Controlling the Temperature of your BBQ

Hood Thermometer on a Kettle BBQ

Learning to cook different food on your BBQ means controlling the temperature is key so we’ve put together some tips to help you add the right amount of fuel and maintain that temperature using your vents.

Why controlling the temperature of your BBQ is important

It may be easy to fall under the illusion that cooking at a higher temperature will result in your food being cooked faster and as long as you turn it regularly it will be fine however this isn’t the case. 

By dialing your temperature back a little and cooking over a controlled heat, the experience is a little more relaxed, your food will cook more evenly and you won’t have to turn or move your food around so much to avoid it burning. Every time you turn or move your food, you will lose a little bit of the natural juices. Turning something like a burger once or twice during cooking will avoid this however turning it 10-15 times to avoid it burning on the outside will result in them drying out.

I’m not going to pretend that temperature control is easy to master, it can take some practice to get right, however there are a few simple principles that will make it easier for you.

Controlling the temperature on your gas BBQ

Controlling the temperature on your Gas BBQ is simple as it is similar to the conventional oven in your kitchen. You can easily control the amount of gas being supplied to each burner using the controls on the front of your BBQ and therefore decide how high or low the temperature is. After pre-heating your BBQ, you can adjust the valves up or down to increase or reduce the temperature.

The basic principle of controlling heat is this:

More fuel = More heat

It is really easy to demonstrate this on a gas BBQ. Opening the valve more provides more gas to the the burner giving you more heat. Opening the valve less will provide less gas to the burner and therefore less heat.

These same rules apply to a charcoal BBQ. The key to hitting the right temperature is by using the correct amount of fuel.

Using the right amount of fuel in your charcoal BBQ

A charcoal BBQ can be a little intimidating when it comes to temperature control as there can be a lot of guess work involved when you are getting started. A recipe will always give you a guide temperature to cook your food at but converting that over to the right amount of charcoal to add can be tricky so here I’ve always found that this is a great place to start.

If you are using a Weber chimney starter to light your coals, and using a long lasting briquette, the following measurements should allow you to hit some key target temperatures. These measurements are based on a 47cm and 57cm kettle BBQ.

Controlling the temperature of your charcoal BBQ

Lumpwood Charcoal can vary due to it’s irregular size but keeping notes on measurements and the resulting temperature will soon give you your go to levels.

Controlling the temperature on your BBQ can be a stumbling point for beginners so here are some tips to help you get to grips with it.

Hitting the exact temperature isn’t essential

One of the first hurdles I had to overcome was to think of BBQ temperatures in ranges rather than an exact temperature. I wasted a lot of time agonising over getting the temperature to exactly what the recipe stated but the great thing about BBQ is that it isn’t an exact science. Let me give you an example.

If I was setting my BBQ up for low and slow cooking and the recipe stated that I should be cooking at 110 C, I would light the charcoal and bring the BBQ up to temperature. I would adjust the vents, remove a few coals or add a few more until the temperature was exactly 110C. It took a lot of time to get this just right and I now realise that it wasn’t completely necessary. 

Getting your temperature within a range is absolutely fine, the important thing is to maintain a consistent temperature. So if a recipe states 110C, as long as you are in the range of 105C to 120C then you won’t go far wrong.

Allow the temperature to settle before putting your food on the grill.

After you have lit your coals in your chimney starter and poured them into the BBQ, put the lid on and leave the temperature to settle. It can take a little time for the coals to finish lighting and reach their peak temperature. If your temperature is running a little high, you can remove some of the charcoal or adjust your vents a little (which we will discuss in the second half of this article) to even out your temperature. Once your temperature is sitting steady, you can add your food.

Keep a note of how much charcoal you are adding each time you cook and what temperature it resulted in.

You don’t have to count the number of briquettes or weigh your lumpwood but simply keeping a note of ‘½ Chimney starter, ⅓ Chimney starter’ etc and the resulting temperature will allow you to refer back to it at a later date.

Controlling the temperature using your vents

Airflow through your BBQ is important to keep your coals burning and your vents can be used to control the heat being produced by your coals. With the lid closed and both top and bottom vents fully open, air will be drawn through the bottom vent and exhausted through the top vent creating an airflow through your BBQ.

