Caravan Cook: Barbecues

Don't be put off barbecuing when the weather turns chilly. There is nothing nicer than gathering around the warmth of a barbecue, with delicious smells wafting in the air.

Spiced Lamb Chops
Barbecued lamb tastes excellent: the dry heat of charcoal makes it particularly tender and succulent. Try cooking lamb to medium so it turns crusty-brown on the outside and juicy-pink inside. It stands to reason that if you prefer your meat well and truly cooked, keep it on the barbie for longer.

My family also likes to try this recipe using mutton instead of lamb. A handy hint - if you are only going away for a couple of days, don't take the spice bottles. Simply place dried spices in a snap-lock plastic bag. When it comes time to barbecue, just add garlic and vinegar to the plastic bag, add the chops, shake a little and voila! Ready to barbecue.

4 thick lamb chops, loin or forequarter
1 teaspoon coriander seed
1/2 - 1 teaspoon chilli powder (depending on your tolerance)
a pinch ground cumin
1 clove garlic, crushed
a dash of good quality vinegar
salt to taste

Place all ingredients, minus salt, into a bowl or plastic bag. Add chops and gently rub spice mixture into the lamb. Place lamb in bowl or bag into your fridge or chiller bag for half an hour.

Heat barbecue or grill to a medium heat and brush with a little oil. Place spiced chops on the barbecue and cook for a couple of minutes on each side. When ready to serve, sprinkle chops with a little salt.

Barbecued Pork Ribs
Pork chops taste great when barbecued this way as well. Although it's a long list of ingredients, they are all store cupboard basics.

A handy hint with this recipe is to prepare the glaze for the pork prior to barbecuing. If you are planning to barbecue away from home, pour glaze into a sealed container and take with you.

1 k g pork spare ribs or 4 pork chops
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 small onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup tomato sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tablespoon prepared mustard

Heat oil in a pan until hot. Add onions and garlic to the pan, then reduce heat and cook until onion is softened. Add tomato sauce, water, sugar, Worcestershire sauce and mustard to pan. Bring to boil and simmer, uncovered, for about 15 minutes.

Heat barbecue or grill to medium heat. Place pork ribs (or chops) on the barbecue and cook for about five minutes on each side, depending on thickness of pork. Brush frequently with glaze while barbecuing.

This dish is great as finger food or as part of a main meal.

I like to add a slice of blue vein cheese to the top of my burger, but I am the only one in the family who does, so you may need to take a few cheese varieties. You might even come across some new types while on the road!

Burgers
500g minced beef
3 tablespoons beer
dash of Tabasco sauce
dash of Worcestershire sauce
freshly ground salt and pepper
one slice per burger of cheese
6 hamburger buns

I usually place burger mince, the sauces and salt and pepper into a plastic bag and 'massage' the ingredients together. To make patties, simply scoop the amount of mince you need out of the bag, mould into patty shape and place on a hot barbecue plate.

Cook meat patty to medium for five or so minutes. Adjust cooking time either way, depending on how you like your patty 'done'.

The beer gives a beautiful flavour to the burgers and onions, so even if you don't like beer, try it as an ingredient - the heat removes the alcohol from the beer and leaves pure flavour.

Beery Onions
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 large onions, thinly sliced
1 small cup beer
generous pinch sugar

Heat oil in large pan over medium heat. Add onions and cook, stirring frequently, until very soft. Add beer and sugar and cook for about 15 minutes until the beer has been absorbed and onions are starting to turn a golden brown.

To serve, cut buns in half and toast on the barbecue plate. Place a hot meat patty with a generous serve of the onion on the bun and quickly top with a slice of cheese. The heat from the meat and onions will start to melt the cheese. Top with remaining half of bun.