Barbecues: Gas or charcoal? (1 Viewer)

Movinon

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We recently attended the Misterton rally. Great fun and a really impressive barbecue at the end. We thought it might be a good idea to buy a barbecue for our travels but having seen examples of both types being used abroad we are stumped as to which is better - gas or charcoal. Obviously gas is easier but charcoal is the real deal. My question then is not about cooking results but more about preference and prohibition in terms of "I wouldn't cook any other way" and "we were told off for lighting it here".
 

Chris

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Personally I don't really see the point in gas barbeques.

At home we use a big charcoal Weber which is excellent.

In the van we have a mini weber but rarely use it.
 

Wildman

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gas is convenient but lacks the flavour of cremated meat, you pays your money and makes your choice:ROFLMAO:

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funflair

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Charcoal is the best of course, BUT


We have a gas kettle one as it is so much easier and it will do Pizza and take a pan as well for al fresco cooking.

Martin
 

scotjimland

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My favourite topic.. barbie cooking .. :D..

I have three.. a Large Weber Kettle, a gas Outback.. and a small Go Anywhere Weber for camping

The gas Outback is used more often, almost every day during the summer months , it's is a lot more convenient and the taste is every bit as good as a charcoal barbie.

The Weber Kettle is used when I want to do a long slow cook, like Beer Can Chicken, or to smoke brisket. etc.

For travelling the small gas barbies are excellent.. Weber do a niceBroken Link Removed one which I would recommend.. I intend to buy it for next time we go away..


Neither is better than the other.. Gas for convenience.. Charcoal for authentic taste and smoking and doing the 'man' stuff .. .. your choice..

I also have a Cadac .. now behind the shed.. it is a gridle .. not a BBQ ..
 

DBK

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We have a big Weber charcoal one at home but for the MH we bought first a Cobb. This can be used on grass or even a table without burning and is easy to clean but we have not been impressed by the flavour it produces as it is really just a charcoal powered hot plate. So we have recently bought one of these: Broken Link Removed

Very cheap and cheerful but it comes with bits of larva rock and so far seems to do a very good job and produces food with a genuine BBQ flavour - i.e. slightly charred!

It is probably made out of recycled dustbins by children in some Chinese prison camp but it is fairly solidly made, I still have my eyebrows and for the price, good value. It also folds up quite small which is a big plus in our little 'van. We are getting an external gas BBQ point added next week so we won't need to take a gas bottle with us.

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scotjimland

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So we have recently bought one of these: Broken Link Removed

Very cheap and cheerful but it comes with bits of larva rock and so far seems to do a very good job and produces food with a genuine BBQ flavour .

had one very similar.. as you say, cheap and cheerful.. works fine but the gas burner rusted away very quickly, as did the grid.

you can buy replacement burners, but it wasn't worth the expense..
 
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cmcardle75

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We recently attended the Misterton rally. Great fun and a really impressive barbecue at the end. We thought it might be a good idea to buy a barbecue for our travels but having seen examples of both types being used abroad we are stumped as to which is better - gas or charcoal. Obviously gas is easier but charcoal is the real deal. My question then is not about cooking results but more about preference and prohibition in terms of "I wouldn't cook any other way" and "we were told off for lighting it here".

Ignore the snobbery about gas barbecues and just being an oven. It simply isn't true. It isn't the charcoal that flavours the meat, it is the fats melting off the food and burning as smoke that rises back up. This happens just as well on both gas and charcoal.
 

Grannyvan

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When it is very warm and dry many campsites abroad will not allow charcoal BBQ's because of the risk of sparks causing fires

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If you had asked me a couple of weeks back i'd have said Charcoal all the way but having just bought a cadac and fitted a gas point to the motorhome I am a gas convert, so much easier and cleaner and can be used at times when lighting a charcoal barbie would not be appropriate. Cadac is a great bit of kit and probably the best thing I have bought for the motorhome so far.
 
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We have a Cadac and I don't really view it as a barbecue. It's more of an outdoor stove that looks like a barbecue.

It's got a hotplate, so ideal for alfresco breakfast cooking. And a pizza stone. And a lid. Bit like a large hot plate / oven. But absolutely not a barbecue.

I wouldn't be without it. Fantastically easy to use anywhere and very clean. It's plenty large enough to feed 6 hungry people and very controllable.

But I do miss the smell and atmospherics of charcoal at times.

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DP+JAY

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We use one like this. Bags of self lighting charcoal are so easy & reliable.

Broken Link Removed

Plus an alluminium ribbed griddle (Ikea) to use on an outside gas ring on the odd occasion when we can't use the real one. Also have a Cadac but don't like it much, it's in the loft I think.
Have tried various gas bbq's over the years & am not impressed.
 
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Got the big Webber kettle for home, wish I could take it in the van too, got the Webber go outdoors charcoal version for the van, brilliant little barbie and a small Outback gas barbie that takes those disposable gas cylinders ( £1 each in B&M ) for those tinder box European sites, food tastes ok off it but it’s a beggar to clean.
 

Scattycat

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Preferences aside, on many sites, especially in warmer climates, you are not allowed to use a charcoal BBQ.
We tend to use a gas BBQ when weather permits.
Even with a good extractor in the van it's hard to eliminate the smell of cooking fish from permeating the fabric of the van and it tends to linger for days. lol

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scek

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We went from coal to gas due to many sites not allowing open fires and coal bbq's.
We made a major blunder in reading peoples recommendations for a Cadac. We bought one and found it to be a great grill for egg and bacon, but as a bbq goes its utter rubbish. We now have a great gas bbq which burns and cremates the meat just like a coal bbq (cant remember its make). We use plenty of bbq flavoured marnade and you cant tell the taste difference between a gas and coal bbq. The marnade gives off loads of good bbq smells whilst cooking.

