Barbecue Economy

When the sun starts to shine, as we have been blessed with this week, us Brits tend to go a bit mad with our money, with all sensible saving going out the window. This can often be the case when barbecuing: as we do it so little it can be hard to figure amounts and costs per person, but with a little BBQ know how, it doesn't have to be expensive. This weekend we had our neighbours and family round to enjoy the sunshine and to enjoy some good barbecue meats! Keeping things simple we kept away from the marinated steaks that are delicious for small numbers of people and instead turned to whole joints of meat, that we marinated for the barbecue.

For example, last week my brother and I showed you how easy it is to cook a spatchcocked chicken: as it is laid out flat it cooks much more evenly. It is also much more economical than individual portions. The same can be said for a shoulder or leg of lamb which the boys in the shop will happily debone and open out so that it cooks through evenly and quickly. Whats more, if the sun does decide to hide away, which is more than likely, these joints can always be easily roasted.

As marinades and flavours go we sell some delicious barbecue and oriental flavoured sauces from Cottage Delight which keep the meat succulent and are ridiculously easy to apply to the meat and leave. For the lamb however I often mix olive oil, lemon juice, crushed garlic cloves and whichever herbs happen to be in the garden and massage into the meat.

My final money saving tip for the barbecue is Andrew's chicken wings in barbecue sauce, which my brother, cousins and I have practically grown up on and without them, would not consider a barbecue to be a decent barbecue! They are currently £3.20 per kilo and you really do get a lot for a kilo so they are great if you want to supplement a more expensive meat or if you are feeding a big party of children. I am 21 and still adore them, I could eat a plate of them by myself so they are definitely a winner!