A griller's day.

[addicted-to-smoke]

Been doing a bit of this lately: indirectly cooking and without the center grate in place. It's not that I like risking dumping food into charcoal, but I admit it adds an element of "danger". The real reason is, I prefer not to dirty / wear the center grate when I know it's not needed.



This was the first use of the gas-assist on this grill since I bought it last summer. Being new to this, over the last year I'd forgotten as much as I'd researched and fell under the assumption the tank it came with was outdated (couldn't be legally filled) and lacked an OPD valve. In fact, I thought I'd recycled it last year but there it was in the garage. Another look at the date stamp and recognizing the valve ... and I was off to Ace Hardware. Less than $4 later, my "4lb" (their description) tank is full.

Hooked it up, turned it on, and got a nice flame on the first press of the ignition--something that just doesn't seem to happen with my dad's 2006 Performer. His takes 2-3 hits to get going.

What I also got was a hissing sound. Gas turned off, I slathered soapy water on the connections, turned on gas ... but there were no bubbles. I happened to run a finger over the top of the regulator, you know how the cover is "pinched" on? Felt gas in one spot. Pressed down on it to "plug" the leak, the hiss went away and the flame I was running again grew.

Back to the store. Picked up a Benzomatic GRA-100 from Lowe's. http://www.lowes.com/pd_361431-743-GRA-100_0__

My grill came with a replacement tank. Still a Manchester but not the style SS Performers originally came with (they had a flat-side collar). So here it is, with a 1x1" (or is that 2x2"?) square piece of scrap wood wedged in at the top so that the valve lines up with the hole:



The tank is also a little too short, so only the top bracket is holding it. Dunno what to do about that.



After having used "both kinds" of Performer (SS vs. plastic top) I can now say I'm definitively preferring the older design's usage. No more stooping down to twist a little knob that (in my dad's case) sometimes just spins and does nothing. No more horizontally hitting the ignition. Neighbor comes over ... "eh, starting charcoal is just a pain ..." I said, "Really? With this knob and a button press I just lit these used coals 10 minutes ago and it's ready to cook. This thing waits on ME, not the other way around!"


This is why I don't cook outside as often as I'd like: there's always some project in the way.



I'm connecting two decks. (The deck at the top of the image is actually one yard over; that's a neighbor's house.) A couple years ago I resurfaced two back decks with Home Depot's Veranda (capped composite boards) and matching railing. The existing frame was OK and I'll be using its design for the frame I'm no building. That said, my "design" morphed a few times within the first 3 days due to unforeseen challenges and it's slowed me down.

[addicted-to-smoke]

But I did cook outside nonetheless.

Here are 2 beef and 3 chicken kabobs (on sale at store, lean-cut and already skewered with yellow and orange peppers and portobello mushrooms), out of the fridge from a 2-hr marinade of sorts:



And here's what went on them:

For the beef, yellow mustard, blk pepper, Weber Gourmet Burger seasoning, crushed coarse salt.



For the chicken, Italian dressing, amber tequila, white pepper, fajita seasoning, a friend's cocoa spice.



I'd guess it cooked for a good 40 minutes or so, the first part with lid vent half closed and towards the end, full open. There weren't a ton of coals going and so it never got very hot. I generally prefer a slower cook whenever possible because in my youth I stupidly "fried" everything on a grill.

Although I did stick a thermometer into the meats they were so small the readings were variable. But when I started to really smell it through the top vent I knew it was done, and I was right. Meats were tender but not as juicy as I like.

Here's an action shot taken after the first skewer turn:


That's 4 corn cobs in the basement, each sitting on opened-up foil to better catch the char "roast" flavor and sometimes take in some meat/veggie drippings. That worked out really well.

[addicted-to-smoke]

Coda

I've been using Kingsford blue because it's what I have on hand, but I don't think it imparts the same flavor as better charcoal. Seems bland compared to the lump and hardwoods I've used, but that just may be me blaming the equipment.

Overall, I was pleased. Turned out well, despite a few aspects of this cook being new for me. Seems I experiment more than I cook with repeated, trusted methods. Oh well, I guess that means I won't be an expert at any of it anytime soon.

[tb80]

Great post.


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[Johnpv]

How do you keep your cooking grates so damn clean? Cook looks great by the way!

[addicted-to-smoke]

How do you keep your cooking grates so damn clean? Cook looks great by the way!

The grate is new, only about 3-4 cooks on it. The one it came with was missing a large portion of the center for another reason: rust.

But from using the center grate on a previous cook I wiped/scraped it down and popped it in the dishwasher. Didn't actually get all the grease off however.

[pbe gummi bear]

I love this post! Thanks for sharing. As far as fitting your tank is concerned, you look like a handy guy so I assume you have a vise. I would unbolt that tank shelf bracket thing and throw it into a vise. The top portion i would bend up a few degrees so that the weight of the tank makes it fall "down and towards" the bracket. Or bolt/rivet a short piece of an 90 degree angle there.

Then I would bend the bottom part up and in so that it is secure to the bottom lip. It should only take a minute or two. The steel there is really robust so it's very forgiving to tweak. If you don't have a vise, then the bracket can be shaped with a hammer + brick/block of wood. I hope that makes sense.

[addicted-to-smoke]

Thanks, but I haven't looked that closely at it. I wasn't really aware the bracket that supports the tank could unbolt, let alone be bent, adjusted or cajoled. Not sure, but my inclination is to do something like I did up top, wedge a piece of wood somehow. Because I'm inherently lazy. But I've got some scrap metal straps around that are kinda stout, so maybe I'll get on it one day.