O.T.: Killin' to do some Grillin' with my New Toy...

[HatTrick66]

I came to the realization late in my 35 yr old life (just two years ago) that life is too short to not have a gas AND a charcoal grill. Each has its place, and both are necessary. I find myself grilling on both all winter long here in Chicago. The gas is positioned about 3 feet from my back door, and the kettle sees its action on the weekends.

[picky]

Wow! So many different stories! I think this is becoming quite a good thread if I do say so myself.

Just one thing I wanted to ask of gullahisland: I would be interested to find out what sort of burner configuration your grill that you returned had. I believe the Jenn Air that I bought is closer to that of a Weber. Since we've both owned Webers, we know that the burners run linearally beneath the grill's "flavorizing bars" as Weber calls them. The burners on my new grill are much the same, except Jenn Air prefers to call them "flame tamers", and they are a bit wider than Weber's. Also, did your grill have the rear infrared burner for use with the rotisserie? Or did you have to use the burners below the cooking grate to heat the rotisserie?

Since I have 4 days off this-coming weekend, I already have my cooking game plan for the weekend:

Saturday: I'll start with something less-costly - burgers and dogs. I figure we'll only be outt a few bucks if I burn them.

Easter Sunday: The "Big Kahuna" - 2" thick beef tenderloins (Filet Mignon). Things could get real scary! (and expensive!)

Monday: I will see what sort of flareups develop - Rotisserie chicken. If that doesn't make it flare up, nothing will!

I'll let you guys know what happens. Yes, I do have a fire extingusher!

About Smoking (since you guys brought it up): I have a slightly different approach to smoking. I also use different woods such as hickory, mesquite, alder, apple, etc., but I do not use a grill. Instead, I use a Luhr Jensen Little Chief electric smoker that I bought from Cabela's about 10 years ago. I love that little thing and it does a fine job. Cornish game hens and different types of thick, soft jerky (Squaw Candy) are my specialties. I do beef, venison and elk.

[oscarsear]

oscar,

Try working 12 hours a day; get home, and have 3 1 hours (on a good day - on a bad day, about 30 minutes) to spend with family before it's time to go to bed early, to get up at 4AM and do it again...

I'm the cook at home, as well, but the 30 minute meal (45 minutes, tops) has become a necessary concession, at least on work days.

Oh, and during most of those 12 hours at work, I'm cooking! Yet another reason I don't care to spend so much time with it at home.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

Chucks Ears

Well yeah I've done the 12 hour shift stuff and, no I didn't come home and BBQ. I did health care and 'spose that if I cooked for a living I wouldn't care to cook at home on anything let alone a BBQ. That said all charcoal needs is a little fore thought. You can stack your briquets anytime in advance. They light in less than 10 seconds and take 10 to 15 to fire up enough to use. It's not walking out and turning on a dial, but that's part of the enjoyment. It's akin to people who go "camping" in a 40ft RV as opposed to a tent. The former just isn't "camping". Cooking's a stress release for many and the ritual of the fire offers some things a firespewing burner can't. It's not for everyone that's for certain.

[customsteve01]

Here is a couple of pictures of the grill we use for BBQ cook-offs, the last being The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Cook-off. Its a tandom axle goose-neck trailer.

Only get to cook on this a couple of times a year and it would not be practical to use for burning a couple of steaks. So for every day use I use a Char-Broil gas grill.

Steve

[gullahisland]

----------------

On 3/22/2005 8:42:43 AM picky wrote:

Just one thing I wanted to ask of

gullahisland:

I would be interested to find out what sort of burner configuration your grill that you returned had. I believe the Jenn Air that I bought is closer to that of a Weber. Since we've both owned Webers, we know that the burners run linearally beneath the grill's "flavorizing bars" as Weber calls them. The burners on my new grill are much the same, except Jenn Air prefers to call them "flame tamers", and they are a bit wider than Weber's. Also, did your grill have the rear infrared burner for use with the rotisserie? Or did you have to use the burners below the cooking grate to heat the rotisserie?

