| I went into my local garden centre recently | | | | couldn't afford to buy a barbecue, and to a |
| to find that the whole place have been | | | | confirmed outdoor cooking enthusiast. It was |
| completely re-vamped and a massive area | | | | at this point that I decided to build my |
| dedicated to barbecues and smokers. What did | | | | homemade brick barbecue out of 16 second hand |
| this tell me?........Two things:- | | | | bricks and two cake cooling trays. |
| | | | |
| 1. Barbecue grills and smokers continue to | | | | Not only is this a great low cost |
| become more popular recreational equipment. | | | | introduction to charcoal barbecue grills it's |
| | | | also a wonderfully portable system too. |
| 2. There's money to be made! | | | | Simply lay 8 bricks on the ground in two rows |
| | | | of four to make a square. On two sides place |
| Let's face it; the smartest "in your face" | | | | 2 bricks (on their sides) and place another 2 |
| displays have got to be for the products that | | | | bricks on top so that in cross section you've |
| carry the biggest margins, right? Having | | | | now got a U shape. Throw the charcoal on the |
| spoken to the manager I think maybe it's the | | | | brick base a span two cake cooling grids |
| accessories where a killing can be made but | | | | across the top and there you have it. |
| whatever the case, you can quite easily spend | | | | |
| a serious amount of cash on a new barbecue | | | | The cake cooling trays are really cheap in |
| grill and that will be completely wasted | | | | the supermarket and (as a true student has |
| money if you buy the wrong thing. | | | | to) the bricks were acquired one night from a |
| | | | local housing development. So with the |
| Consider the situation twenty odd years ago | | | | barbecue complete, how did I get hold of some |
| before modern manufacturing techniques, | | | | good free BBQ recipes? |
| globalisation and low cost country sourcing, | | | | |
| the situation was even worse for someone with | | | | Well that's where it all started to fall |
| no income and lots of leisure time (you | | | | apart and a process of enthusiastic trial and |
| guessed it, I was a student!). CD's had just | | | | error began. I'm pleased to say that those |
| appeared on the music shelves (a big drain on | | | | early formative years have paid off |
| cash compared to vinyl), I don't think the | | | | handsomely; all my friends still love my |
| word download was in our vocabulary and | | | | outdoor cooking and so much so that smoker |
| certainly the thought of getting free | | | | was born to document mine and my friends' |
| barbecue recipes off the internet could be | | | | tasty creations. |
| nothing more than a dream. | | | | |
| | | | If you do give the low cost barbecue a try, |
| I was doing what students do best - having | | | | notice how the bricks heat up and create an |
| one long party! But the opportunity to have a | | | | "all round" heat. Not only is it cheap, it's |
| barbecue party was nil because we simply | | | | actually very effective too! |