RubbinsRacin
Junior2016!!!!88!!1!!!!
traeger (wood pellets) is better than charcoal and nearly as fast as gas. doubles as a smoker too. but $$$$$$$
It is not "5 extra minutes" of work to grill over charcoal versus gas. That is ridiculous.
It is not "5 extra minutes" of work to grill over charcoal versus gas. That is ridiculous.
The light-up time for the coals in the chimney over the Performer burner is usually between 10 and 15 minutes for me. Thanks to the Performer's table, that time can easily be used in food prep. Or sometimes I play with my puppy. Or read. No shortage of ways to use that time.
The light-up time for the coals in the chimney over the Performer burner is usually between 10 and 15 minutes for me. Thanks to the Performer's table, that time can easily be used in food prep. Or sometimes I play with my puppy. Or read. No shortage of ways to use that time.
I'll lean temp control plus ease of use every time.
Charcoal is also the more expensive fuel source - about $5 per cookout compared to $.20 for gas.
Ever tried searing over top of the chimney before dumping the coals? :thumbsup:
Yeah, I typically get the charcoal going and then head inside to prep whatever food I'm going to be throwing on the grill, the same way I would if I had a gas grill that needed to pre-heat.
Charcoal goes on sale at various holidays, and I just buy it 20 bags at a time. I probably spend $1 per cook...less if I've found a really good deal. I only need maybe a 1/2 chimney of coals for each cook.
There's a reason high end steak places don't grill their steaks. Personally I think outside of smoking meat or using hickory or something for flavoring, just the straight up charcoal versus gas fight on high end grills is overrated. I'll lean temp control plus ease of use every time.
Doesn't sound like you have used a Weber kettle very much. Temp control is exceptional...one of their biggest praises. I can dial temps in better on my kettle than my father-in-laws Weber Genesis. As much as I love the Weber gas grills, the old burner arrangement (front to back) was awful for creating different grilling zones. I believe they've finally gone to a right-left arrangement on the newer grills? Different grilling zones are simple with charcoal. If I'm doing steaks, I sear on the left and then often throw them into a cast iron pan with a little butter to finish them off on indirect on the other side. Can get a grate temp of 800+ directly over the charcoal for searing while the indirect side is only around 450.
As for the replacable gas bottles, they last forever since it's a tiny burner. But you can easily fit a normal propane bottle or a hard line to it if needed.
tsy - If you're going to go gas, buy Weber if you can. If not, I hear good things about the Wilmington's, but I don't know how they compare price wise. But throw charcoal back into the mix in your considerations. You can often find a used Performer for a great price on Craigslist...I think I paid $150 for mine, barely used. Find one at a good price, and it's too much work, you can probably flip it without losing any $$ at all.
I love my performer. Still use my spirit more. I am a charcoal newbie this year though, so that's part of it.
How do you configure your chimney on your Performer? I use the metal baskets on both sides of the burner to light then slide them to the outside and sear over coals and move to the middle. I'm thinking a chimney will save some time.
You think the average person can control temps better on a charcoal kettle than a Genesis, more power to you.
And yes, I owned and completely wore out a Weber Kettle for most of my life, and worked steaks and seafood on both a grill and broiler at a restaurant in Buckhead. You may be the Jesus Christ of grilling, but you're coming off as condescending.
You think the average person can control temps better on a charcoal kettle than a Genesis, more power to you.
And yes, I owned and completely wore out a Weber Kettle for most of my life, and worked steaks and seafood on both a grill and broiler at a restaurant in Buckhead. You may be the Jesus Christ of grilling, but you're coming off as condescending.