Discussion
The taste is not noticibly different - so says science. Order a very expensive steak at a very expensive restaurant - think they grilled it with gas or charcoal? The fact we live in the UK has some bearing too - me and the OH don't get home till after 6 most nights - the ease of sparking up the gas grill for simple, impromptu things like burgers is hard not to like.
The only real advantage that charcoal has over gas is that you can get it far hotter for things like searing - to do the same with a gas grill you need some sort of sear burner arrangement, which my Outback doesn't have and you need to spend a bit to get one.
For dual zone cooking and indirect heating gas works as well as charcoal (if not better, as the temps are easier to keep constant for a long time - 4-8 hour ribs, without needing to open the lid to change coals is a good thing.) Temperature control is much harder with charcoal for long cooks and I am by no means an expert, I would rather have perfect ribs and fewer man points than a load of man points and old burnt shoeleather on the bone
A good gas BBQ will do the job just as well as a charcoal one - its a bit of a pain having to plug up the vents for smoking, but a few bits of tinfoil do the trick. In an ideal world, you would have both gas and charcoal, but if you only have room for one then gas is the way to go IMO.
The only real advantage that charcoal has over gas is that you can get it far hotter for things like searing - to do the same with a gas grill you need some sort of sear burner arrangement, which my Outback doesn't have and you need to spend a bit to get one.
For dual zone cooking and indirect heating gas works as well as charcoal (if not better, as the temps are easier to keep constant for a long time - 4-8 hour ribs, without needing to open the lid to change coals is a good thing.) Temperature control is much harder with charcoal for long cooks and I am by no means an expert, I would rather have perfect ribs and fewer man points than a load of man points and old burnt shoeleather on the bone
A good gas BBQ will do the job just as well as a charcoal one - its a bit of a pain having to plug up the vents for smoking, but a few bits of tinfoil do the trick. In an ideal world, you would have both gas and charcoal, but if you only have room for one then gas is the way to go IMO.
Parsnip said:
The taste is not noticibly different - so says science. Order a very expensive steak at a very expensive restaurant - think they grilled it with gas or charcoal? The fact we live in the UK has some bearing too - me and the OH don't get home till after 6 most nights - the ease of sparking up the gas grill for simple, impromptu things like burgers is hard not to like.
The only real advantage that charcoal has over gas is that you can get it far hotter for things like searing - to do the same with a gas grill you need some sort of sear burner arrangement, which my Outback doesn't have and you need to spend a bit to get one.
For dual zone cooking and indirect heating gas works as well as charcoal (if not better, as the temps are easier to keep constant for a long time - 4-8 hour ribs, without needing to open the lid to change coals is a good thing.) Temperature control is much harder with charcoal for long cooks and I am by no means an expert, I would rather have perfect ribs and fewer man points than a load of man points and old burnt shoeleather on the bone
A good gas BBQ will do the job just as well as a charcoal one - its a bit of a pain having to plug up the vents for smoking, but a few bits of tinfoil do the trick. In an ideal world, you would have both gas and charcoal, but if you only have room for one then gas is the way to go IMO.
On nearly every rational and practical level a Kindle is 'better' than a book.The only real advantage that charcoal has over gas is that you can get it far hotter for things like searing - to do the same with a gas grill you need some sort of sear burner arrangement, which my Outback doesn't have and you need to spend a bit to get one.
For dual zone cooking and indirect heating gas works as well as charcoal (if not better, as the temps are easier to keep constant for a long time - 4-8 hour ribs, without needing to open the lid to change coals is a good thing.) Temperature control is much harder with charcoal for long cooks and I am by no means an expert, I would rather have perfect ribs and fewer man points than a load of man points and old burnt shoeleather on the bone
A good gas BBQ will do the job just as well as a charcoal one - its a bit of a pain having to plug up the vents for smoking, but a few bits of tinfoil do the trick. In an ideal world, you would have both gas and charcoal, but if you only have room for one then gas is the way to go IMO.
