Grilled steak, potatoes and asparagus

chowhound

New member
Pics form tonight's dinner.

Bacon that was really too thick to wrap, so I cut it in half (that didn't work as well as I had hoped) and seasoned with salt, pepper, and It seasoning.
All in preparation of wrapping around some asparagus, seasoned side in.

I also had a thick ribeye seasoned and coming to room temp.

And after things were put on the grill, a mushroom and shallot sauce was started. (thanks JoeC).

I can't believe the flames I was getting! From charcoal! Dare I say I might convert... lol

And plated.
With a bite cut out to reveal the moneyshot.
Geez, almost forgot about the sauce :ohmy:

A very good experience with using charcoal. I'm no pro at grilling with charcoal. You all know I'm a gasser when I'm not Qing, but I guess grilling is grilling, as everything came out.
I may just have to invest in a charcoal grill. It did add something extra to the steak and potatoes. Too bad the WSM was too small to accomodate the asparagus.
 

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BamsBBQ

Ni pedo
Site Supporter
i love your pics... as crappy as i feel, i still want to eat what you just cooked..lol

as for your flames... i try and get those when i am cooking my steaks..i love the charred bits of fat that get cooked... but that being said, it just looks like you had a little too much charcoal in one place, easily fixed..

i have a $600 dollar gas grill... the most i use it, is to start my charcoal for my smoker and grilling with charcoal..lol

if you want to invest in a charcoal grill i recommend either a kettly type...weber or even the cheapy walmart brand...both can and do produce good grilled food...and can be fitted with a rotisserie
 

chowhound

New member
i love your pics... as crappy as i feel, i still want to eat what you just cooked..lol

as for your flames... i try and get those when i am cooking my steaks..i love the charred bits of fat that get cooked... but that being said, it just looks like you had a little too much charcoal in one place, easily fixed..

i have a $600 dollar gas grill... the most i use it, is to start my charcoal for my smoker and grilling with charcoal..lol

if you want to invest in a charcoal grill i recommend either a kettly type...weber or even the cheapy walmart brand...both can and do produce good grilled food...and can be fitted with a rotisserie

lol, thanks, Jeff.

I like flames, too, but these were different from gas flames, which I'll just come out and say are flare ups. These were good flames. My gasser gives me flames that char the outside, but they don't pack all that much heat for cooking. If you follow that.

I wanted an indirect side and don't know about quantities of charcoal needed (obviously). I know i didn't want to skimp, because I had two potaotes baking and a steak to sear.

My question is, do they make a charcoal grill you can reposition the briquettes without disturbing the food? Like a side entry?
 

BamsBBQ

Ni pedo
Site Supporter
i dont think they make a charcoal grill like that but can change the way you pile your charcoal

if you look at some of Keltins pics... you will see that he will put say 20 briquettes on one side, 20 on another side and then leave right in the middle with no charcoal..

then you can bake your potatoes in the middle with no flames and just heat...your steaks go right over the flames directly...
Step_6-4.jpg

lol, thanks, Jeff.

I like flames, too, but these were different from gas flames, which I'll just come out and say are flare ups. These were good flames. My gasser gives me flames that char the outside, but they don't pack all that much heat for cooking. If you follow that.

I wanted an indirect side and don't know about quantities of charcoal needed (obviously). I know i didn't want to skimp, because I had two potaotes baking and a steak to sear.

My question is, do they make a charcoal grill you can reposition the briquettes without disturbing the food? Like a side entry?
 

Keltin

New member
Gold Site Supporter
They make a “Cajun” style charcoal grill that allows you to raise and lower the coal bed. So close for sear and low for finishing. There are also “Cajun” styles with side entry doors, but you really don’t want to move your coals around once they are set since ash will fly and get on your food.

A good Weber kettle allows you to place coals to one side for a hot sear and then move off to the cool side for a finish with the lid on. I love the Weber Kettles and firmly believe there isn’t a better charcoal grill out there. It’s versatile, is designed to control flare ups, and just works great.

And....awesome pics Chow! I love it! :thumb:
 

BamsBBQ

Ni pedo
Site Supporter
the cajun grill is also another name for a brinkman smoke n grill..other wise know as an ECB...el cheapo brinkman

They make a “Cajun” style charcoal grill that allows you to raise and lower the coal bed. So close for sear and low for finishing. There are also “Cajun” styles with side entry doors, but you really don’t want to move your coals around once they are set since ash will fly and get on your food.

A good Weber kettle allows you to place coals to one side for a hot sear and then move off to the cool side for a finish with the lid on. I love the Weber Kettles and firmly believe there isn’t a better charcoal grill out there. It’s versatile, is designed to control flare ups, and just works great.

And....awesome pics Chow! I love it! :thumb:
 

chowhound

New member
Thanks Keltin.
I just looked at some Cajun grills... wholly crap. That's a lotta money. Really nice grill though. Thanks for the tip.
 

Fisher's Mom

Mother Superior
Super Site Supporter
Holy Carp, Chow! That meal looks amazing! And it's all of my favorite foods - how did you know??? Those are some mighty fine looking asparagus spears. And I'm seriously thinking about grilling my steaks now. I always pan sear mine. They are good but they don't have that gorgeous char.

BTW, did you have a guest for dinner? Because that is definitely a meal to impress.
 

chowhound

New member
Thanks, Terry. I appreciate the comments.

