Hygiene & Safety Tips for Preparing Spit Braai Meat
Selecting the Right Meat Cuts for Optimal Cooking on a Spit
Selecting the Right Meat Cuts for Optimal Cooking on a Spit
When planning a spit braai, an event where meat is cooked on a large skewer over an open flame or coals, choosing the right cuts of meat and ensuring proper hygiene are paramount. Not only does the choice of meat affect the flavor and tenderness of your meal, but following safety tips during preparation is crucial to avoid foodborne illnesses. Here's how you can select optimal meat cuts for spit braai cooking while adhering to essential hygiene and safety protocols.
Selecting the Right Meat Cuts
The key to a successful spit braai lies in selecting the right cuts of meat. Typically, tougher cuts that benefit from slow cooking are ideal, as they become tender and flavorful over the extended cooking period. For beef, consider cuts like brisket or rump roast. These have sufficient fat content which helps them stay moist during cooking, enhancing their flavor. For pork, shoulder or leg cuts are perfect due to their fat marbling and connective tissues that break down beautifully when cooked slowly.
Poultry also makes for great spit-roasting; however, smaller birds such as chickens or ducks are preferred over larger ones like turkey which may cook unevenly on a spit. With lamb, leg and shoulder are excellent choices as they offer rich flavors typical of traditional spit braais.
Hygiene & Safety Tips
Meat Storage: Before anything else, ensure that your meat is stored safely until it's time to cook. Refrigerate it at temperatures below 40°F (4°C). Keep it covered in its original packaging or place it in airtight containers to prevent cross-contamination with other foods.
Preparation Area: Always clean your preparation area before starting. Use hot soapy water to scrub down surfaces and utensils which will come into contact with the raw meat. Consider using separate cutting boards for meats and vegetables to avoid cross-contamination.
Marinating Safely: If you choose to marinate your meat for extra flavor, always do this in the refrigerator rather than at room temperature. This prevents bacteria from thriving in the warm environment outside of refrigeration.
Handling Techniques: During preparation, handle your meat as little as possible with bare hands to reduce contamination risks from hand-to-food transfer of bacteria. Use clean utensils instead.
Cooking Temperature: A critical aspect of safety is ensuring your meat reaches a safe internal temperature during cooking which kills harmful bacteria present in raw meats:
Beef should reach at least 145°F (63°C),
Pork should be cooked to 160°F (71°C),
Poultry should go up to 165°F (74°C).
Use a food thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the cut without touching any bones since this can give an inaccurate reading.
Post-Cooking Handling: Once cooked, do not let your meal sit out for longer than two hours (one hour if outdoor temperatures exceed 90°F). Bacteria grow rapidly at these temperatures making leftovers unsafe if not promptly refrigerated.
By carefully selecting appropriate cuts of meat and adhering strictly to hygiene and safety protocols during preparation and cooking, you can ensure that your spit braai is both delicious and safe for all participants.Enjoying this traditional method becomes not only a culinary delight but also a joyful gathering free from health concerns.
Preparing and Marinating Your Chosen Cuts for Flavor Enhancement
Preparing and marinating your chosen cuts for a spit braai is not just about enhancing the flavor but also ensuring that the meat is safe to eat. Proper preparation and marination are crucial steps that require careful attention to hygiene and safety measures to prevent foodborne illnesses and ensure delicious results. Here's how you can safely prepare and marinate your meat for a spit braai.
Choosing the Right Cuts: Selecting the right cuts of meat is the first step in preparing for a spit braai. Opt for fresh, high-quality meats from reputable sources. Ensure that the meat has been stored at the correct temperature (below 5°C/41°F) before purchasing. Popular choices for spit braai include lamb leg, pork shoulder, beef brisket, or whole chickens; these cuts remain tender and flavorful when cooked slowly over an open fire.
Storage and Handling: Once you bring your chosen cuts home, it's important to handle them with care to maintain their freshness. Always wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water before and after handling raw meat. Use separate utensils, cutting boards, and plates for raw meats to avoid cross-contamination with other foods. If you're not marinating immediately, store the meat in the refrigerator at temperatures below 5°C/41°F.
Marination: Marinating not only adds depth and complexity to the flavor of your meats but also plays a part in tenderizing tougher cuts. To begin, choose a marinade recipe that complements your type of meat – acidic components like vinegar or citrus juice are excellent for breaking down tough proteins.
When preparing marinades, always use clean utensils and containers. It's advisable to mix your marinade in a glass or non-reactive bowl as some ingredients can react with metal containers. Submerge the meat entirely in the marinade so that it coats evenly. Cover it tightly with cling film or a lid to prevent any contamination from airborne particles.
For food safety purposes, always marinate meat in the refrigerator rather than at room temperature. Leaving it out can encourage bacterial growth even if you plan on cooking it later. Depending on your recipe, marination could take anywhere from a few hours to overnight-which allows flavors to thoroughly penetrate the meat.
Pre-Marination Checkup: Before adding any seasonings or marinades, inspect your meats closely-lookout for any odors or discoloration which may indicate spoilage-and discard any questionable pieces outrightly.
Cooking Considerations: Once properly marinated, cook meats thoroughly on your spit braai until they reach safe internal temperatures; this kills harmful bacteria present in raw meats:
Beef should reach at least 62°C (145°F).
Poultry should reach at least 74°C (165°F).
Pork should be cooked to at least 71°C (160°F).
Use a reliable food thermometer inserted into the thickest part of each cut without touching bone (which conducts heat differently) for an accurate reading.
In conclusion, taking appropriate steps during selection, storage, handling, and preparation ensures both safety and quality when preparing spit braai meats. A well-marinated cut not only enhances flavor but also improves texture making your culinary experience both enjoyable and secure.
