19.06.08
Posted in Fun Things, Did You Know?, Art of char grilling at 1:42 pm by admin
Kansas City isn’t the only place in the US that knows how to grill. As well as being one of the ‘fattest’ cities in the world, Houston, Texas is famous for its grilled delights (for those of us who are not carb conscious, of course). A fairly constant warm and humid climate is conducive for year-round grilling, but the official BBQ season really kicked off a couple of weekends ago in Houston when the US celebrated Memorial Weekend.
Experts estimate that eight in ten US households own a grill or smoker - Houston is famous for its Brisket and Spare Ribs and of course there’s the infamous Texan Smoker BBQ. So, while we in Australia claim to be experts in the backyard BBQ domain, perhaps we still have much to learn!
One group that could teach us is the Greater Houston BBQ Society. They describe themselves as ‘a not-for-profit group of people interested in Backyard Barbequing and having FUN’ that teach ‘the uninitiated what “REAL Q” is’ and how to do it. They hold a series of events, free to their members and sometimes even to the public. The society has recently held its first quarterly Backyard Meeting and Cookoff in Katy, Texas. So, if you ever find yourself in Texas, why not soak up some of the American BBQ culture by visiting the Greater Houston BBQ Society or even just indulging at one of the many BBQ restaurants in the Houston area?
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30.05.08
Posted in Uncategorized, Fun Things, Did You Know?, Art of char grilling at 2:16 pm by admin
The third part of our art of char grilling series is all about the perfect ingredients to a triumphant BBQ.
The recipe for a successful BBQ is as follows:
Ingredients
Suitable BBQ accessories such as long-handled tongs, a fork, a spatula, a sharp knife, a basting brush, serving platters, a grill brush, good quality protective gloves for handling live coals, and Heat Beads® drip trays.
To help you light your BBQ, 1 part of each - a Heat Beads® BBQ Quickstart Chimney, long matches, and Heat Beads® Firelighters.
To learn how to light your BBQ using these three simple ingredients, click here.
1 part of wood chips
Due to the neutral flavour of Heat Beads® BBQ Briquettes, professionals and enthusiasts alike usually use wood chips to provide their BBQ food with a distinct smokey flavour. Woodchips are available from Barbeques Galore and should be soaked in hot water for 15-20 minutes before being placed on top of your Heat Beads® BBQ Briquettes, once they are fully ashed over and ready to cook.
1 part of drinks for the guests and chefs alike
Perhaps a cold beer or glass of wine to aid the chef, or as the cool weather closes in, perhaps even a steaming hot cup of soup!
1 part of guests ready to taste test your BBQ sensations (the lucky people!)
And finally, one 7kg bag of Heat Beads® BBQ Briquettes, of course!
These are all the ingredients required for a successful BBQ, which will hopefully add to your BBQ skills acquired over this series. Stay tuned for our last part of this series, which is our top 10 weird and wonderful BBQ recipes.
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15.05.08
Posted in Discussion, Did You Know?, Art of char grilling at 4:15 pm by admin
This week is the first of a four part series of blogs on the art of char grilling. We will begin with an adaption from the eNewsletter of the master himself – Steven Raichlen, on grilling safety. You will all hopefully learn a lot more about char grilling over the next four weeks so that you may put your new skills to the test with Heat Beads® BBQ Briquettes!
We all know that when literally playing with fire, there are significant safety hazards. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, from 2004-05 exposure to fire/heat caused 5% (for males) and 7% (for females) of all injuries requiring hospital treatment. When you next pull out your BBQ or kettle for use you should follow these simple safety tips to make sure you have a successful and safe BBQ experience!
Here are our top 10 BBQ safety tips:
1. Most importantly: Burning BBQ fuel inside can give off carbon monoxide which has no odour and can kill you. NEVER burn BBQ Briquettes inside homes, vehicles or tents.
2. When returning to your BBQ after a long period of neglect; check it over for problems and clean it thoroughly including cleaning out all the old ash (make sure you don’t forget about the ash catcher) and making sure the grill plates are clean. Most importantly, if there’s rust forming on the grill walls, we’re afraid it’s time to wave goodbye to your beloved BBQ (keep your BBQ in a dry place such as a garage to avoid rust occurring).
3. Vlado Gregurek, owner of Vlado’s, suggests that an steel brush should be used to clean off all fat that may remain on the grill before lighting, as this can lead to excess smoke and even fire.
