::: BBQ Wholesale ::::

Food Planning Tips
Charcoal Handling Tips
Technique to Light the Fire (see illustration pictures)
Cooking Tips

Food Planning Tips
Food planning can sometimes be frustrating while organizing a barbecue gathering as too little or too much food may
result in unpleasantness and wastage. The following provides some basic guide for your food planning.


Food Type	Item	Estimate Qty per adult	Remark
Otah	a) Small otah	3 to 5	Select a type of otah, either the small or the premium.
Otah	b) Premium large otah	1 to 2	Select a type of otah, either the small or the premium.
Satay	Mixture of all variety	5 to 6

Chicken wings	a) 3 joint wing	1 to 2	Select a type of the wing, either 3 joint or mid wing.
Chicken wings	b) mid joint wing	3 to 4	Select a type of the wing, either 3 joint or mid wing.

Chops	a) chicken		Select any 1 type for each person. A maximum of 2 types of the chops per person is still acceptable.
	b) Lamb
	c) Steak

Seafood	a) Sambal Stingray		Select any 1 type for each person. A maximum of 2 types of the seafood per person is still acceptable.
	b) Sambal Jacket Fish
	c) Sambal Sotong
	d) Prawns	1 to 2 pkts

Vegetables	a) Vegetable skewer	1 to 2 skewers
	b) Shitake mushroom	1 to 2 skewers
	b) Sweet corn		Select any 1 type for each person.
	c) potatoes
	d) Sweet potatoes

Cooked Food	a) Curry Vegetable		Select any 1 type for every 10 person
	b) Curry Chicken		Select any 1 type for every 10 person
	c) Mee Siam		Select any 1 type for every 10 person
	d) Fried Mee Hoon
	e) Fried Rice

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Charcoal Handling Tips
Choosing your charcoal ( indicate writer’s opinion on the suitability of charcoal for barbecuing)

Type of charcoal	Description	Packing
Lumpwood	Usually made from softwood and comes in lumps of irregular size Advantages: Easily ignite Inexpensive Easily available Disadvantage: Burn quickly Produce strong flame (thus, food may blacken easily) Give off sparks and very smoky	Usually pack in plastic bag of 3 kg per bag.
Charcoal briquettes	Advantages: Cost effective Can burn for long time (the coal from BBQ Wholesale Centre can burn up to 3 hours) Minimum smoke and smell Each charcoal comes in regular size and shape, thus packing is very compact, neat and clean Disadvantages: Can takes a while to light	Usually pack in neat carton box of 3 kg per box.
Self-igniting charcoal	This is simply lumpwood charcoal or charcoal briquettes coated with flammable chemical. Advantages: Easily ignite Disadvantages: Expensive Smell from the ignition agent may taint the food	Maybe packed in carton box or paper bag.
Hardwood	Examples are oak, apple and olive. Best for barbecues. Advantages: Burn slowly with a pleasant aroma Less smoky Disadvantages: Expensive Not easily available	Maybe packed in carton box or paper bag.

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Technique to Light the Fire (see illustration pictures)


STEP 1 : Line the base of the barbecue pit with a layer of aluminium foil sheet. This makes cleaning easier and the heat that is reflected from the shinning foil surface will keep the bottom of the barbecue pit hot.	STEP 2: Place about 5 pieces of fire starters onto the center of the pit and surround it with coal. Pile the coal in pattern of pyramid (remember to leave the centre hollow).	STEP 3: Light the fire starters using a long match or a piece of paper.

STEP 4 : Leave it to burn for at least 15 minutes till the coal is red hot		STEP 5 : Spread the coal evenly and leave it for another 5 to 10 minutes until the coal are covered with a film of grey ash before cooking

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Cooking Tips
The barbecue needs to be very hot before start cooking. Try not to mix meat, vegetables and seafood on the same
rack as their length of cooking time is different. While cooking meat item, many will face the problem of meat being
stuck onto the grill rack. Brushing of oil onto the meat may not be a good solution as too much oil drippings will
cause flare-ups or strong burning flame. A good way of handling the meat is to turn the meat almost immediately
(about half a minute) after it is placed onto the grill rack.

Food items	Estimated cooking time	Heat	Handling technique & tips
Small otah (wrap in coconut leaf)	3 to 5 mins	Low	Otah are mostly kept frozen in order to maintain the freshness. It can be easily thaw out by leaving it at room temperature for about 10 mins. Fully thaw otah should feel soft yet chill before grilling Important: Do not leave the raw otah at room temperature unattended for too long, it turns bad easily. The otah leaf usually burn first, thus must cook via low heat or raise the height of the grill rack. When the leaf looks dried and lightly brown, the otah is almost cook, turn it once and wait for a while and is ready to be served.
Premium otah (wrap in banana leaf)	6 to 8 mins	Low
Variety satay	3 to 5 mins	medium	Placed the satay at the edges of the pits to avoid bamboo skewer being burn Turn the satay once when the meat change colour
3 joint chicken wing	15 to 20 mins	medium	Straightening of wing using steel skewer will ensure all joints cook thoroughly. Need to turn the wing frequently to be sure of even cooking
Buffalo wing	10 to 15 mins	medium	Much easy to grill than 3 joint wing. Do not need to put on skewer, use tongs. Need to turn the wing frequently to be sure of even cooking
Chops	10 to 15 mins	medium	Do not need to turn the chops frequently, turns it once or twice. When the chop is cooked, there should be no trace of pink in the juices. Pierce a thick part of the flesh as test: the juices should run clear.
Seafood in foil	8 to 10 mins	medium	Seafood is mostly kept frozen in order to maintain the freshness. Can be easily thaw out by leaving it at room temperature for about 15 mins. If the foil is not damage, it should appear bloated when the food is cooked. Turn it once for a while and can be served.
Vegetables	3 to 5 mins	Medium / high	Vegetables that are not in foil: cooked very fast, has to be turned frequently Vegetables that are in foil: throw into the hot charcoal is the faster way of cooking it. Pierce the vegetable using a steel or bamboo skewer as a test: can poke through indicate the food is cooked

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