Closing both vents completely will result in your charcoal extinguishing as you have removed the oxygen supply needed for fire to burn. Using this theory, it is possible to restrict the amount of air flowing through your BBQ by adjusting the top and bottom vents.

I highly recommend adjusting the amount of fuel added to achieve your desired temperature rather than relying on the vents to manage your temperature. Vents are great for fine tuning your temperature and finding the ideal vent setup will allow you to maintain a steady temperature however if you have added too much fuel you will struggle to keep the temperature down using vents alone.

The smallest of adjustments to your vents can have a dramatic impact on the temperature of your BBQ but remember that closing them off too much can result in your coals going out. If you find your temperature is running a little high or is starting to climb, closing the top and bottom vents by a few millimetres can be enough to steady the temperature. If your temperature is well above your target range, I would remove some of the lit coals to bring it down then fine tune with the vents.

While you are recording the amount of charcoal used in your BBQ journal, make a few notes about the final vent setup used to achieve your temperature. You will then begin to learn your go to vent settings for specific temperature zones.

Fire management can be tricky to master and maintaining a steady temperature for the duration of a long cook is something that will get easier with experience so don’t be disheartened if you struggle the first few times you do it.

Remember that it is easier to add a little charcoal to your BBQ if your temperature is low than to bring down a high temperature. Having the right size of fire at the start will make keeping the temperature consistent a lot easier with your vents. 

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Smoking on a Gas BBQ

Smoking Brisket on a Gas BBQ

Many of us own both Gas and Charcoal BBQ’s and whilst smoking is traditionally done using charcoal, it couldn’t be easier to get started smoking on a gas BBQ!

Before we dive into the article, I just want to mention one thing. The old Gas vs Charcoal debate has been going on for quite a few years and is sure to carry on into the future. On one hand, some people say that gas is more convenient and on the other, some say that charcoal is the only true way to BBQ. There are valid arguments for both and I’m not going to get into them right now.

All I will say is this. If you own a gas BBQ or are planning on buying one then go for it! I’ve learned a lot on my Gas Weber and all those skills have transferred over to my charcoal BBQ’s as well. My first ever brisket was smoked on a gas BBQ and it turned out great! At the end of the day, you are still outside, cooking over flame and learning how to make outstanding food.

How to add Smoke to your Gas BBQ

On your gas BBQ, you would traditionally use wood chips or pellets in a heat proof container to generate smoke. If you are cooking on a Weber gas BBQ, they sell a smoker box that fits directly on top of the flavorizer bars or you can make your own using a foil drip pan covered with some foil and a few holes punched on top.

On a charcoal BBQ, wood chips will generate smoke almost instantly when placed on the coal. Smoking on a gas BBQ is a little different. It can take up to 15 minutes for the chips to start producing smoke so I would recommend putting the smoker box onto the BBQ while you are preheating it so when it is up to temperature, you should be producing smoke.

You can also add smoke using a smoker tube filled with wood pellets. By lighting one end of the tube and placing it on the cooking grate, it will slowly produce smoke.

Tips for smoking on your Gas BBQ

Placement of the smoker box is crucial on a gas BBQ. The ambient temperature inside your BBQ won’t be high enough to get the wood chips smoking. The smoker box needs direct heat from the burner to get the chips smouldering so place the smoker box under your cooking grate, on top of the flavorizer bar. The burner directly below that flavorizer bar should be lit to provide enough heat.

Airflow on a gas BBQ is a little more random than on a charcoal BBQ as it doesn’t have a single vent that channels the air out of the BBQ. This means it’s a little harder to direct the flow of smoke over your meat. When smoking on a gas BBQ, it’s really important that you keep your lid down as much as possible while the chips are smoking to contain the smoke inside the hood. You may find you need to add a second batch of chips to allow your meat to take on the desired smokey flavour!

Always soak your wood chips in water for around 20 minutes before placing them in the smoker box. The idea is to get them smouldering slowly to give off the optimum amount of smoke. Dry wood chips will eventually ignite and burn away. Pellets on the other hand should be dry before placing them in a smoker tube to ensure they keep burning. As the tube will not be placed directly over a heat source, you shouldn’t have to worry about them igniting.

