Outdoor cooking - Barbecues, Barbecue, BBQs, BBQ, Smokers, Grills. And Ribs.

Wow, you really are thinking about this! Chapeau.
Two BBqs should be ample
Don't fret about charcoal just buy two big bags from B&Q or the garage or sainos. I like to mix lumpwood and briquettes but then again

Another very good thing to slather on chicken legs, especially if you are feeling lazy, is this

Seriously. Yeah sometimes I get the pestle & mortar out and go nuts, but this is hard to beat. Baste with olive oil / lemon juice mixture whilst cooking for extra zing.

Beef should be either low n' slow or seared good and pink in the middle, with the appropriate cut obvs. Given your setup I'd go for the latter. If you've got a good butcher you could go for five or six whole 'hanger' steaks, or onglet if you're parling francais. These are quite robust and actually better if they're cooked slightly beyond pink but must be allowed to rest for ten mins before carving across the grain. They are very flavourful. Or just man up and get a couple of cote de boeuf and crack out the expensive burgundy.

Plus everything DJ said, natch.

@dancing james @Olly398 you guise!

Thanks both, much appreciated. I might do a dress rehearsal this weekend.

What could possibly go wrong?

What temperatures am I looking at to kill bugs?

Obvs on things like food standards website they'll say super high for ages but I presume they're just covering themselves. I don't want to take chances but I don't want dry meat. Where's the balance?

This is da ting.

@pooface knows the answer

You need to hit certain minimum temps to kill the bugs. This looks very comprehensive

https://www.cookipedia.co.uk/recipes_wiki/Safe_minimum_cooking_temperatures

Most people cook meat to a lower temp than the safe guidelines state.

Sounds ominous. Is that how he mutated from XH to faecalface like a barbecue pokemon gone wrong?

That book is very good BTW - highly recommended.

Found a real gem of a butcher. Really nice and knowledgeable guys - http://barfieldsbutchers.co.uk

Ordered 2 x Jacob's Ladder, 4kg of mixed steaks (mostly bavette/onglet etc), 4 spatchcocked chickens, 2kg wings, 2kg thighs/drumstucks plus some nice beef franks and some excellent burgers made out of onglet and bone marrow. Had 2 last night for a test run - delicious.

All I need now is for the hurricane predicted to land in Brighton on Saturday to decide not to land.

Cooking the Jacobs ladder on the lowest oven setting overnight with porter, beef stock, juniper, star anise, leek, carrot celery and garlic wrapped tight in foil. House smells amazing (foil probably not tight enough).

Great meat haul! its gonna be amazing.

Think I'm dying. Completely over ordered the food. Have 2 spatchcocks and a plate of ribs left along with loads of odd bits of steak. Didn't touch the burgers or franks. My dad brought a salmon he caught last week that he poached and covered in cucumbers to represent scales so that added to the protein. Did 9 different salads and fresh breads. Meat is coming out of my very pores. Now I'm fairly pissed and my house is a complete tip.
Winds were howling and rain was lashing but somehow it worked out.

Sounds amazing, chapeau!

@6pt is coming for lunch tomorrow so am firing up the smoker to cook overnight.

It is so utterly airless tonight that the smoke coming from the pit is just hanging in the air, my garden and my neighbours are completely filled with smoke.

make. him. fat.

We haz beef ribs and slaw for lunch.

hide the slaw

make. him. fatter.

I tried a couple of new things recently:

Lamb shanks which I braised for a few hours in a standard casserole of red wine, stock, vegetables and herbs, then brushed with redcurrant jelly and finished off with a quick blast over some charcoal. They were very tasty and I'm wondering whether they could be braised well in advance, then popped in the microwave to get the internal temperature back up before a final barbecuing for added smokiness.

Also, fresh pineapple chunks marinaded in dark rum, brown sugar and mixed spice. Kebabbed and popped on a charcoal barbecue until the edges started to caramelise and then served with whipped cream. Very nice indeed and I might try larger slices in the same style since I think that will be less hassle to prepare and easier to serve.

smoke flavour is best absorbed at the beginning of cooking not at the end.

smoke them, cook them and then finish off over coals for caramelisation