I still prefer books.
DoubleSix said:
Parsnip said:
The taste is not noticibly different - so says science. Order a very expensive steak at a very expensive restaurant - think they grilled it with gas or charcoal? The fact we live in the UK has some bearing too - me and the OH don't get home till after 6 most nights - the ease of sparking up the gas grill for simple, impromptu things like burgers is hard not to like.
The only real advantage that charcoal has over gas is that you can get it far hotter for things like searing - to do the same with a gas grill you need some sort of sear burner arrangement, which my Outback doesn't have and you need to spend a bit to get one.
For dual zone cooking and indirect heating gas works as well as charcoal (if not better, as the temps are easier to keep constant for a long time - 4-8 hour ribs, without needing to open the lid to change coals is a good thing.) Temperature control is much harder with charcoal for long cooks and I am by no means an expert, I would rather have perfect ribs and fewer man points than a load of man points and old burnt shoeleather on the bone
A good gas BBQ will do the job just as well as a charcoal one - its a bit of a pain having to plug up the vents for smoking, but a few bits of tinfoil do the trick. In an ideal world, you would have both gas and charcoal, but if you only have room for one then gas is the way to go IMO.
On nearly every rational and practical level a Kindle is 'better' than a book.The only real advantage that charcoal has over gas is that you can get it far hotter for things like searing - to do the same with a gas grill you need some sort of sear burner arrangement, which my Outback doesn't have and you need to spend a bit to get one.
For dual zone cooking and indirect heating gas works as well as charcoal (if not better, as the temps are easier to keep constant for a long time - 4-8 hour ribs, without needing to open the lid to change coals is a good thing.) Temperature control is much harder with charcoal for long cooks and I am by no means an expert, I would rather have perfect ribs and fewer man points than a load of man points and old burnt shoeleather on the bone
A good gas BBQ will do the job just as well as a charcoal one - its a bit of a pain having to plug up the vents for smoking, but a few bits of tinfoil do the trick. In an ideal world, you would have both gas and charcoal, but if you only have room for one then gas is the way to go IMO.
I still prefer books.
RichB said:
DoubleSix said:
Parsnip said:
The taste is not noticibly different - so says science. Order a very expensive steak at a very expensive restaurant - think they grilled it with gas or charcoal? The fact we live in the UK has some bearing too - me and the OH don't get home till after 6 most nights - the ease of sparking up the gas grill for simple, impromptu things like burgers is hard not to like.
The only real advantage that charcoal has over gas is that you can get it far hotter for things like searing - to do the same with a gas grill you need some sort of sear burner arrangement, which my Outback doesn't have and you need to spend a bit to get one.
For dual zone cooking and indirect heating gas works as well as charcoal (if not better, as the temps are easier to keep constant for a long time - 4-8 hour ribs, without needing to open the lid to change coals is a good thing.) Temperature control is much harder with charcoal for long cooks and I am by no means an expert, I would rather have perfect ribs and fewer man points than a load of man points and old burnt shoeleather on the bone
A good gas BBQ will do the job just as well as a charcoal one - its a bit of a pain having to plug up the vents for smoking, but a few bits of tinfoil do the trick. In an ideal world, you would have both gas and charcoal, but if you only have room for one then gas is the way to go IMO.
On nearly every rational and practical level a Kindle is 'better' than a book.The only real advantage that charcoal has over gas is that you can get it far hotter for things like searing - to do the same with a gas grill you need some sort of sear burner arrangement, which my Outback doesn't have and you need to spend a bit to get one.
For dual zone cooking and indirect heating gas works as well as charcoal (if not better, as the temps are easier to keep constant for a long time - 4-8 hour ribs, without needing to open the lid to change coals is a good thing.) Temperature control is much harder with charcoal for long cooks and I am by no means an expert, I would rather have perfect ribs and fewer man points than a load of man points and old burnt shoeleather on the bone
A good gas BBQ will do the job just as well as a charcoal one - its a bit of a pain having to plug up the vents for smoking, but a few bits of tinfoil do the trick. In an ideal world, you would have both gas and charcoal, but if you only have room for one then gas is the way to go IMO.
