from the moment they are thought of. Others, even with the best chef, extravagant food portions, and top of the line imported grill, fall dead centre in the failure zone. Bear in mind novice 'barbecue-er', 'The Best Barbecue Ever' is neither a piece of cake nor is it rocket science. No matter how many great barbecues you attend or hear about, yours is yours alone to burn down or transform into the one barbecue people will tell their grand-
kids about!
By Iris Farina
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