10 foods you didn't know you could cook on your barbecue

It's barbecue season, but that doesn't have to mean sausages, burgers and chicken wings.

If you're ready to take your barbecue to the next level, why not serve up pizza, smoky chips or even a chargrilled cake?

Whether you want to impress family members and guests, or are simply bored of burgers, here are 10 unorthodox foods you could try the next time you fire up your grill, plus handy tips on how to cook them.

If you want to upgrade your barbecue, check out the best gas and charcoal bbqs

Camembert

Halloumi is often the go-to cheese to enjoy straight off the grill, but introducing some smoky flavours to your camembert can upgrade an already indulgent snack to another level of gooey deliciousness. 

Top it with rosemary or thyme and garlic and enjoy with torn-off chunks of tasty bread or carrot sticks for dunking.

Cooking tips

• Take the lid off your camembert and remove any plastic or paper packaging, but keep the bottom tray on. If you're concerned that the tray might ignite or the cheese might drip down into your grill, place it on a baking tray.
• A hood or lid is required for cooking. This will retain heat above the camembert as well as below, allowing it to bake evenly. It will also keep smoke around the camembert while it cooks, ensuring a smoky flavour is infused.
• If your barbecue has a temperature control, keep it at around 200°C and cook it for around 10 minutes. If not, check it after around six or seven minutes to see whether it's melted in the middle, and check it every three minutes or so until it's ready.

A chilled glass of white wine is the perfect accompaniment to a smoky camembert. See which bottles came out on top in our taste test: best white wines.

Pizza

Using fire to cook pizza is a traditional and often favoured method, but you don't need to invest in a brick oven to cook pizza outdoors. 

It's perfectly doable on a barbecue, you just need a hood or lid, and a way to prevent direct heat from hitting the pizza.

Cooking tips

• Frozen pizza won't cook well on a barbecue. Chilled is better, and freshly made is best. Pizza dough is very simple to make – you just need to mix 200g of strong white flour, a pinch of salt, a sachet of easy-bake yeast, 125ml of warm water and a tablespoon of oil.
• The pizza should be placed on a pizza stone or a baking tray that will sit on the barbecue grill, and the hood or lid will need to come down during cooking so the pizza can bake properly. Roughly 10 minutes should do the trick, but check it regularly.
• Avoiding direct heat is key, so the pizza can cook evenly. If using a charcoal barbecue, move the coals into a ring around the edge and place your pizza in the middle. For gas barbecues, put the pizza over a switched-off burner and keep the others on.

Check out the best pizza ovens if you want to feel like a proper pizzaiolo. 

Cake

As you might expect, barbecue-baking cakes is a risky business. 

Temperature control is a major factor in baking and, especially in the case of charcoal barbecues, this can be difficult to master.

Cooking tips

• As is the case with pizza, keep the cake away from direct heat so it doesn't burn. Only put your cake tin in areas of the grill where no flames or white-hot coals will sit underneath.
• Once your barbecue is at the right temperature, shut the hood or lid during cooking and keep it closed until you're confident your cake is ready. As with conventional ovens, letting heat escape halfway through baking can stop the cake from rising.
• Keep it simple. Baking cakes on your barbecue is a novelty, and trying your luck with more advanced cakes will be a recipe for disaster. A simple sponge, banana bread or cupcakes are simpler, more reliable options.

Cheesy chips

You don't need to switch the oven on to cook the perfect side for your freshly grilled burgers. 

In fact, you don't even need a baking tray. Fresh or frozen chips and some aluminium foil is all you need to make crispy fries with cheese or other tasty toppings.

Cooking tips

• Lightly cover the chips in oil or melted butter and season as desired, then place them onto several small sheets of aluminium foil. Curl up the sides of the foil to make a boat shape, leaving a nice big gap at the top to let steam escape.
• Place the aluminium-foil boats on your grill and shut the hood or lid. Leave them to cook for around 10 minutes, then turn the chips over before cooking them for another 10 minutes, or until crispy.
• Sprinkle melted cheese or cooked bacon bits (or both) on top of the chips for the last two or three minutes of cooking, and you'll be left with crispy smoky chips to serve alongside your burgers and hot dogs.

Quesadillas

If you want to add some Mexican flair to your barbecue, quesadillas are a tasty and very easy-to-cook option. 

You won't even need a pan unless the gaps between the grill bars on your barbecue are wide enough that tortilla wraps could slip through.

All you need for a simple quesadilla is high-quality tortilla wraps that won't crumble or split easily, some cheese, and a filling such as cooked chicken, peppers, beans or sweet potato.

