Our Cobb charcoal bbq is the ONE must have item on our camping “what to bring” list.  There is nothing like the smell of charcoal cooking when you are in the campground.  We cook tons of things on this little bbq – it is so versatile because it can function like an oven, a grill, a smoker or even as a wok-style cooker.   

You can do a whole roasted chicken on the cobb. This took us about 1.5 hours or so. We used the optional roasting rack for this.

     We’ve modified our Cobb with some extra features that don’t come standard,  like the full size bbq thermometer we added to the lid.  This way I can more accurately gauge the time it will take for a roast.  We also accessorized with the roasting rack, wok pan, and the grill insert.  Here are some photos of the adventures we’ve had with this bbq. 

Butter chicken on the cobb with the wok insert.

     It is awesome to be able to pack a bag of charcoal with us, knowing we are not going to run out of fuel halfway through cooking something.  When we used to bring a portable propane grill camping, this seemed to happen all the time.  I even had to bring backup 1lb propane canisters in case the main tank ran out.  But more importantly, if you love charcoal cooking, you know that flavor just can’t be achieved with a portable propane bbq.

When we take it to the cabin, it always gets lots of attention from other vacationers.

 We’ve done quite a lot of experimenting with the Cobb and seafood, since we always take it camping up the coast of BC.  Seafood & even trout turned out awesome! 

Oysters and clams fresh off the BC Coast

      It’s also fun for kids when you’re camping or picnicking because after the cooking is done, you can roast marshmallows over the coals.  We’ve even done a cake made from a mix at the campground, with toasted marshmallows as icing.  For a late night snack, popcorn on the cobb was a blast to make!

Jiffy pop popcorn made at the campground.

 Here some tips we learned along the way:

1. Adding a bbq thermometer on the top is helpful.  Buy a standard bbq one and just fasten it through one of the top holes using a nut/bolt. 

2. Fill the metal basket full of charcoal.  If not, you might not achieve high enough temps and the food will take forever to cook.

3. Don’t peek too much. Each time you do, you lose lots of heat.

4.  Never put the lid on without the grilling surface in place! Made this mistake the first time I used the Cobb, and ended up melting the knob.  Solved the melting knob problem by putting a heatproof gasket/washer between the lid and knob.

5.  Use Oil Lift degreaser to clean, if you can find it in your area.  Spray it on, let it sit for a couple minutes, scrub and rinse.

6. I never put food in the “moat”, I find charcoal bits contaminate whatever is in there. Have tried doing potatoes in there and had this problem.

7. You can put a little water or apple juice in the moat to help prevent the grease from sticking and also to flavor the meat. But keep in mind that it will run a little cooler and can be hard to get temps up depending on the ambient temp & winds outdoors.

8. A word about smoking woods…it is very easy to oversmoke with the Cobb.  A lot of smoke flavor comes from the charcoal alone, so use smoking chips sparingly if at all.I ruined a roasted chicken once by adding a handful of maple chips to the charcoal. I guess because of the small surface area, the smoking flavors intensify.

9. We prefer natural starters, eg. “Lightning bugs” (pressed wood shavings with wax).  I put 3 of them under the charcoal and that’s all I need. 

10.  Have tried both briquettes and natural lump hardwood. I prefer a natural lump in small pieces as it will fill the charcoal tray better and I can achieve a faster cook time.

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