Main reasons a gas bbq is better - more control over cooking, just plug in quick to the gas point, never had a campsite say we cant use it, dont have to wait for the coals to get hot.
 

scotjimland

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I also have a Cadac .. now behind the shed.. it is a griddle .. not a BBQ ..

Cadac is a great bit of kit and probably the best thing I have bought for the motorhome so far.

We have a Cadac and I don't really view it as a barbecue

We made a major blunder in reading peoples recommendations for a Cadac. We bought one and found it to be a great grill for egg and bacon, but as a bbq goes its utter rubbish. .

I keep saying this.. the Cadac is NOT a barbie.. it is a griddle.. great for cooking bacon and eggs ..

yet it is still described on web sites as :doh:
Cadac Safari Chef LP Portable Gas Barbecue
 

Inthezone

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Gas for us, many people say that they "prefer the charcoal but rarely use it" perhaps that the answer gas is easy and can be used anyware, charcoal has the smell of a "proper BBQ" but is a faff to use - simply personal choice

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As already said the Cadac is great for bacon egg sausage and also stir frying, BUT use the BBQ function at your peril, look forward to spending an hour afterwards cleaning the bloody thing(n)
 
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Chockswahay

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C'mon! What would be the fun if you didn't spend an hour trying to get the barbie to light properly then spend 30 minutes cremating everything then eating it all in a rush while the barbie finally gets up to temperature and you use it for boiling a pan a water to spend another 30 minutes washing up the smoke and grease ridden mess!!!!!!!! LOL:D:D:D
 
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Chockswahay

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I should have said I love barbies.......... but they are a pain in the a***:LOL:

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tambo

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To me a gas BBQ is just an outdoor stove

Charcoal all the way for me and I can keep it going afterwards with scrap wood

Nothing like a real campfire ......contained safe and leaving no trace of course
 
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Cadac Safari Chef. Use it all of the holidays as a barbecue or hot plate for fry ups and when I get home put all the messy bits in a carrier bag and spray with oven cleaner. Leave it a day and it just rinses off!!
 

Scattycat

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I keep saying this.. the Cadac is NOT a barbie.. it is a griddle.. great for cooking bacon and eggs ..

yet it is still described on web sites as :doh:
Cadac Safari Chef LP Portable Gas Barbecue
----------
I typed into Google Oxford English Dictionary barbecue.
and this is their explanation

"A meal or gathering at which meat, fish, or other food is cooked out of doors on a rack over an open fire or on a portable grill."(n)

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Wombles

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Cobb for us with charcoal & natural firelighters - used to use their Cobblestones but then read too many scary stories about petrochemicals! As the Cobb has cool sides & underneath it can be used on a table or on ground with less risk of catching things on fire - can even be use on board boats! See http://www.cobb-bbq.co.uk/ - plenty of sellers on the web including Lakeland who have a good returns policy (y)
 

scotjimland

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I typed into Google Oxford English Dictionary barbecue.
and this is their explanation

"A meal or gathering at which meat, fish, or other food is cooked out of doors on a rack over an open fire or on a portable grill."(n)


I don't need Google to tell me what a barbie is.. been doin' it for 40 plus years ...

A Cadac is a tripod with a gas burner and a hot plate or griddle... nice bit of kit.. but barbie it aint

This is a barbie
220px-Bbq_chicken_wings.JPG


This is a barbie
220px-Pig_Pickin_in_NC.jpg


This is a barbie

220px-BBQ_Food.jpg


this is a Cadac .. spot the difference ?

Dawlish%20Cadac.jpg
 
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Chockswahay

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S'funny you say that. We had a Cobb last year and as a griddle it was fine but as a barbie it was rubbish so we got rid of it. Cobb advertise it as a barbie too

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Wombles

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S'funny you say that. We had a Cobb last year and as a griddle it was fine but as a barbie it was rubbish so we got rid of it. Cobb advertise it as a barbie too
That's surprising - we have had a Cadac & have used all kinds of charcoal bbq & found Cobb to be the best! Less smokey once it gets going &, although it isn't as fast as some, using the lid keeps meat moist, concentrates the heat & means you don't have to keep checking & turning it but still get genuine bbq flavour.
 
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................

this is a Cadac .. spot the difference ?

Dawlish%20Cadac.jpg

Spot the difference? Easy peasy!!!! You can make a face out of the Cadac's contents. :D

When I lived in Australia, there were electric 'barbecues' everywhere. Most outdoor places had them for all to use. We often had BBQ's in the evening on these.

But I agree with you. Technically, they were outdoor hotplates.
 
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Chockswahay

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That's surprising - we have had a Cadac & have used all kinds of charcoal bbq & found Cobb to be the best! Less smokey once it gets going &, although it isn't as fast as some, using the lid keeps meat moist, concentrates the heat & means you don't have to keep checking & turning it but still get genuine bbq flavour.

Hi Wombles, We did try ....really... but just could not get on with it. It just took too long to get a decent heat and then too long to cook with. Having said that I am sure they are good for big pieces of meat (which was one reason why we bought one in the first place).

In fairness to the Cobb we also spent too much time in too many places where it was inconvenient or not allowed to use barbecues of any nature. We also felt it was taking up too much space in the van.

Quite happy now with our budget BBQ bucket from Sainsburys for about £6

By the way I do think that the Cobb is well made (but it should be for the price)

:)

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