BBQ season has officially begun. Although barbecuing in the winter is certainly possible, many Dutch people still prefer a sunny day to prepare their dishes on the BBQ. Five fun BBQ facts:

1. 23 to 25 degrees find the Dutch the best temperature for barbecuing;
2. Most Dutch people light the BBQ 5 to 10 times a year;
3. A skewer is the most popular dish among barbecuers;
4. A barbecue enthusiast pays an average of €75 for the purchase of a BBQ;
5. Weber is the most popular BBQ brand among the Dutch.

That barbecuing is popular among the Dutch is well known. Yet, most find it quite a chore to organize a BBQ. We are therefore happy to give you some BBQ tips! Because if you are going to organize a BBQ for family, friends or colleagues, you do want it to be a successful BBQ for everyone. We have divided our tips into the following categories:

• Beforehand: The appropriate BBQ, indispensable tools, and safety
• During: The best techniques, the tastiest dishes, and matching drinks
• Afterwards: preserving dishes and cleaning the BBQ
• Extra: Tips from the real BBQ gurus

Have fun reading and hopefully our tips will help make you an ultimate BBQ chef!

Ahead: These 23 tips will have you ready for a BBQ party

Before you get started with the BBQ, we’d like to give you some tips on what type of BBQ is suitable, what tools are indispensable, and how to make sure you light the BBQ safely. Get started well prepared!

Tip 1: Choose a type of BBQ that suits your needs

Think carefully in advance what you are going to use the BBQ for and also how often. Will you go electric or coal? When buying, you can get good advice. A quality barbecue is a little more expensive to buy, but you get a lot in return. Erik Smilda of BBQ-heroes.nl says: “Buy the barbecue you can afford, as long as it has a lid. After all, without a lid you are grilling”. The lid of the barbecue creates hot air circulation inside the barbecue, which ensures that the meat cooks better.”

Tip 2: Charcoal and briquettes influence taste

The aromas of the charcoal and briquettes affect the taste and smell of the barbecue. But both charcoal and briquettes can still smell like gasoline. This, of course, is not a nice smell that soaks into your pieces of meat. What you should pay attention to when buying charcoal or briquettes is where it comes from and what types of wood it was produced with. Really Good recommends paying attention to the origin of the charcoal or briquettes: “With durable beech and oak wood, you won’t get any nasty tastes and smells. When buying charcoal, look carefully to see if it contains these two types of wood. That way you know you are buying quality.”

Tip 3: Use a briquette starter

It can sometimes be quite a chore to get the coals glowing. And without glowing coals no BBQ. With a briquette starter, you are assured that your coals will get hot enough to use for your barbecue in a short period of time. This is the safest way to light, use odorless and flavorless firelighters when lighting. This is what a briquette starter looks like:

Tip #4: Safety is number one when barbecuing!

Search YouTube for “barbecue fail,” and you’ll find the most funny, awkward, as well as serious mishaps. And of course you need to avoid that! Safety is paramount while barbecuing. For example, use two tongs, one to put raw products on the barbecue and one to turn products with, you reduce the chance of possible salmonella contamination. Furthermore, you need to make sure that your barbecue stands on a solid surface, this way you will prevent the barbecue from unexpectedly falling over. To resolve accidents quickly, it is wise to have a bucket of water on hand.

Tip 5: Are you a novice griller? Apply this technique!

Barbecuing seems like a breeze. You put meat on the BBQ, turn it over, and done. Oh no! It’s not that easy. It’s also very different from cooking with pans. There is more to it than that. A basic technique that can be useful is to use two zones also called the 50/50 method: There is then a hot zone and a cold zone on the barbecue. This cold zone is intended to be a safe zone. So if the meat goes a little too hard put it in the cold zone so you have more control over the cooking of your product.

Tip 6: Do you know the different ways of cooking?

You have “direct” grilling. This is suitable for products with a lower cooking time such as sausages and hamburgers. But you can also grill “indirectly. This is better with larger cuts of meat and poultry. This will prevent the outside of your piece of meat from burning while it is still raw inside.

Tip 7: Kamado, a unique way to barbecue

For the experienced barbecuer, the next step is a kamado. The kamado can be used to prepare a variety of products, from Beer Can Chicken to pizza. For example, with the Big Green Egg you can cook your products to the exact degree. Partly because of the ceramic, you preserve the flavors and juices from your ingredients. These BBQs are more expensive to buy but the experts are very positive!

During the BBQ: With these tips you can’t go wrong

Your guests are present and sitting down to a nice drink in the sun. Everyone is already starting to get a little hungry. So the grilling can begin! But what should you look out for while barbecuing? How do you serve the tastiest BBQ dishes? Quickly read the tips below.

Tip 8: Probably well known, but grease the grate well

This tip everyone probably knows. But still very important to mention again! Beforehand, lubricate the grill of your barbecue well with an oil. This way the meat does not stick to the grill. Kenneth Reumerman of BBQ Events Amsterdam says: “It is important to use neutral oil for example sunflower oil or soya. Do not use olive oil for the grills of your barbecue, because it will stink and give off a lot of smoke, this is due to the lower combustion rate of olive oil“.

Tip 9: The temperature of your barbecue is essential

Make sure you can keep an eye on the temperature of the barbecue. Sometimes there is a thermometer in the barbecue. But if this is not the case you can purchase a bluetooth thermometer to still cook your products at the right temperature.

Tip 10: Prepare a picanha for once!

The common barbecue products, such as the hamburger, the satay and the sausage, are well known to everyone. But do you know picanha? Picanha is a large roast that you divide among the diners. So you grill one type of meat.

