Charcoal Grill Advice for a Newbie?

[cosmicfolklore]

I find chicken legs and wings to be... more difficult, but not impossible. You have to get the meat around the bone cooked well, without burning the rest. I prefer thighs and fillets. It just requires practice and a good eye.

I have my steaks down to a 5-5-2-2 minute timing. 5 minutes, flip, repeat, flip, 2 minutes, and repeat, done for a perfect medium.

 

[matchstickman]

Seriously, y’all’s colons need some veggie love.

Ummmm...Pretty sure that could be taken the wrong way by someone. :rofl:

I have my steaks down to a 5-5-2-2 minute timing. 5 minutes, flip, repeat, flip, 2 minutes, and repeat, done for a perfect medium.

I do love me a good steak, but being diagnosed with gout last year, doc gave me a list of foods that I have to limit myself on, and unfortunately beef is one of those foods. The wife can still eat steak though, so she might just have to be my guinea pig on that one. Thanks for the heads up, that sounds like a pretty standard and sure fire way to cook a great steak.

 

[whiteburleydude]

Keep the lid closed to keep down the flair ups. Use a charcoal chimney. Use a meat thermometer.

 

[zack24]

We're getting very close to a discussion of religion when we start talking grilling, smoking, and barbeque. I personally worship at the altar of the Big Green Egg. This one I've had for 12 years- 160 lbs of ceramic that you can heat to 700 degrees for steak or pizza or run at 225 degrees for hours for brisket. The most important thing, regardless of what you cook on is to use lump hardwood charcoal- briquets are a poor substitute. Meat quality is also key- I use a 3rd generation Italian butcher who cuts my Porterhouse for me...and his baby back ribs run around 3lbs a rack...

Here are a few pictures- this is a Large- I'm about to buy an Xtra Large so I can smoke 6 racks at a time...
...and a little slo-motion video of a 40 oz. Porterhouse

40OZ PORTERHOUSE SEARING...

 

[jpmcwjr]

Holy Cow! Holy steer! Your egg even sits on a proper alter! They look so tasty, those ribs....

 

[mso489]

Grilling is a high and gentle art. There is a deep lore, and regional and individual advice is hotly debated on every aspect. I sometimes joke that the suburban fascination with grilling arises from the morbid fear of some men to cook anything on the kitchen stove as a matter of gender identity. But outdoor cooking has, in fact, long been the prerogative of males of the household, including holiday farm barbecuing of pigs and other meats in earthen pits for many many hours. I really like that grill. I do admire the fancy gas grills that have elaborate stove tops, but somehow that isn't the same as stoking a bed of charcoal maybe with some special woods to give the smoke distinctive flavor. I don't grill these days for lack of time, but I had fun with it, off and on, in a totally amateur way, for many years.

 

[briarbuck]

Men have been grilling meat for millions of years. Carl Jung was correct, we are born with the instinct to build fire and cook just like our forefathers.

 

[warren]

People have been roasting meat almost since the discovery of fire. Grilling had to wait for the invention of a ... (wait for it) ... grill to support the meat. Meat on a stick or a hot rock probably came first. The first person to drop, accidently?, raw, mastodon into the fire, pull it out and see if it was still edible should be enshrined somewhere. Followed closely by the developer of the "pork pull."

 

[matchstickman]

So just an update, here's a pic of my latest effort, which turned out great, but I have decided after today to invest in a charcoal chimney because I have a feeling this will make life a lot easier. I have also decided that I am going to be that guy that drags the grill out when there's 10 inches of snow on the ground to grill burgers and hot dogs.

 

[bigpond]

Chimney is a must have, imo. They are ‘t all created equal. Would advise you spend the extra few bux.and get a Weber branded stack then be sure to keep it out of the wet.

 

[warren]

Outside cooking in a wintry clime, Anchorage for me, can be a challenge. Grilling isn't bad, you're cooking fast and hot. Smoking and indirect cooking require closer temperature monitoring and adding more fuel, more often. So dress for the winter. I'd also suggest a remote thermometer which can be monitored from your computer or phone. Two chimneys, three?, are a must for adding glowing fuel.
A tri-tip or brisket is an accomplishment and a treat in the middle of January when it's blowing snow and ten degrees with only a couple of hours of daylight.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Used to make chimneys out of large tin/steel cans. But now I cook with gas. I know, sacrilege to many, but that's the way it is.

 

[warren]

I prefer wood. That siad, I've had great meals cooked on gas and inedible crap cooked over wood. It's what gives you the flavors you want and good tasting food. Kinda like pipes and blends ... Whatever gives you the experience you are looking for.

 

[mikethompson]

Warren, oh my goodness I need to try your method for doing potatoes. I've been doing it wrong for years! :worship:

 

[warren]

I bet you've been cooking a perfectly good potato over the years. But, I will admit the recipe I posted above is singularly tasty.