I played around with pan searing a few times, but you're right, you just can't get that grilled look (or taste). Now I'm thinking about making the move from gas to charcoal, but I'm not sure which way I want to go with grills yet.
And I just cook for me...
 

chowhound

New member
Thanks Jeff, but I don't see how that would be any better than using my WSM like I have been...
And I may cook for one, but I cook a lot of food. I had to do the asparagus last night on my gas grill. Just not enough room on a WSM unless you're talking smoking, where you can use both racks. And I like hot and cold zones so I can better regulate the cooking times so everything is done when I want it done. Making the move to charcoal is going to require some serious thought on my part whether I just want something small, then still need to use my gasser at the same time, or going to something big, but maybe getting a small propane for quick hot dogs or bugers..... lots to consider...
 

Keltin

New member
Gold Site Supporter
Try the Weber 22" Kettle. You can get them for under 100 at Home Depot. They are big enough to easily spread and pile your coals to develop hot and warm spots for multi-level cooking. You can also buy smoking and rotisserie accessories if you like.

[ame]http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00004RALU[/ame]
 

Keltin

New member
Gold Site Supporter
For quick fast cooks like burgers and dogs, I always fall back to my gas grill. For steaks I like to use lump coal in the kettle since it burns fast and hot (great sear), and everything else is briquette charcoal in the kettle or smoker. I’ve got an 18” kettle and a 14” (Smokey Joe) for various cooking tasks and a Masterbuilt water smoker.
 

Peggy

New member
I have the big kettle weber grill, it has a lot of room! I'm just not great with grilling or BBQ! Hopefully I can pick up some pointers from you experienced great cooks here!
 

High Cheese

Saucier
They make a “Cajun” style charcoal grill that allows you to raise and lower the coal bed. So close for sear and low for finishing. There are also “Cajun” styles with side entry doors, but you really don’t want to move your coals around once they are set since ash will fly and get on your food.

A good Weber kettle allows you to place coals to one side for a hot sear and then move off to the cool side for a finish with the lid on. I love the Weber Kettles and firmly believe there isn’t a better charcoal grill out there. It’s versatile, is designed to control flare ups, and just works great.

And....awesome pics Chow! I love it! :thumb:

The Chargriller has an adjustable coal tray.
 

Jeff G.

New member
Pics form tonight's dinner.

Bacon that was really too thick to wrap, so I cut it in half (that didn't work as well as I had hoped) and seasoned with salt, pepper, and It seasoning.
All in preparation of wrapping around some asparagus, seasoned side in.

I also had a thick ribeye seasoned and coming to room temp.

And after things were put on the grill, a mushroom and shallot sauce was started. (thanks JoeC).

I can't believe the flames I was getting! From charcoal! Dare I say I might convert... lol

And plated.
With a bite cut out to reveal the moneyshot.
Geez, almost forgot about the sauce :ohmy:

A very good experience with using charcoal. I'm no pro at grilling with charcoal. You all know I'm a gasser when I'm not Qing, but I guess grilling is grilling, as everything came out.
I may just have to invest in a charcoal grill. It did add something extra to the steak and potatoes. Too bad the WSM was too small to accomodate the asparagus.
Awesome!!
I just ate and it's making me hungry....
 

FooD

New member
Char Grillers are nice and very affordable. I have their small Patio Pro grill which I use quite often for meals for up to 4 people.

Last year when I was in the market for a large charcoal grill I looked at many before I decided on a Bar B Chef unit. What I like about this grill is that you raise or lower the charcoal tray with a crank and it has a huge front access charcoal access door. (Lowes sells similar looking grills) What sold me on this particular grill was the pull out ash pan which makes clean up fast and easy. These grills were available from BBQs Galore only so they were kind of expensive. Looking back, I should have just gone with a 22" Weber One Touch Gold kettle at about a third the price I paid for my Bar B Chef.
 

chowhound

New member
Thank you, Jeff G. Thanks, Q.

lol, the lesser of two evils, Q, refilling tanks or always having to have a bag of charcoal on hand. And for as often as I grill, I know I'll be making charcoal runs every week. I guess that is where the cheaper cost of charcoal grills make up for it, because the fuel is more expensive.
 

Love2"Q"

New member
i buy enough charcoal to get me through the week every weekend ...
sometimes if its on sale i buy a months worth ..
i really want to get a weber preformer for my daily grilling ...
my char griller is a bit of a beat to cook to steaks or a couple hot dogs on ..
and it is more expensive in the long run for the charcoal ...
but i love it ..
i need to get some fat rib eyes ...
 

chowhound

New member
Those performers and some of the grills I saw with built in chimneys are very nice from a safety point of view.
 

High Cheese

Saucier
Char Grillers are nice and very affordable. I have their small Patio Pro grill which I use quite often for meals for up to 4 people.

Last year when I was in the market for a large charcoal grill I looked at many before I decided on a Bar B Chef unit. What I like about this grill is that you raise or lower the charcoal tray with a crank and it has a huge front access charcoal access door. (Lowes sells similar looking grills) What sold me on this particular grill was the pull out ash pan which makes clean up fast and easy. These grills were available from BBQs Galore only so they were kind of expensive. Looking back, I should have just gone with a 22" Weber One Touch Gold kettle at about a third the price I paid for my Bar B Chef.

A friend of mine gave me a gas "roasting" grill made by Easy Roast. Original price tag was upwards of $4000. Anyway, you can adjust the height of the burners with a switch. One electric motor runs the rotisserie (1" spit") and the other controls the burners. I've only used it as a grill since it's missing the spit, hopefully this year I'll be able to test out it's roasting capabilities.

The one on the right. The panels in the front move like sliding doors.

NewGrill.jpg
 
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