Ensuring Proper Hygiene When Handling Raw Meat
When preparing spit braai meat, ensuring proper hygiene is not just a recommendation-it's a necessity. The handling of raw meat requires careful attention to prevent the spread of bacteria and other pathogens that can cause foodborne illnesses. Here's how you can maintain optimal hygiene and safety from start to finish.
Firstly, cleanliness begins with the individual preparing the meat. Always wash your hands thoroughly with soap and warm water before and after touching raw meat. This basic practice helps minimize the transfer of bacteria. Additionally, it's wise to use disposable gloves when handling raw items, changing them as needed when switching between different food tasks.
Secondly, consider your workspace. Use separate cutting boards-one strictly for meats and another for different foods like vegetables or breads-to avoid cross-contamination. This separation should extend to knives and other utensils as well. If possible, designate specific areas in your kitchen for handling meats and keep these surfaces sanitized regularly using a solution of bleach or antibacterial kitchen cleaner.
The actual preparation of spit braai meat also demands careful hygiene practices. When marinating the meat, make sure it's done in a clean container covered with a lid or cling film, and kept refrigerated until it's time to cook it. Never reuse marinade that has been in contact with raw meat unless it is boiled first to eliminate harmful bacteria.
During the cooking process itself, ensure that the spit braai meat reaches the appropriate internal temperature which kills potential pathogens; for most meats this will be at least 75 degrees Celsius (167 degrees Fahrenheit). Use a meat thermometer to check temperatures at the thickest part of the cut without touching any bones since they conduct heat differently.
Lastly, once your spit braai is underway and guests begin to enjoy their meals, maintain vigilance in keeping cooked food separate from any that remain uncooked. Serve dishes using clean utensils, and never put cooked items back onto plates or surfaces that have previously held raw products.
By adhering to these straightforward but vital hygiene practices when preparing spit braai meat, not only do you ensure a delicious meal but also protect yourself and others from unnecessary risks associated with improper food handling. Enjoying good company with peace of mind about health safety makes any gathering much more enjoyable.
Safety Measures During the Spit Braai Cooking Process
Engaging in the delightful tradition of preparing a spit braai not only promises a feast of succulent meats but also demands adherence to stringent safety and hygiene practices to ensure that both the cook and the diners enjoy a healthful experience. Spit braai, a popular cooking method in South Africa, involves roasting large pieces of meat over an open fire for several hours. This communal and festive cooking process is as much about technique and tradition as it is about ensuring food safety and cleanliness.
Firstly, the importance of personal hygiene cannot be overstressed when preparing spit braai. Cooks should begin by thoroughly washing their hands with soap and warm water before handling any food items, especially raw meats. It's advisable to continue this practice throughout the cooking process, particularly after touching raw meat or unclean surfaces. The use of disposable gloves can provide an additional layer of hygiene.
Selecting fresh, high-quality meat is crucial. It's essential to purchase meats from reputable sources where you can be assured that they have been stored at appropriate temperatures. Before marinating or seasoning your meat, inspect it for any signs of spoilage such as off smells or discoloration.
Marinating the meat not only enhances flavor but can also contribute to safer eating. Acidic marinades, such as those containing vinegar or citrus juice, can help reduce surface bacteria on the meat. Ensure that marination takes place in a clean, refrigerated environment to prevent bacterial growth. Moreover, never reuse marinade that has been in contact with raw meat unless it's boiled first.
During the spit braai itself, maintaining a consistent fire is key. The goal is to achieve an even cooking temperature which helps ensure that all parts of the meat reach safe internal temperatures - typically 145°F (63°C) for whole cuts like beef and lamb, 160°F (71°C) for ground meats, and 165°F (74°C) for poultry. Using a meat thermometer is essential in monitoring this.
Cross-contamination is another critical issue to guard against during preparation and serving. Use separate utensils and plates for raw and cooked meats; never let juices from raw meats come into contact with other foods ready-to-eat foods like salads or sidedishes.
Post-cooking hygiene includes properly cleaning all utensils used during the spit braai. Hot soapy water works best followed by sanitization which can be achieved using solutions like bleach diluted in water.
Finally yet importantly, leftovers should be handled correctly; they need to be cooled rapidly and stored in shallow containers within two hours after cooking to prevent bacterial growth. Stored properly covered in a refrigerator where they can last up to three days.
In conclusion, while enjoying the conviviality brought forth by a beautifully prepared spit braai under open skies might seem just culinary perfection; meticulous attention towards hygiene and safety measures are imperative pillars ensuring that this traditional way of cooking remains both enjoyable and secure health-wise.
Barbecue varies by the type of meat, sauce, rub, or other flavorings used, the point in barbecuing at which they are added, the role smoke plays, the equipment and fuel used, cooking temperature, and cooking time.
The meat may be whole, ground (for hamburgers), or processed into sausage or kebabs. The meat may be marinated or rubbed with spices before cooking, basted with a sauce or oil before, during or after cooking, or any combination of these.
In South Africa, a braai (plural braais) is a barbecue or grill and is a social custom in much of Southern Africa. The term originated with the Afrikaners,[1] but has since been adopted by South Africans of many ethnic backgrounds. The Afrikaans word braaivleis (English: /ˈbraɪfleɪs/;
Afrikaans pronunciation:[ˈbraːifləis]) means grilled meat. The word vleis is Afrikaans for meat, cognate with English flesh.
Braai is regarded by some as another word for barbecue, in that it serves as a verb when describing how food is cooked and a noun when describing the cooking equipment, such as a grill.[1] The traditions around a braai can be considerably different from a barbecue, even if the method of food preparation is very similar. Due to the traditional activities that occur around a braai, many South Africans would argue that having a braai is much better than having a barbecue. While wood was formerly the most widely used braai fuel, in modern times the use of charcoal, briquettes and gas (gas braai) has increased due to their convenience, as with barbecues elsewhere in the world.[2] There has, however, been a renewed interest in the use of wood after the South African government started its invasive plant species removal programme.[3] Many households now own both a gas and wood or charcoal braai.[4] A portable charcoal or wood braai is called a braai stand.
