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Which is better when it comes to a barbecue grill – gas or charcoal? People have been arguing this point for many years. Each has its pros and cons, and people are often fiercely loyal to their chosen method of grilling. But if you’re just starting out with barbeque cooking and trying to decide which to buy, here’s a look at what each has to offer.

Gas

* Quick. In just 10 minutes, the grill is ready.

* The heat is controllable. It gives you the flexibility of pacing the cooking. Some foods need to cook low and slow, while others need high heat for just a short time. Gas can help you easily manage these requirements.

* Versatile. The side burner can be used for cooking veggies, and the rotisserie is useful for slow roasting of large cuts of meats.

* Flavor. There are those who don’t enjoy the taste of food that’s been cooked over a gas flame. And it certainly doesn’t offer up the distinctive wood smoke taste of food cooked over charcoal.

* Easy to clean. You don’t have to sweep away ashes. Drip trays will take care of most of the mess, and turning the heat up for 10 minutes or so will burn off the rest so it can be easily scraped off.

* Cost effective. One gas cylinder is enough for 8 hours even at maximum setting.

* The initial cost may be high; however there is a wide range of prices to suit any budget.

* It may prove to be more cost effective in the long run especially if taken good care of, but this depends on the changing prices of gas.

Charcoal

* The flavor and aroma of wood smoking can’t be matched.

* Initial cost is low, but it may not be efficient in the long run.

* They’re slow, both to get started and throughout the cooking. Lighting the briquettes and letting them burn down sufficiently can take up to 40 minutes. This won’t work for the times when you have a sudden desire to barbeque.

* Timing is critical. There is no heat control, so you have to keep a close eye on your food.

* The cost of briquettes may prove to be quite expensive in the long run.

* Cleaning out ashes is a tedious job. The grate is hard to clean, and it takes a long time for the unit to cool down enough to clean it.

So there you have some BBQ tips to help you decide between gas and charcoal. Pick the one that fits both your lifestyle and your budget. Those who lead busy lives might prefer a gas barbeque because they require less time in order to fully cook a meal. However, if you have some time on your hands, you can’t beat the flavor that charcoal gives.

If you dread the thought of cooking in a hot kitchen through the summer, you need to consider barbequing. Sure, you can cook your food indoors on an electric grill, but the tastiest way to get the true flavor and aroma of BBQ is through outdoor cooking. You can choose from a charcoal or gas grill, or maybe you prefer a smoker. There are lots of BBQ tips to spice up your grilling, like sauces, rubs and marinades. There are various internet sites and cookbooks loaded with recipes for barbeque cooking. Any way you grill it up, though, the end result will be delectable.

There are several different bases that are used for a BBQ sauce, and they each lend their own distinctive flavor to the food you’re cooking. You can buy or make sauces featuring a base of vinegar, mustard or tomato. Some even use fruit. You can also try using a sauce to marinate the meat before cooking. You can also take advantage of interesting sauces and marinades that are brushed on the meat while it’s cooking. Finally, there’s a sauce used to coat the meat right before taking it off the grill, or to add to the meat when it’s on your plate.

Rubs are another BBQ staple, and are often used along with sauce. A barbeque rub is a blend of seasonings that are applied to the surface of the uncooked meat, which then infuse the whole cut while it’s cooking. The advantage of rubs over sauces is that they cling to the meat and don’t drip away. This means they provide more flavor.

These three seasoning techniques can be used together for maximum effect. For instance, let the meat soak in the marinade for about 24 hours, then add the rub mixture. Once the meat is on the grill and cooking, use some sauce to enhance the flavor and tenderness.

As well, there are various methods of barbeque cooking to choose from. You can cook indoors on an electric grill. An outdoor grill, though, will give you loads more flavor due to the effect of the smoke from the flame. You can choose between a charcoal grill, which gives it a more authentic flavor, or a gas grill. Either way, consider using wood chips. The meat gets a flavor boost due to the aromatic smoke produced by the wood chips while cooking.

Just remember that cooking barbeque can sometimes be a time consuming process. Some foods are pretty quick to cook, such as hamburgers and hot dogs. But if you’re planning on serving up something like ribs or roast, you’ll need to cook on low heat for a long period of time to get the best results.

If you’d like to enjoy real barbeque with traditional flavor and style, consider building a BBQ pit. When you cook your meat in a BBQ pit, there’s a greater concentration of smoke and heat. The taste is out of this world.

This method of cooking outdoors is ideal for larger cuts of meat such as a roast. If your pit is big enough, it’s possible to cook a whole pig or a section of beef. Just remember that it will take a long time to cook this much meat, anywhere up to 10 hours.

You have two basic choices in open BBQ pits, modern and traditional. The traditional BBQ pit is essentially a hole in the ground. You then lay in your wood or charcoal and light it.

You can cook your food by placing it on a skewer and holding it over the fire. You can also lay a grill over the flames to hold the meat. Another option is to wrap the food in foil and lay it in among the coals after the fire has died down.

