BBQ question to coal or not to coal

[pugboy]

cancer risk is very high when the oils are burning and giving off the acrid smoke

[Rovin]

Is your barbecue killing you?

Maybe it’s the infrequency of barbecue weather that makes Britons less adventurous grillers, prone to hastily grabbing a pack of sausages, tub of coleslaw and packet of white buns.

But is it possible to enjoy the smoky, sizzling flavours of a barbecue and all the trimmings without putting yourself at risk of food poisoning, heart disease, obesity or cancer?

Is there a cancer risk from barbecued meats?

Carcinogenic chemicals called Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) are generated when organic substances are burned. On a barbecue this includes the fats and meat you are cooking plus the wood or charcoal.

Cooking food close to the coals, in a smoky environment or for prolonged periods, can create high levels of PAHs in your food. This in turn may increase your risk of cancer.

There are ways to minimise your exposure to PAHs from the barbecue. Part-cooking food indoors will limit the amount of time it is exposed to the smoke. Gas barbecues create fewer PAHs than charcoal or wood chips. Marinating meat also cools its surface to stop PAHs forming.

Your choice of meat can have an impact, too. Not only do burgers and sausages show the highest levels of PAHs during barbecuing, eating processed and red meat also increases the risk of bowel cancer. Switch to barbecued fish, lean beef or chicken.

Burgers have the highest levels of carcinogenic 'PAHs', as the fat drips down onto the coals and coats the craggy surface area of the meat.

Are barbecues to blame for food poisoning?
Cases of food poisoning double in the summer. Is this down to the barbecue?

Clean grill

The heat of the coals is not suitable for killing all germs. Cleaning the grill is easiest after a quick pre-heat, before your cooking starts. The heat will loosen charred-on grease.

A clean grill will also leave beautiful char-marks on your food. A dirty grill will leave bits of last week’s dinner!
Raw or cooked?

Raw and cooked foods should never touch each other or share the same plate. Once you’ve transferred any raw meat to the barbecue, wash the plate and tongs with hot, soapy water before they come into contact with any cooked meat.

Give raw food enough space. Consider having separate raw and cooked sides of the barbecue so that cooked foods can be held at a medium-hot temperature until ready to serve.
Marinades

In the summer, marinate meat in the fridge unless it’s being done for a very short time. Bacteria grows at room temperature fast enough to cause food poisoning in less than an hour.

An hour is long enough to marinate small cuts of meat and kebabs. Larger pieces of meat can be marinated overnight.

Don’t use the marinade from the raw meat as a sauce for basting meat while it’s cooking. If you want to baste your meat on the grill, use a new mixture and a clean brush.
Food for the barbecue
Use a cooking thermometer to check meat is cooked through, never baste food with a marinade that's had raw meat in it, keep raw and cooked foods apart and ensure your grill and brush are clean.

Pre-cook it

If you take one tip away from this guide, it’s this: pre-cook sausages and chicken on the bone before barbecuing. You will greatly reduce the risk of meat being both burned and undercooked, you’ll save time slaving over the coals and it eliminates the risk of cross-contamination on the grill.

Bake chicken legs and thighs on the bone at 180C/160C Fan for 25–30 minutes before barbecuing. They don’t need to brown, as that will happen over the direct heat of the barbecue.

Gently pre-poach sausages in simmering water for 10 minutes, or 7 minutes for chipolatas. This will also remove some of the fat that can drip onto the barbecue and cause bad-tasting flame flare-ups.

Put pre-cooked meats on the barbecue and cook as normal until they are nicely browned all over.

Temperature check

Make sure meat’s properly thawed before cooking. The safest place to thaw frozen meat is in the refrigerator. This will probably need to be done the night before your barbecue.

It can be tricky to judge when chicken on the bone is cooked because smoke can lend a pink colour to grilled meats. Use a meat thermometer to check that it’s cooked throughout to 73C. Burgers and sausages should be cooked to 71C.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/articles/barbecue_cooking_risks

good safety info here , good ting i does take my time to do safe\proper preparations & precautions ....

[*KRONIK*]

Got some massive chunks of guyanese hardwood coals.
Thing does burn scary hot.