Similar to a potluck party, braais are casual and relaxed social events where families and friends converge on a picnic spot or someone's home (normally the garden or veranda) with their own meat, salad, or side dish in hand. A braai typically includes boerewors, sosaties, kebabs, marinated chicken, pork and lamb chops, steaks, sausages of different flavors and thickness, and possibly even racks of spareribs.
Fish and rock lobster, commonly called crayfish, are also popular in coastal areas, particularly on the west and southwest coasts, and prawns are also braaied.
Bring-and-Braai is a braai that guests bring food (usually including meat) and drinks to (in other braais, the host usually organises the meat and guests contribute side dishes and drinks).
The other main part of the meal in some regions of the country is pap (/ˈpʌp/). Pap is made from finely ground corn/maize and may be eaten with a tomato and onion sauce, a monkey gland sauce, or a more spicy chakalaka at a braai.
Sometimes this activity is also known as a dop en tjop (dop being Afrikaans slang for an alcoholic drink, literally meaning "cap" or "bottle top", and tjop being the informal Afrikaans term for lamb chop) when significant amounts of alcohol are involved.
A braai is a social occasion that has specific traditions and social norms. The meal is subsequently eaten outside by the braai stand, since these gatherings are normally hosted during the long summer months.
What often makes a braai different from barbecue in that it is the "go-to" social event for many South Africans, from Christmas Day, to graduation parties, to birthdays and every day get togethers, used as a means to celebrate. Other cultures may reserve a barbecue as a special event in its own right. Such events may be catered, and when catered are often spit braais (spit rotisseries).
Shisa nyama also spelled chisa nyama or chesa nyama, is a term used in many townships to describe a barbecue or braai where friends or families come together to grill meat in an open fire (usually near a butchery). The site is usually provided by the butcher owner and only people who buy meat from the butcher are allowed to use the facility. Shisa nyama is a Zulu phrase and, literally, means to "burn meat".[5]
Braai Day is a celebration of South Africa's rich cultural heritage and its unique national pastime, the braai. It aims to unite all South Africans by encouraging them to partake in a fun and tangible activity shared by all demographic groups, religious denominations, and body types.[6] It is celebrated annually by South Africans across the world on 24 September (South Africa's Heritage Day).[7]
The event was initiated by the Mzansi Braai Institute in South Africa in 2005 and, since 2008, has been promoted under the Braai4Heritage banner, a non-profit initiative.[8] On 5 September 2007, Emeritus ArchbishopDesmond Tutu was appointedpatron of National Braai Day (now called Braai4Heritage).[9] The initiative received the endorsement of South Africa's National Heritage Council (NHC) in 2008.[10]
Similar to South Africa, the term braai is also used by Zimbabweans to refer to a barbecue. Other terms you may hear are kugocha in the predominantly Shona North or chesa nyama in the South. Usually a variety of different meats are prepared including beef, pork and chicken, and there are always several salads to accompany including potato salad, beetroot, chakalaka and coleslaw. The popular sadza is also served during a braai as well as rice.
Nyama choma is the name used by Kenyans to refer to a barbecue. It is a social occasion with specific traditions and social norms. The use of wood and charcoal is the most widely used as a fuel for making Nyama choma. Ugali and Kachumbari is often served as a side dish.
Chuanr are small pieces of meat on skewers roasted over charcoal or, sometimes, electric heat. Chuanr originated in Xinjiang and in recent years has spread throughout the rest of the country as a popular street food, most notably in northern China.
Chuanr was traditionally made from lamb (yáng ròu chuàn, 羊肉串), which is still the most common, but now, chicken, pork, beef, and various types of seafood can also be used. In busy tourist areas, chuanr can also be made with various insects, bugs, birds, and other exotic animals.
Barbecue can also be found in night markets and in some restaurants, often sold on skewers. Some restaurants allow customers to barbecue at their own table; many of these are all-you-can-eat chain restaurants.
In the Cantonese-speaking regions, pork barbecue is made with a marinade of honey and soy sauce, and cooked in long, narrow strips. This form of barbecue is known as char siu, and is commonly eaten and is a common street food.
In addition, outdoor barbecues (usually known simply as BBQ) are popular among local residents on short trips to regional parks in the countryside.[11] These are invariably charcoal-fired, with marinated pieces of meat, usually beef, pork, sausage or chicken wings, cooked using long, hand-held forks. Honey is brushed on near the end of cooking. At the same time, foil-wrapped pieces of corn and sweet potato are placed on the hot coals; these take a long time to cook so they are usually eaten at the end of the barbecue.
Unlike Western barbecues, everyone gathers around the fire and cooks their own food, so the atmosphere is closer to that of a fondue or a hot pot.
Bulgogi (불고기) is thinly sliced beef (sometimes pork or chicken) marinated in soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic and chili pepper, and cooked on a grill at the table. It is a main course and is therefore served with rice and side dishes such as kimchi. Bulgogi literally means "fire meat". The more common Korean BBQ is called galbi, which are marinated ribs.
Barbecuing is very popular in Japan as part of an outdoor activity. Normally, more vegetables and seafood are incorporated than in the United States, and soy sauce or soy-based sauces are commonly used.
Nomadic Mongolians have several barbecue methods, one of which is khorkhog. They first heat palm-sized stones to a high temperature over a fire and alternate layers of lamb and stone in a pot. The cooking time depends on the amount of lamb used. It is believed that it is good for one's health to hold the stone used for cooking.
Another way of cooking is a boodog (boo means "wrap" in Mongolian). Usually marmot or goats are cooked in this way. There is no pot needed for cooking boodog, after slaughter and dressing, the innards are put back inside the carcass through a small hole, and the whole carcass is cooked over the fire.
