GWJ BBQ Catch All

Tigerbill wrote:

This thread and my upcoming move to Texas, have me wanting to learn how to bbq. I've been reading the Big Green Egg forums all day (FSeven I blame you). :)

The recipes/how-to's in this book are excellent:
How to Grill

Tanglebones wrote:
Tigerbill wrote:

This thread and my upcoming move to Texas, have me wanting to learn how to bbq. I've been reading the Big Green Egg forums all day (FSeven I blame you). :)

The recipes/how-to's in this book are excellent:
How to Grill

That one, and this one:

Weber's Way to Grill

Unless you're talking about actual bbq (slow and smoked), in which case the best teacher is experience (get yourself a pork butt stat). Light smoke, low heat, long time -- adjust to taste.

wordsmythe wrote:

Question time!

We have an exceedingly windy balcony (flipped our picnic table the other day--probably time to ditch that). We have a Weber Q, which tends to perform pretty crappily in terms of flame size. It's often bad enough that I can't cook anything, or that lighting it yields only a couple little blue dots of flame along the whole pipe. I've tried multiple propane tanks and checked the line for leaks. What's the problem?

A) Dust, bugs, etc. are clogging the line.
B) The winds blow out the flame and trigger safety valves in the grill and/or tank.
C) It's a stupid POS and I hate it.

Most likely B. Can you put up something (like a sideways picnic table) as a windbreak?

LilCodger wrote:
Tanglebones wrote:
Tigerbill wrote:

This thread and my upcoming move to Texas, have me wanting to learn how to bbq. I've been reading the Big Green Egg forums all day (FSeven I blame you). :)

The recipes/how-to's in this book are excellent:
How to Grill

That one, and this one:

Weber's Way to Grill

Unless you're talking about actual bbq (slow and smoked), in which case the best teacher is experience (get yourself a pork butt stat). Light smoke, low heat, long time -- adjust to taste.

The How to Grill book is actually about 50% about actual BBQ, despite the title.

LilCodger wrote:
Tanglebones wrote:
Tigerbill wrote:

This thread and my upcoming move to Texas, have me wanting to learn how to bbq. I've been reading the Big Green Egg forums all day (FSeven I blame you). :)

The recipes/how-to's in this book are excellent:
How to Grill

That one, and this one:

Weber's Way to Grill

Unless you're talking about actual bbq (slow and smoked), in which case the best teacher is experience (get yourself a pork butt stat). Light smoke, low heat, long time -- adjust to taste.

This, hence the reason I didn't use the term "GRILL", been there done that. No offense though Tangle, I will keep the book in mind; I love reading cookbooks.

Edit:

Tanglebones wrote:

The How to Grill book is actually about 50% about actual BBQ, despite the title.

Good to know.

Tanglebones wrote:

The How to Grill book is actually about 50% about actual BBQ, despite the title.

My skimming greatly surpasses my memory it seems.

LilCodger wrote:
Tanglebones wrote:

The How to Grill book is actually about 50% about actual BBQ, despite the title.

My skimming greatly surpasses my memory it seems.

I might be off on the percentage, but it definitely has chapters on pulled pork, brisket, ribs and chicken done in a smoker, in addition to direct heat grilling.

wordsmythe wrote:

Question time!

We have an exceedingly windy balcony (flipped our picnic table the other day--probably time to ditch that). We have a Weber Q, which tends to perform pretty crappily in terms of flame size. It's often bad enough that I can't cook anything, or that lighting it yields only a couple little blue dots of flame along the whole pipe. I've tried multiple propane tanks and checked the line for leaks. What's the problem?

A) Dust, bugs, etc. are clogging the line.
B) The winds blow out the flame and trigger safety valves in the grill and/or tank.
C) It's a stupid POS and I hate it.

No personal experience with that one here, but Google tells me that Webers can have finicky safety mechanisms. Turn the gas on from the tank SLOWLY and allow the pressure to equalize before you turn the grill on and fire it up. If that doesn't work, you might have a defective safety valve in the grill. Joy.

LouZiffer wrote:

If that doesn't work, you might have a defective safety valve in the grill. Joy.

Wordsmythe, If it does turn out to be a faulty Webber. You could always grill on a nice Chimney starter. Alton Brown even demonstrates how to char Tuna with one =)

They light easily and don't take up alot of room. But I wouldn't want to cook for more than 2 people on one.

