On Barbeques

Hope triumphs over experience so often, and never more so than when catering moves outside and charcoal smoke billows over our gardens and terraces. A multitude of little bits of meat getting the flame grill treatment, all ready at different times, brought together by that slightly acrid taste of ash.  It’s not much more fun for the host either – stood there, flipping and flipping, wondering why some food stuffs start flaming, is that blackened sausage really cooked and why do I smell like a bonfire.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not being a grinchy stick in the mud about this, I like eating and socialising in the sun, and I’m not afraid to be out of the carefully controlled environment of my kitchen.  I just don’t like hanging around in the smoke and flipping things. I want it to be easy, and for everyone to eat together, rather than one cremated sausage at a time.  So in the interests of simplicity, hospitality and good eating, I’ll be cooking whole joints in the garden this year.

Spatchcock Chicken

Turn the bird upside down on the board, and cut out the backbone.  Scissors are the implement of choice for this, but a cleaver (Muppets style) is more fun.  With the backbone removed, squash the bird flat on the board and secure with a criss-cross of skewers through the leg and breast flesh.

The dry rub gives some heat and spice and a tasty skin.  Anything goes ingredient wise, as long as there is plenty of salt to make the marinating time work, and sugar so that it caramelizes during cooking giving the skin that authentic BBQ finish and smoky taste. You want a bit spice and a bit of heat -  I used toasted fennel seeds, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, garlic salt, cumin and coriander. The longer the bird sits in the rub the better the flavour will be as the salt helps the chicken absorb the spices.

For cooking, get the coals going in the kettle BBQ (other types are available, but not as good, and this technique relies on using the lid).  When they’re all white, move them to the edge of the kettle, leaving the middle clear.  The chicken goes skin side up over the empty part, so it cooks indirectly with the lid closed.  You can turn it over sometimes if you want more colour on the skin.  Me? I would rather spend the time with friends than flipping meat.

After about 45 minutes, check with a meat thermometer, let  the chicken rest for a bit (the BBQ can now be used for some little extras – asparagus perhaps).  It is then super easy to joint and carve.

I served this with a few salads – potato, pickled tomato, orange and goats cheese as well as some asparagus that were finished on the BBQ.  Marie Sharp’s Chilli Sauce (it’s from Belize, and apparently the best in the world according to people who know such things) was served on the side.  The meat is so succulent cooked like this that a BBQ sauce would be superfluous.

So there you are, feast for six, done in about an hour, and with a little prep.  All the fun of cooking and eating out side, without the hassles… Simple!

Toby, Hampshire, 1st June