The thing is, I LOVE to grill. What's not to like about a "kitchen appliance" you can clean with a hose and a leaf blower. You've got the outdoors. You've got your best friends over. You've got meat. You've got lighter fluid and giant pointy instruments that come in a shiny case that just says "Beef Inquisitor".
Plus, you've a big open flame near alcohol.
Just the danger factor alone gets my juices going. But frankly, I just struggle with getting the darn thing lit sometimes. Most people simply spray the briquettes with lighter fluid until the fumes alone would render the place uninhabitable, only to throw a match on it with the result being the charcoal just laying there, as cold, lifeless and boring as one of the characters in Twilight. Seriously, if I ever have a raging kitchen fire, I'm going to forget the baking soda or the extinguisher and just smother the flames with briquettes.
Even if, with the right amount of cursing, you DO get it lit without mushroom clouds or the removal of eyebrows, the resultant meal tastes like Sterno on a Stick. That's not good.
I was relaying this fact to one of the IND blog gang a summer or two ago and they brought THIS device over to a cook out for me to try.
The chimney generates a strong updraft that quickly turns briquettes into hot coals. It was pretty simple. Put 3 pieces of newspaper in the bottom, pile the coals on top, light the paper, wait 15 minutes. Look down in there, they should be JUST about ready. At 18- 20 minutes, dump them out and you've got hot coals. I think this ready made chimney came from the local Big Box Mart.But that was some time ago and that chimney said goodbye after the get together. That brings us to a day off in Spring of 2012. After a couple of great days with Midwest Chick and Mr. B,. it was time to head out for a couple of days off before heading back to the city for work again. A few days off and friends I hadn't seen in a while makes a perfect opportunity for a cookout.
Sure, there's sweeping and mowing and chores to do, but for now there was good company and a hot, perfect evening, too hot to heat up the kitchen. On the porch, contemplating IPA, physics and the recalcitrant nature of charcoal, we came up with the idea to use one of those chimney things to start the grill.
Why not MAKE one? What materials are on hand. Hmmm. Cardboard box? That would be a no? Styrofoam? Also a no. Fruitcake? The fruitcake itself would never burn, but I'm afraid of a chemical reaction between brandy infused cherries and Coleman fuel. (likely the source of the original "cherry bomb") So no.
Even without vent holes, it will still work Crumple 2-3 of sheets of clean newspaper in the bottom, leaving a few edges sticking up where you can get a match to them. Fill almost to the top with charcoal. Add just a dash of lighter fluid to a few of the briquettes (or in this case, Coleman fuel). Do not soak them with it, the newspaper and the chimney will do the work.
Now step back and wait several minutes. Fire Marshall Bill says so. You don't want vapors on you or in the immediate area when you light it off.
After a few minutes have gone by, light the paper, stepping immediately away, and wait for combustion..
When you see white ash on the coals near the top. It's ready to pour out onto the grill
Wait, there's no handle on this thing!
Fortunately for us, we have the HOTR Universal Pot Handle Tool ™
Set the chimney on something non combustible, and away from children, stupid friends or relatives or pets as, it will stay HOT for a while.
Now that the coals are hot and spread around, it's time to cook.
First up on the grill, some fresh corn, still in the husks (if there is a lot of husk remove just the other layers, you want the husk to trap the steam inside). Grill 15-20 minutes (the husks will blacken), then move off to one side away from the coals or remove and keep warm. When you husk it to serve, there will be some silk strands in there, but after cooking they come off VERY easily.
Now it's time for the steaks. We got got some very nice big, thick steaks at the local butcher for a little less than $4 a piece on manager's special. After poking the steaks with a fork, these were marinated in a mixture of 1 cup soy sauce, 1 cup water, and 1 cup sugar to which was added 2 heaping Tablespoons grated fresh ginger, 3 cloves of chopped garlic and a splash of olive oil for a few hours (up to 8 hours). Discard the marinade and grill until the internal temperature is 126 - 130 F. for medium. (Don't click to enlarge the picture below if you're hungry.)