I still prefer books.
Paddy_N_Murphy said:
DeuxCentCinq said:
Haven't you all got a grill in the kitchen already?
But there is more to it than that - as above 'Outdoor cooking in the sun' but also I find that searing steaks and alike or cooking certain meats Outside fair of a worry for smoke / smells / vapour etc. Its like cooking and not giving a f
k about clearing up the mess. i.e. Good.
My OH does that last part when cooking inside the house anyway!
Baking powder everywhere, half the cutlery used, somehow 3 pans used to cook some beans, all the sharp knives, 3 chopping boards for the carrots. Not really sure how she manages it, but our kitchen normally looks like we've been cooking a feast for the 5000. The reality however is a bowl of chilli, for two.
DoubleSix said:
RichB said:
DoubleSix said:
Parsnip said:
The taste is not noticibly different - so says science. Order a very expensive steak at a very expensive restaurant - think they grilled it with gas or charcoal? The fact we live in the UK has some bearing too - me and the OH don't get home till after 6 most nights - the ease of sparking up the gas grill for simple, impromptu things like burgers is hard not to like.
The only real advantage that charcoal has over gas is that you can get it far hotter for things like searing - to do the same with a gas grill you need some sort of sear burner arrangement, which my Outback doesn't have and you need to spend a bit to get one.
For dual zone cooking and indirect heating gas works as well as charcoal (if not better, as the temps are easier to keep constant for a long time - 4-8 hour ribs, without needing to open the lid to change coals is a good thing.) Temperature control is much harder with charcoal for long cooks and I am by no means an expert, I would rather have perfect ribs and fewer man points than a load of man points and old burnt shoeleather on the bone
A good gas BBQ will do the job just as well as a charcoal one - its a bit of a pain having to plug up the vents for smoking, but a few bits of tinfoil do the trick. In an ideal world, you would have both gas and charcoal, but if you only have room for one then gas is the way to go IMO.
On nearly every rational and practical level a Kindle is 'better' than a book.The only real advantage that charcoal has over gas is that you can get it far hotter for things like searing - to do the same with a gas grill you need some sort of sear burner arrangement, which my Outback doesn't have and you need to spend a bit to get one.
For dual zone cooking and indirect heating gas works as well as charcoal (if not better, as the temps are easier to keep constant for a long time - 4-8 hour ribs, without needing to open the lid to change coals is a good thing.) Temperature control is much harder with charcoal for long cooks and I am by no means an expert, I would rather have perfect ribs and fewer man points than a load of man points and old burnt shoeleather on the bone
A good gas BBQ will do the job just as well as a charcoal one - its a bit of a pain having to plug up the vents for smoking, but a few bits of tinfoil do the trick. In an ideal world, you would have both gas and charcoal, but if you only have room for one then gas is the way to go IMO.
I still prefer books.
As for BBQ's, if you can have both (heck, throw a smoker in for good measure) then go for it - best of both worlds. If you can only have one - the ease of a gas BBQ and the fact you aren't really losing out on anything makes it a no-brainer in my opinion.
Burwood said:
I'm changing to charcoal because where I live they charge 25 notes for a crappy bottle that lasts two bbqs and the supplier is such a miserable soda if I had mains gas I get it plumbed to the BBQ
Gas will never taste as good as a charcoal either
Go to a local hire shop and get a proper sized bottle, small ones are notoriously expensive. Or http://www.calor.co.uk/shop/gas-bottles.htmlGas will never taste as good as a charcoal either
I've just restocked as was running low, I have 2 x 19kg propane bottles, and around 60kgs of restaurant charcoal after last weeks shopping trip - always need a back-up plan.
fredt said:
The manlyness is getting boring now, certainly is not manly to do what you mates says is cool.
