A disturbing sight I endured over dinner last night served as inspiration for what I have here for you today about hosting/conducting a green barbeque. Honestly I hoped the inspiration had come from a different source of spark but sadly the sight of a young boy, possibly around 13-15 years of age toasting a live ‘prawn’ over the barbeque spit is it. It was a horrendous sight, seeing the little prawn suffocate and jump from the burning rack only to be spiked head first into a hollow of the barbeque rack and tail second.
But as terrible as that sounds, it’s obvious that I’m not here to write about the 10 green ways you can toast your seafood so fresh– it’s alive!, so don’t turn away in disgust.
Barbeques are a wonderful crowd pulling event. In places where there are seasons, it’s a delightful summer’s day event but in other parts of the world it could very well be an everyday affair as it’s a common cooking method, which basically 365 days – all year round there will be someone out there cooking on the spit.
Now regardless if you’re holding a family cookout or a neighbourhood bash how do you even begin to make this a green affair? Well as with everything, careful planning with a helpful checklist is the ideal way to do it.
1. The Equipment – Grill
If you want to have a BBQ, then you must have a grill set. The grill you have will be what determines the greenest fuel applicable. If you already have a grill set, then you can skip this step but if you don’t and you’re out to get a set then please choose your poison – propane or charcoal, etc because I’m not sure if any of the green sets such as the Hydro-que which is a hydrogen powered grill (runs on water!) would cost you anything less than $500 at a go.
2. The fuel
Regardless of which type of grill you are using, they will leave their own mark on the environment. It’s really quite difficult to just come out and say which (charcoal/propane/electric) is the most beneficial for the environment and a good grilling experience although some would say the gas grills win hands down because they burn cleaner and leave behind less waste than charcoal grills.
In the end, it’s really just about finding the best green alternative to what fuels your grill. For example if you are using charcoal, you should consider using Kothur (coconut husk charcoal).
3. The food
Just as important as the equipments, you can’t have a cookout without the food! When buying, keep them organic and local. Carbon footprints should be given a cut down at all times. If you are buying drinks, then go for bulk packs, that way you’ve saved the earth from excess waste (packaging waste).
4. The utensils
Paper plates or disposable plastic plates and cutleries are commonly used for the occasion but that can amount to quite a large pile of mess for the landfill. If you host barbeques frequently then it might be better to just use your normal plates and wash them or at least use corn plastic plates and cutleries.
5. Cleanup
This is an inevitable part of the event. You have to clean up no matter what. If you want to have a barbeque, then have a responsible one. Separate your resulting trash into their categories (glass, paper, plastic, metal, etc ) and dispose of them correctly – recycle, reuse and compost what you can.