They will cook a bit more as they are plated, so once the temperature is in that range, remove them from the heat promptly.
Tender, juicy and cooked to medium, pink in the middle and juicy, perfection. Paired with corn and salad with some freshly made dressing, we had a steak dinner for a price per serving you could pay for a fast food meal. Plus we got to play with fire and pointy things and no one blew anything up.
AND there was chocolate stout cake for dessert Dinner at the range might be fraught with danger, but it comes with dessert.
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32 comments:
An empty three pound coffee can with both ends open and an old-fashioned church key to punch triangular beer-can style openings around the bottom works well in case you are out of 16" ductwork segments.
Use a hair dryer. Five minutes on high and you are good to go.
I typically don't have good luck with charcoal either...but when I went cmaping a few weeks ago, the resort had little weber grills you could borrow, and I had no problem getting the coals ready just using Kingsford Match Light Charcoal. Didn't need to use lighter fluid, didn't need a chimney...just made a nice pile, and lit it, and came back in 20 minutes to spread them out...
Improvise. Adapt. Overcome.
Nuthin' like that charcoal flavor.
An less expensive solution would be to cut the ends off a 5lb. coffee can and using it as your fire starter. You shouldn't need to use anything other than crumpled newspaper to start the fire.
You are making me hungry and I just ate lunch. thanks for the update.
The old tin coffee cans, 3lb variety with a few holes punched around the edges using a bottle opener/can punch works well...http://www.webstaurantstore.com/5-church-key-can-and-bottle-opener/5-church-key-can-and-bottle-opener.jpg
Of course I may have lost a few youngsters by now wondering..A tin coffee can?? A bottle opener/can punch?? "What is this old dude talking about?"
But I still use a 'tin' coffee can for my charcoal grill!!
The charcoal chimneys work best if you take some pan spray (generic PAM) and spray it on the paper towels (I use 4-6 paper towels). Then stuff those up under the chimney, and fill with quality charcoal. Light the paper towels and wait. No lighter fluid or white gas needed. It is helpful if you have a couple smaller holes on the sides of the chimney for more air.
Vic303
(Don't click to enlarge the picture below if you're hungry.)
Arrrgh. Too late. :)
I use a large coffee can (ProTip: use a churchkey to punch holes in the sides near bottom BEFORE removing bottom) and maybe even rig a wire bail on the top for removal with appropriate technology (a stick).
Adapt, improvise, and overcome... :-) And a nicely cooked steak at the end!
You have GOT to be a pilot! Give you a little sheet aluminium, a big enough hammer, fire, a touch of JP5 equivalent, maybe a little "Hello Kitty Duct Tape" like I found at Wally World last week and there is nothing that you can't build or do!!
Now I'm craving BBQ. See what you've done? (and THANK YOU)
ED (and Gaffer) - we didn't have a coffee can, but thanks for letting others know, that is a great idea.
greg - I've used those to success, but it can be a bit pricey. This was a nice opportunity.
TJ - Barkley wants to know when you're driving through here again so he can hump your red car. :-)
Rob - we ended up splitting one steak (they were huge) and the remainder made a stir fry the next night with a bunch of garden veggies and a sauce that had soy, sauce orange zest, five spice powder, honey, bourbon, garlic and red pepper. yum. Served over nutty brown rice. I'll post the recipe later, it was pretty darn good.
MadMedic - thanks for the link. I need to snag some of the leftover coffee cans from the office. They have a multitude of uses lost on the youngsters.
Monkeywranger - Pam? Genius!!
Cond0011 - sorry, should have had a disclaimer. :-)
JC - another church key hint. You guys are brilliant.
Old NFO - next time you are in town, crash here, and we'll see what we can all cook.
Lyle - well, I was scounging around for the coffee can and EJ came up with the vent. Still, experiments with a friend are always fun.
Rev Paul - I can't quite picture Sam doing this at work, but it was fun.
