Itching for a Barbie

Er...not the girls doll. I mean a barbecue. We're currently searching for the ultimate portable barbecue so that we can use it at home, or take it to other lovely places and enjoy the unique taste of food that burned on the outside and still raw or even frozen on the inside - as is The British Way.

I think this started a couple of days ago when we were searching on line and noticed a thing that looked like a steamer, but they were selling as a Fire Bowl - well we had a steamer just like this except with holes in it, so as a test we took it into the back yard (which resembles a building site since that's what it is at the moment) and lit a small fire in it. It worked well, and since the fire was there, the kids toasted marshmallows on it.

Last night to up the ante, we did it again at the other end of the yard, and put 4 breeze blocks around the fire and a grate over the top and tried it out as a barbecue, sacrificing a few sausages and burgers to it in a semi-experimental way. At first we were using wood, but this created a huge amount of smoke, so we found an old disposable bbq and put the charcoal from it onto our fire. That was better but not as hot. But it worked, and in only a few hours we had perfectly charred sausages and burgers, sitting amongst the bricks and building debris. It was more fun than it sounds. There was so much smoke the kids were wearing their swimming goggles, and there was something strangely post-apocalyptic about it in ambiance.

We hereby announce the the barbecue season officially open.

Comments

[Rebecca]

I worry for you all, I really do, its flipping freezing. Although, you do remind me of a programme Ian and Kieran watch, in which they do weird experiments. Have you thought of the advanatages of disposable bbq's, they go in the bin, no cleaning and storage.

[Tim the Enchanter]

Another great spin-off from this will be the day, probably years from now, when the kids remind you of it. Their differing memories will make for a great mealtime discussion, such as; "Yeah, it was fantastic, and dad actually set himself on fire"; "I know, and I was SO embarrassed that they were having a fire, in our backyard, and my friends were watching and laughing"; "I remember that... we had a fire in the backyard, and it was because our electricity had been turned off because we couldn't pay the bill".

[Sandy]

I love that last picture! (And I really did think you wanted a Barbie Doll at first.)

[Jac]

The swimming goggles did it for me. Post-apocalyptic is 'de rigeur' for this season's bbq attire. Just remember to tell your future guests to bring theirs.