Low and slow BBQ is simple on a gas BBQ. On my 3 burner Spirit, The first burner on high is enough to keep the temperature around 110°C. Place your smoker box filled with wood chips over that first burner and your meat over the unlit 3rd burner and close the lid. As I said above, My first ever brisket was smoked on my gas BBQ and I’ve had some great results with pulled pork as well!

Lots of beginners think they can’t smoke because they use a gas BBQ and they always seem surprised when I explain how simple it is. Don’t feel like you have to wait until you own a charcoal BBQ or dedicated smoker to start smoking, crack on with your gas BBQ and learn the basics now.

Click to Download your Smoking Wood Chart
To help you start smoking on your Gas BBQ, we’ve put together a wood smoking chart to help you decide what wood chips you can use with different meats. 

Click Here to download your FREE Smoking Wood Chart in pdf format

There are many other smoking woods available but this is a great selection to get you started and learn what flavours you like.

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How to setup your BBQ for Indirect Cooking

50/50 method

Unlike direct cooking, you do not cook your food over the heat source. Instead your food is placed opposite the heat source and with the lid down, it will cook indirectly in the ambient heat within your BBQ.

You can cook using the indirect method on both gas and charcoal BBQ’s and most of the setups are the same with charcoal having a few extra. Each one of the methods below has it’s own advantages and disadvantages and which one you use will depend on what you are cooking.

50/50 Method

Indirect Cooking using the 50/50 method

One of the most common indirect cooking methods is the 50/50 Method. On your charcoal BBQ, you would cover half of your charcoal grate with coals then place your food on the cooking grate above the area without coals. With the lid on, the ambient temperature will rise and cook your food in a similar way to your oven, but much tastier!

This would also be your method of choice for cooking indirect on a 2 burner gas BBQ. You would light the left hand burner and place your food on the right hand side of the cooking grate.The only disadvantage to this setup is that the heat source is only coming from one side of the meat. If you are roasting a chicken for example, you would need to turn it halfway through to help it cook evenly.

This is a two zone cooking setup so you have an area of direct and indirect heat making it great for searing a large piece of meat then moving it to the indirect side to finish cooking.

50/50 Split Method

Indirect Cooking using the 50/50 Split Method

Similar to the first method, you will have half your charcoal grate with no charcoal but this time, instead of placing all your coals to one side of the charcoal grate, you split them to the left and right leaving an area of indirect heat in the centre of the cooking grate where you place your food.

On a 3 burner gas BBQ you would light the left and right burners, leaving the middle one off, and place your food directly over the middle burner.

You will not have to rotate your food using this method as the heat source is coming from either side of the meat, helping it cook more evenly.

Whilst it is not essential, using charcoal baskets or charcoal rails to hold the coals in place will stop them from falling into the indirect area.

Once again, you will have an area of direct heat for searing.

Ring of Fire Method

Indirect Cooking using the Ring of Fire Method

This method is solely for charcoal BBQ’s, unless you fancy bending your burners into shape, and it involves placing your coals around the entire outside edge of the charcoal grate leaving the middle empty.

Your food would then be placed in the centre of the cooking grate giving you an even heat distribution around the entire BBQ. This method is great for roasting large, single cuts of meat such as a whole Chicken or Beef roast.

It isn’t an effective two zone cooking method as your area of direct heat around the outside of the BBQ is quite small so if you are planning to sear your meat before or after roasting, one of the other methods might work best.

The Bullseye Method

The bullseye method is the mirror opposite to the ring of fire, with your charcoal placed in the centre of the charcoal grate leaving the outer ring empty. This means your area of indirect heat is around the outer edges of the cooking grate.

This cooking method is better suited to lots of smaller cuts of meat and is traditionally used for things like Chicken wings. With the coals all in the middle of the grill, you have an area where you can sear over direct heat then move your food to the outside to cook indirect.

Using something like charcoal baskets or charcoal rails to hold your fuel in place makers it easier to avoid the charcoal falling to the outer edges and you can keep the charcoal concentrated in the centre of the grill.

There is no single best cooking setup on your BBQ. Each one of these methods has it’s advantages for different cooks so try them all and learn what works best for each recipe you cook.

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