The Mongolian barbecue often found in restaurants is a style of cooking falsely attributed to the mobile lifestyle of nomadic Mongolians. Originating in Taiwan in the mid to late 20th century, the so-called "Mongolian barbecue", a popular dish in American and Canadian Chinese restaurants, consists of thinly sliced lamb, beef, chicken, pork, or other meat, seasonings, vegetables, and noodles, or a combination thereof, which is quickly cooked over a flat circular metal surface that has been heated.
Satay is popular in several Southeast Asian countries, including Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines. It consists of pieces of meat skewered on bamboo sticks marinated in a mixture of spices similar to a curry mix and pulverised peanut.
Most common meats are chicken, lamb, and beef, and in non-Muslim enclaves one will also find satay made from pork and animal offal.
Satay is a mainstay of most Malaysian, Indonesian, and Singaporean barbecues. Traditional satay uses only chicken thigh meat cut into strips before they are skewered. Other types of satay include pork, mutton, and beef.
After the meat has been cooked over a charcoal flame, it is served with a thick, gooey dipping sauce made from the same mixture as the marinade for the meat, a peanut-tasting, curry-like mixture.
In the mountainous regions of North Borneo, the local Kadazan people's specialities are chicken satay and snake-meat satay, though the latter, as of 2007, is only available under exceptional circumstances.
Before 1990, it was possible to get satay of animals like tapir, elephants, flying fox, goannas and wild boar. However, these animals are now rare or endangered and their use in this manner is prohibited.
In the Philippines, native barbecue dishes are generally referred to as inihaw (also sinugba or inasal). They are usually made with pork or chicken and are served on bamboo skewers or in small cubes with a soy sauce and vinegar-based dip. It can also refer to any meat or seafood dish cooked and served in a similar way.
Inihaw are commonly sold as street food and are eaten with white rice or rice cooked in coconut leaves (pusô).[12][13][14] Notable versions of inihaw dishes include chicken inasal, satti (a native version of satay), and isaw.
An extremely popular type of inihaw is the lechón, which is a spit-roasted whole pig dish stuffed with lemongrass and spices. Although it has acquired a Spanish name during colonial times, the method of cooking and the ingredients are indigenous to the Philippines.[14]Lechon manok, a variant made with whole chicken is also popular.[15]
"Barbecue" (also "BBQ" or "barbeque") is also a general term in Philippine English to refer to food cooked in skewers. This includes dessert dishes like banana cue and camote cue.[16]
In the city state of Singapore, barbecue or BBQ, as it is commonly known, is a common feature at social gatherings, but a less common feature of a typical Singaporean's daily lifestyle and diet.
A majority of Singaporeans live in government subsidised apartments or HDB flats. A lack of open space in homes results in BBQ gatherings in parks or chalets.
Singapore-styled BBQ is mostly charcoal fired and Singaporeans roast a variety of Southeast Asian and Western food.
Besides satay, other BBQ food includes sambal stingray or cuttlefish wrapped in aluminium foil, grilled meat (chicken, pork, beef) marinated in BBQ sauce commonly made from soya sauce, pepper, salt, sugar, and oyster sauce. Taiwanese sausages, chicken franks, and sausages are also grilled. Marshmallows skewered using satay sticks is another highlight of a Singaporean barbecue.[17]
The fire starter used is not the typical lighter fluid or charcoal chimney starter used in western grills. Instead, the fire starter comes in a box of small rolled up briquettes made of sawdust and wax which is lit and placed under a stack of charcoal briquettes.
Mu kratha is a cooking method that originated in Thailand, In Philippines, Singapore and Malaysia, it is known as mookata.[18]
Mu kratha is prepared with sliced meat (most often pork) is grilled on the dome in the centre while the vegetables and other ingredients, such as fish balls, cook in the soup (also called Thai suki). The hot pot sits on a pail of burning charcoal which grills or boils the food. The best foods for this cooking method are pork, chicken, mutton, lamb, seafood, vegetables, and mushrooms. The local traditional Thai mu kratha is usually served with nam chim suki, a popular dipping sauce. It is well known for using chili sauce as the main ingredient.[19] Some restaurants serve nam chim seafood to accompany seafood.
When cooking mu kratha, a chunk of fat is commonly grilled at the apex of the pan so its grease prevents food from sticking.
Barbeque in Thailand are mostly found at restaurants inside shopping malls for example Bar-B-Q Plaza which is a mu kratha restaurant.
Besides mu kratha, common barbecued foods in Thailand are satay, kho mu yang, and kai yang.
Chicken tikka with a variety of other dishes cooked and served under the BBQ method
The tandoor is a form of barbecue, particularly focused on baking, that is common in Northern India, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Grilling is also popular, and uses native, local spices, especially the many curry blend variations. In addition, there is also the grilling of different types of meat covered in a spicy cream based batter called tikka masala. Arguably, this dish has become one of the most symbolic dishes of Indian cuisine. Pathar-ka-Gosht is also another dish of South India made on a stone grill using goat meat.
A traditional cooking method used in, but not exclusive to, the French and Swiss Alps, pierrade involves the (usually) communal cooking of meats on a hot stone, situated on the serving table.[20]
Germans are enthusiastic about their version of barbecue, grilling (Grillen), especially in the summertime. It is the one area of traditional home cooking that is a predominantly male activity.
Germans grill over charcoal or, increasingly, gas, and grilled meats include variations of the Bratwurst such as Thuringian sausage for example, as well as steaks (especially marinated pork steaks from the shoulder), Frikadellen (minced meat dumplings), Rostbrätel and poultry. Regional festivals feature grilled items ranging from eel to trout, whole sides of pork or beef, chicken, and duck.
Mutzbraten with sauerkraut and bread
Smoking is common practice in German butchering, but pure smoke-based techniques have not yet become popular until a few years ago.
An old German barbecue-style food is the Mutzbraten (pork shoulder) in Saxony and Thuringia, a fist-sized piece of pork with a strong, dry marinade with marjoram, pepper and salt, cooked and smoked over pieces of birch wood. It is usually served with rye-wheat bread, sauerkraut and mustard.