----------------

The burners did run in a similar configuration to the Weber and they did have a "shield" that was reportedly designed for reducing flareups.

Also, it did have the infrared burner mounted on the back side of the grill, so you didn't need to run the burners.

The problem with the design (as far as I could tell) was that, unlike the Weber, there was only one layer of protection between the burners and the grill. The Weber gives you a shield over the burners as well as another layer of flavorizer bars. But that's not even the biggest design flaw.

The BIG problem was the way that drippings were captured and drained. On the Costco unit, there was a large stainless steel tray that was accessible from the back. It gradually sloped off to one side (the right as you face the grill) and had a channel down the middle where it finally emptied into a drip pan.

The tray was too close to the burners and caused incredible flare-ups.

Think about the design of the Weber. The bottom of the bbq is very DEEP and very STEEP. There's no room for a fancy "storage compartment" underneath the grill. The drippings get FAR away from the flame in a hurry. Not the prettiest design, but it sure works great.

I'm not trying to rain on your parade. I'm just curious to see how it works from the perspective of a former Weber owner. I suppose if I'd never owned a Weber, I wouldn't have known any better and might very well have been satisfied.

One final note. I also found the stainless steel to be a burden. It looked great in the store, but it showed every fingerprint, splatter and smudge. And it was virtually impossible to clean without major streaks. I had to use "Barkeepers Friend" or stainless steel polish to make it look nice. And that kinda' defeats the purpose of having a gas grill in the first place - CONVENIENCE. The red enamel finish on my Weber is easy to clean. A quick spray of Windex and it looks great.

[dodger]

CA Blacksmith is a smoker and a BBQer as am I.

Depends on dry rubs, mop sauces, BBQ sauce whether you want to make your own. I have a few recipes for all three. if interested.

Haven't seen seen the Blacksmith man, hope all is well.

dodger

[Colin]

sweet, wait till you see the one I got for $5.00, even came with propane!

[ben.]

Here's mine. Just the right amount of flare-up. Got it with a wok plate, griddle and extra grille assemblies. Came with a nice roasting hood, too, so I can use direct or indirect heat.

[picky]

gullahisland: Yes, I do understand that you are not trying "rain on my parade". I simply wanted the detailed information that you were so good to follow up with. All very good points and observations that you've made. Thank you VERY much for answering back! I will be paying close attention to all of the things you mentioned. I may even consider doing a bit of re-engineering on my new rig to get it running right, if needed. The drip pan you mention is slightly different on my model. It slides out of the front of the unit. But, I could possibly deepen it with a redesign and make it insert from beneath. You are dead-on about the 2-layers of flavorizing bars versus the single-layer flame-tamers. Cooking could get mighty interesting amidst the flare-ups! We'll see what happens. If I am displeased, I will most-likey do the same thing you did and take mine back and get a new Weber. But, for now, I shall remain optimistic. As for the stainless steel; I do expect it to be a bit of a bother. I already have a can of Barkeeper's Friend because of all of the stainless in the bar area of my theater. But, I enjoy polishing stuff so we'll so how I do with this rig. You are correct: the Weber was easy to keep clean.

Thanks again for all of your observations and insight!

[chuckears]

I am looking at stainless, because I find it impossible to keep a cover on my Weber; the grill is on my deck, on the north side of the house, and winter winds love to whip it right off... not to mention the fact that I will usually forget to go back out after it cools down, and put the cover on (assuming I have one; I haven't had a cover for it for a few years now). The stainless seems like a great and durable alternative to the painted-black iron of my Weber.

... and I'm definitely interested in hearing how it cooks.

[picky]

DAMMIT!! There's 3 inches of brand new snow piled on top of the cover of my my brand new baby!

Please forgive me but, MICHIGAN WEATHER SUCKS! ......STILL!

I sure hope things improve by Saturday when I plan to try the grill out for the first time.

[Piranha]

Our Brinkmann works great. We use it all year round. The boys and I had a nice tri tip roast last night while Mom went to visit the in laws.

[picky]

Nice! I like the built-in cooler on the left.

