The great BBQ debate: Charcoal or gas?

Dr Joe Devlin cooks on a charcoal barbecue at his home in Kew
Dr Joe Devlin cooks on a charcoal barbecue at his home in Kew
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER, MARY TURNER

There were those who said that “talkies” would never take off in cinemas and those who questioned the point of replacing typewriters with computers.

But technology marched on. And so it is that seasoned barbecuers are staking out their positions in the great summer debate: charcoal or gas?

The progressives regard those sticking to charcoal as Luddites. The loyalists regard the opposition as missing the point: it’s all about the smoke, the flavour and the ritual.

But now, the upstart, gas, is gaining some professional endorsement, notably from the barbecue world championship-winning chef Nathan Myhrvold, who claims there is, scientifically, no difference between the two. Heat is heat, he explains, and food can’t tell the difference.

In a bid to resolve this pressing issue The