Your BBQ challenges.

  • What have you found hard about BBQ? What did you struggle with, and how did you overcome it?
    For me, my challenges are:

    • Understanding and developing flavours. I understand some of the basic combinations such as salt, pepper, garlic, onion, chilli etc, but struggle with other flavours and how to develop them. What goes with what? What ratios?
    • Isolation. Not distance wise, but the fact that I live alone and don't really have anyone close by that likes to smoke/bbq as well. It would be nice to hang with someone else while they cook, learning together, bouncing ideas off each other. Also, because it's usually only me eating the finished product, it lasts a lot longer and the frequency of the cooks is a lot less, slowing the learning process even more.

    Very effin UDS, GMG Daniel Boone Prime

  • my challenges were/are the same as yours.

    Whilst i have always cooked good pieces of meat, i always had difficulty cooking a complete meal. I have been trying real hard lately cooking sides and sauces / gravy etc. And learning a lot from here and elsewhere.

    Living in brissie the weather is perfect all year round for BBQing yet i dont really know anyone either to have a cook up with. I guess i am lucky though i got the wife and kids who eat it but i find most of the time it gets cryvaced. Have a couple guys from work who are always asking for my meat but i aint a charity and they wont ever return the favour.

    I think there are a few members in SEQ. Would be good if there was a catch up one day.

    My possessions: GMG DB - Ziggy Triple

    • Official Post

    What have you found hard about BBQ? What did you struggle with

    one word.....crackle.


    and how did you overcome it?

    I haven't. ;(

    Big Green Egg - Asmoke Pellet Grill - Weber Kettle - Maximus Pizza Oven - Dragon Hibachi - Ziggy Portable - baby kamado - Grillz 2 burner - Cobb BBQ - Converted Gas Bottle Spit - Charbroil Grill2go - Anova sous vide - Digi Q controller - plus Tip Top Temp - Smokeware cap - Grill Grates

  • My initial struggle in using solid fuel instead of gas was trying to understand the nature of the fire.
    My first ever cook over solid fuel was a steak cooked on a borrowed Weber go anywhere using heatbeads. I really struggled to get the fire going and fiddled around endlessly with the beads, using more fire starters, moving the beads some more, repeat.
    The light bulb moment was when I left it alone for a while to do it's thing, and all of a sudden, there was a good flame to cook over. Then I went about cooking a mighty fine steak for myself.
    Another challenge was not to sweat temperature fluctuations. I was finding myself constantly fiddling with the vents to compensate for minor temp changes, when in all reality they don't affect the cook as much as I thought it was going to.
    I guess to overcome these challenges, I learned to relax and let nature take its course.

    Primo large oval, GMG Daniel Boone, Weber kettle, Weber Q3200, Weber Go Anywhere.

    • Official Post

    My biggest struggle is being systematic about cooking. I tend to just chuck stuff together, almost never follow recipes, almost never cook things the same way twice. I haven't used a "stay in" probe in years (thermapen all the way). I'd be real crap at competition cooking!
    I haven't overcome it because I just can't seem to be bothered. I realise this somewhat stops me from getting better though.

    Masterbuilt Gravity 800 | Maximus Pizza Oven | GMG - Daniel Boone | Cyprus Grill | Big Steel Keg | Blackstone Griddle | Fire Pit | Weber Genesis |

  • My biggest struggle is being systematic about cooking. I tend to just chuck stuff together, almost never follow recipes, almost never cook things the same way twice. I haven't used a "stay in" probe in years (thermapen all the way). I'd be real crap at competition cooking!
    I haven't overcome it because I just can't seem to be bothered. I realise this somewhat stops me from getting better though.

    That sounds exactly like me.

    Very effin UDS, GMG Daniel Boone Prime

  • It's all about timing. But that's the same with the outdoor kitchen and indoor kitchen. Maintaining textures, freshness & flavour's all coming together at the right time is always a struggle.

    Jumbuck 7 burner with hood. Baby Weber kettle. 52" Kettle. Weber Go Anywhere. 5' SS Spit rotisserie. Offset smoker. Akorn Kamado. :) ASMOKE AS500N. Hibachi.:bbq:

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