Barbecues review

Barbecuing is one of the most enjoyable means of cooking so don’t leave it just for impromptu weekend get-togethers. Buy a portable model, and you may even be tempted to use it for day or camping trips. Choosing carefully is the key to a good barbecuing experience and getting maximum value for your money.

Pizzas cooked in a barbecue have an extra tasty, wood-fire flavour. Consider also roasting your Christmas turkey – accompanied with a delicious and healthy char-grill vegetable salad – outside under a barbecue hood rather than turning your kitchen into a sauna from oven-baking.

These and other recipes can be found at Cook’s CHOICE. You might also want to read our article on barbecue safety. Also see our reliability survey to see how the various barbecue brands rate.

For more information on Barbecues, see Backyard.

Brands and models tested

LARGE

• Beefeater 900 Series 4 Burner 48942
• Beefmaster BR4CH
• Cordon Bleu Deluxe CD4CWWH
• Everdure Figura Esee
• Masport Elite Plus 552595
• Matador Executive MKII S/S MBQ1002
• Weber Family Q 320

SMALL / PORTABLE

• Beefeater Sportsgrill - Portable 2 Burner Gas Barbecue and Cooktop
• Billabong G2BBTJ
• Coleman RoadTrip Grill 9949-750XA
• Everdure Neo Buddy Patio NBUDLPC-09
• Everdure E2GO  
• Sunbeam GB2100
• Weber 57cm One-Touch Kettle with Gas Kit
• Weber Baby Q 100
• Weber Q 200

DISCONTINUED MODELS

• Cordon Bleu 4 CB4CWWH
• Grilled Skew 657839 (4 burner de-luxe)
• Patio by Jamie Durie Stainless Steel Chef BBQ code: 736 6222
• Turbo Classic 4 with Hood on Cart
• Weber Family Q300 LP
• Beefeater Discovery 2 Burner
• Grandhall Neil Perry T-Grill

How we test 

Cooking performance

• Our home economist, Fiona Mair, cooks steak and sausages with the hood open (unless the manual instructs otherwise), turning them once only. This quite severe test is to check how evenly the hotplate reaches and maintains a high temperature, and how well it controls flare-ups.
• At home you may compensate for cool and hot spots by moving the food around.
• Fiona roasts a whole chicken by placing it on a baking tray in the centre of the plates with the outside burners on medium heat, and the hood down.
• She cooks marinated wings directly on the hotplate. The wings and roast are only turned once.
• The roasting assesses the performance at moderate temperatures over a long period, while the marinated wings need a low temperature so the marinade doesn’t burn. Cooking in this way is comparable to cooking in an oven.

Ease of use

• Fiona looks for easy access when moving and turning the food, and notes any discomfort such as hot smoke blowing into the face. She also looks at moving and cleaning the barbecue, how easy the controls are to use and how easily the gas bottle can be fitted.