Meanwhile, classic barbecue smoking techniques are also spreading in Germany and even industrially produced pulled meat like pork, chicken and turkey as well as a selection of barbecue sauces and side dishes like coleslaw are available as convenience food in many supermarkets.
Barbecue variations have come from the United States, Turkey, Greece, the Balkans, and immigrant communities in Germany, along with notable traditions of outdoor grilling in Germany developed by immigrants and visitors from the former Soviet Union.
The most common items cooked are chicken, beef steaks, souvlakis/brochettes, halloumi cheese, and pita bread, and may be grilled, baked, or both. In addition, some dishes combine grilling with braising for more variety.
Often, barbecue meat items are marinated with olive oil and citrus juice mixtures, and then garnished with various herbs and spices; basic persillade and several variations are often put on top of the meat.
Shashlik is the Russian version of shish kebab, and like all other international variants, is cooked on a grill. It is traditionally made of lamb, but there can also be pork, beef, ground seasoned beef, chicken, or sturgeon shashliks.
Barbecue in Scandinavia is very similar if not identical to barbecue in Germany, even having the same name. Typically, more traditional meats such as chicken, beef, lamb, pork and sausages, are cooked. Local fish like salmon, perch and mackerel are commonly grilled on open fire or smoked.
Barbecuing is a popular al fresco cooking and eating style in both the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. Many homes have a barbecue, usually located in the back garden. Most popular are steel-built kettle and range-style barbecues with wheels to facilitate moving the equipment, but permanent brick barbecues are also used. Both charcoal and bottled gas are used as fuel, with wood-fired and mains gas equipment being less common.
The most common foods cooked are chicken, hamburgers, sausages, beef steaks, pork chops, corn-on-the-cob, shish kebabs, and pork or beef ribs, cooked by grilling, baking or a combination of both methods.
Similar to the United States, barbecue sauce is sometimes spread on the meat before or during its cooking. All of the major supermarket chains now offer a range of barbecue products, although availability is usually limited to the barbecue season (late spring to early autumn).
Modern British cuisine, including barbecuing, is often cosmopolitan in nature, drawing on traditions and influences from the nation's multi-ethnic minority communities and around the globe. Generally, the British barbecuing style tends to most closely resemble that of North America, Germany, and Australia, however.
In recent times, barbecue cook-off competitions have started to take place in the British Isles, similar to those held in the United States, Canada, continental Europe, and Australia. Some competitions allow teams, as well as individuals from various countries, to compete against each other.
Barbecue is an ancient tradition in West Asia, with medieval references to hunting for game, such as hare, gazelle, and wild boar, in the forests and mountains of Anatolia, Syria, and Lebanon[21]
There are various types of Persian-style kabob, the main one being kubideh kabob, seasoned ground beef skewered and barbecued outside on a charcoal flame. There is also a marinated chicken kabob called jujeh kabob, and a filet-mignon steak kabob called kabob barg. Both are skewered as well.
All three main types of Persian kabob are usually served with Iranian style saffron rice and Shirazi salad, but can also be eaten with Middle-Eastern lavash bread.
In the countries of the Levant, various types of barbecued food are very popular. Kebabs such as shish taouk and others are often cooked on a mangal. Barbecued food is called mashawi in Levantine Arabic.[22]
In Israel, "Al-Haesh" (Hebrew for "on the fire") is a common occurrence. Most often occurring on national holidays, such as Independence Day (Israel), small often single-use grills are used to cook a series of foods. Most common are kebabs with chicken, beef (primarily steak), alternating meat and vegetables, or all vegetables.
While Lebanese cuisine is not heavy on meats,[23] barbecue is still popular on holidays with every home having a charcoal barbecue, usually placed on the balcony.[24]
Meats have been cooked over open flames by the Aboriginal peoples of Canada since the beginning of the human habitation of North America.[25] US-style barbecue culture is a recent import to Canada, having been introduced following the Second World War.[26] Its arrival coincided with the commercially driven popularization of a type of "domestic masculinity" for middle-class suburban fathers in the 1950s.
This was a sharp break with Canadian tradition, however, and as late as 1955, an article in Maclean's magazine called the practice "weird".[27] Therefore, barbecue, in the American sense, cannot be said to be a deeply held Canadian tradition (though it has always existed in the original barbacoa sense of meat cooked on a framework of sticks over a fire). Yet by the late 1950s, the barbecue, once a fad, had become a permanent part of Canadian summers.
Canadian barbecue takes many influences from its American neighbour, as well as from British, Central European, and Euro-Mediterranean barbecue styles. The most common items cooked on a Canadian barbecue are chicken, burgers, ribs, steaks, sausages, and shish kebabs. Barbecue sauce is either brushed on when the meats are cooking, or before the meats are served.
As in the United States, barbecue cook-off competitions are quite common. Barbecue cookouts, either pit-smoking, baking, grilling (charbroiling or griddling), or braising (by putting a broth-filled pot on top of a charbroil-grill) may also be combined with picnics.
The indigenous NativeTaíno peoples method has involved slowly cooking meat over a wooden mesh of sticks. In Spanish-speaking islands of the Caribbean, such as Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and especially Puerto Rico, lechon is a common delicacy. Lechon consists of taking a whole pig, slicing it from the head to tail along the chest and stomach, and slow-grilling the hog as it is turned on a rod.
In Mexico the horno is a traditional earthen barbecue tradition. Carne asada (literally meaning "roasted meat") consists of marinated cuts of beef rubbed with salt and pepper, and then grilled. Normally, it is accompanied with tortillas and grilled onions and bell peppers as well. This dish is now extremely popular in the entire country; although it is widely believed to have originated in the northern part of Mexico, it is now found almost everywhere in Mexico and the southwestern United States.
