It’s the time of year when we get our gardens and outdoor spaces ready for Summer.
Time to take the cover off the BBQ and give it a Spring clean.
We’re all full of anticipation for the Summer. We picture those long, balmy evenings, with friends sitting around, chatting and enjoying a cool drink and tucking in to some delicious, barbecued food: kissed with flavours that only charcoal and wood can deliver.
But what’s the reality? Will it live up to our dreams?
Well, it all depends on what you’re cooking with.
Whatever the weather
We always think of BBQs for dry, warm and sunny days. Which is hardly surprising: standing over it, flipping and prodding and poking. Avoiding the smoke. Watching out for those pesky rain clouds that will bring everything to a swift and watery end.
The result is that we use our BBQs a lot less frequently than we’d like to, or plan to. In the UK, the average BBQ is only used five times a year – not such a great investment! The weather has much to do with it: even in July and August, it rains on almost one day in three in the South East, and almost one day in two in the North West. And it’s rarely T-shirt weather in the evenings.
But with a Charlie Outdoor Charcoal Oven, it’s always BBQ weather. Its front-opening design and advanced insulation minimise heat loss and protect your food from the elements (as well as using around 45% less fuel than an open grill). The cooking is all done in the sealed oven chamber, imbuing the food with delicious, smoky flavours. Without the constant intervention of the chef … who can sit indoors, just waiting till the Charlie Oven has created its magic, whatever the weather outside.
The Charlie Oven is totally weatherproof. It’s made in Britain from solid steel, with a powder coated finish, in nine striking colours, and stainless steel hardware. It can live and work outdoors all year round. It’s just as good for an amazing, delicious Christmas turkey as it is for ribs for a pool party.
You end up using it day in, day out.
Whatever the food
Entertaining can live or die on the quality and variety of the food. When we think BBQ, we think sausages, burgers, maybe steaks. But the food so often over-promises and under-delivers.
How about fish, charcoal-grilled with the taste of the Mediterranean? Seafood? Amazing vegetables, with depth of flavour and texture? Bread? Fruit? Desserts? Pizzas?
With a Charlie Outdoor Charcoal Oven you can do the lot. And add amazing, smoky flavour to your food, whatever you choose to cook.
It’s a BBQ, a pizza oven, a smoker and a grill.
Charlie has 2.5 times the capacity of a domestic oven, despite its modest footprint. It has nine cooking rack positions to allow many different cooking options. Cook indirectly (away from the fire) or directly (close to the fire). You choose.
Cook a whole, delicious meal in one go, with the minimum of effort.
Delight the meat lovers, the vegans, the vegetarians, the pescatarians among your friends. To top it all, cook vegetables so tasty that even your children will eat them.
The Charlie Oven brings the magic of smoke and fire to everything.
Whatever the skill of the chef
There’s no need to be an “expert” at BBQ-ing, no need to be an aficionado of the tongs, no need to be spectacularly rugged: anyone can use the Charlie Oven.
Which might seem somewhat strange, as it’s based on the sealed, front-opening charcoal ovens that, for years, have been the secret of top professional kitchens. But what do chefs prize above all else? Flavour and consistency.
In many ways, using the Charlie Oven is the opposite of BBQ-ing. It’s totally hands-off. No need for constant attention, no face full of smoke and heat. If you want to, just set and forget!
We call the Charlie Oven, "The Chef Maker".
It has only two moving parts, the upper and lower air vent control knobs. These control the airflow and thus the oven temperature. To light the Charlie Oven, simply build a small pyramid of charcoal over a natural firelighter. Then, light the firelighter, make sure the air vents are open, shut the door … and leave it.
Once the Charlie Oven has reached the temperature you want, simply close-down the bottom vent, and the temperature will hold, for hours. Or open the bottom vent (and add more charcoal if needed) to increase it again. Set the Charlie Oven at 100°c – 120°c for low ‘n’ slow or hot smoking, or up to 500°c for incredibly fast searing of meat or pizzas … or anywhere in between.
Easy peasy. Then just put in your meat, fish, vegetables, seafood, pizzas … anything really … and the Charlie Oven will create the magic for you.
Sit back. Relax. Enjoy the company. Enjoy looking at your beautiful oven. Enjoy the incredible food.
Maybe even enjoy the sunshine. Or not, as the case may be!