You can't beat wood

You can’t beat wood

I thought that would get your attention. But this thread is about the manly art of grilling. No doubt, the women have the kitchen cornered. But the grill is, or should be, the man’s domain. I will no doubt rile some quills here, but in my opinion, grilling is an evolutionary process. I will begin at the bottom of the food chain, those who use gas and go from there.

We, as men, enter the realm of grilling as a youth. Quick and easy is the rule. To the untrained youth, gas seems the way to go. No mess, you turn a switch and there is fire to cook with. As the years go by and we become lazy, this mundane means of cooking often creeps into some people’s psyche. But, gas does not compliment meat. Do not ask me to explain this, those with a lot of grey hairs know this. Meat will cook on gas, but it imparts no flavor other than that of burnt carbon to the meat, so I will start there.

1. Gas. You turn a switch and there is fire. The meat cooks. It tastes a little better than pan fried, but that is it.

2. Charcoal, the next step in the evolution of becoming a master griller. Lay them out, squirt on some starter, you learn just how much as time goes by, then light it and wait until the coals are covered with ash and hot. You hold your hand over the grill where the meat will be and count, “One thousand and one, one thousand and two, one thousand and three.” If you have to yank your hand away at three, the coals are ready. The coals compliment the meat, they are both, coals and gas natural substances, but the coals bring out the flovor in meat. Weird, isn’t it? Both are just means of heat but meat cooked over coals tastes better than gas, go figure.

3. Charcoal with soaked wood chips. After a while, we men learn that certain wood, soaked in water so that it smokes rather than burns, 9imparts great flavors into the meat. You smell it, it permeates the meat with the flavor of hickory, mesquite or oak. The two sensations merge and become one. You think that you have mastered the grill. Then you move forward.

4. Wood. You buy a big pit with a wood chest off to the side, the end. The fire is no longer directly under the meat. It rolls forth and you learn to control the temperature by minute adjustments of the damper and the flue. You can slow cook it for hours, imparting the delicate flavor of the wood of your choice. Ribs become so tender, you can simply pull the bone out. Brisket is a moist sensation. As the years go by, you become the master of the grill. A small accomplishment really, but dammit man, you can’t beat wood.

I have to agree but sometimes I like cooking with gas because I would rather grill outside and I just don't have allot of time. So this year I bought one of those dual grills. One side is gas, the other charcoal. As far as flavor, the charcoal grill beats gas hands down. Some meats like steak are best over direct heat, others are best over indirect heat. I start my coals in a starter and when ready put them in the grill to one side. I have my smoking chips soaking and ready to go. My ribs are already seasoned and when the pit is ready, I put them on and add some chips. I also add some links to the grill. If I get hungry along the way, I just pull a link off and have a snack.

The other day I spotted some salmon patties at the the fish counter in the store. These patties were made with salmon, Gouda, onion, and other stuff. Something like that had to go on charcoal, not gas. So I fired her up and grilled them. Talk about good and a change of pace. While I was at it, I grilled some asparagus. I wasn't a fan of asparagus until I grilled them. Now I'm getting hungry. Maybe next weekend I'll grill some chicken. (and links)

Do you'll take orders and deliver?????

I have a gas grill and a real smoker and really like both. Gas cannot compete with wood for taste. But, you can't beat gas for speed and ease of cleanup. And, I actually like hotdogs and pork chops better cooked on gas. I've never been a charcoal fan. When I eat stuff that's cooked on charcoal I often get indigestion.

I'm going to try cooking fish on a cedar plank soon. I've had it before and damn it's good.

Oooh, that is very good Ditch. Delicious.