LouZiffer wrote:
LilCodger wrote:
FSeven wrote:

Rinse it off with water, then dry it, and then re-oil it?

This is pretty much what I do, but less oil than you would use with a seasoning. You're looking for a thin coat.

I do the same. Our dutch oven with a skillet lid is Lodge - nothing fancy - and it's holding up just fine with this kind of treatment.

Also, dry anything off thoroughly if it's going to reside in the same cabinet as the cast iron.

For cleaning, I've found that all you really need is a few tablespoons of salt to scour it out with a paper towel. No moisture needed. As for seasoning, by doing that, the grease you're cooking with will add to the seasoning and turn it black as hell.

wordsmythe wrote:

Question time!

We have an exceedingly windy balcony (flipped our picnic table the other day--probably time to ditch that). We have a Weber Q, which tends to perform pretty crappily in terms of flame size. It's often bad enough that I can't cook anything, or that lighting it yields only a couple little blue dots of flame along the whole pipe. I've tried multiple propane tanks and checked the line for leaks. What's the problem?

A) Dust, bugs, etc. are clogging the line.
B) The winds blow out the flame and trigger safety valves in the grill and/or tank.
C) It's a stupid POS and I hate it.

Gas is bad, get charcoal.

As for smokers, I've been staring at a Weber SMC; they're very well reviewed with plenty of room and only $300 which is probably the nicest part IMO.

As for BBQ cookbooks, I don't know that you can find a finer one than this.

LouZiffer wrote:
wordsmythe wrote:

Question time!

We have an exceedingly windy balcony (flipped our picnic table the other day--probably time to ditch that). We have a Weber Q, which tends to perform pretty crappily in terms of flame size. It's often bad enough that I can't cook anything, or that lighting it yields only a couple little blue dots of flame along the whole pipe. I've tried multiple propane tanks and checked the line for leaks. What's the problem?

A) Dust, bugs, etc. are clogging the line.
B) The winds blow out the flame and trigger safety valves in the grill and/or tank.
C) It's a stupid POS and I hate it.

No personal experience with that one here, but Google tells me that Webers can have finicky safety mechanisms. Turn the gas on from the tank SLOWLY and allow the pressure to equalize before you turn the grill on and fire it up. If that doesn't work, you might have a defective safety valve in the grill. Joy.

I have the same wind related problem and for me it's usually B with some C. Relocating the grill is usually the best bet, but I assume the balcony doesn't give you many options. Here is a article on low flame output troubleshooting, but it seems you have tried most of the things mentioned. The other thing that seems to help for me is starting one burner as mentioned above, then letting everything heat up and then start the second burner. The flame output seems to drop less. My eventual solution is a new grill but I'm still saving for that.

In other BBQ news, here's a Flameless Grill Smoker a co-worker showed me the other day. I can't vouch for it but it seems like a interesting alternative to a normal smoker box. Other than style and the claim of "flameless" I don't see a big difference from other smoker boxes if they are tended correctly but I thought it was neat.

AnimeJ wrote:
LouZiffer wrote:
LilCodger wrote:
FSeven wrote:

Rinse it off with water, then dry it, and then re-oil it?

This is pretty much what I do, but less oil than you would use with a seasoning. You're looking for a thin coat.

I do the same. Our dutch oven with a skillet lid is Lodge - nothing fancy - and it's holding up just fine with this kind of treatment.

Also, dry anything off thoroughly if it's going to reside in the same cabinet as the cast iron.

For cleaning, I've found that all you really need is a few tablespoons of salt to scour it out with a paper towel. No moisture needed. As for seasoning, by doing that, the grease you're cooking with will add to the seasoning and turn it black as hell.

wordsmythe wrote:

Question time!

We have an exceedingly windy balcony (flipped our picnic table the other day--probably time to ditch that). We have a Weber Q, which tends to perform pretty crappily in terms of flame size. It's often bad enough that I can't cook anything, or that lighting it yields only a couple little blue dots of flame along the whole pipe. I've tried multiple propane tanks and checked the line for leaks. What's the problem?

A) Dust, bugs, etc. are clogging the line.
B) The winds blow out the flame and trigger safety valves in the grill and/or tank.
C) It's a stupid POS and I hate it.