Jan Faber of Beef & Steak says of the picanha: “The preparation of picanha is easy to do, even if you are not a barbecue expert. With a temperature of 160 degrees it is ready after an hour“. Thus, preparing a picanha takes longer than precooked meat, but is well worth the wait. Finally, serve the picanha with a nice Argentine Chimichurri sauce instead of the standard barbecue sauces.

Tip 11: Steak is easy to prepare

It doesn’t matter so much what kind of barbecue you cook your steaks on. As long as you pay close attention to the temperature. The taste experience of steak on the barbecue is much better than in the pan. Consider also the finch steak (also known as bavette or flank steak). This piece of meat falls under the forgotten meat but is definitely worth it for the barbecue.

Tip 12: Smoking fish on the barbecue? Sure!

Most barbecuers only prepare meat on the BBQ. But smoked fish is also very tasty from the barbecue. But it does require a different approach than meat. The recommendation is to use a cedar BBQ board to place your fish on. The fish will then cook more nicely and evenly and not stick to your grill. To prevent the proteins from leaking out of your fish during cooking, you can lower the temperature of your barbecue to 100 degrees.

Tip 13: Separate meat and fish

To prevent the products from taking over each other’s flavors, you do need to separate meat and fish on the barbecue. You can neutralize the lattice with lemon juice but it still remains a bit of a mess. If you are going to grill meat and fish at the same time, it is best to use a silicone mat for the fish. In this way, the fish remains intact and the meat does not come into contact with the fish.

Tip 14: Experiment! For example, with finger foods

“Dare to experiment with smaller pieces of quality meat. You then have the opportunity to become more acquainted with different products,” believes Rob Nuijten, BBQ Specialist, working at the Association of Keurslagers. “The artisan butcher can also provide customized advice on appropriate cuts of meat that you may not have heard of.”

Tip 15: What’s the best side dish for the barbecue?

A baguette is indispensable during the barbecue. But also consider a baked potato. It’s definitely worth a try and the puffed potato is simple to prepare. You can also vary the different fillings for the potato, for example: herb butter, cream cheese and tzatziki or other sauces. You can find many different recipes for jacket potatoes, including this one.

Tip 16: A delicious special beer while barbecuing

The trend for 2018 is beer and barbecue! Unique beers from local breweries allow you to combine flavors. With a fatty piece of meat go nice tripels and double beers. Serve the beer in a wine glass for extra grandeur and drink a glass of water in between. Because during the barbecue, you shouldn’t be mistaken about the alcohol content of your drinks. We asked Brouwerij ‘t IJ for recommendations to go with the barbecue:”With a barbecue it is nice to drink a refreshing white beer, from our range the IJwit is very tasty on hot days. Furthermore, the blonde beer Flink is suitable for drinking during the barbecue.”

Tip 17: BBQ on a boat, something different from the garden or balcony

By far the most Dutch people barbecue in their garden or on their balcony. But there are other unique places to host a BBQ. Take for example the BBQ boat of Boot Huren Amsterdam. While you are sailed by a skipper through the historic center of Amsterdam, a private chef will prepare the most delicious BBQ dishes on board. Everything is totally taken care of, and you don’t have to clean up anything afterwards. Perfect for a carefree day out with your party.

Afterward: Tips for enjoying your BBQ even longer

Don’t wait until the next day to clean your barbecue. Food particles and grease have hardened and hardly come off the grill.

Tip 18: Don’t throw away the dishes that are “left over

How often does it happen that you have actually bought way too many goodies. Shame to throw it all away! About preserving meat, experts say the following: “If the meat is already prepared you can store it in the refrigerator in a bowl covered with aluminum foil. If the meat is still raw it is best to prepare it and then cover and refrigerate it. It is better to throw away the meat if it has been in the sun for a long time“.

Tip 19: Don’t wait too long to clean the barbecue

Cleaning is not the most fun job, but it is very important for the quality of your products and the life of your charcoal/gas barbecue. Therefore, do not wait too long to clean. Over time, the food particles and fats have hardened and barely come off the grill. It is best to clean the barbecue with a heat-resistant cleaning brush when the grill is hot. So when you start barbecuing or when you’ve just finished. Also, don’t forget to clean the casing of your barbecue!

Tip 20: Use a protective cover and set the BBQ free in space

Usually you store your barbecue outside or in the shed, sometimes unused for months. BBQ manufacturer Weber therefore recommends storing the barbecue under a special barbecue protective cover. This way, your barbecue will last longer. These covers protect against weather and wind and are custom made for your model of barbecue.

EXTRA: Tips from the absolute BBQ gurus

Finally, we want to give you a few tips from the absolute BBQ gurus of the Netherlands.

Extra tip 1: If you’re going to smoke, choose suitable wood

Jeroen Hazebroek says the following about the choice in wood: “Consider the wood you use as an additional spice?. The flavor of cherry and oak definitely affect the taste of your meat. In addition, before you start smoking, you need to find out which type of wood is best for type of meat.” Jeroen chooses oak for beef, for example, but advises that you should mostly follow your own taste.

Extra tip 2: Take your time at the barbecue

“If you want to eat at six, light the barbecue at four. Therefore, give yourself time and be patient“, says barbecue expert Wim’s Chicken. “The method of cooking also affects how much time you need. Are you going to cook directly or indirectly? It’s a big difference in time: two to three hours or eight hours or maybe even longer: “low and slow” grilling.”

Extra tip 3: Light the barbecue a safe way

Peter Bootsma of LetzQ: “Some people light their wood with volatile substances such as methylated spirits or lighting gel, this is very dangerous and very unhealthy. It is preferable to use brown firelighters for this purpose“.

Bonus tip: Also, Peter says it’s best to invest in nice quality products. That meat doesn’t need strong marinades and all kinds of spice mixes, it’s already flavorful by itself.

We thank the experts who contributed to this delightful article. That will make you hungry immediately! Good luck organizing a BBQ, and our tips will help with that.