The modern open pit is usually an above ground BBQ. Stone, brick and concrete are the most common materials used for building such a structure. There’s a firebox in which charcoal or wood can be set on fire. You’ll likely want to attach a grill to the pit. Just make sure it’s far enough away from the source of heat so your meat won’t become overcooked.

With an open pit BBQ there are two ways of cooking your food. You can choose either direct or indirect heat. Direct heat cooking means that your food is cooked directly over the flame or heat of the burning coals. In order to manage the cooking temperature, many people locate the coals at one end of the pit and the food at the other. This method cooks your food relatively quickly and is perfect for tender cuts of meat.

Indirect cooking is also known as pit cooking. Cooking with indirect heat involves using a very low temperature to cook the food. First you build up the fire until the pit has stored up a lot of heat. The objective is to store up a lot of heat in the sides of the BBQ pit.

The fire is then put out and the meat is placed onto the grill. You then need to cover up the pit. The heat that has been absorbed into the sides of the pit will do the job of cooking the meat. With this style of cooking, it takes a long time before your meal is done. But it’s ideal for tougher cuts of meat. Many people believe this is the best BBQ method for authentic flavor.

Barbequing brings to mind sunny days, savory aromas and great food. A cookout is a great way to relax while honing your cooking skills. In some areas, you can only enjoy this pastime for a few months of the year. Here are some great BBQ tips to help make it a more enjoyable experience.

1. Begin by choosing the best type of BBQ grill for what you’ll be preparing. There are charcoal and electric grills, as well as those that use either propane or natural gas. You can buy barbeques in a variety of sizes, some of them portable and others permanently installed. Many have special features such as built in thermometers, removable drip pans, and side burners. Using a smoker for long term, slow cooking rather than a barbeque is a great option in many circumstances.

2. Learn about the advantages of using various BBQ sauces and rubs, as well as different kinds of wood chips. These are all great ways to improve the taste of your food, no matter what it is you’re cooking.

3. Pick up the barbeque tools you need to make preparation, cooking and clean up easy. The right kind of spatula can make flipping a burger seem effortless. A good thermometer can help you safely measure the internal temperature of the meat.

4. Next, take some time to prepare your meal the right way. There are two styles of BBQ, slow cooking or grilling, which is faster. Slow cooking in a smoker is best for cuts such as brisket. Slow cooking a hamburger will be a disaster. The cooking style should suit the ingredients.

5. Don’t spoil the enjoyment of your BBQ cookout by neglecting safety. Of course, BBQs are hot and there’s always the risk of burning yourself. However, it’s also possible to sustain an injury from your barbeque tools. Pay attention to what you’re doing as you use your tools. They’re larger than regular cooking utensils and can do some serious damage.

6. Insects are an annoyance that can get in the way of enjoying your BBQ. There are some easy solutions for keeping bugs away while you’re cooking. Spray them with a garden hose or use a hair dryer to blow them away. Even a simple fly swatter can keep bugs from ruining your party. Never use chemical laden insecticides near to where you’re cooking food.

7. When you’re all done, make cleanup easy by having the proper tools. Oven cleaner is very useful for cleaning up a messy grill. Some barbeques even have a number of features that make them easier to clean. Cleaning the grill every time you use it will improve the flavor of your food.

BBQ, to a traditionalist, means slow cooking. This generally means using either a smoker or a grill with a large surface and a snug lid. The idea is to keep the food at some distance away from the direct heat. You might push around briquettes to achieve this or light a fire on just one side. This will give you an area of lower heat that will allow you to get started on infusing, the first of three steps to the perfect BBQ.

The objective of infusing is to allow all the flavor of the meat to penetrate below the surface before it seals up through the cooking process. The rub, sauce, fat and juices mix with the smoke and heat to produce a complex interaction inside the meat. Both the fats throughout the meat and on the surface dissolve and form an exterior layer. Now the stage is set for the movement of the flavor compounds. Some killer BBQ is right around the corner.

During the second step, the actuall cooking happens, and this usually takes a while. As the interior temperature of the meat climbs, proteins break down and become amino acids. Sugars change their composition and spread their sweetness. Salt is ionized and enzymes increase their activity. The outcome of all this chemical activity is the transformation of a hunk of meat into a savory main course.

If you’ve added any wood to the fire, it will impart a smokey flavor to the meat during this stage. The surface of the meat becomes sealed and the inside juices are trapped; as they heat up they alter their composition. During this phase, the meat will spend the most time cooking. The temperature has to be lower than what you’d use indoors to cook.

After the interior temperature of the meat gets to 200F, it’s ready to be taken off the smoker or BBQ grill.

In the third step, the meat continues cooking. While it cools down, there is still sufficient internal heat to keep altering the structure of the meat slightly. Throughout this stage, meat can become even more tender, creating a most satisfying meal.

You can serve it once the temperature decreases to 165F or lower. Cut off a small piece and check the color. Beef should be a dark red, and chicken should have become white and any juices should now be clear. If it’s pork, it should be white with a gray tinge. The taste should be subtle and it should have an easy to chew consistency.

Now just sit back and enjoy your perfect BBQ.