Cooking tips

• For one portion of quesadillas, place two tortilla wraps on the grill and gently warm them up, turning and flipping them every minute or so until they are lightly browned but still floppy.
• Add your filling to one of the tortillas, and then place the other on top like a sandwich. The cheese should start to melt pretty quickly, and you should gently press the quesadilla, still rotating it regularly to stop it from burning or sticking.
• After a minute or two, flip the quesadilla and cook it for another couple of minutes, still gently pressing and turning as it cooks. Repeat until it's nicely browned on both sides and the inside is piping hot. Slice into halves or quarters to serve.

Bananas

Perhaps a more familiar barbecue food, grilled bananas are a delightful hot dessert to serve when the coals are dying down. 

They'll come out blackened and steaming, and are especially good when served with a lump of ice cream, blueberries or a light sprinkle of brown sugar.

Cooking tips

• Either leave the skin on, or slice it lengthways and poke squares of chocolate under the skin. It will melt and mix with the banana during cooking.
• Wrap the banana in aluminium foil and place on the grill, either on a low heat on gas grills, or when the coals are dying down on a charcoal barbecue.
• Close the lid or hood and leave to cook for around five to 10 minutes. Once cooked, peel away the foil and the skin, and tuck in.

Charcoal barbecues will give you the best grilled bananas. Our Best Buy charcoal barbecues are rated by professional chefs.

Pancakes

For those who enjoy pancakes all year round, cooking them on your barbecue can be very rewarding. 

There is very little difference in the method, but you're likely to get beautifully textured pancakes that are the perfect mix of crisp and fluffy if you cook them over the grill.

Cooking tips

• A cast iron pan or a griddle pan is best for cooking pancakes on a barbecue. They distribute heat very evenly and will prevent your pancakes from burning.
• Aim for medium heat: 200°C if your barbecue has temperature controls. If you've just got coals burning, wait until the heat is past its peak before cooking.
• Chargrill your fruit fillings while you cook your pancakes. Grilled pears or pineapples will caramelise and taste wonderful with a dollop of ice cream and some blueberries or strawberries.

We've found the best ice cream makers - for delicious, fuss-free frozen desserts.

Eggy bread

Another menu item for a breakfast barbecue, eggy bread (or French toast if you're not British) can be a chargrilled delight when cooked up on the grill.

You can use the grill bars or a griddle, but a pan isn't recommended, as you'll get similar results to those you get on the stove, rather than the benefits of barbecuing.

Cooking tips

• If using gas, keep the heat medium at around 200°C. If you're using charcoal, spread your coals out thinly to avoid cooking over a small area that's much hotter than you need it to be.
• If you're using the grill bars, oil them lightly first before lighting up your barbecue. This will prevent the eggy bread from sticking to the grill bars and tearing when you flip it.
• Keep a sharp eye on the eggy bread as it cooks, as it can quickly burn. You'll need to flip it every couple of minutes until it's brown and crisp.

If you want precise temperature control, check out the best gas barbecues.

Avocados

Gucamole is a regular attendee at barbecues, but sliced, chargrilled, smoky avocado is much less common. 

You can still mash it up into smoky guacamole after you've grilled it, of course. This versatile fruit can be enjoyed on its own as a side, or added to burgers and salads.

Cooking tips

• Slice your avocados in half and safely remove the stone. A spoon should be used for this rather than a knife.
• Place them face down on the grill bars on a medium-to-high heat, and cook them for around four to six minutes. Once dark grill lines have formed on the flesh of the avocado, it should be ready to serve.
• If you plan to serve it on its own as a side, consider topping it with olive oil, bacon, chilli flakes, pepper or egg. A slice of lemon to squeeze over the top should go down a treat, too.

Oysters

Forget barbecued fish. Oysters are a stress-free seafood that will elevate your barbecue beyond the norm.

Once you've shucked them, they can simply be placed shell-first on the grill bars.

Cooking tips

• Top your oysters will some butter and garlic or paprika before you put them on the grill. It will infuse along with the smoky barbecue flavours.
• Oysters need to be cooked on a high heat along with your burgers and sausages. They should take around six minutes to cook, and should be bubbling when you take them off the grill. They're easy to keep an eye on, as there's no need to flip them.
• When serving, consider topping with parmesan, parsley, or cayenne pepper for a heat kick.

Want a barbecue that can cook up this whole lot without breaking a sweat? See best gas barbecues or best charcoal barbecues for the top models we recommend.