Lol! ... I was this far from posting my previous message spelling "thongs" instead of "tongs" ... thank God I googled the word before I posted the message ... I would've never heard the end of it ...

 

You wore a thong while grilling? Oh My...

 

I see the Webber was used for this culinary exercise. So here I am 8:45 AM salivating. Things look absolutely perfect and I also like using natural lump charcoal. The meat cooking on the bed of veggies is great. Hope the new grill with lighting is coming along well.

Ron

 

Here's the end result after 3 hours. The veggie bed and cover made a 300% difference in texture and flavor.

Have you tried using indirect heat for things that you want to cook slowly? I do that when I grill whole pork tenderloins, tri tip roasts, prime rib, whole chickens/turkey.

There's a rotisserie attachment for 22" grills that also lets you do pizza. I still haven't dialed in the heat for pizza. The first time I used direct heat and I added wood to get the temperature up to around 700F (that they recommended). That scorched the crust (a lot), but it was crisp on the bottom and chewy. The next time I used indirect heat without wood and it didn't get hot enough for the crust to rise. Next time, I'm going to try direct heat with no wood.

 

Have you tried using indirect heat for things that you want to cook slowly? I do that when I grill whole pork tenderloins, tri tip roasts, prime rib, whole chickens/turkey.

I do, slow and low on the Webber adding wood chips I soak overnight. Great for briskets in addition to what you mentioned. Also have developed a love affair with the tri tip cuts.

Ron

 

Have you tried using indirect heat for things that you want to cook slowly? I do that when I grill whole pork tenderloins, tri tip roasts, prime rib, whole chickens/turkey.

There's a rotisserie attachment for 22" grills that also lets you do pizza. I still haven't dialed in the heat for pizza. The first time I used direct heat and I added wood to get the temperature up to around 700F (that they recommended). That scorched the crust (a lot), but it was crisp on the bottom and chewy. The next time I used indirect heat without wood and it didn't get hot enough for the crust to rise. Next time, I'm going to try direct heat with no wood.

I did use indirect heat for this last exercise ... maybe it doesn't show clearly in the pics, but only half the grill was covered in charcoal. The thing is that my webber is too small for comfort, but it does the job. I'm going to try this again once I finish setting up my new grill ... with internal lighting and all

 

Also have developed a love affair with the tri tip cuts.

Best kind of relationship ever ... those cuts will love you back if you do them well...

 

Here's the most important thing I learned from this last experiment:

The thick, uniform bed of veggies made all the difference at keeping the meat moist and protected from direct heat.... that's a technique that I'm going to definitely use again soon. BUT ... the few veggies that I placed on top of it came out beyond delicious. They were so good in fact, that the wife complained that she hardly got enough of the slices of red bell pepper (those were the best, by far ... I was a bit surprised to learn) to accompany the meal ... she really did enjoy them. The reason there weren't enough is that I gave preference to the bed of veggies and used the leftovers for the top ... I should've payed more attention to that.

So, the next time I'm going to use the same amount of veggies for the bed, but I'm going to literally bury the meat under a thick blanket of much more vegetables.. that should work even better for the meat, plus it'll yield a generous amount of sides to enjoy.

It the end, the veggies used for the bed were inedible because they became carbonized, but the ones at the top were in excellent shape. I used onions, red bell pepper, and poblano peppers... all sliced into disks, btw. The meat was seasoned with traditional northern seasoning, and generously splashed with red wine vinegar on both sides prior to grilling. Grilling time: 3 hours at medium-high heat. But this is because the meat was right out from the butcher frozen and I didn't take the time to properly thaw it. For well thawed meat I'd probably grill it for 2-1/2 hrs. No more than that.

 

Bro in Law just got him self a Teppanyaki grill, Very nice, ala The Keg Restaurant .

 

But this is because the meat was right out from the butcher frozen and I didn't take the time to properly thaw it.

Several times I have started with frozen meat and it seems when watched the meat retains quite a bit of its natural juices making for very flavorful. With veggies I try to have them give up their natural sugars and caramelize which looks like what you have. Good stuff!

Ron

 

Bro in Law just got him self a Teppanyaki grill, Very nice, ala The Keg Restaurant .

Son who is a grill fanatic has been trying to convince me I need a

Compare

Traeger Ironwood 885 Wood Pellet WiFi Grill and Smoker Black

WiFi? Trying to convince myself I need a grill like that isn't easy. Why do I need WiFi on a grill? I generally just buy a Webber Kettle and use it till it wears out and replace it with the same. I can buy quite a few for what that pellet grill cost, quite a few.

Ron

 

Ok ... here we go again, perfecting the Short Rib recipe-technique.

This time I used cactus leaves as the primary "heat insulator" for the bed on which the meat rests on the grill. Cactus leaves have a high moisture content and are a solid heat shield when compared with the use of onion slices, and there should be better results. Also, last time I forgot to rub the meat with a little olive oil right after seasoning. That should also be of help.

Finally, I kept my promise to my wife and this time I literally buried the meat under a pile of veggies ... last time they were absolutely delicious, but there were too little of them!

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What can I say ... it was a complete success! ... everything turned out absolutely perfect! And it was a delightful evening with the best possible company. This has been one worthy of the grilling history books.

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And here's an interesting observation. The onions, which were cut in rings, turned green after being grilled-baked on top of the cactus leaves!

 

And here's an interesting observation. The onions, which were cut in rings, turned green after being grilled-baked on top of the cactus leaves!

So, the Cactus isn’t included in the dish contents, Right? I have a cactus with all the juices and flavor thrown out or can it be a source for other uses? I’m mean soup or other. Just asking?

kv

 

Just let me run out and grab a few cactus leaves. Oh wait, there are none. I do have a few feet of snow though.

Ron

 

Here goes the same technique I used last week. But this time with Rib Eye Ribs instead of Short Ribs. I bought so much meat (5 Kg, about 11 lbs) that I had to place it on two layers on my not so large Webber kettle grill . So I separated the two layers with more veggies and onion rings. So far (about 2-1/2 hours since I started the fire) it smells absolutely delicious.

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Notice the juices that have been dripping on the tray. I plan to filter them and keep them frozen for a while. And use them to make some rice or soup in the near future.

 

Notice the juices that have been dripping on the tray. I plan to filter them and keep them frozen for a while. And use them to make some rice or soup in the near future.

Have you considered using a pan to catch drippings? That's what I do for chickens and turkeys. I put the coals on two sides of the grill (using commercial holders) with the drip pan in the center. If I'm not interested in the drippings, I just use a couple pie tins to keep them from fouling my ash catcher. I have the one-touch variant with the ash catcher.

 

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Such a sacrilege. Where is the cool red center. That poor piece of beef.

Ron