What’s the point of Barbecues?

[PinkIcedCream]

I read a lot of threads on here from posters who appear to spend a lot of weekends cooking food outdoors on a barbecue and wonder what it is about cooking on a barbecue, whether charcoal, gas etc…that they love so much?

I live very rurally with no near neighbours so at least if I lit an outdoor wood fire, the smoke wouldn’t bother anyone else. Presumably, if you live in a built up area, the smoke and the smell might bother your neighbours?

My DH is vegetarian and never cooks so he wouldn’t be one of those blokes who like to take control of standing around turning the meat into charcoal. I eat some meat and no fish and don’t really like burgers, although homemade ones usually taste a bit nicer.

We don’t drink alcohol either so have no interest in getting pished.

One of my friends offered me their big barbecue when they moved abroad but I declined and I think they were a bit surprised but I couldn’t see us ever using it.

Please tell me what you enjoy about having a barbecue at home. Am I missing out?

YABU - Barbecues are great fun.

YANBU - I don’t really enjoy them either.

I love the taste of the food, I love eating family style, I love different salads, eating outside, leftovers, glass of rose in the sun. I'll do fake bbqs for lunch where we eat outside and I do salads and just grill chicken inside but it's not the same

It's so you can be outside for longer in the sun. The smokey flavour is hard to replicate without actual smoke.

Dining in the sunshine, eating lovely fresh food with friends and family

The food is incredible! You can't replicate the taste of a proper bbq any other way - brisket, beef ribs, even bbq salmon 🤤 it's amazing! The salads, sitting outside in the sun, the smell of the coals - it's summer in a smell.

I agree. Cook inside. I think there’s more of an appeal to a BBQ the more people are attending and if there’s drink involved.

I don't really like them either, I'm not fussed about the food.

I like eating outside in the summer, cold glass of wine with friends etc. I just don't care about bbq food.

We mainly use the BBQ to stop the kitchen getting too hot!

The taste of the food is also lovely. In this weather we cook all the veg on there also- so BBQ's certainly aren't just for meat/fish!

Food tastes better cooked over charcoal.

Can't think of anything worse than standing cooking in front of a bbq on a baking hot day. Will stick to cold food until it cools down, or order in

We often do full vegetarian bbqs.

It’s more practical when lots of people over. As the mess is contained to outside and food gradually cooked

It's the time spent together, sitting outside in the sunshine, cooking a bit as you are hungry (works on a gas BBQ).
I mean, I personally also like the smell, but I realise there are others that don't.
It makes it into more of an occasion, or party, than eating in the kitchen.

DH shops, prepares and cooks. All I have to do is stick a few things in the dishwasher and the kitchen doesn't resemble a bombsite.

A BBQ to me is synonymous with good food and good company. I'm not a drinker so alcohol isn't a factor but there's something very relaxing and satisfying about cooking and sharing some good quality brisket, prawns, lobster, scallops, ribs outdoors when the weather's nice.

I'm all up for veggie bbq ideas...

I'm not a fan of them OP, but that's mainly because I had a bad experience from one once (food poisoning). I also read that too much barbequed food increases your chance of cancer (though to be fair you'd probably have to eat it very regularly for it to make any difference).

Love it, we had one last night with some friends.

I did some baked potatoes and made a large leafy salad. And then my husband did on the bbq,

corn on the cob,
asparagus
onions,
mushrooms
halloumi skewers
lamb kofta skewers,
chicken skewers,
seafood skewers.
minute steaks marinated in garlic and chilli.

it’s a large eight burner gas one, and it was utterly delicious. We sat outside drinking wine, listening to music., then flipped the bbq on when hungry and had dinner.

YABU OP, I've been a vegetarian for 30+ years and even I think barbecues smell amazing.

Bbq saves on baking trays and means the kitchen is cooler.
We had bbq yesterday and dh made peri peri chicken thighs, chicken satay and sausages. We ate inside and also had salad, baked potatoes, coleslaw, etc

I’m not a massive fan. I don’t think the food tastes any better - usually it’s over cooked anyway because everyone panics that it’ll be raw in the middle! You seem to eat far too much but never get what I would call an actual meal so I always feel a bit unsatisfied. Just a random jumble of stuff eaten in a weird order, together with too much sun, too much alcohol and too much smoke. And when people invite you to a BBQ there’s never anything to do, you end up killing around awkwardly for AGES until the food is ready, then dishing it up is awkward, finding somewhere to actually eat it is awkward…the whole thing, awkward!

🤔

We enjoy it.

The social nature if the cooking, it answers some sort of primal need to be outside and cook over fire.

The teens / young adults enjoy it so take over the cooking (and prep).

Just enjoying the short lived novelty of being able to cook and eat outside in our climate.

We experiment with different foods and recipes, and have honed our technique. I can’t stand the cliched offering of cold pasta salad and a charred drumstick or sausage with pink bloody inner.

We love camping too, cooking over a wood fire either grilling or in a Dutch pot.

Um you socialise, talk to others, whilst the food is cooking, you’re not actually just there for the food. Which is what your post indicates you thimk

and how is it awkward to dish up? We put everting on big serving plates. And we have a large dining table and sofa set outside, seating for about 23 people. So never any issues. The bbq has a shelf inside, which you put the cooked food on, so everything stays hot whilst more cooks. But really irs just about putting everything on at the right time

We have a gas bbq which a lot of bbq purists dont count.

The appeal is the house doesnt get hot because the oven isnt on and we can enjoy being outside whilst we cook.

Wow, there are some right miseries around, aren't there..?!

A good barbeque has wholesome food - meat, fish or vegetables - cooked over flame for more flavour. Friends or family eating outside in the sunshine.

The naysayers all appear to only go to bad barbeques. Up your game, people!

Ooh, I love BBQ! If you marinate the meat etc beforehand (and don't incinerate it), the food is delicious. It also means you can have people over and one person isn't stuck in the kitchen. If you have the space for it, it's a very sociable way to eat.
My neighbours BBQ a fair bit and I love the smell.