The ultimate beer and BBQ guide: know your stuff this National BBQ Week

With Bank Holiday weekend bringing the sun and National Barbecue Week taking place from the 30^th May – 5^th June, the barbecue tongs are out in full force. But nobody wants to be that person that hosts a barbecue with mediocre beer. We’ve got you covered, with our definitive guide to which beers you need to pair with proper barbecue grub.

Barbecue season has arrived and as many look to impress in the garden this year, it is so important to have the right beer for the occasion. Taking into account taste notes and flavours of the beer, then matching these with the flavours of each dish, will make your BBQ go from ordinary to extraordinary!

Beef burger

No BBQ is complete without the classic burger. To level up this barbecue staple, pair it with a rich porter such as our Vanilla Porter. The roast malt flavour will create the perfect BBQ blend.

Chicken skewers

For chicken, you need to go for something lighter like your favourite pale ale or IPA. If you’re adding a bit of spice to your chicken, consider different flavours, such as our Ginger Pale Ale, which holds its own against a variety of spicy dishes.

Steak

If you’re being a bit flash and serving steak, match this with a robust stout, like our Stoodley Stout, or a nicely balanced bitter, like Cragg Vale Bitter. This will contrast well with the rich flavours from the steak, making for a really interesting combination.

Salad or pasta

For those partygoers opting for salad or pasta dishes, you need to be ready with a crisp blonde beer. Go for a blonde that is relatively malty with a bit of bitterness for the best results. In fact, we’d definitely recommend our Tod’s Blonde for this one.

If you want to go one step further and bring the beer into the kitchen, our Master Brewer has pulled together his recipe for beer-soaked spare ribs:

Time: 50 minutes (15 minutes preparation + 35 minutes cooking)

Ingredients: (Serves 4)

• 75g butter
• 800g spare ribs
• Salt
• Black pepper
• 1 onion (chopped)
• 300ml Little Valley Brewery’s Moor Ale
• 1tbsp soft brown sugar
• 800g sauerkraut

Method:

1. Melt the butter in a pan and fry the spare ribs on both sides until brown
2. Sprinkle both sides with salt and black pepper
3. Add chopped onion and glaze the onions whilst stirring
4. Add the Moor Ale and let it simmer
5. Loosen any deposit from the bottom of the pan and add the soft brown sugar
6. Let the dish cook, reduce heat and add the lid on
7. Simmer for 15 minutes
8. Cover the meat with the sauerkraut and simmer for another 20 minutes
9. Add salt and black pepper if required

Serve with potato croquettes and a glass of the remaining Moor Ale