Choosing a Barbecue

We don’t always have guaranteed long hot summers here in the UK. It therefore appears that we don’t invest heavily in our barbecues and grills because we don't expect to use it a great deal. But by not investing in a good quality build, we often get into a cycle of repeat buying every 2-3 years because our old barbecue has rusted out.

However, in some of the most extreme of climates in other countries, the barbecue or outdoor “Grill” is used year-round and is bought with durability in mind. In fact, Weber is a US company who build some of the most durable barbecues on the planet, and we know the extremes of temperature available in the US.

Choose the right barbecue and grill now and you can have many years of year round barbecue cooking and use your barbecue as an extension to your kitchen ... and try out new cooking techniques that are impractical in a domestic kitchen.  

Barbecue Features

Today, your choice of barbecues is vast compared to just a decade ago when most stores offered not much more than a kettle barbecue .... and the seemed to be pre-armed to corrode to the unusable point after only 2-3 years.

Whilst it is still true that those budget barbecues are still around, and will potentially still only last for a short life, representing a poor investment, the choice of premium end quality barbecues has never been better. But better build quality comes at a price which reflects the netter, more durable components, so buy now and enjoy for a long time.

However, there is a little sting in buying better ... it means that you will not expect to be buying again in a hurry; therefore when  choosing which barbecue to buy, you should consider all the features that you might contemplate using whilst you own the barbecue. This brief guide to barbecue features will hopefully help you decide whether it is a feature that you could or would use and help you to invest wisely.  

Here are some of the things that you need to think about :

• Fuel - Gas or Charcoal? Some purists prefer Charcoal for a traditional smoky flavour. However many gas grills incorporate features to enhance the flavour (Weber includes Flavorizer bars). Gas is undoubtedly more controllable than charcoal and has additional convenience. The fuller featured grills will require Gas as a fuel
• Portability - Maybe you require a portable barbecue for trips. There are fold-up durable barbecues on the market designed for such an occasion (e.g. the Grilletto or the Weber Go Anywhere). Don't compromise on your main barbecue. Consider having one for home and a portable for trips and weekends away.
• How big a cooking area do you require, not necessarilly now, but over the next few years
• Side Burners - do you want to have a pan on the side with sauces, beans etc.. or maybe for frying off eggs or potatoes?
• Searing Station - some upmarket barbecues have sear stations that build up incredible heat to ensure a good seal and superior caramelisation on the outside of your meat. This is extreme … most barbecues will have capability to sear sufficiently already, but if you want it and can afford it then why not?
• Spit Roasting - if this interests you then think of the following :
  • Spit Motor - Do NOT consider battery powered motors. They have insufficient power. Weber abandoned any thought of battery powered motors having researched all the available motors. Today, only mains powered motors provide the punch.
  • WHAT will you spit roast? - make sure that your grill and spit are large enough and strong enough to take the most weight that you anticipate.

• Infra Red Cooking - Barbecues at the premium end of the market will also offer Infra Red cooking. You may be tempted to think of this as an electric heat source, but it is actually gas powered with panels froviding an intense heat source at the top of the grill … in the hood area

• Smoking Food -
  • Light Smoking - If you could foresee lightly smoking food, then you may wish to consider a barbecue with a separate smoke box to take the wood. That will be more flexible and controllable preventing extreme smoke and a burnt flavour, but with careful addition of wood, then any barbecue can smoke food lightly.
  • Traditional Smoking - If you wish to smoke heavier and longer, and especially if you wish to cold smoke, then you would be better advised to purchas a dedicated smoker generator and cabinet

• Roasting & Baking - If you consider that you will wish to roast large pieces of meat i.e. thicker than a steak, or that you may wish to bake (e.g. great flavoured pizza simulating a wood fired oven), the you will need a hooded barbecue.
• Warranty - this is an area where you potentially really do get what you pay for. Warranties will be anything between the usual 1 year anything up to 25 years for some of the Weber barbecue parts, potentially outliving me …. “I hereby bequeath my trusty Weber barbecue to …???”

The above points should help you think about what you are reasonably looking for in a barbecue, but some additional pointers :

• Build Quality - barbecues have the capability to get far, far hotter than domestic ovens. E.g. is the hood strong enough to withstand the extreme heat without scorching heat marks into the hood spoiling its appearance?
• Customer Service - if you are thinking about a particular barbecue model, seek out the forums … Barbecue Source is a great resource, though it does have a US slant
• Extension of the Seasons - With a good quality built hooded gas barbecue, you will be able to use the barbecue year round! Do you want to bake proper crusty bread or enjoy pseudo-wood-fired pizza or maybe spit roast your sunday roast? something you can’t do in the relatively low heat in a domestic oven, but you you can do it in a high quality barbecue that delivers an exceptional temperature range ... and it can be year round
• New Techniques - most people will be dissuaded from smoking food in the kitchen because of the long lingering clingy smell of smoke. No problem if you do it outdoors. Add spit roasting to the mix, long slow controlled American smoky barbecue cooking and the barbecue becomes an extension to your domestic oven, not just something for barbecue parties.

If your current barbecue is on its last legs and you are currently choosing your next barbecue, do give the above points some serious attention. If you are excited by food as we are, then don’t restrict yourself to the kitchen and to the relatively low powered hobs, grills and ovens that we have inside.

What do we use at the BBQ Store? We use a Weber Summit S450 Grill, a nuclear power station of a gas grill which is only surpassed by its bigger brother, the Weber Summit S650 Grill. I know that these models aren’t cheap, but with warranties lasting up to 25 years on these models, We know that they are built to last and feel very comfortable in the investment for year round cooking for at least 10 years if not the full 25.

You can click here for other Weber barbecue offers, starting from around £50 for a portable model with a fairly generous cooking area rising to £2000 for the top of the range model.

The BBQ Store presents a wide range of barbecues from many of the leading manufacturers and retailers to help you with your choice. My closing piece of advice …. buy the best that you can afford … remember the old saying … “Buy cheap and buy twice”. You wouldn’t make do with a Camping Gaz stove in the kitchen, so why do it outdoors?