With almost a quarter of a century in with my redhead... I can say both redheads and grills are hot... and both can burn you... lol...
Dann in Ohio
Heh, your description of the dangers of barbecuing reminds of some of the Aussie 'barbies' I've been to. LOL
Morris
Having become a bit of a purist, I can't stand the idea of using charcoal lighter. But then, I also use lump charcoal rather than briquettes.
I do have some appreciation for accelerants to get the coals going. Adding a drizzle of cooking oil (or more cooking spray) to the charcoal will help it along. Bacon grease or other animal fat (think fat cap from a pork butt) works well, too.
I have become a bit of a purist and I can't stand the thought of using lighter fluid anymore (I also use lump instead of briquettes).
But I enjoy the help of a good accelerant as much as the next person. A drizzle of vegetable oil on the charcoal will do in a pinch. But bacon grease or some of the fat cap from a pork butt will certainly help the coals along.
And if the paper in the bottom of the chimney goes out, a propane torch works wonders at persuading it to light again.
If you ever find your way east, you can stay with us.
You cook. ;)
I promise to furnish ridiculously yummy desserts.
Well...if'n ya lived in the forest, no muss, no fuss.
A couple hands full of pine needles, and few twigs and pieces of squaw wood in the bottom of the bowl, place the grill that carries the charcoal on the light firewood, dump on your charcoal, light the pine needles and give it 5-10 minutes. No fluids, no hardware, nothing but natural fuels. Quick and fool proof. Will even work to start damp briquets.
What Chuck said. Lump charcoal in a chimney starter practically lights itself. Lump also burns hotter (great for putting a nice crisp on an otherwise-bleeding steak), and doesn't contain all of the nasty binders that plague briquettes. Give lump a try; you'll never go back.
Ditto those who suggest cooking oil as an accelerant. I, too, used to have trouble getting charcoal to light. A chimney with a few paper towels soaked in olive oil under the charcoal have solved that problem.
While waiting for the fire, rub the steaks a little with this concoction... coffee (6), cocoa (3), Chipotle powder (2), garlic powder(1), Cinnamon (1), salt (1/2), brown sugar (1). Put all the ingredients in a coffe grinder or similar device and grind it all together to a fine powder. When you smell it, you will think "beef!" The measurements are all ratios so you can make as much as you want. Get grillin'!
Alton Brown on cooking with a chimney BBQ starter, at about the 8:30 minute mark: Good Eats S6E1P1: The Other Red Meat - YouTube
Continued at about the 5 minute mark: Good Eats S6E1P2: The Other Red Meat
I suspect some of the tricks above came from here...
See, I see that, and I think "plainly this woman needs a welder".
I used the pine needle, twig method before I went to a gas grill.
The ex used 5 gallons of diesel and two briquets....
BEEF is beautiful!
Ha, I was going to post about the coffee can, too. Great minds think alike!
My new (to me) house came with TWO of those electric charcoal starters, so I just cut a divot in the bottom of the coffee can to accomodate the burner.
Redheads - fire - meat. Three essentials to a good life. Though using any of them improperly can be hazardous to your health!
Oops, I commented to the wrong post. The seared sesame tuna comment goes *here*. lol
Liquid oxygen... ah, yes, them Boilermakers know that the engineering department has the best toys.
http://www.bkinzel.de/misc/ghg/index.html
(Professional professor on closed test picnic. Do not attempt.)
Coffee cans.
Back when we were inventing dirt we would church key or cut with our knife a java can, invert it over pine needles and twigs light it and cook bacon and maybe a piece of meat on the top.
Mostly worked.
Semi raw meat can't hurt ya...right?
Well building a BBQ from an oil drum a year or two ago I found I hadnt charged the cordless drill. Never mind, vent holes courtesy of my Fias Sabatti and a box of CCI .22 rf subsonics. The neighbour thought it showed initiative. I was impressed that a serving Troop Staff Sgt in the Royal Corps of Signals would think so highly of an old ex grunt like me!
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