Additionally, there are several other types of meats that are barbecued in Mexico, depending on the geographic region. In the northern part of the country, cabrito is a popular barbecue dish, which consists of an entire kid goat, minus head, hooves and entrails (except the kidneys), slowly grilled/smoked on an open charcoal grill. The kidneys release a strong desired flavor as the carcass is slowly cooking over the fire.
A somewhat similar dish, popular all over the country, is barbacoa, which is sheep meat slowly cooked over an open flame, or more traditionally in a fire pit. Also, as in many other places in Latin America, there is a strong tradition in Mexico of preparing pollo asado (roasted halved chicken) on mesquite charcoal-fired grills after the chicken meat has been marinated overnight in an often secretly guarded recipe adobo sauce.
In addition to carne asada, there are several types of beef, chicken and pork, as well as sausages (such as chorizo and moronga) that are grilled during back-yard or picnic-style events, commonly referred to as parrilladas.
Some types of vegetables may be grilled alongside the meat, most commonly green onions, bell peppers and chile peppers, commonly referred to in Mexico as chiles toreados, or "bullfight chiles".
Often quesadillas and tortillas accompany the consumption of grilled meat at these events, as well as soft drinks for children and alcoholic beverages for adults.
There is a wide variety of barbecue styles in the United States, but four major styles are commonly referenced: North Carolina and Memphis, which rely on pork and represent the oldest styles, and Kansas City and Texas, which use beef as well as pork.
The US has a range of contemporary suburban barbecue equipment and styles, which often consist of baking, grilling (charbroiling, grid ironing, or griddling), braising (by putting a broth-filled pot on top of a charbroil grill or gridiron grill), or smoking various meats (depending on the cut).[28]
Asado de tira (flank-cut short ribs)Asado with achuras (offal) and sausagesFormer President of Uruguay Tabaré Vázquez receives former US President George W. Bush with asado a la parrillaAn asado on an open pit, an alternative desirable in good weather and with a large crowd of guests
Asado is a technique for cooking cuts of meat, usually beef, alongside various other meats, which are cooked on a grill (parrilla) or open fire. It is considered the traditional dish of Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Chile, southern Brazil, and the Bolivian Chaco.
Also generally called parrilla or asado in Argentina and Uruguay, some alternatives are the asado al disco and asado al horno de barro, especially in the countryside. The recipe does not change, only the method of cooking the meat and offal. In the more conventional style asado a la parrilla, different cuts of meat, sausages and offal are placed on top of a metallic mesh with legs (parrilla) such that the meat stands some 15 cm above the ground. Below the parrilla is placed charcoal, and the cooking takes some 60 to 90 minutes depending on the thickness of the meat cut.
In the asado al disco, the worn-out disc of a plough is used. Being metallic and concave, three or four metallic legs are welded and with hot coal or wood below it is easily transformed into a very effective griddle (the meat is not directly exposed to coals or flame, thus it is not grilled). Meat and offal are arranged in a spiral, in such a way that the fat naturally slips to the centre, preventing the meat from being deep-fried. Chili peppers and onions are usually put next to the edge, so that they gradually release their juices onto the meat.
The asado al horno de barro differs from traditional asado, as an horno (adobe oven) is used. These primitive ovens are a common view in Argentine estancias, and their primary function is to bake bread, but they are well suited for roasting meat.
Suckling pig and, less commonly, lamb are served, as they are less likely to dry out. Though not technically a grill, it is a very traditional way of cooking that still requires the great skills of an asador and the gathering of family and friends, which are the essence of asado. Moreover, this cooking method yields a tender dish with a smoky flavor.
Churrasqueira in Portuguese is any type of assembly, installation or electrical device, intended for preparing churrasco.[29] It usually comes with a fixed or removable grill or gridiron. "Grill", "grillroom",[30] and "grill area" are common English translations for churrasqueira.
In Brazil, a churrasqueira is often a brick pillar with a grilling space in the middle.[31] In a Brazilian barbecue, a variety of meats, pork, sausage, and chicken are cooked on a purpose-built churrasqueira, frequently with supports for spits or skewers.[32] Portable churrasqueiras are similar to those used to prepare the Argentine and Uruguayan asado, with a grill support, but many Brazilian churrasqueiras do not have grills, only the skewers above the embers. The meat may alternatively be cooked on large metal or wood skewers resting on a support or stuck into the ground and roasted with the embers of charcoal (wood may also be used, especially in the state of Rio Grande do Sul).
In Australia, barbecuing is a popular summer pastime, often referred to as a "barbie". Traditional meats cooked are lamb chops, beef steak, and sausages (colloquially known as "snags"). Coin-operated or free public gas or electric barbecues are common in city parks.
Beer is often drizzled over meat during cooking, the theory being that it adds flavor while making the meat more tender. Meat is sometimes marinated for flavor and is then cooked on a hot plate or grill. Australian barbecues tend to be either all hot-plate or half and half hot-plate/grill.
The barbecuing of fish and other seafood such as shellfish, like prawns and rock lobster (colloquially known locally as "crayfish" or just "crays"), has become increasingly popular in Australia over the last few decades.
Breakfast is another popular meal prepared on the barbecue, which generally consists of the items served in a full breakfast (bacon, eggs, sausages, tomato, mushrooms) being cooked on a hot plate and/or grill. US-style barbecuing, or smoking, as opposed to the traditional grilling techniques, is becoming increasingly popular.
Holding barbecues is also a common method of fundraising for schools and local communities, where sausages and chopped onions are cooked on a hot-plate style barbecue and served on white bread or hotdog buns, with tomato sauce or unheated barbecue sauce. These events are often referred to as sausage sizzles. This is also a popular method for feeding emergency services volunteers, evacuees, and stranded travellers, often with a range of commercially made salads. The Democracy Sausage Sizzle is a well recognized event in which BBQs appear at polling places on political election days.[33]
Barbecues are a very popular activity in New Zealand. A common feature in New Zealanders' gardens, it is generally powered by bottled LPG. Electric barbecues are also provided for free at many beaches and public parks throughout the country.
