The sun is shinning and the smell of BBQs is spreading. In the UK some of us see a ray of sunshine and head straight to the rusty BBQ in the garden expecting to produce gourmet meals in 5 minutes flat. The reality is more likely to be burnt sausages, and under cooked chicken. Most people just don’t get enough practice at organising a proper BBQ in order to enjoy the experience.

Like all parties, it is always a good idea to have a plan. Even if it is a spur of the moment decision to host  a BBQ party you should give yourself a couple of hours prep time. This time can be used to marinate the meat, arrange seats in the garden and give the house a quick tidy. Hopefully you will have a clean BBQ. If not you may need more than a few hours pre time.

TYPE OF BBQ

By this I mean gas or charcoal. This is not something you will decide in a couple of hours but something you should consider at the start of the Summer. Cooking by gas is quick and easy, but uninspiring.  Most people are perfectly happy with the gas option and the selection of gas BBQ’s you can purchase is vast.

I, on the other hand think that you cannot beat the taste of food cooked on a real charcoal BBQ. You can’t beat the “smoked in ” taste of genuine BBQ food, plus there is the whole ritual of lighting the coals, something that will keep the male guests occupied for hours. It is all part of the fun. Guests feel relaxed and involved when looking after a charcoal BBQ.

The secret to getting the most from a charcoal BBQ is to wait until the glowing red coals have dimmed and a grey ash has formed over the charcoal.

GUEST LIST AND FOOD

Because our weather is so unpredictable BBQ parties are usually pulled together on the spur of the moment. A few texts and hey presto the party
is arranged. You will however have to have an idea of the numbers so you can buy the correct amount of food. As a rule of thumb you should plan on two to three portions of meat per person or two of meat and one of fish.

SIDE DISHES

As well as the “main fare” you will also need to prepare salads, breads and side dishes. New potatoes are perfect as an accompainment and have the
advantage of been great either hot or cold.

When the BBQ is arranged at very short notice it is very hard to do anything but the basics, meat and burger buns with some BBQ sauce, however if the event is planned well in advance then you should put the same effort into planning the event as you would when organising any other type of party.

Some party ocassions around late Spring – early Summer are perfect candidates for the BBQ option, holy communion parties been one of them. If you do go for the BBQ option and are planning a large guest list then you need to make sure you have enough party tableware such as plates, cups and napkins. These can all be purchased from online party shops and are all disposable.  Don’t forget of course some pre filled party bags if you are
having children to the party. They are not essential but will go down a treat.

If you have any BBQ recipies that you think our blog readers would like please post then on our site. It’s always great to get a new finger licken’ treat.