There was quite a lot happening on the menu for this BBQ at Normanton Park.
Around 2kg of Australian Angus Ribeye, cut into steaks.
Pork Satay.
Otah.
Sambal Stingray.
Argentinian Prawn Skewers.
Sotong.
Chicken Skewers.
Corn.
Baby Potatoes.
Then there was Fried Bee Hoon.
And Chicken Curry.
Plus a BBQ chef for three hours.
At first glance, the Bee Hoon and Chicken Curry might seem like the least interesting part of that list.
We’d argue they were actually doing an important job.
The BBQ Pit Has a Maximum Capacity
No matter how good the BBQ is, there is one rule nobody can negotiate with.
The grill is only so big.
Once Ribeye, prawns, stingray, sotong, satay and chicken are all waiting for their turn, grill space becomes valuable.
And if every part of dinner also needs to come through that same pit, people are going to spend a lot of time waiting.
That’s why we quite like combining cooked catering dishes with BBQ food.
The Bee Hoon doesn’t need the grill.
The Chicken Curry doesn’t need the grill.
They can be ready while everything that actually benefits from fire gets the space it needs.
Two Kilos of Ribeye Deserves Some Attention
The beef for this BBQ was Australian Angus Ribeye, cut into steaks.
When you’re cooking several pieces of Ribeye for a group, it helps if you aren’t simultaneously trying to make the grill responsible for the entire dinner.
Steaks need attention.
Especially when guests may prefer different levels of doneness.
The moment the chef is trying to manage Ribeye, prawns, sotong, satay and a dozen other things at once, anything that can be taken off that workload helps.
That’s where prepared cooked food becomes useful.
Satay Keeps Things Moving
Pork Satay is almost perfectly designed for this kind of situation.
It cooks relatively quickly.
It’s easy to eat.
And it gives people something to start on while larger or more delicate items are still cooking.
Otah plays a similar role.
Nobody has to wait for the Ribeye before they can start eating.
Food can come out progressively.
That’s the rhythm we generally prefer for BBQ service anyway.
Cook.
Serve.
Cook another batch.
Let people eat.
Keep things moving.
Then the Seafood Arrives
This menu also had three very different seafood items.
Sambal Stingray.
Argentinian Prawn Skewers.
Grilled Sotong.
Again, all technically seafood.
All completely different on the BBQ.
The prawns are relatively quick.
The sotong needs careful timing.
The stingray needs enough time for the flesh to cook properly while the sambal and juices work inside the foil.
If the chef were also trying to cook everybody’s carbohydrate and main meal on the same pit, things would become unnecessarily complicated.
Fortunately, Bee Hoon and Chicken Curry are perfectly capable of existing without charcoal.
Cooked Food and BBQ Food Aren’t Competitors
Sometimes menus are divided too neatly.
Either:
BBQ catering.
Or:
Cooked catering.
In actual gatherings, there is no reason the two can’t work together.
In fact, they often make each other better.
Cooked food gives people something immediate and substantial.
BBQ food brings the fresh-from-the-grill experience.
The chef doesn’t have to panic about getting everything ready simultaneously.
Guests don’t have to stand around hungry while the first batch cooks.
And the BBQ pit can concentrate on the things that actually need it.
This Is Particularly Useful for Condo BBQs
Condominium BBQ pits are convenient, but they aren’t commercial kitchens.
There is usually one main grill.
Limited preparation space.
And a group of people who would quite reasonably like to eat.
So instead of expecting the BBQ pit to produce every component of dinner, we can split the workload.
Bee Hoon ready.
Curry ready.
Then the BBQ keeps supplying the steaks, seafood, satay, skewers and vegetables.
It creates a much smoother flow.
Nobody Gets a Prize for Cooking Everything Over Charcoal
There is sometimes an idea that a “proper” BBQ means every item must touch the grill.
We don’t really subscribe to that.
The purpose of the BBQ is to make the food better.
Not to create unnecessary work.
If Ribeye benefits from the grill, grill it.
If prawns benefit from the grill, grill them.
If Bee Hoon is already perfectly happy in a tray, leave the Bee Hoon alone.
For a mixed catering menu, the question shouldn’t be:
“How can we cook everything on the BBQ?”
It should be:
“What actually belongs on the BBQ?”
Once you start thinking that way, catering a larger group becomes much easier.
And the Ribeye gets the grill space it deserves.