Foods cooked include beef, lamb, pork, fresh fish, crayfish, shellfish, and vegetables. Sausages are a popular and demanded element of barbecues and, as in Australia, sausage sizzles are one of the most common forms of fundraiser.
New Zealand barbecue is similar to a mix of American, British, Australian, South African and Pacific Island styles. Multi-cultural society in New Zealand has also led to Pakistani, Indian,(South Asian), Middle Eastern, East Asian, and South American, which all have influenced the flavors and types of food found at a barbecues around the world.
Barbecuing is popular in the Australasian, Melanesian, Micronesian, and Polynesian islands, and every country and culture has its own version of earth oven barbecue cuisine. Some of the most legendary and continuously practiced examples can be found in South Pacific Oceania.
Tahitians call their earth oven barbecue a hima’a. A thousand miles away in the Marquesas Islands, it is known as the umu. With many tropical islands' styles of barbecue, the meat is marinated, glazed with a savory sauce, and adorned with local tropical fruits. While pork predominates, horse is also popular in countries such as Tonga and Samoa.
^Basan, Ghillie. The Levantine Table: Vibrant and delicious recipes from the Eastern Mediterranean and beyond. Ryland. Peters & Small (12 July 2022), page 32
^Belski, Regina, Forsyth, Adrienne, and Mantzioris, Evangeline (Editors) Nutrition for Sport, Exercise and Performance: A practical guide for students, sports enthusiasts and professionals, Routledge; 1st edition (4 February 2019), page 335
^Dekmak, Hussein. The Lebanese Cookbook, Hippocrene Books (1 October 2007), page 131
Barbecue or barbeque (often shortened to BBQ worldwide; barbie or barby in Australia and New Zealand) is a term used with significant regional and national variations to describe various cooking methods that employ live fire and smoke to cook food.[1] The term is also generally applied to the devices associated with those methods, the broader cuisines that these methods produce, and the meals or gatherings at which this style of food is cooked and served. The cooking methods associated with barbecuing vary significantly.
The various regional variations of barbecue can be broadly categorized into those methods which use direct and those which use indirect heating.[1] Indirect barbecues are associated with North American cuisine, in which meat is heated by roasting or smoking over wood or charcoal.[2] These methods of barbecue involve cooking using smoke at low temperatures and long cooking times, for several hours. Elsewhere, barbecuing more commonly refers to the more direct application of heat, grilling of food over hot coals or a gas fire.[1] This technique is usually done over direct, dry heat or a hot fire for a few minutes. Within these broader categorizations are further national and regional differences.[2]
The original Arawak term barabicu was used to refer to a wooden framework. Among the framework's uses was the suspension of meat over a flame
The English word barbecue and its cognates in other languages come from the Spanish word barbacoa, which has its origin in an indigenous American word.[3]Etymologists believe this to be derived from barabicu found in the language of the Arawak people of the Caribbean and the Timucua people of Florida;[4] it has entered some European languages in the form of barbacoa. The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) traces the word to Hispaniola and translates it as a "framework of sticks set upon posts".[5]
A popular folk etymology of the word says that the term is derived from the Frenchbarbe à queue ("from beard to tail") signifying a whole animal being roasted on a spit, but this origin for the word is not supported by academic etymology.[6]
The term itself has two spellings in English: "barbecue" and "barbeque". While in most countries the spelling "barbecue" is used, the spelling "barbeque" is occasionally used in Australia, New Zealand,[7] and the US.
Spanish explorer Gonzalo Fernández De Oviedo y Valdés was the first to use the word barbecoa in print in Spain in 1526 in the Diccionario de la Lengua Española (2nd Edition) of the Real Academia Española. After Columbus landed in the Americas in 1492, the Spaniards apparently found Taíno roasting meat over a grill consisting of a wooden framework resting on sticks above a fire. This framework was also used to store food above ground and for sleeping. The flames and smoke rose and enveloped the meat, giving it a certain flavor.[8] Spaniards called the framework a barbacoa.
Another form of barbacoa involves digging a hole in the ground, burning logs in it and placing stones in it to absorb and retain heat. Large cuts of meat, often wrapped in leaves, often a whole goat or lamb, are placed above a pot so the juices can be used to make a broth. It is then covered with maguey leaves and coal, and set alight. The cooking process takes a few hours. Olaudah Equiano, an African abolitionist, described this method of roasting alligators among the "Mosquito people" (Miskito people) on his journeys to Cabo Gracias a Dios on the Mosquito Coast, in his narrative The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano.[9]
Linguists have suggested the word was loaned successively into Spanish, then Portuguese, French, and English. In the form barbacado, the word was used in English in 1648 by the supposed Beauchamp Plantagenet in the tract A description of the province of New Albion: "the Indians in stead of salt doe barbecado or dry and smoak fish".[10]
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first recorded use in modern form was in 1661, in Edmund Hickeringill's Jamaica Viewed: "Some are slain, And their flesh forthwith Barbacu'd and eat";[5] it also appears in 1672 in the writings of John Lederer following his travels in the North American southeast in 1669–1670.[11]
The first known use as a noun was in 1697 by the English buccaneer William Dampier. In his New Voyage Round the World, Dampier wrote, "and lay there all night, upon our Borbecu's, or frames of Sticks, raised about 3 foot [0.91 m] from the Ground".[12]
As early as the 1730s, New England Puritans were familiar with barbecue, as on 4 November 1731, New London, Connecticut, resident Joshua Hempstead wrote in his diary: "I was at Madm Winthrops at an Entertainment, or Treat of Colln [Colonel] or Samll Brownes a Barbaqued."[13]Samuel Johnson's 1755 dictionary gave the following definitions:[14]
"To Barbecue – a term for dressing a whole hog" (attestation to Pope)
"Barbecue – a hog dressed whole"