For day to day grilling of burger, sausages, steak etc there is no one out there that can taste a difference between gas or charcoal grilled. As has been alluded to (and is fairly obvious) is that the charcoal gives of feck all smoke hence gives feck all flavor.
I often have the gas running next to charcoal and can organize a blind test, as I have to many non believers. I will put a wedge of cash on that you could NOT taste the difference on steak/burger/sausage/pieceofchicken cooked side by side.
Even with the (getting fekking old and boring now) grilling all day long american style (actually it's hot smoking in my book, not bbq), again your choice of heat source will be largely irrelevant as I understand that everyone is actually using wood chips for smoke generation..
I have and use both. Gas for convenience, charcoal/wood/briquettes because fire is cool!
There must be something up with my taste buds.For day to day grilling of burger, sausages, steak etc there is no one out there that can taste a difference between gas or charcoal grilled. As has been alluded to (and is fairly obvious) is that the charcoal gives of feck all smoke hence gives feck all flavor.
I often have the gas running next to charcoal and can organize a blind test, as I have to many non believers. I will put a wedge of cash on that you could NOT taste the difference on steak/burger/sausage/pieceofchicken cooked side by side.
Even with the (getting fekking old and boring now) grilling all day long american style (actually it's hot smoking in my book, not bbq), again your choice of heat source will be largely irrelevant as I understand that everyone is actually using wood chips for smoke generation..
I have and use both. Gas for convenience, charcoal/wood/briquettes because fire is cool!
I have one of these for about 3 years.
It has the grillsteam rack - which is really good any taking away fat.
And a couple of Webers - I've had for about 20 years.
And you can tell the difference.
Or I can, the wife can etc etc
I use gas for convenience, and the Weber's for when we have more time.
Gas is not a BBQ, it's a hob.
45 gallon drum with multi level racks and a bag of charcoal.
Although this is allowed for obvious reasons.
http://www.hotrodgrills.com/
With the correct accessories
http://www.hotrodgrills.com/HRGSKEWERS.aspx
45 gallon drum with multi level racks and a bag of charcoal.
Although this is allowed for obvious reasons.
http://www.hotrodgrills.com/
With the correct accessories
http://www.hotrodgrills.com/HRGSKEWERS.aspx
roofer said:
Gas is not a BBQ, it's a hob.
45 gallon drum with multi level racks and a bag of charcoal.
Although this is allowed for obvious reasons.
http://www.hotrodgrills.com/
With the correct accessories
http://www.hotrodgrills.com/HRGSKEWERS.aspx
Good fun....Although I'll stick with charcoal Webers/ 45 gallon drum with multi level racks and a bag of charcoal.
Although this is allowed for obvious reasons.
http://www.hotrodgrills.com/
With the correct accessories
http://www.hotrodgrills.com/HRGSKEWERS.aspx
I agree about Broil King, and I think Sterling are also made by the same company.
For gas, must haves are: Cast box and lid, heavy cast iron cooking grills and larva rock that gets cleaned regularly.
Paul Drawmer said:
I've used lava rock gas BBQs for 20 years.
I do burn off the crud on the lava rock every now and then by putting foil on top of the grill and turning gas up high for 1/2 hour. Burns off everything, and works fine.
The last couple I've bought have been cast aluminium boxes with heavy cast iron grids. OMC (Canadian firm) make the Broil King range.
That's what I said on page 1. But the BBQ Q always arouses a lot of passions.I do burn off the crud on the lava rock every now and then by putting foil on top of the grill and turning gas up high for 1/2 hour. Burns off everything, and works fine.
The last couple I've bought have been cast aluminium boxes with heavy cast iron grids. OMC (Canadian firm) make the Broil King range.
For gas, must haves are: Cast box and lid, heavy cast iron cooking grills and larva rock that gets cleaned regularly.
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