April 2024 – BBQ For All

British Summer Time is officially here! And that means warmer days, lighter nights and plenty of opportunity for outdoor dining! There’s nothing better than gathering with family and friends to enjoy a delicious meal, tempting snacks and a cooling drink in the garden as the sun shines. And the ultimate mealtime occasion each summer is the great British barbeque! No longer just burgers and sausages, a barbeque is now a chance to create exciting, bold dishes bursting with flavour.

For this month’s Silver Travel Cook Club we’re taking barbequed meat to the next level with coffee, rum and maple glazed pork chops, courtesy of barbeque supremo and teacher Marcus Bawdon. And to ensure you have plenty of barbeque inspiration to last throughout summer, you could win a copy of Marcus’s book BBQ For All: Year-round outdoor cooking for meat-eaters, vegetarians & pescatarians.

This book will inspire you to pull together feasts that are guaranteed to wow your friends and family, regardless of their dietary preferences or requirements. The art of barbeque has taken off around the globe, and Marcus has travelled widely to experience many unusual and exciting methods first-hand – from South America to Japan, Italy to India. Here he takes inspiration from a wealth of culinary influences to demonstrate how far cooking with fire has come and how flavoursome it can be, even for those with a specific dietary need.

Included are recipes for meat and seafood, as well as vegetarian and vegan recipes and options. Also shared is advice on buying (or building) barbeques, tips on cooking technique, and guidance on honing your skills.

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Recipe: Coffee, rum and maple glazed pork chops

Ingredients:

• 2” thick pork chop – one per person
• Coarse sea salt
• Coarse ground black pepper
• 1 shot espresso
• 1 measure rum
• 2 tbsp maple syrup

Method:

1. Cut the rind every couple of inches to stop the chops curling up as the crackling forms, and season with plenty of coarse sea salt and coarse black pepper. Place the chops on the grill, hold a chop skin side down over the hottest part of the grill with some tongs until you get crispy crackling bubbling up. Do this for all your chops, then lay chops flat and sear both sides, moving from hotter to cooler parts of the grill to not burn them.
2. Make up a glaze with the espresso, a measure of good rum, and the maple syrup, mix together and glaze the chops using a pastry brush once they are seared. Build up a nice glaze by brushing the glaze on a few times. You’re aiming to take the chops off when they reach 63°C internal temperature to ensure they remain juicy; this will probably be around 15 minutes total cooking time.
3. Allow to rest for a few minutes and enjoy.

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How to win a copy of BBQ For All by Marcus Bawdon

Please note: this prize draw is now closed.

Comment below and tell us your favourite barbeque dish to enjoy in the garden,
and which tipple you’d pair it with.

A winner will be chosen at random in early May 2024.
The competition closes on 30 April 2024.