Eating outside with friends and family is always a wonderful experience. You don’t have to worry about the mess that your kitchen makes, or cleaning up after yourself, because you are eating outside. Barbecues are very common in the summertime and it’s lots of fun to invite your friends to one. It can be hard work but also a lot of fun when planning a barbecue. Here are some tips to help you out!
Choosing The Menu
The first step in planning a barbecue is choosing what food you will be cooking. You should take into account any possible dietary requirements or allergies that your guests may have when choosing the menu for your barbecue. If someone has an allergy to gluten, for example, it would not be a good idea to choose foods such as bread rolls and pasta salad. You should also make sure to choose foods that everyone will enjoy.
When thinking about the menu you could ask each guest what they would like to eat ahead of time, this way you can prepare everything in advance and it is less stressful for you when having the barbecue.
Some ideas for menu items include:
- Hamburgers (beef or chicken)
- Hot Dogs
- Sausages
- Steak
- Chicken Strips/Nuggets
- Ribs/Chips/Onion Rings
- Salad & Pasta Salad
- Bread Rolls/Burgers buns
Don’t forget drinks. There are many options for drink choices when planning a barbecue. Some common drinks include fruit juice (such as orange juice), water, soda/soft drinks, beer, and wine.
Buy Coal In Advance
When planning a barbecue it is important to purchase your coal in advance. This way you can be sure that the coals will not run out halfway through cooking, which would result in a ruined meal and wasted food. It’s best to find bulk charcoal for sale and keep the leftovers for later use. You should also make sure that your grill is big enough to hold all of the food that you plan on cooking. You don’t want to end up not having enough room for everything because you underestimated how much food you would need.
Clean Up The Area
Before everyone arrives, it’s important to make sure the area is clean. You don’t want guests to be bumping into old dirty toys or tripping over things that are left out because you forgot about them. Clean up any leaves and branches that have fallen in your backyard. If there are any loose toys laying around it’s best to put them away until after the party so you won’t lose them or accidentally step on one.
Remember, safety first. It is essential to ensure that your backyard is safe for guests. This means making sure there are no major cracks in the brickwork or any overhanging branches that could cause someone to trip and fall. It’s also crucial that you have working lights installed if it will be dark outside when your barbecue starts, this way everyone can see where they are walking. You do not want anyone getting burnt, so be sure that there are no loose things around the area that could possibly catch fire. Make sure that people stay away from the hot coals with bare feet and always play it safe with children around the area.
Invitations
When planning a big barbecue you should make invitations for each guest who is attending the party. If you send out invitations beforehand, guests can prepare themselves accordingly by bringing their own side dishes or drinks with them if needed. You should let people know what time to arrive at the party, especially if some people will not be able to until the end of it because they have other plans to attend to beforehand. It’s also a good idea to include the ingredients of specific dishes that you will be serving so your guests can bring anything they need if it is needed, such as salt and pepper.
By including all of this information on the invitations, it makes things less stressful for you because you won’t have to worry about writing out individual lists for each guest. They should know what to pack and when they should arrive, making everything run much smoother.
How To Grill Different Food
You could either grill your food with one, two, or three zones depending on the type of food you’re cooking and how hot you want it.
Burgers can be grilled with one zone because it’s best to cook them low and slow when grilling. This method will give the patties a nice smoky flavor and they won’t overcook by burning on the outside before the inside is done.
Hot dogs should be cooked over medium heat. They can also be assembled with two or more hot dog buns with veggies and condiments in between each of them for a meal that everyone will enjoy. Sausages work well with two zones; cooking them on high heat until nearly cooked and then switching them over to medium heat right before you take them off the grill so they don’t burn. You should make sure to use separate tongs when changing from high to medium heat so you don’t contaminate the sausages with raw meat.
Grilling steaks is an art that can take time to perfect, but it’s one of the best ways to enjoy them because they turn out tender and juicy. You should start off with high heat on both sides and then reduce it down to medium if you like your steak rare and low if you like it well done and don’t plan on eating it right away after taking it off the grill.
Vegetables can be grilled over one zone for a nice char without having too much trouble keeping track of them while everyone else is enjoying their food around the table.
Fish works well when cooked over two zones; cooking one side at a high temperature until the flesh starts to flake, then switching it over to medium heat so the other side cooks slowly.
Slices of bread are best cooked on a grill at high heat until they’re lightly golden brown and then flipped over to cook the other side. When using low heat after this point you should use low indirect heat instead of placing them directly over the coals because if your bread burns it will ruin the flavor. You can also start off with high heat before reducing it down to low or medium when grilling veggies and meats.
When you’re planning a big barbecue, one of the best things that you can do is to make sure that all of your guests feel welcome and at home. Be sure to include everyone and make them feel like they are part of something special and most importantly, make sure they have a good time! Buy coal in bulk, and learn the right temperatures to grill different food.