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(What kills me is my brat already has the starter - he just wants a new one, he has the mitts - he just wants new ones, see where this is going? I tell ya, he keeps coming up with Christmas Wish Lists like this, I'LL give him "Ho Ho Ho"... )
good ideas. I already have the spices on his list.
Is it your husband you keep referring to as 'spoiled brat'?
yep, that is the name I have been using for him on here for years; I dont know how it got started, but it has stuck and describes him perfectly. He is a good hubby though or I wouldn't have kept him for almost 60 years.
I suspect the bottom air vents are not open and the coals are starving for air.
I've been a dedicated Weber user for over 30 years.
This is my recipe for great grilling:
Light the coals about 20 - 25 minutes before you intent on grilling, the coals should be gray / white over 90+% of the surface before you put the food on the grill. If you leave the lid open, this will happen quickly, if you leave it shut, it will take more time. I ALWAYS keep the vents on the bottom and on the lid open. The only time I close the bottom vents is after I finished cooking or after the coals burn out completely. The only reason I close the bottom vents is to keep the ashes from falling out. I do use the ash tray on the bottom, but our dog loves to lick the ashes, so I remove the ash tray after the cooking is done - and close the vents to control the mess.
ALWAYS keep the lid on when cooking with the vent open. Adjust the amount of the open vent depending upon how much smokiness you want the food to have.
An accurate way to test for doneness is to press the steak lightly with your fingertip and compare the way it feels to your cheek, chin, and forehead. A rare steak is soft and fleshy like your cheek; fleshy with some resistance, like your chin, is medium; firmer to the touch with more resistance, like your forehead, means it is well done.
The person cooking should be able to do all this with one hand, as the other hand has to hold the beer bottle or the glass of scotch.
BUT PLEASE - NEVER, EVER USE GAS TO GRILL - THE DIFFERENCE IN TASTE IS WORTH THE EXTRA EFFORT!
I love my Weber charcoal grill and have not experienced the problems the OP describes. The manual that comes with the grill (you can download one from Weber) has the basic instructions and great tips.
I just looked at the manual after three years and I've learned something new: don't pull the lid off too quick or it sucks ashes up onto the food. Better to lift it off a little to the side.
I love my Weber charcoal grill and have not experienced the problems the OP describes. The manual that comes with the grill (you can download one from Weber) has the basic instructions and great tips.
I just looked at the manual after three years and I've learned something new: don't pull the lid off too quick or it sucks ashes up onto the food. Better to lift it off a little to the side.
I've invited family to my BBQ and they were amazed how flavorful my meats are. I told them smoke is the key and charcoal grill is always better than gas grills. You can't get the smoke flavor with gas. Since then my relatives switched to Weber.
We have had our weber cooker for about 2 years and at first it was the best grill spoiled brat had ever had, but lately, unless we can find the problem, we are going to go back to gas i think.
Here is what is happening; no matter how many coals he uses and how long he lets them heat it seems the steaks or whatever are just not cooking. he also wonders if he should be grilling steak with the lid up or down? Remember he isn't a great griller, but this is getting worse every week. We are wondering if the coals he uses are bad? They are top of the line, but old. We bought about 40 lbs at Sam's last year. Last night, after the steak was on about 20 minutes, we ended up just using a hot skillet and browning it off. The flavor was great, but it was still rare as it could be. The rare part worked, especially for me, but the length of time it took to cook was way too long and the grilled veggies never really had a grill texture to them. HELP!!!
OK, as a MASTER charcoal griller I can help.
I have found that keeping the lid about 1" lifted on one end adds good heat without encouraging fire. As to the charcoal, yes it makes a difference. Just use Kingsford and you can't go wrong.
I have found that keeping the lid about 1" lifted on one end adds good heat without encouraging fire. As to the charcoal, yes it makes a difference. Just use Kingsford and you can't go wrong.
^^^
Actually, this is what we did, now that I think about.
We had the same Weber grill for 25 years, it was lopsided but still did the job...Now I don't like turkey cooked any other way. We left it behind when we left SoCal, I was actually sad about it...but now I feel inspired to get another one....grilling in the rain, yeah!
Nita, try storing your charcoal in one of those plastic storage bins with a snap-on lid. My neighbors do that.
I've invited family to my BBQ and they were amazed how flavorful my meats are. I told them smoke is the key and charcoal grill is always better than gas grills. You can't get the smoke flavor with gas. Since then my relatives switched to Weber.
Can someone educate me on the advantages of gas "grilling" over indoor cooking? Or is it just indoor cooking with the fun of rain and/or 9F temperatures thrown in?
I was born a Weber Charcoal fan and will die a Weber Charcoal fan.
Can someone educate me on the advantages of gas "grilling" over indoor cooking?...
The smoke from burning fats goes outside instead of filling the house with the smell of seared meat for three days. Most people don't have a true venting hood over their stoves.
Free education.
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