If you’re cooking for a large group of people, then you can make it easy on
yourself by picking up pre-cut veg and prepared salads from your local supermarket. Many shops also now carry ready-to-grill kebabs, marinated chicken and fish. Again, this will allow you to cut down on your preparation time and increase your fun time! For the finishing touch, add a great selection of breads. Grill whole bulbs
of garlic until they are tender. Brush slices of bread with olive oil and grill and then squeeze the garlic out of the bulb on to the bread. Et voilà! The finest garlic bruschetta this side of the Mediterranean!
Keeping it safe Many people worry about the safety aspect of cooking on a barbeque – usually about t whether the food is actually cooked properly and right through. Pre-cooking can eliminate a lot of these worries. Bigger joints, in particular, need a longer cooking time, so it can be a good idea to part cook these pieces in an oven beforehand, transferring them to the grill during the barbeque. Always make sure, of course, that you transfer the food quickly to the grill, or the flies and bugs will be having the first bite! If you’re cooking potatoes, then parboil them first, before threading them
on to a skewer and brushing them with oil. That way, they should only take another eight to ten minutes to cook. The golden rule of cooking on a barbecue is to slow the cooking time right down. You don’t want to embarrass yourself with food that’s black on the outside and raw on the inside! Cooking time will depend on the cut of meat you’re using and also on whether you prefer it cooked raw, medium or well done.
Play safe!
Remember that, when it comes to dining alfresco, there are some food safety rules you need to adhere to.
• Keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold. At temperatures between ten and 50°, most bacteria can grow and some produce poisons that may cause illness
• If you’re preparing chicken, egg or meat salad, refrigerate it as soon as possible. Try to prepare it as close to picnic time as you can. Then, keep these foods cold in a cooler box until you serve them
• Thermos bottles can keep stews or drinks at the right temperature for hours. If foods are poured boiling hot into sterilised bottles, there shouldn’t be any problems
• For packing food to take outdoors, put foods in the cooler bag in the order opposite to using them. This means that the food you’ll need last will be packed first, at the bottom. Take out the food only as you need it and keep the cooler bag in a shady spot to keep it cool.
Modernmum 49
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68
