The classic Sunday roast is a staple in most households; bringing the family together for quality time whilst indulging in a delectable assortment of meat. While one would normally cook a roast in the oven, the barbecue is great alternative for producing a juicier and richer kind of meat. Cooking a beef, lamb, chicken or a knuckle meat roast is slightly different to the way you’d cook in your regular oven. There is no difference in the way you prepare your meat, the only variance is that you will be using indirect cooking rather than the direct cooking experienced in an oven. Simply speaking, indirect cooking means that there is no heat directly under the meat while it cooks, ensuring that the bottom section of the meat doesn’t burn. If you’re planning on roasting in a BBQ, follow these simple tips for a tender, perfectly cooked piece of meat.
Cooking on a hooded BBQ
As mentioned earlier, the idea for roasting in a barbecue is to use the indirect method of cooking. Once you preheat your oven, place your meat in the centre of the BBQ and turn off the burners that lie directly under the meat. The remaining burners will conduct enough heat around the roast to cook it, but not burn or dry it out. If you’re in the market for a hooded BBQ, you can get an estimate on prices by heading to sites like barbequesgalore.com.au.
Cook Your Meat at Room Temperature
Part of cooking a succulent roast is allowing it to cook evenly and stopping it from becoming too dry. You can achieve this by letting the meat come to room temperature before placing it in the barbecue. It will also stop the steak from becoming tight and tough, allowing for a more tender and moist roast.
Allow Time For the Meat to Rest
While it’s tempting to want to start ripping the meat off the bone once it’s finished cooking, the most important part of perfecting a roasted meat is to let it rest. When the meat cooks, its fibres tense up, however, allowing it to rest for five to ten minutes will allow all those fibres to relax. Make sure you rest your meat of a drip rack to avoid it getting soggy by sitting in its own juices.
Avoid Lifting the Lid Too Often
Another tempting part of cooking a roast is the need to constantly check on it by opening the hood and prodding it with whatever utensil it at your disposal. It’s absolutely understandable, the smell in itself is so enticing and you’ve got a slight case of, is it done yet? Syndrome. You need to avoid doing this too often as you will lose ten to fifteen degrees Celsius each time, causing the BBQ to work harder to raise the temperature.
Use a Meat Thermometer
You can take all of the guesswork out of cooking your roast by investing in a meat thermometer. These nifty devices are relatively inexpensive costing around $10 from any kitchenware shop. All you need to do is simply place the meat thermometer into the thickest section of the meat (away from the bone) before cooking. Depending on the size your meat should be 60°C for rare, 65°C – 70°C for medium and 75°C for well done
Do you have any tips for cooking a roast? Let us know in the comments below.
Babysitter Bev says
We are planning a Barbeque this weekend and l might well decide to take the advice in this post and try cooking my very first roast in our barbeque, sounds delicious and also seems like it will be less work than turning chops, sausages and steak every few minutes, great post, thanks very much.