[picky]

Day One of my "Grilling-Weekend" is complete!

BBQ'd Sirloin Burgers:

Things seemed to go as planned today, as this was the first time I've actually fired the thing up to cook food. Outside temperature was 47 degrees.

I preheated the grill will all 4 lower burners set on High for 15 minutes, as the instructions suggested. This brought the hood temperature to 400 degrees, but the grates, of course were much hotter (my new thermometer arrives on Monday). I threw on 5, 1" thick sirloin patties and seared them for 4 minutes on direct heat (High). I noticed no more fare-ups than was usual with my old Weber Genesis 1100 3-burner grill. The searing was very controllable.

Then, I shut off one of the center burners and lowered the adjacent 2 burners to Medium. I turned the furthest end burner to Off. I then turned and placed the patties directly above the Off center burner and cooked for another 15 minutes indirectly. The cooking was nice and even with no actual flare-ups. Naturally the areas furthest to the front edge and rear edge of the cooking surface are not as hot and therefore cook slower.

The only change I will make next time is to sear for 5 minutes instead of 4 and then cook for about the same 13 to 15 minutes after turning.

On cleanup (after dinner), I again heated the grill for 15 minutes, which burned everything up or turned it to ash. I wiped a very small amount of grease from the catch pan and scraped the stainless steel cooking grates with a brass wire brush. They do not seem to clean as easily as the porcelain-clad grates of my old Weber. Naturally, every grill is different and adjustment in how one uses each grill must be made. So far I am pleased with the results. The burgers were just as flavorful and as juicy as ever. I simply would have prefered them to be a little more done, hence the 1-minute longer searing time for next time. I'll get the hang of it soon. More grilling tomorrow!

[edwinr]

The problem with my current 4 burner BBQ is that it doesn't have enough flat area so I can't cook more than 2 pancakes (flapjacks) at a time, or anything else that requires a flat cooking area. I like those big Japanese style tepanyaki grills. You've got all this cooking area and you can move stuff around as you cook it.

I'm going to get a flat plate made up to my own specs.

I use my BBQ every day during the weekend, even in winter. It saves cleaning up and it gives me an excuse to have a beer without getting nagged.

[michael hurd]

Very nice BBQ picky! I have been doing some grilling, and the temperature is hovering at the 29- 30F range. This past nights offerings were 3 New York strips done to medium, with panfries smothered in butter and garlic. Kernal corn with brown sugar and butter rounded out the meal, followed by a few adult pops.

Too bad we don't have room for a fullsize bbq at the apartment, that is only on our tabletop grill. Kind of slow, but it gets the job done. I have even barbequed in the dead of winter, 25 below, when the propane tank has to be full, or else the barbeque will not work too well.

[Piranha]

Picky, glad to hear you enjoyed your first BBQ on it. I look forward to hearing about the beef tenderloins tomorrow.

[Smokem]

Last night I grilled two 1 lb Rib Eye steaks and boiled two 2lb lobsters. The wife and I had a very nice dinner together. The Klipsch's sounding off in the back ground as well.

[picky]

Day Two of my "Grilling-Weekend" is complete!

BBQ'd Corn-On-The-Cob and 2"-Thick Beef Tenderloins (Filet Mignon):

It was Easter Sunday and our weather didn't quite live up to the prediction. It wasn't very sunny and the temp never got above 49. It was 46 at grilling time. I'm not complaining....this is Michigan.; I'll take it!

I preheated the grill to hood temperature 300 degrees (Medium) in preparation for the corn. Ear ear had be shucked and cleaned, then placed on aluminum foil with 2 small pats of butter and lightly salted. The foil was then rolled-up. Ear ear was placed in its roll directly on the cooking grates in a row from front-to-back. The burners to left and right were placed on Medium and the burner directly below the corn was placed on low. Cooking time was 28 minutes, turning the corn 1/4-turn every 7 minutes. It turned out perfectly!

