The best braai tongs, boards and fire-baked pizza kit from South African sellers

Eighty centimetres is the headline. That is roughly double the length of the standard stainless tong on this shelf, which is the difference between moving hot coals comfortably and doing it in short, flinching bursts. The listing also says it is handmade in South Africa and built to last a lifetime, with a bottle opener in the handle.

The evidence behind it is the strongest in the category: 4.9 from 116 ratings, which is a lot of agreement for a single-purpose tool. Donkey also sells a 69cm flat-headed version pitched at flipping meat rather than managing fire. If you only buy one, the long one is the more useful, because an ordinary tong can flip a chop but cannot safely rake coals.

The catch. It is dear for a tong, several times the price of the perfectly functional 40cm options further down this page, and the flat-head 69cm model is better suited to turning food on the grid.

The spec reads well: stainless steel, ergonomic wooden handle, a locking mechanism for storage and a hanging eyelet. It comes in 41cm and 54cm, and if you are buying this instead of the Donkey, take the 54cm. That is still meaningfully longer than the usual braai tong.

Price-wise it sits in the middle of the field, well under the Donkey and well over the basic stainless pairs. For most braais it will do the same job.

The catch. Just one shopper rating, at 4.0, so there is almost nothing to go on beyond the listing itself.

Forty centimetres, scalloped metal edges for grip, a slip-resistant wood handle and a pull lock so it stores flat. For an everyday tong that lives in a kitchen drawer and comes out on Saturdays, that is the whole list of things that matter.

Bubbles Plastics sells a near-identical 40cm stainless tong with a wood handle for a touch more. Going by the listings they are much the same tool, so the Lifespace is the better buy: slightly cheaper and it at least has some shopper feedback behind it, 4.8 from four ratings.

The catch. Only four ratings, and 40cm is reach for cooking food, not for shifting live coals.

The idea is neat and clearly explained: fire on top, food in the drawer below, pizza in about four minutes, and the grid on top still works for the meat. No gas, no second appliance.

It carries 5.0 from 92 ratings, the deepest record of the Pizza Braai range. The XL Series is the maker's own recommendation for families and costs a few hundred more for extra room for trays and deeper dishes, while the Tourer is the camping version built to pack into an ammo box you supply yourself. Unless you know you need the depth or the travel case, the Original is the cheapest way into the same system.

The catch. It is one of the most expensive things in this guide, and accessories like the spade, thermometer and windshield are all sold separately.

BraaiPlank lists the MIDI as machined from high-quality wood with strips of exotic mahogany, sized for a medium platter, a small butcher's block or an eating plate. The range runs 40cm, 60cm and 80cm; 60cm is the one that suits most tables, and it sits in the middle on price too.

The rating across the range is 4.9 from 173, and the listing says there is a lifetime warranty. Among the serving boards here, the alternatives from My Butchers Block and elevenpast add stainless dipping bowls and juice grooves for similar or more money, which is useful if you serve sauces, but they carry very few ratings or none.

The catch. The listing leans on customer quotes and does not say which wood the body is made of beyond the mahogany strips, and a bare plank means no juice groove and no dip bowls.

Buy on length first. Anything under about 35cm puts your knuckles close to the coals, and the short tongs on this shelf exist mainly because they are cheap. Something in the 40cm range is the sensible everyday minimum, and if you like a big fire, go longer still. A locking mechanism matters more than it sounds, because unlocked tongs sprawl in a drawer.

Count the ratings, not just the score. A 5.0 from six people tells you very little; a 4.9 from a couple of hundred tells you the thing survives normal use. Several products here are new or niche and have one or two ratings. That is not a mark against them, but it does mean you are buying on the listing alone, so pay attention to what the listing actually specifies rather than how enthusiastically it is written.

For boards, decide whether you want a flat plank or a serving station. A plain hardwood plank carves, chops and serves and is easy to clean. Boards with stainless bowls and juice grooves look good on a table and keep sauces off the wood, but they cost more and the bowls are another thing to wash. Size by your table, not your ambition.

With pizza setups, check what is included before you compare prices. Some of these are complete fire-heated ovens, some are inserts that need an existing braai of a particular size, and spades, thermometers and travel bags are usually extra. Add those in before you decide one brand is cheaper than another.