Gas is bad, get charcoal.

As for smokers, I've been staring at a Weber SMC; they're very well reviewed with plenty of room and only $300 which is probably the nicest part IMO.

As for BBQ cookbooks, I don't know that you can find a finer one than this.

I've got the bigger version of the Smoky Mountain, and it's very nice. Does a great job of keeping a steady temperature; did a 16-pound raw ham last year where I cooked it very low for 24 hours and it was one of the best things I've ever eaten. Highly recommended.

One of the big complaints I've seen with the 22.5" WSM is that it has a harder time holding a lower temp(sub 275). Has that been an issue? That was the primary reason I'm leaning towards the 18.5" model; I'd prefer the bigger one for things like multiple racks of ribs.

koshnika wrote:
LouZiffer wrote:

If that doesn't work, you might have a defective safety valve in the grill. Joy.

Wordsmythe, If it does turn out to be a faulty Webber. You could always grill on a nice Chimney starter.

AnimeJ wrote:

Gas is bad, get charcoal.

I'd love to, but it's illegal to have burning embers above ground level in Chicago. Something about a massive fire that happened?

Anyway, I love charcoal, but it's not an option.

clever id wrote:

The other thing that seems to help for me is starting one burner as mentioned above, then letting everything heat up and then start the second burner. The flame output seems to drop less. My eventual solution is a new grill but I'm still saving for that.

It's only a 1-burner.

AnimeJ wrote:

One of the big complaints I've seen with the 22.5" WSM is that it has a harder time holding a lower temp(sub 275). Has that been an issue? That was the primary reason I'm leaning towards the 18.5" model; I'd prefer the bigger one for things like multiple racks of ribs.

I find that for the first hour or so the temp does seem high, but then it settles down nicely and is really easy to regulate, but I'd assume that's pretty standard with charcoal in general. I haven't had an issue doing long smoking at 210-220 or so, though it certainly takes some tweaking to get it right.

wordsmythe wrote:
clever id wrote:

The other thing that seems to help for me is starting one burner as mentioned above, then letting everything heat up and then start the second burner. The flame output seems to drop less. My eventual solution is a new grill but I'm still saving for that.

It's only a 1-burner. :(

You're boned.

MilkmanDanimal wrote:
AnimeJ wrote:

One of the big complaints I've seen with the 22.5" WSM is that it has a harder time holding a lower temp(sub 275). Has that been an issue? That was the primary reason I'm leaning towards the 18.5" model; I'd prefer the bigger one for things like multiple racks of ribs.

I find that for the first hour or so the temp does seem high, but then it settles down nicely and is really easy to regulate, but I'd assume that's pretty standard with charcoal in general. I haven't had an issue doing long smoking at 210-220 or so, though it certainly takes some tweaking to get it right.

Good to know. Might have to convince the wife to let me buy the 22.5" then, that way I can do racks of ribs without having to fiddle with them to get them to fit.

clever id wrote:
wordsmythe wrote:
clever id wrote:

The other thing that seems to help for me is starting one burner as mentioned above, then letting everything heat up and then start the second burner. The flame output seems to drop less. My eventual solution is a new grill but I'm still saving for that.

It's only a 1-burner. :(

You're boned.

Yea, this.

wordsmythe wrote:

I'd love to, but it's illegal to have burning embers above ground level in Chicago. Something about a massive fire that happened?

But they will let you carry a Propane tank up to your porch use it? Seriously that is just messed up.

What you need to do is get all Cajun on them.. Get yourself one of these

Throw a grill grate on top and Voila! problem solved.

wordsmythe wrote:

I'd love to, but it's illegal to have burning embers above ground level in Chicago. Something about a massive fire that happened?

It should still be legal as long as you don't keep your cow right next to it.

For curiosity's sake, I did a quick search. Short version is that unless it's prohibited by your apartment, the law you're talking about doesn't exist. Even searched on the City of Chicago site and nada. So, I'm fairly certain that if you went and bought a Weber OneTouch Silver and a Fireproof Mat, you'd be pretty OK. Just make sure you have a stainless steel ashcan to dump ashes into.

