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Starting the fire is half the fun. I would get a traditional one, and for all the reasons you mentioned above.
Just gotta new house and this is the one thing that I need. People say that gas grill's aren't the same because you don't get the "smoked" taste like you do with the regular ones. Is this true or is it just in the head? I've tasted food from a gas grill and I think it's pretty damn good. So what do you guys think or recommend? What do you have at your house and what's a good brand and how much should I spend on one? I also seem to find more gas grill's more than anything when I go looking, so these must be the in things. I would also think that gas grills are cleaner and more faster to get things going, since you don't have to light the charcol and wait for it to get going and all that stuff. Also, which would be cheaper in the long run.....a gas one or non gas one? Thanks guys.
Starting the fire is half the fun. I would get a traditional one, and for all the reasons you mentioned above.
Depends on what you want and how much you want to spend. Gas grills will be more expensive up front and you can't do cool little things like incorporate mesquite wood into the grilling, but they will be faster and easier on the days you grill. They will also be cheaper after the initial cost because a tank of propane will last you a bit and you don't have to keep buying charcoal or wood every time you want to grill.
If you have a refined taste for wood or coal smoked food and don't mind a little extra prep time then go with a coal or wood grill. If you value ease of use and quick time on grilling days then go with a gas grill.
Also, keep in mind that a gas grill will take a bit of time to get assembled based on the model and how adept you are at putting things together. I bought a Chargrill while in college that had a ton of little pieces and took 2 1/2 hours to put together and I recently bought a bigger Brinkman that took 30 minutes to assemble. If you want to know what I did, I basically did both. I bought a gas grill for days where I just want to get it going quickly to make hamburgers or hotdogs, and I also built a brick wood/coal burning pit from scratch that I use when I want to really get a good flavor for my filet mignons/ribs/other various steaks.
Don;t ever let Hank Hill see this thread.... Propane is God's gas...
i say old school...im sure z would say the same. i think its a south side thing. jes tastes better to us, plus theres the whole "i can do this old school" thing....
meh...maybe its jes me...
infared is the way to go. perfect sear every time. , just get a badass gas grill with one infared burner, and a cheap charcoal grill if you want to use it occasionally. you can get just as much smoke flavor with a foil pouch on one side of the grill.
...get a gas grill and build a smoker...
both. i have a gas, 2 old schools, a table top and a smoker...you can never have too many meat grilling apparatuses
The smokey flavour comes mostly from the dripping fat burning. Something you get in any barbecue.
I bought my first gas grill 15 years ago when a guy I know imported a truck full of them from Canada and then couldn't sell them because nobody used those back in the days. I was intrigued why most people in America use barbecues with a cover (something that we didn't do) and learned to use it (I also bought it at a ridiculously low price
I destroyed that grill because we used it so much. The reason is very simple you can have a barbecue anytime you want one and the whole thing is cleaned up very easily 10 minutes after you stopped using it. The results are in many ways better than what I used to get from a charcoal grill (I think because there's very little variation from one grilling to the other, so you're improving your grilling skills). Since this type of barbecues are still not the norm over here people get surprised a lot when I show them how I do it - nobody has ever suspected that the food came from a different (non charcoal) barbecue.
The main problem was that when I burned a few additional holes in the gas burner (after more than 10 years of use) I couldn't get spare parts for it. So I bought a new gas barbecue and did my homework. Form the top brands the only one who has spare parts readily available in Europe is Weber. It turned out to be an excellent choice. Grilling is a breeze and cleaning it couldn't be simpler. For European taste they are a bit pricey (they're 30% more expensive than in the US), but if you factor in the usage you get out of them over many years they are well worth it (and are becoming really popular over here).
According to this website it's also one of the most popular brands in the US.
IMO it all boils down to how often you're going to use the grill. If you're going to use it to cook dinner and what not, I'd go with the gas grill. Simply because it much more faster and easier to clean then the charcoal. But if you're only going to grill on occasion then go with the charcoal.
gas grills are for 's. End of discussion.
So...
How many do you have?
I'd get what ever YOU want.
I am about as un- as it gets and I have a Weber gas grill at the house...If you work and want to grill after work ( I grill 3-4 times a week in the summer) thats the only way to go. if you want smoke then wrap wet shavings up in foil like a giant doobie, punch holes in it, and put it right on the burner...
I only cook with wood and charcoal. I use an offset smoker and indirectly cook 90% of what goes on the grill. You can get a nice offset with smoke box for as little as 300 bucks. I can point you in the right direction if you want to go wood and charcoal. I will never use gas for anything. Its not same brisket done with gas as a nice 12 pounder that took 19 hours to slow smoke to perfection using mesquite, pecan and some coal. I can point you in the right direction for charcoal too.
I grill/smoke three times a week if you need easy recipes as well.
The key to gas grilling is learning. I used to be big time anti-gas grill but I have both and I've made some damn fine briskets using gas. But is really ones preference. During the colder times I fire up the gas grill but I also enjoy the old Webber charcoal grill.
kingsferd's got better flaver
I actually recommend Ranchers from Home Depot. Seasonal so buy a lot when you can find it. Burns hotter with less chunks and it produces about half of the ash as Kingsford so it much easier to clean up. The best part is the cost. 2.99 a bag for the huge bag. I think the big bag of Kingsford is 8 bucks. I highly recommend this stuff.
Ranchers, eh? what seaon are they available?
I have never gotten a direct answer from them. I typically find it in the Summer time. Its a big brown bag with red lettering. For some reason they don't want to carry it full time. I have a number somewhere if I can still find it to the President of Ranchers. He'll ship you the charcoal anywhere I've just been too lazy to get it done. I've used a lot of different in my time and its the best I've had short of actual coal chunks. I went from feeding my fire every 2 and half hours to maintain a consistant 225 to only feeding it every 4-5 hours. I used less than half a bag for a 20 hour smoke. I couldn't believe it.
damn thats crazy, i'll have to give it a try. That is one thing I hate about the charcoal i use. By the time the coals are perfect to grill over they only have about 20-30 minutes worth of good heat left.
regular grill charcoal is the best way to go!!!
men build a fire.
you want quick start and easy cleanup? stay in the kitchen!
Method of lighting can make a difference too. I put down coals in a circular bed first.I put additional coals in a chimney starter and when its ready I dump the lit coals in the center of the large bed of unlit coals. So as the lit coals burn they slowly ignite the unlit coals in an outward motion thus keeping your fire going longer. Then add small handfuls to the center of the pile as needed.
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