[X_Factor]

Good charcoal has a shiny glazed look and sounds like glass when dropped those type burns with every little ash

[*KRONIK*]

Yea
Barely any ash at the bottom with this batch

Good charcoal has a shiny glazed look and sounds like glass when dropped those type burns with every little ash

[pugboy]

Lookup binchotan charcaol

[TurboSingh12]

Where can i get some nice steak cuts in south?

https://www.facebook.com/Southern-Meats ... 503104974/

tenderloin, ribeye, t-bone steaks etc

Thanks

[Rovin]

while back i saw this "ramdhanie" brand of coals in d grocery - white label that said made in guyana , didnt have a choice so i say lemme try it

rellll heat from it , hadda keep checking d meat & occasionally dousing it with water to bring d temp down otherwise d meat wuda bun up ....

[Redman]

You can get cherry chips and chunks at bhagwansinghs

Where you guys get wood to buy?

Looking for some chips of oak or cherry wood.

Maple and Apple at Dansteel

[Zetski]

These articles "is your barbecue killing you" is just people paid to publish for marketing

Mans eating barbecue using coals for donkey years now and still good.. they probably want to promote gas/electric barbecues... and right under that article you will see an ad for a gas barbecue from amazon

[*KRONIK*]

Just stopped in for some ribeyes and sirloin

Price eh so hott up
Steaks thin
And they not vacuum sealed

Arties halal stuff thicker cut, vacuum sealed and better priced...

.

Meat hook in el socoro rd has nice range of steak cuts prices are reasonable and all meats halal

[Rovin]

https://www.facebook.com/theginomontalv ... 5MDcxODE0/

[Chimera]

Looking for a gas grill to buy for someone as a wedding gift. Where getting good one these days? Looking to spend 3-4k

[*KRONIK*]

I going and get married again...link mih a gift nah

Looking for a gas grill to buy for someone as a wedding gift. Where getting good one these days? Looking to spend 3-4k

[eliteauto]

Looking for a gas grill to buy for someone as a wedding gift. Where getting good one these days? Looking to spend 3-4k

Peakes, Pricesmart

[Emmar01]

Just bought a Thermos 3-burner at Ramlagans. They have the best prices and other brands like CharBroil

[pugboy]

Charbroil is garbage, they rotten out real quick

[maj. tom]

definitely never go with Char-Broil. Bad design as well. There's a reason why so many places in TT stock them.
OP check Peake Home Store. They have a nice range for selection. Weber is lifetime thing.

[Chimera]

Much thanks..will check peakes tmr. What's the scene with those propane tanks vs our normal gas tank though? My own grill I has cut out d propane adapter and put a normal gas head to use.

[Chimera]

This is from peakes website

[pugboy]

Nothing wrong with converting that way to use regular red tank instead of foreign

Much thanks..will check peakes tmr. What's the scene with those propane tanks vs our normal gas tank though? My own grill I has cut out d propane adapter and put a normal gas head to use.

[maj. tom]

I honestly not sure because that conversion should involve calculations and a pressure regulator. I recall seeing some sort of adapter in Bhagwansingh's some time ago for propane to LPG tanks, and I sure Peake's would have the same kit. So even if it does work by just changing the head, i not sure about long term safety. It come like an unauthorized CNG install. Would work 99% of the time, but when it does go wrong, it's compressed gas in a steel shrapnel tank. Look for and use the adapter kit.

[pugboy]

I have done it and many friends also
To be safe use the flick switch type regulator
Don’t use the adjustable one with big knob to turn.

[*KRONIK*]

I think the regulator location along the system has a part to play in the safety,

I was lucky, my regulator was on the grill, so it was a simple matter of cutting the hose and adding in the LPG tank head.

I dont think its wise to remove the regulator to add in a LPG head

I honestly not sure because that conversion should involve calculations and a pressure regulator. I recall seeing some sort of adapter in Bhagwansingh's some time ago for propane to LPG tanks, and I sure Peake's would have the same kit. So even if it does work by just changing the head, i not sure about long term safety. It come like an unauthorized CNG install. Would work 99% of the time, but when it does go wrong, it's compressed gas in a steel shrapnel tank. Look for and use the adapter kit.

[SR]

I have no problems with charbroil and it gets heavy use converted to lpg

My pit does not sit in outdoor weather and when i clean/wash it its fired back up to dry out the moisture

[carluva]

The reality is that converting from propane to lpg can be done by switching regulator head and tank, yes. However, that is not the safest option and will not burn the lpg efficiently to give the highest available btu.

What makes the grill burn hot is the burner itself. The original burner has been designed for propane and as such, has an orifice to allow air at the right rate when propane is flowing. In other words, the propane burner in the grill is in a sense calibrated to give the best stoichiometric ratio that maximises propane BTU.

