Hank Hill Would Love Me

Hello All,
After a million years of having a  "Weber" charcoal grill,
today I bought a "Char-Broil" propane grill on
sale from Home Depot.   I am in love.
I literally want to grill meat all the time even there is no reason to.
I have never grilled with propane.
Does anyone have tips on any way to add flavours
to the meat beyond salt and pepper with propane?  ( And yes, I
did not go to the search thread because maybe some
newbies could add something or oldies that haven't
written for awhile could repeat some wisdom.)
This new grill is fun.  Thank you for what you advise.
Take Care,
Fieldthistle
OOPS. maybe the mods would move this to Recipes and Cooking Techniques..

Can't help you, never touched the stuff...except to light my CHARCOAL.... ;)

What's propane?

Lessons for propane - or any other grill:

Don't let our charcoal and wood griller friends intimidate you - you can do great stuff on propane.

You need at least two burners - mine has three-  to get the kind and placement of heat you need. 

For steaks, chops, hamburger, etc. - get it as hot as it will go - on a calm warm day mine gets almost to 600.

If smoking over propane- set it to about 290 -300. put the meat on the cool side of the grill. Get one of those little cast iron boxes to put chips in and put it over the hot side. A small pan of water is helpful - replenish it as needed. Placing herbs, spices, etc. in the water is a waste of money-  as is throwing herbs in the fire. 

Cornell chicken, marinated, and slow cooked at about 300 for a couple of hours is excellent. Be sure to brush it with the marinade frequently while cooking. And, if you want it a it crispier -put it on the hot side for a few minutes for more browning. This is a hell of a lot better than the stuff burned to a crisp or left almost raw by most fire departments ( but not as good as that place in Oneonta). 

Whole fish or filets wrapped in sorrell or lettuce with some lemon slices and tarragon, salt, pepper, oil or butter, is excellent on the grill. You need one of those baskets or hamburger holders to do this. The wrapping burns to a crisp- the fish is perfectly cooked inside in about 10 minutes per inch of thickness.

Cheers, John 

Field,

I love BOTH charcoal & propane.  It just depends on what I'm doing and how much time I have.   Sometimes, there is nothing like a lazy afternoon doing burgers, dogs or steaks on the charcoal grill.   Other times I'm cooking a lot or for a lot of people, or just don't have a lot of time and need the speed of my propane grill.    

Be warned, I use my propane grill (Great Outdoors brand - 6 burner, which I can get up to between 600 - 800 depending on how warm it is out) just like the oven in my house.   One day I did, 2 small meat loaf, pan of stuffed peppers and a roast chicken all at the same time!!  I like to cook, but, not EVERYDAY!!!!!   Of course those items don't need additional seasoning as they are fairly well seasoned as prepared.

Back to the point.  For steaks, if I'm using a 'cheap' cut, I'll marinate for about a day, pat it dry, sear it on both sides with high heat, move it to the cooler side of the grill and brush with the marinade and let it cook.  We really like the results.   Sometimes, I do the wood chips in a pan as suggested by another poster.   With good flavorful cuts of meat, I really don't need the added flavor of either wood chips or charcoal.  Sometimes, I like to let the meat stand on its own merits.   

Really, it's all a matter of personal taste.  Sometimes plain, sometimes marinade, sometimes dry rubs.   It all depends on my mood.  Besides, I like to experiment too!

I'm in central PA....My grill gets used YEAR ROUND.  You may very well stop by my house and catch me grilling in a snow storm.  Obviously, in the winter it's the propane that gets the use,  LOL.

Hope this is some help at least.

Dan

C'mon John, you have to let us have some fun.

I love my Weber propane grill - my favorite item to cook on it is a slab of pork ribs - rub with salt, pepper and garlic and turn grill on low and let it warm up and then place ribs on it and close and then every five minutes open grill and turn over the slab till done - generally takes one hour - some times the smaller end of slab gets done sooner - check and if so you can snack on it til the main slab is done. 

Here I am hard at work:

Heya Field -

I have both a traditional charcoal grill, and a propane grill.  When I plan ahead for something special, or simply have the lead time, I use my charcoal grill.  There's just a certain flavor you can't get elsewhere.  When dinner plans come together at the last minute or I just need to throw something on NOW, propane wins hands down.  There is a convienence factor to instant heat that is undeniable when dinner needs to be in 20-30 minutes.

Plus, I use my propane grill outside in the dead of winter.  And in January in North Dakota, that can be -20 with 20-30 mph gusts.  Instant propane wins again.  (We had a high one day last Feb of -32 and my neighbor got a pic of me grilling chicken to prove I was crazy)

I'm chuckling.... hearing Hank Hill's voice "propane and propane accessories"

seafarer john


Placing herbs, spices, etc. in the water is a waste of money-  as is throwing herbs in the fire. 

Plus there's the risk of clogging/contaminating the burners as well.
 
My dad's used a gas grill for probably close to 30 years and I certainly understand the convenience.  I'm fortunate in that my work day ends at 3pm so I usually have plenty of time to light charcoal for a weeknight meal, and I have an old garage that allows me to use charcoal year-round.
 
Brad

also, Field, don't forget the veggies--we're fond of adding zucchini cut in half, and big crosswise slices of whole pineapple, brushed with some olive oil and balsamic vinegar, off to the cool side when we're doing pork chops or chicken--deeeelicious.

Well, I have to admit that nothing like Ribdog's prize-winning pulled pork will ever be produced on a propane grill...

Cheers, John 

Brother Bear

Don't let the charcoal nuts ruin your propane high.  I have both charcoal and propane and stick burners (smokers).

I love the quickness of propane for those moments when I dont have the time to set up the charcoal grill.

It was mentioned above but a cast iron "smoker box" is a good thing to have, you can put your wood chips in there and create a smoke for your foods.

There is an episode of King of the Hill where Peggy and Bobby try an charcoal burger and fall in love with the flavor.  Your post made me smile.

There is a difference between the charcoal and propane, but with experimenting (eating 8^) ) you become more and more comfortable with the use of the new grill and your family will be happy.

Brother Bear - Happy Grilling

Now get out there and "trick out lady propane" and use your "propane and propane accessories"

" is there anything propane can't do "
                                                         Hank Hill

BLASPHEMY, SACRILEGIOUS  trading a Weber charcoal grill for propane??? What demon captured you???? Ohh woe is me.

Oh well, have fun.

 When I lived in AZ I had both a New Braunsfeld smoker and a propane grill. I used the propane when the weather was inclement or just to cook burgers and dogs. For ribs and pork shoulder I always used the smoker. I like Beer Butt Chicken alot and used both methods to great success. The smoked version was the obvious winner in my house. I used liquid smoke when using the propane grill to add a little smoke flavor to steaks, pork chops, and other meats. I tried to use wood chips in the thing but I found that they burned away too fast even when soaking with beer. I had a diamond grate with lava rock to help diffuse the heat and to keep down the flaring that can sometimes occur with propane grills. 'Gotta change those when they get too ashy! They also help to get a little smoke flavor into whatever you are cooking as they will absorb the grease and cause smoke to form.

  Alas,   I had to sell both the smoker and the grill prior to moving to Alaska as shipping is so darned expensive. I guess I will have to invest in one or the other or both before too long.

JMHO

David O.