While the standard modern English spelling of the word is barbecue, variations including barbeque and truncations such as bar-b-q or BBQ may also be found.[15] The spelling barbeque is given in Merriam-Webster as a variant, whereas the Oxford Dictionaries explain that it is a misspelling which is not accepted in standard English and is best avoided.[16][17] In the Southeastern United States, the word barbecue is used predominantly as a noun referring to roast pork, while in the Southwestern states cuts of beef are often cooked.[18]
Because the word barbecue came from native groups, Europeans gave it "savage connotations".[19]: 24 This association with barbarians and "savages" is strengthened by Edmund Hickeringill's work Jamaica Viewed: with All the Ports, Harbours, and their Several Soundings, Towns, and Settlements through its descriptions of cannibalism. However, according to Andrew Warnes, there is very little proof that Hickeringill's tale of cannibalism in the Caribbean is even remotely true.[19]: 32 Another notable false depiction of cannibalistic barbecues appears in Theodor de Bry's Great Voyages, which in Warnes's eyes, "present smoke cookery as a custom quintessential to an underlying savagery [...] that everywhere contains within it a potential for cannibalistic violence".[19]: 36 Today, people in the US associate barbecue with "classic Americana".[19]: 3
A British barbecue including chicken kebabs, marinated chicken wings, sweetcorn, and an assortment of vegetablesKorean barbeque grill used for cooking galbi
In American English usage, grilling refers to a fast process over high heat while barbecuing usually refers to a slow process using indirect heat or hot smoke, similar to some forms of roasting. In a typical US home grill, food is cooked on a grate directly over hot charcoal, while in a US barbecue the coals are dispersed to the sides or at a significant distance from the grate. In British usage, barbequeing refers to a fast cooking process done directly over high heat, while grilling refers to cooking under a source of direct, moderate-to-high heat—known in the United States as broiling. Its South American versions are the southern Brazilian churrasco and the Southern Coneasado.[20]
Typical plate of chopped pork barbecue as served in a restaurant with barbecue beans, sauce, and Texas toastA barbecued pig
For barbecue in the United States, each Southern locale has its own variety of barbecue, particularly sauces. In recent years, the regional variations have blurred as restaurants and consumers experiment and adapt the styles of other regions. South Carolina is the only state that traditionally features all four recognized barbecue sauces, including mustard-based, vinegar-based, and light and heavy tomato-based sauces. North Carolina sauces vary by region; eastern North Carolina uses a vinegar-based sauce, the center of the state uses Lexington-style barbecue, with a combination of ketchup and vinegar as its base, and western North Carolina uses a heavier ketchup base. Memphis barbecue is best known for tomato- and vinegar-based sauces. In some Memphis establishments and in Kentucky, meat is rubbed with dry seasoning (dry rubs) and smoked over hickory wood without sauce. The finished barbecue is then served with barbecue sauce on the side.[21]
In South Africa, braais are informal gatherings of people who convene around an open fire for any occasion and at any location with a grill. They are linked to the consistent warm weather of South Africa that leads to much communal, outdoor activity.[22] The act of convening around a grill is reminiscent of past generations gathering around open fires after a hunt, solidifying the braais' importance to tradition.[23] Modernity has expanded grilling to the use of gas grills, but steel grill grates and campfires are often used.[23] The use of a gas grill is frowned upon and the use of charcoal is accepted, but wood is seen as the best method to cook the meat.[24]
It is expected that people attending a braai bring snacks, drinks, and other meat to eat until the main meal has finished cooking on the grill. This potluck-like activity is known as "bring and braai".[25] Cooking on the braai is a bonding experience for fathers and sons, while women prepare salads and other side dishes in kitchens or other areas away from the grill.[26] Examples of meat prepared for a braai are lamb, steaks, spare ribs, sausages, chicken, and fish.[22]Mielie pap, also known as "Krummel pap", is a crumbled cornmeal that is often served as a side dish.[27][22]
Barbecuing encompasses multiple types of cooking techniques. The original technique is cooking using smoke at low temperatures—usually around 116–138 °C (240–280 °F)—and significantly longer cooking times (several hours), known as smoking.
A public barbecue site at a park in Oulu, Finland, on 23 March 2014
Grilling is done over direct, dry heat, usually over a hot fire over 260 °C (500 °F) for a few minutes. Grilling and smoking are done with wood, charcoal, gas, electricity, or pellets. The time difference between smoking and grilling is because of the temperature difference; at low temperatures used for smoking, meat takes several hours to reach the desired internal temperature.[28][29]
Smoking is the process of flavoring, cooking, and/or preserving food by exposing it to smoke from burning or smoldering material, most often wood. Meat and fish are the most common smoked foods, though cheeses, vegetables, nuts, and ingredients used to make beverages such as beer or smoked beer are also smoked.[30][31]
Grilling is a form of cooking that involves a dry heat applied to the food, either from above or below. Grilling is an effective technique in order to cook meat or vegetables quickly since it involves a significant amount of direct, radiant heat. Outside of the US, this is the most common technique when cooking classic barbecue foods, although some variants of grilling require direct, but moderate heat.[32]
The words "barbecue" and "grilling" are often used interchangeably, although some argue that barbecue is a type of grilling, and that grilling involves the use of a higher level of heat to sear the food, while barbecuing is a slower process over a low heat.[33][34]
In practice, the lines blur because it is hard to define what is low temperature and what is high temperature and because many champion barbecue cooks now cook meats such as beef brisket at higher temperatures than was traditional.
^Peters, Philip Dickenson (2003). Caribbean Wow 2.0 (1st ed.). Coral Gables, Fla.: House of Zagada. p. 27. ISBN9781929970049. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
^"Barbeque". Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
^"Definition of barbecue". Oxford Dictionaries (British & World English). 24 June 2013. Archived from the original on 6 November 2010. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