If you put a LPG on a propane burner, there will be combustion, but not efficient combustion and therefore you will not get the full BTUs that LPG has to offer. So you may either get lower heat output or you'll waste fuel to get the BTUs.

Think of a firecracker... When cooking in one, the wheel it turned to adjust air flow to the burner to get that nice blue flame. Same as your stove, a nice blue flame. Mind you, many stoves are converted in Trinidad for LPG having been designed for Propane.

However, the biggest concern is safety... B cause of the difference in stoichiometric ratio of propane and LPG, you may need more air to get the combustion using the propane burner. There is always the possibility that more unburned LPG is leaking into the grill and this could lead to a small explosion once the air becomes available for example when opening the grill.

Or there could be combustion at other areas of the burner such as the orifice and this too could be a hazard.

Long story short, I will recommend doing a proper conversion of a propane grill to LPG by using the right conversion kit designed got the grill, preferably and stray away from simply swapping tanks and regulator head.

[Dave]

I understand what you are saying but no issues on a charbroil grill and an oil less turkey fryer with respect to conversions or durability.

[adnj]

The reality is that converting from propane to lpg can be done by switching regulator head and tank, yes. However, that is not the safest option and will not burn the lpg efficiently to give the highest available btu., ...

If you put a LPG on a propane burner, there will be combustion, but not efficient combustion and therefore you will not get the full BTUs that LPG has to offer. So you may either get lower heat output or you'll waste fuel to get the BTUs.

You may be referencing a natural gas to LPG conversion. The air/fuel ratio for NG requires a different orifice than LPG. NG has lower energy density than LPG, IIRC.

Also, propane is LPG. LPG may be a blend of propane, butane, etc., but there isn't much difference between LPG and propane when burned in a typical gas-fueled appliance.

With respect to converting from the US screw-on regulator to the local snap-on regulator, pugboy was right: simply change the tank, regulator and hose. You may need a barbed fitting screwed into the grill to make the hose connection.

The flip switch snap on regulator is low pressure but may work for many situations. I don't remember the exact pressure but I believe it is regulated at about 2 psi.

The rotary knob regulator is high pressure and goes from 0 to 20 psi, or even 40 psi or more, depending on which one you buy. Your biggest risk with a high pressure regulator is a leak from using the wrong hose or having poor connections on the hose.

Just match the regulator pressure to the rated pressure of the regulator that you are replacing.

[francis1979]

Where you guys get wood to buy?

Looking for some chips of oak or cherry wood.

Bhagwansingh

[carluva]

The reality is that converting from propane to lpg can be done by switching regulator head and tank, yes. However, that is not the safest option and will not burn the lpg efficiently to give the highest available btu., ...

If you put a LPG on a propane burner, there will be combustion, but not efficient combustion and therefore you will not get the full BTUs that LPG has to offer. So you may either get lower heat output or you'll waste fuel to get the BTUs.

You may be referencing a natural gas to LPG conversion. The air/fuel ratio for NG requires a different orifice than LPG. NG has lower energy density than LPG, IIRC.

Also, propane is LPG. LPG may be a blend of propane, butane, etc., but there isn't much difference between LPG and propane when burned in a typical gas-fueled appliance.

With respect to converting from the US screw-on regulator to the local snap-on regulator, pugboy was right: simply change the tank, regulator and hose. You may need a barbed fitting screwed into the grill to make the hose connection.

The flip switch snap on regulator is low pressure but may work for many situations. I don't remember the exact pressure but I believe it is regulated at about 2 psi.

The rotary knob regulator is high pressure and goes from 0 to 20 psi, or even 40 psi or more, depending on which one you buy. Your biggest risk with a high pressure regulator is a leak from using the wrong hose or having poor connections on the hose.

Just match the regulator pressure to the rated pressure of the regulator that you are replacing.

Natural gas will require a conversion as well.

You are spot on that the LPG we know in Trinidad is a propane-butane mix, but still, the same burner conversion should be done for safe and efficient operation of the grill. I BBQ on coal by have seen a grill converted specifically for LPG and the difference was noticeable and measurable (some of us nerds connected and measured pressure, flow and temperature and a bigger nerd calculated the efficiency).

But, as I said, many people simply switch regulator head and they cooking with the red tank. There is a risk of doing this, but many people either don't know or don't care or are informed poorly by suppliers and merchants. Buttttt.... You did offer a good alternative piece of advice and that is to match pressures of the regulators. This goes a long way to help the conversion as the user can tweak and throttle pressures to get a good burn.