AnimeJ wrote:

For curiosity's sake, I did a quick search. Short version is that unless it's prohibited by your apartment, the law you're talking about doesn't exist. Even searched on the City of Chicago site and nada. So, I'm fairly certain that if you went and bought a Weber OneTouch Silver and a Fireproof Mat, you'd be pretty OK. Just make sure you have a stainless steel ashcan to dump ashes into.

I originally heard it from someone who worked at City Hall. It took a lot of digging to actually find it myself. It was somewhere in the fire safety code, I think. But yeah, it also shows up in every building's code.

koshnika wrote:

But they will let you carry a Propane tank up to your porch use it?

In Chicago proper propane tanks are prohibited in "multiple dwellings, except those designed or intended for an occupancy of less than 20 persons" and building associations or leases may prohibit them in smaller dwellings.

clever id wrote:
koshnika wrote:

But they will let you carry a Propane tank up to your porch use it?

In Chicago proper propane tanks are prohibited in "multiple dwellings, except those designed or intended for an occupancy of less than 20 persons" and building associations or leases may prohibit them in smaller dwellings.

That's why people tend to keep propane outside.

My wife and I are aiming to get our barbeque grill soon. We're currently thinking about the Weber Spirit E-310. Is this a good model within the Weber spectrum? That's almost at the top of our price range, so I hope so. The absolute highest we would go is a Genesis E-320 (on sale for $750). If anyone has info about problems with the Spirit, please advise and suggest an alternative -- I am aware that the knobs are off to the side, and I think I can live with that.

EDIT: Hm, it seems that a lot of people are talking about a deterioration of quality in the Spirit line. The wife did not balk at the idea of getting the Genesis. Case closed? Would still appreciate feedback.

Cyranix wrote:

My wife and I are aiming to get our barbeque grill soon. We're currently thinking about the Weber Spirit E-310. Is this a good model within the Weber spectrum? That's almost at the top of our price range, so I hope so. The absolute highest we would go is a Genesis E-320 (on sale for $750). If anyone has info about problems with the Spirit, please advise and suggest an alternative -- I am aware that the knobs are off to the side, and I think I can live with that.

I'd say the biggest issue with it is that it's a gas grill. If you're fine with that, then go for it. Personally, I'd go buy a Weber One Touch Silver or Gold, the only difference between the two is that the gold is a bit easier to clean ashes out of. Pick up a good chimney starter(~$20) and a couple bags of good lump charcoal(GFS has a good brand, check naked whiz for reviews) and you're set for much, much less than what you're talking about for a gas grill.

Yeah, Spirits are not what they were. Dunno about the Genesis.

If you can find a used Spirit, one of the older ones with the pushbutton click start, not the crappy battery-operated sparker, that should be substantially cheaper, and will last for many years. You can just buy new grill plates for it if you don't like the ones it comes with. You want the three-burner model, not the two-burner kind. I think some of the three-burner models have bun toasters.

Charcoal has residues that gas does not; cooking on charcoal is a significant cancer risk if you do it very much. I'm not aware of any similar finding for gas.

FUD, Malor.

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/...

http://environment.about.com/od/heal...

There's two links, and the short version is that it's got little to do with what you're cooking with, but from a combination of flare ups(which can happen on gas grills) and the meat being cooked, period. In fact, the more done you cook meat, the more buildups you get.

Anyway, if you're using hardwood lump vice crappy briquettes, it's not any worse than gas.

Oooh I forgot about the BBQ thread! Here's my favorite dry rub for drumsticks!

IMAGE(http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6006/5968623752_466e0e849e_b.jpg)

Chicken Drumstick Dry Rub (spicy!)
Ingredients:
1/4 cup paprika
2 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tbsp. white sugar
2 tbsp. kosher salt
2 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp. cayenne
2 tsp. dry mustard
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. onion powder

Tigerbill wrote:

This thread and my upcoming move to Texas, have me wanting to learn how to bbq. I've been reading the Big Green Egg forums all day (FSeven I blame you). :)

That place is dangerous! I spent over $200 in accessories within the first 2 weeks of getting my egg. It doesn't hurt either that those folks are some of the most friendly, passionate, and patient people on the web. So willing to help someone new with using the egg and chock full of tips, recipes, etc. I have to admit, when researching grills, part of what influenced me getting an egg was the insanely active egg community.