4. Place a heavy sheet of metal underneath your BBQ to catch grease splatters or as protection against sparks.
5. Coarse salt is useful for putting out a grease fire. However, if there is a real danger of the fire spreading, call 000 immediately for emergency assistance.
6. When using a Heat Beads® BBQ Quickstart Chimney or lighting Heat Beads® BBQ Briquettes, remember to always use gloves and wear enclosed shoes for your protection. To learn how to light your BBQ using a Heat Beads® BBQ Quickstart Chimney, click here. 
7. Keep your grilling as an activity conducted out in the open – enclosed verandas, overhanging trees or nearby shrubbery can all be fire hazards.
8. Leave 30% of the grill free of coals to allow for a ‘safety zone’, as Steven puts it, for your BBQ delights to rest in case of flare ups.
9. Never leave your BBQ unattended as this poses a fire risk and safety risks for children, or just those who have had a bit too much to drink at the family BBQ.
10. And finally, when the BBQ is over, close all the vents and leave the Heat Beads® BBQ Briquettes to cool completely before removing. Never attempt to extinguish the Briquettes with water as this will only lead to dangerous amounts of smoke.
Once removed into a fireproof container (e.g. a galvanised metal rubbish tin with a tightly fitting lid), wait until the next day to dispose of the ash as live coals can last longer than 12 hours.
Now you have many of the tools to thoroughly enjoy a BBQ safely with family and friends! Stay tuned for our top 10 BBQ tips, next week!
To learn more about this important issue directly from the master himself, you can access Steven’s May eNewsletter by clicking here.
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08.05.08
Posted in Uncategorized, Events, Did You Know? at 10:34 am by admin
Coming up! Heat Beads® will be represented at Steven Raichlen’s BBQ University (June 1 to 4 and June 4 -7) in Colorado Springs, by Lee Gilmour, Managing Director of Australian Char, who will spend two days with the famous grill master, learning the secret art of char grilling, the American way.
What’s more, Steven was so smitten with Heat Beads® BBQ Briquettes that he will be cooking over Australia’s best solid BBQ fuel during the weekend, and demonstrating all its delectable abilities.
Lee has already promised to throw a BBQ soon after his return to wow us all with his newly found char-grilling prowess.
Since his visit to Australia in early February, Heat Beads® has made a great friend in Steven Raichlen. If you wish to find out more, click here
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18.04.08
Posted in BBQ recipes, Did You Know? at 1:45 pm by admin
Think BBQing is purely a man’s domain? Think again. 67% of respondents to our 2007 Heat Beads® BBQ Lovers Survey were female. More and more women are not just stuck in the kitchen making the salads but lighting up the Heat Beads® BBQ Briquettes and getting involved in all the action!
And here’s living proof, Kerry Tait, winner of the 2006 Triple R BBQ Competition. She is an extremely enthusiastic BBQer throughout the year and enjoys experimenting with great new succulent recipes that turn traditional BBQ on its head. Kerry’s recipe for ‘Treat BBQ Like a Wok (Tempeh & Vegetable Stir Fry)’ was one of the fantastic, innovative dishes that wowed the attendees at the Steven Raichlen Degustation BBQ in February. The recipe is listed below along with her winning recipe for Lamb I am BBQ Back Straps that scored her a victory in the 2006 Triple R BBQ Competition.
Treat BBQ Like a Wok (Tempeh & Vegetable Stir Fry)
Great for vegeterians and gluten intolerant. You need a nice, heavy BBQ plate which you can heat up and then back the temperature off. Have a clean, dedicated plate for this one - no bits of old sausage should make it into this meal!
Ingredients
Slice up and marinate good quality Indonesian tempeh for a few hours in:
finely grated fresh ginger
tamari or good quality light soy
fresh red Asian chilli (optional)
sesame oil
Experiment with the marinade proportions. The tempeh should be coated but not drowning. Go easy with the sesame oil.
Chop mouth sized pieces of any combination of seasonal vegetables from the following list putting together contrasting colours:
zucchini (courgette)
asparagus
green beans - especially snake beans for the nutty flavour
yellow beans
red and green capsicum
yellow baby squash
snow peas
broccoli
Method:
Soak or par boil some noodles in hot water. Vietnamese rice vermicelli is good, so are Japanese udon if you’re after a more wintery feel. Or, grab some fresh ones if you’re near an Asian grocery.
