One of the best things about summer is firing up the barbecue and cooking outdoors. I’m a big fan of BBQ dishes, and I’ve often wondered how practical it is to bake on a grill. After all, people cooked without modern ovens for centuries, so baking on a barbecue should be doable with the right approach.
After a bit of research and hands-on experimenting, I found that baking on a grill is not difficult. It does require some preparation and a little trial and error, but with a few simple techniques you can get consistently good results.
How to bake on the grill
Preheat the grill
When you bake on a grill you want to use indirect heat. For charcoal grills, arrange the coals along the sides and place your baking items in the cooler center. For long bakes—longer than about an hour—you’ll need to replenish briquettes on each side roughly every hour to maintain a steady temperature.
On a gas grill, light the outer burners and leave the center burners off. Bake over the unlit middle section so the heat surrounds the food rather than coming directly from underneath. The goal is an oven-like environment created by surrounding, not direct, heat.
Aim for a cooking temperature in the range of 150–180 °C (300–350 °F). If your grill has a built-in thermometer use that; if not, an inexpensive oven thermometer placed on the cooking grate will give you a reliable reading.
Start baking
Once the grill is preheated, place your baking pans in the center. I don’t recommend putting tins directly on the grates; instead, use a grill plate or an insulated baking surface between the pan and the grates to promote even indirect heat. Put the lid on the grill and let the food bake.
Monitor the process
Grill baking is less precise than an oven, so monitor progress visually and by time, but avoid opening the lid too often. Every time you lift the lid heat escapes and the internal temperature drops, which can extend cooking times and affect results. Follow the recipe’s timing as a guideline, but be ready to adjust based on how the bake is progressing.
Serve and enjoy
When your baked goods are done, remove them from the grill and let them cool briefly before serving. Freshly baked desserts and breads from the barbecue are a pleasant surprise for guests and add variety to outdoor meals.
Tip
A handy trick is to use residual heat after grilling meats or vegetables. Once the main grilling is finished the grill is still hot enough for baking smaller items. While guests enjoy the main course, you can bake a quick treat for dessert. Personal favorites include individual molten lava cakes for a small group, but many recipes adapt well to the grill—just experiment and see what works with your setup.