Jessy's Weber Grilling Adventures

jzuzphreek · Jun 30, 2015

troy said:
The "Rockwood" you are using looks like lump charcoal to me. I love the stuff it responds very quickly to air this can be both a blessing and a curse. It dose have a bit of a learning curve.

When doing lots of small thing that need flipped always leave yourself a cool zone either by putting all the coals to one side or leaving room around the edges.

If you are going to have the lid off for long close the bottom vent first. Try to work fast and get the lid back on asap or you will have a rager.

If you are going for a slow and low the bottom vent is your best friend do most your adjustments here. Only close the top vent if closing the bottom doesn't get you cool enough. By doing it this way you are choking off the intake and letting the exhaust take care of itself.

Also when done close both vents you will be amazed how fast lump goes out and how much charcoal you will have left for next time.

Lump is great for steak and potatoes because you can load up your grill with charcoal and keep it choked down for an hour or so while you do potatoes at a medium heat. when they are soft just open bottom vent pull the lid for a few minutes and you have your rager ready to sear the steaks.

Hope this helps and enjoy your grill Webbers really are the best grill you can buy IMHO.

jjking54 said:
Excellent info here ... I've moved strictly to lump (Royal Oak) with my Weber and I love it for the reasons listed above. You can get a ripping fire going in no time, but with proper vent management, you can tame it completely. Plus, when it's shut down there's always charcoal left for next time. I was a die hard Kingsford guy for a long time, until I got my first smoker and switched to Royal Oak. Haven't bought Kingsford since.

As was stated, trial and error.

I dropped the top of my Weber the other day while grilling, and when I put it back on top of the grill it was caved in. I was mortified! A couple of well placed whaps with a rubber mallet and it was back to normal, good as new.

The Rockwood is one of the "Highly Recommended" lump charcoals on the Charcoal Database.

Sounds like the thing that will help me most immediately is establishing a "cool zone." I have noticed that by choking the grill (closing both vents), upon completion of the food, the coals are quickly extinguished, and I've been able to reuse them. The temperature, burn time, and low ash production of this brand of charcoal seem to be the impetus behind its high rankings. It is beastly to light and come to temperature though, and the review helped validate my experience.

jjking54 · Jun 30, 2015

+1 on the cool zone ... it'll make a big difference

troy · Jun 30, 2015

I dropped the top of my Weber the other day while grilling, and when I put it back on top of the grill it was caved in. I was mortified! A couple of well placed whaps with a rubber mallet and it was back to normal, good as new.

[/QUOTE]

When I first got mine 4 or 5 years ago for Fathers Day. The wind blew it over less than two weeks after getting it. It smashed the handle on the lid over until it was almost touching the top. I was pretty upset. I used two pairs of pliers to straighten it as best I could without breaking the spot welds. Now I just look at it as character. If the handle was straight I probably wouldn't know how to grab it anymore.

oc_in_fw · Jun 30, 2015

jzuzphreek said:
1) For my first few sessions, I used WAY too much charcoal!!

You will get the hang of it pretty quick. If I can do it, any one can.

jzuzphreek · Jul 8, 2015

I think I'm getting the hang of this. I definitely think I should have gotten the bigger chimney, because once my coals are heated, there aren't very many of them, so I have to add more. Then I have to wait a bit longer for those coals to start. But the cool side definitely worked like a charm for these 2 ribeye and 1 t-bone! I think I should have used a little more charcoal though, because I didn't get a good char. I started with the cool side to bring the meat close to done (internal temp about 10 degrees cooler than medium), then moved them over to the hot spot to char. But they didn't develop a good crust, and they went over temp by about 5-10 degrees. They were still tasty, and the fat in the Ribeye melted in my mouth with a delicious flavor (only used S&P to season).

Lesson learned: Hotter Hot Spot, less time on cool side

garyg · Jul 8, 2015

If you want a real good sear try the Caveman Method of cooking steaks ..

jzuzphreek · Jul 8, 2015

garyg said:
If you want a real good sear try the Caveman Method of cooking steaks ..

View attachment 585175

soccerguy83 · Jul 8, 2015

A close method to that, which I have not tried is to get your chimney raging, then put your grate on top of the chimney with the steaks directly over the coals. Go maillard reaction go!

oc_in_fw · Jul 8, 2015

Put some unlit coals on the bottom, then the lit coals on top. Once the top coals are expended, the bottom will be lit. I have the large Weber chimney, but if I am cooking a lot of meat this is what I do. It works well.

Rockminer · Jul 8, 2015

soccerguy83 said:
A close method to that, which I have not tried is to get your chimney raging, then put your grate on top of the chimney with the steaks directly over the coals. Go maillard reaction go!

I already have the small chimney, but I'm considering getting the large one just for high heat cooking small meals.

troy · Jul 10, 2015

Hay Jessy, glad to see things are going better. I sear first that way if it isn't developing the color fast enough I'm not overcooking it and finish on the cool side if I feel it needs it. Or if it is for my wife I just burn it beyond recognition. :lol:

She doesn't want to see even a hint of pink . Yea you could have used a little more charcoal for three big steaks like that, but it looks like your off to a good start. You just need a little more time develop you own techniques. May you have a long delicious road to that perfect steak.

BigJ · Jul 10, 2015

I have a plastic container near my old Weber. Works fine (and I live in Seattle.)

DoctorShavegood · Aug 4, 2015

What happened to all that grillin' that was supposed be going on. Throw us a bone will ya?

...T-Bone works for me.

jzuzphreek · Aug 4, 2015

DoctorShavegood said:
What happened to all that grillin' that was supposed be going on. Throw us a bone will ya?

...T-Bone works for me.

Hey, give me a break! I get home from work after 6. So by the time the grill is hot and ready, so's the family. No time for pictures and chit-chat!

DoctorShavegood · Aug 4, 2015

jzuzphreek said:
Hey, give me a break! I get home from work after 6. So by the time the grill is hot and ready, so's the family. No time for pictures and chit-chat!

Your priorities are all wrong. :a7:

jzuzphreek · Aug 4, 2015

DoctorShavegood said:
Your priorities are all wrong.

Torky · Aug 8, 2015

Hi gents, just wanted to chime in and share the best grilling tip I've come across this summer. Rather than using newspaper (and more newspaper and more newspaper) to start my chimney, I just place it over the side burner on my gas grill and turn it on. It's clean, it's easy and it gets the charcoal going in about a minute. Cheers!

jzuzphreek · Aug 8, 2015

Brilliant!

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