Have some fresh mung bean sprouts ready to go to add last
Chop and set aside some fresh coriander for garnish.
Have some chopped roasted peanuts set aside for garnish.
Ok, here we go.
Fire up the BBQ and oil very lightly with sunflower oil or peanut oil. No canola, it’s evil.
Stir fry the tempeh and put to a cooler part of the plate. Reserve the marinade.
Stir fry the veg. Add in the noodles and join tempeh, noodles and veg together, final stir fry on the BBQ plate. Cook the veg fast. Add a little reserved marinade or tiny bit of water to cook quicker/steam on the plate, up to you.
Add in the bean sprouts at the last minute, one stir through.
Plate up. Garnish with coriander and dried peanuts.
Lamb I Am BBQ Backstraps
Method:
Take 1kg of trimmed lamb back straps from any Halal butcher on Sydney Road (but I love Wahlid’s the best).
Cut into generous serve size portions.
Get it amongst this marinade for any amount of time from one hour to one night:
The Marinade:
Couple of tablespoons of light soy sauce; Couple of teaspoons of whole cumin seeds or freshly ground cumin; Crushed garlic - 3-6 big cloves, it’s up to you, but lamb can take it believe me; 2-3 tablespoons of good quality olive oil; freshly ground black pepper.
Char grill quickly on high heat to seal in that lamb flavour. Give the scrappy end bits to those who like it ‘well done’ and serve with fresh Turkish bread, salad and dips. And BEER.
So what are you waiting for ladies? Grab those tongs, move the men aside and start lighting up your grill with Heat Beads® BBQ Briquettes this weekend!
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01.02.08
Posted in Did You Know?, Competitions at 3:59 pm by Heat Beads® briquettes
It is a time-honoured tradition in backyards, and at parks and beaches across Australia, to hear the sizzle of a barbecue, the smell of sausages, seafood, steak and other delectable offerings wafting from the char grill. One man eager to learn about this tradition and advancements of cooking over live hot coals and BBQ briquettes in modern Australian cuisine is the American grilling expert, Steve Raichlen. He hits our shores next week to learn about the Australian char grilling tradition as part of research for his new book, Planet Barbeque – travels on the world’s barbecue trail.
Raichlen is the author of the international best selling Barbecue Bible and How to Grill and host of the Barbecue University television show on American Public Television. He is author of 28 books in total (which have been translated into 12 languages), and has also defeated the Iron Chef Roksbura Michiba in a barbecue battle on Japanese television.
In celebration of Raichlen’s arrival in Australia, the Heat Beads® Company is offering one lucky reader the chance to win a set of his barbecue books. Click here to enter - include your name and email address, and in 30 words tell us why you love to char grill over Heat Beads® BBQ briquettes. The winner will be notified by email toward the end of February.
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15.01.08
Posted in Fun Things, Did You Know? at 1:17 pm by Heat Beads® briquettes
We stumbled upon this BBQ quiz on The BBQ Guy’s blog. Test your knowledge of American regional BBQ traditions. (They take their BBQ-ing very seriously in America, as you can see from this previous post.)
So, where is brisket king? How do they like their ribs in Austin, Texas? In which region is ‘white’ BBQ sauce a staple?
You might just learn something new, and pick up some interesting ideas while you’re at it!
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Posted in Did You Know?, General Discussion at 8:01 am by Heat Beads® briquettes
Happy 2008 BBQ fans!
Sometimes in cooking (as in life), things don’t turn out exactly as planned. Now you can find the answers as to why (well, in relation to cooking, not life!) right away at the Heat Beads® FAQs page.
We’ve added fresh troubleshooting content to address problems you might have while BBQ-ing, to help salvage your food or avoid the mistake next time around! Check it out.
We thought we’d share one of the hot tips with you here:
Often, a recipe calls for a ‘hot fire’… but what does this actually mean?
Q. ‘How many Heat Beads® briquettes do I need to achieve the fire temperature I want?’
A. The BBQ temperature is determined by the number of Heat Beads® BBQ Briquettes burning inside. Here are the quantities to follow to reach your desired heat:
Indirect cooking method
- For a hot fire, use 64 briquettes (32 each side)
- For a normal fire, use 50 briquettes (25 each side)
- For a low fire, use 36 briquettes (18 each side)
- For a low smoke fire, use 12 briquettes (6 each side)
Direct cooking method
- For a direct fire, use 40 briquettes
- For a low direct fire, use 25 briquettes
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23.10.07
Posted in Did You Know?, General Discussion at 10:36 am by admin
This week’s guest blogger is ‘The Camp Oven Cook’, Derek Bullock. Derek’s website is a goldmine of information for campers, and here he shares his inventive camp oven cooking method.
