Outside Barbeques - A Return to the Original

By returning to the original BBQ design, burnt raw meat can be a thing of the past. A barbequera was originally the principal method of cooking in Portugal, consisting of a woven reed basket, soaked in water and left smouldering on top of embers placed on the ground. This evolved into building the fire at a higher level for ease of working and eventually the barbequera was raised above the heat to make for a slower, more even cooking temperature.

Finally, the heat was enclosed on all 4 sides and the cooking surface was further distanced from the heat, enabling the cook to work on other things while the main dish was being brought to gentle perfection unsupervised. The traditional Portuguese piri piri chicken kitchens still use this foolproof cooking method, particularly in the north around Oporto. The texture and flavour of the meat is unrivalled.

Making a traditional BBQ couldn't be more simple. Select a solid, flat surface away from the house, lay 2 paving slabs on the ground and build up 6 pillars at the corners and centre of the slabs using house bricks. These should be 6 courses high. No need for mortar. Place another 2 slabs on top of the pillars and, most importantly, lay 2 layers of bricks on these pavings. This will stop the heat from cracking them. Finally, build a wall round the edges of the flat surface to complete a brick-walled pit. 2 or 3 boot scrapers from the ironmongers is all you need for a cooking surface.

This is now ready to roll. And all for the low cost of 4 flag stones and a pallet of cheap bricks.

The optimum fuel is oak off-cuts, but any timber will do. Fill the pit and burn it for a minimum of 4 hours, topping up from time to time. The barbeque is ready when embers glow from distance of a foot or more from the cooking surface. Any wood will do if oak is not an easy commodity. There's always someone selling logs and a load will last 3 or 4 seasons. The immediate discovery will be that meats look after themselves with just occasional turning and supervision. Pots can also be placed on the user friendly cooking surface for sauces and vegetables.

Finally, it's worth investing in a set of professional stainless chef's grill tongs and some black iron cookware. This gear can be dedicated to the BBQ and left outside in a dry place. Once used on this type of barbeque, the carbon deposit will not go down too well in the house!

By bucking the trend of the American style metal BBQ sets, the outside cook can not only enjoy some of Portugal's famous heritage, but also dispense with the hit and miss pastime of the raw, black banger. Once a gently turned whole chicken from the Portuguese barbeque has been sampled, there will never be a return to the black, raw banger!

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