Derrick's Barbecues & Grilling Blog

We've been over it dozens of times, but it is still worth talking about. The word "Barbecue" might just be one of the most abused words in the language. For some it's a piece of equipment, like a barbecue grill. For others it is a flavor, like barbecue chips or barbecue sauce. Still others maintain that it is an event. Well the real truth about language is that the meaning of a word is what most people say it is. If one of these meanings takes hold that will ultimately be the really, true meaning of Barbecue. So to see where we stand this weeks question is:

POLL: What does "barbecue" mean to you?
1) A Type of Food
2) An Event, Like a Cookout
3) A Flavor, Like "Barbecue" Sauce
4) A Piece of Cooking Equipment, Like a Grill
5) A Process of Cooking
6) All of the Above
7) Other (Please Specify in the Comments)

Photo © 2008 Derrick Riches, licensed to About.com, Inc.

For years the Swiss company OutdoorChef has been working to get their grills into the U.S. market. These popular European grills have a huge following virtually everywhere except in the States. I've been a fan of these grills for a long time now but I had the advantage of getting a few models sent to me directly including the portable OutdoorChef City Grill and the full sized OutdoorChef Roma. In the future more models will be added to the line up, but for those of you interested you can now go to the OutdoorChef USA for more information.

Photo © 2008 Advanced Outdoor Concepts, Inc.

Fiesta Gas Grills is issuing a safety notice for its Blue Ember FG50069-U409 Gas Grill. This is not a recall and there isn't necessarily a problem with the grill, however, there may be an assembly error that can cause a gas leak. The fuel line that feeds the main burners needs to be placed right or it may melt and cause a gas leak. Check with information on the Fiesta Website if you have this grill to make sure yours is put together correctly.

Photo © 2008 Fiesta Gas Grills

Pineapple on the grill is one of the best taste treats you are likely to get your hands on. Soak slices of fresh pineapple in some rum, cinnamon or whatever you like for a few hours and then throw them on the grill. These are truly one of the favorites. As little as thirty minutes in the rum will get the flavor into the pineapple. If you really want to put some kick in them though, try soaking the pineapple overnight. Watch this video to learn how to grill pineapple.

The Mexican Steak is more than just a great steak, it is the beginning of a great meal. By marinating and seasoning steaks for the grill you have everything you need for everything from Fajitas to Carne Asada.

Seafood from shrimp to whole lobster is perfect for the grill. Hot and fast is the way to cook these items. Load them up with flavorful marinades and you can't go wrong with seafood and shellfish. These seafood recipes are the best and most popular on my site. These will give you endless ways to prepare all kinds of seafood to please anyone.

Photo © 2008 Regarding BBQ Inc., licensed to About.com, Inc.

Last weeks mail brought me a bottle of Merken. This is a Chilean specialty spice blend made from smoked aji cacho de cabra (or goat's horn peppers) and other spices like coriander seeds, cumin and salt. This mildly hot spice is THE flavor of Chile and is now being imported to the United States. I've tried this out on chicken and pork (and this mornings eggs) and really like it. The combination of the unique pepper flavor and the cumin gives this a really smokey flavor that is perfect on grilled foods. If you get the chance I encourage you to pick up a bottle and give it a try. If you like it there is also a Merken flavored olive oil called Kultrun and is also very good. You can order this spice at:

www.chileangourmet.cl.

Photo © 2008 Chilean Gourmet

I did up a couple of beer can chickens recently. This is a great way to make a chicken that everyone loves. Moist and tender this chicken is always perfect. Anyway I was playing around with different beers and got thinking about which beer was best. (Check out the beer forum for further discussion.) So after a little research it got even worse. Wine, crab boil, oil and vinegar marinades, tequila all end up in that birds . . . end. Along with loads of spices and herbs is the magic liquid that makes your beer can chicken better than everyone elses. I know that a lot of people who pop in here have done beer can chickens and certainly know what they are talking about so I thought I would throw out this question this week:

POLL: What do you put in your beer can chicken?
1) Ale
2) Cheap Beer (you know, beer)
3) Crab Boil
4) Hefeweizen
5) Lager
6) Pilsner
7) Stout
8) Water with seasonings
9) Wine
10) Other (Please Specify in the Comments)

Photo © 2008 Regarding BBQ Inc., licensed to About.com, Inc.

Last Month I told you about the Perfect Flame GAC3615 Recall. The official recall lists select unit of this grill depending on their production date. Lucas Innovation maintains that the design of the grill was good, but that some, units were manufactured with bad materials. Now Emily Sinovic of Fox 23 in Tulsa who has been the driving force behind this story reports that Consumer Reports is investigating other models of the Perfect Flame Grills for similar problems. Emily has been reporting fires connected with Perfect Flame grills not affected by the recall.

In addition, Lowes has pulled all of the model GAC3615 Perfect Flame grills even though not all units have been recalled. One Lowes store manager says this is a precaution and that Lowes is waiting to see if all the Perfect Flame 4-Burner 2-Lid Grills end up being recalled. This is one recall that might be a work in progress.

It's been two weeks and I've spend a lot of time cooking on and testing out my Char-Broil Red 3-Burner. What I have to say is that this grill cooks very well. It heats up quickly, gives an even heat, and produces good food. You may have to get used to the differences in the way this grill works but a few tries and you won't have a minutes trouble. The trouble is going to come later. In the last two weeks I have cooked on this grill 10 times. I heated it up to high temperature every day. I would say that I put it through the kind of use that the average person would in perhaps two months. In this time the porcelain coating on the U-Emitter (trough) component has begun flaking off (see the picture). There are about four dozen holes in the porcelain now and several are showing signs of rust. Normally I would suggest a coating of oil on the metal to reduce rust development but the U-emitter gets so hot that it burns off all oil. Other people have reported this same problems and for those who have had this grill for several months the problem is more pronounced. I would assume that for most people replacement of the U-emitters will be needed well within the two year warranty period for parts on this grill. Under warranty the parts will cost you $8 shipping. Without the warranty the U-emitter runs $40 a piece.

The other issue that I have noticed is the nature of this grill's flare-ups. The RED doesn't produce flare-ups often, but under the right circumstances it can make for a pretty good fire. Since nothing drains from the U-emitter if you are grilling fatty foods at a low temperature (for example beef ribs) the grease will build up and pool in the U-emitter until the grill is turned to a higher temperature. I did up several pounds of beef ribs and once they were off, turned the grill to clean. With more than a cup of beef fat in the grill the grease caught fire and drove the grill temperature off the scale of the thermometer (reaching over 900 degrees F.). While this didn't damage the grill it did make a pretty good mess.

Functionally this is a good grill. Obviously, however the U-emitter simply can not withstand the intense heat focused on it to create the infrared heat that is this grills claim to fame. I will continue testing this grill out for the next few weeks and let you know more of my findings.

Photo © 2008 Regarding BBQ Inc, licensed to About.com, Inc.