Over the years, a growing number of camping grounds have disallowed the lighting of fires - meaning it’s near impossible to make a fire for coals for the camp oven. As such, I seek to teach people the art of cooking in a camp oven using Heat Beads® briquettes as a source of heat. It really is very simple and with a bit of initiative you can be baking and roasting even in a caravan park.
Firstly, you need something to place your camp oven and Heat Beads® briquettes in when cooking. I use an old electric frying pan - easy to look after and takes up little room when packing. You can usually pick one up for a few dollars at a garage sale. The one I have is a large old round Sunbeam. Both my twelve inch Bedourie and my cast iron camp ovens fit in it perfectly. (This method is suitable for all types of camp ovens.)
If using the Bedourie I first place a trivet in the frying pan to sit the coals on, and to help circulate the heat. Because the cast iron oven has legs there is no need to do this.
The number of briquettes is something you might like to play with. Generally nine under the oven and 14 to 17 on top will give a heat of about 180 to 200 degrees and that is a pretty good heat for baking. You can see the number of briquettes clearly in the photographs. A good idea is to light about 30 and then experiment with different numbers top and bottom.
A good little investment I made that only cost a few dollars was a small oven thermometer. This photograph shows it sitting in my cast iron oven with a temperature of about 180 degrees (you can click on the photos to enlarge):
Okay, you have your Heat Beads® briquettes, an old frying pan, a Bedourie camp oven and a trivet… you are ready to begin.
Place the briquettes on the trivet in the frying pan and light them up. Here I am using Heat Beads Easy-lite - no firelighters are required, just light with a match.
Next, wait for the briquettes to ash over. This will take about 40 minutes. Remember that the briquettes need to be covered in a light-coloured ash:
Once the briquettes have ashed over, place the required number on top of the oven, leave the number you want under the oven in the frying pan and place the extras to one side:
Put the camp oven on top of the briquettes in the frying pan and leave it to preheat like you would the oven at home. It’s as simple as that!
The good thing about using a frying pan is that you can cook just about anywhere with it. The legs on the frying pan keep the heat off whatever it is standing on - as the photos show, I have even used it on my glass-top patio table.
Give it a go yourself to see just how simple it actually is. And stay tuned to Sizzle for some of my delicious camp oven recipes!
www.aussiecampovencook.com
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05.10.07
Posted in Did You Know?, General Discussion at 5:41 pm by admin
John Ryan – BBQ fanatic, member of Kansas City BBQ Society, and enthusiast of Heat Beads® BBQ Briquettes – reports from Kansas City, the BBQ capital of the world.
I’m fortunate to be in Kansas City right now, when ‘American Royal’ is on.
American Royal is a bit like a traditional ‘royal show’ (such as the Royal Melbourne Show), featuring live entertainment and music, food and drinks, horse shows, rodeo, livestock… and the 28th Annual American Royal Barbecue.
On from 5-7th October, this is a state championship BBQ contest with a difference – a $125,000 prize up for grabs, as well as automatic entry into the World Series of Barbecue championships (world championships), for the winner.
As you can tell from the prize money, they take their BBQ-ing very seriously over here – there’s over 400 teams competing this year.
I’ll be there, along with Kansas City BBQ Society (KCBS), which sanctions the event. KCBS is the largest organisation of BBQ enthusiasts in the world, with over 8,000 members worldwide. A non-profit organisation, KCBS is dedicated to promoting and enjoying the art of the BBQ.
Since I’ve been in Kansas City, I’ve been sampling BBQ fare as well as doing a lot of BBQ-ing of my own. I brought my Heat Beads® company hat and t-shirt with me, so I’ve been getting lots of attention and questions about the briquette-style fuel source (pure wood is more common here). There is a distinction made when smoking meats here; it’s mostly cold smoking followed by cooking over a medium-to-low heat, with a basting period between the two, and another basting period after the cooking and just before the serving.
It makes me hungry just writing about it…
Stay tuned for more after the contest.
John Ryan
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