I then placed all 4 lower burners on High and heated the grill to a hood temperature of 400 degrees. I then placed the 6 filets onto the cooking grates and closed the lid. All 4 burners remained on High. I seared the very lean steaks for 5 minutes. There were no flare-ups. I then shut off the farthest burner on the left and then set the remaining burners from left-to-right on Medium-Low-Medium. In removed 4 of the steaks from the grill as they are to be medium-rare, and I turned and placed the remaining two over the burner that was set to Low. These two steaks are to be Medium-Well. I set the timer for 19 minutes. At 12 Minutes remaining, I returned the other 4 steaks to the grill and placed them next to the first two steaks.

At the end of the 19 minutes, I checked for doneness and determined I needed to add an additional 3 minutes. At the end of those three minutes, all 6 steaks were finished and they were to exact order. The steaks were very juicy and not dried-out.

Thus far, I have determened that the Jenn Air grill does not sear at as high a temperature as my old Weber Genesis 1100. Both searing and cooking times take longer on the Jenn Air. But, I have not experienced the flare-ups that have been mentioned earlier. This could be due to the use of very lean meat. However, I am happy to report that the end result (food appearance and flavor) is the same as the Weber. Thus being only the second time I have used this grill I am certain that with adjustments in burner settings, food placement techniques and cooking time, I shall be quite happy with this Jenn Air grill. Today will be my final test as I prepare a rotisserie chicken this evening using the rear infrared burner. If there is going to be any flare-up problems, they should materialize today, with chicken being one of the fattiest of BBQ foods. I will report on this later. I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!

[picky]

(Final) Day Three of my "Grilling-Weekend" is complete!

BBQ'd Rotesserie Chicken:

Today (Monday) I was lucky to have off and the weather faired much better than yesterday. It was sunny, breezy and 58 degrees when I lit off the Barbie. That's more like it!

Today, was the final test of what this new contraption will do. We cooked a 3-pound, whole fryer chicken. I must admit that I was very apprehendsive about today after reading about gullahisland's experience with a similar grill from Costco, which was so bad, he wound up taking back for a refund. But, I am here to tell you that everything went extremely well, especially considering I have never done rotesserie ANYTHING in my entire grilling life.

I started with the 3 pound chicken and placed it into a 1-gallow ZipLoc bag. I pourer nearly 1/2 bottle of Kraft Zesty Italian dressing over it and sprinkled in some Greek blended spices, sealing and turning the bag to distribute evenly. I let it sit in the fridge for about 6 hours. I took the bag out of the fridge 30 minutes before cooking to allow the chicken to reach closer to rrom temperature. I then tied the wings back and the legs using heavy cotton string. Inserted an Oven-safe thermometer in the breast and slide the whole chicken onto the spit. I lit the rear infrared burner, but none of the others. With a drip pan placed beneath the chicken to catch the drippings (so as not to make a mess in the grill) I installed the spit into the rotesserie motor, adjusted the counterbalance and switched it on. The motor ran completely silent (nice). I closed the lid and away we went!

I checked it after 40 minutes and great progress had been made. I checked it again after 60. At 1 hour and 10 mins (70 mins total) the thermometer had reached 180 degrees. This bird was cooked! I must tell you that the skin was beautifully browned and the breast meat was nice and white inside. No Pink. All juices ran clear. It may be the most-moist chicken we've ever had. There were absolutely no flare-ups. Not even some much as a pop or a sputter! We are now looking forward to doing ribs some day soon! We're also going to try a turkey. The motor can handle up to a 12-pounder, which is perfect for us.

To sum up: I am very relieved that this grill performed as I had hoped. Lord knows I did a tremendous amount of research before buyin this one. Thankfully, it seems to have paid off. Buying something new, unfamiliar and expensive (for me) is always a bit scary. I can now recommend to you this Jenn Air 48,000 BTU grill at Lowe's is a good one. It is at least half the price of other grills having the same features and quality-level of construction. For me, at $850, it's a winner and a bargain. The only thing I see as a slight fault is that I wish the searing temperature was a bit higher. However, that can be overcome by increasing the searing time. No biggie! GENTLEMEN: START YOUR GRILLS! IT'S SPRINGTIME!!!!