Barbecue

[owdhamer]

Can anybody suggest a small gas barbecue tht will give the charcoal taste

[boxtops]

I've never used a gas barbecue (only coal or electric) but can you buy an oil spray for the food, which gives that hickory flavour?

[rowanwitch]

gas barbecues shouldn't even be called barbecues...they are outside cookers... seriously you might be able to put a tray of hickory chips onto the 'coals' so they burn and give off smoke or as suggested get a mesquite or smoke spray both of which give a fairly authentic flavour. best solution is to cook things 95% on the gas one and have a small real one to finish off the food....

[Red_John]

you need charcoal to get the charcoal taste, as rowanwitch says there is no such thing as a gas barbecue!

[mrs_overall]

Gas barbeques are a misnomer if ever I heard of one.

Sacrilege!

[Booldawg]

gas bbq are akin to heresy.

[owdhamer]

Thanks to you all for the feedback,looks like we had better stay with the charcoal or be sent to Coventry.

[DTCwordfan]

they aren't heresy in some parts of the world - such as in Provence. Charcoal is banned in the season as becuase of the risk of sparking and setting off a wild fire.

I used to work for Camping Gaz and they did a portable with briquettes that gave a very good taste as a lot of the flavour comes from the fat of the meat dripping, cooking and spitting back.

By the way, please do not buy wood from those bbq specialist shops - you are being fleeced. Go down your local timber merchants and get some ends - especially for woods like cedar (great with bbqed salmon) - don't know whether you can get mesquite here like in the States as that is good for smoking too......

[DTCwordfan]

to be clear, running off one of their 470 cartridges and then the gas would heat the briquette up. In the Middle East I found they were very popular as people would buy them to cook a quick lunch on. Switch them, let the appliance cool and back of the car again. Also, it gave a whole new meaning to "wash your rocks!"