Recipes, home grown goodness, BBQing and food stuff
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<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="SammyC" data-cid="555765" data-time="1454365086">
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<p>Those who are using Gas, seriously look at getting charcoal.</p>
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<p>Flavour-wise there is comparison, and seriously it takes all of about <strong>5-10 minutes to light it</strong>.</p>
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<p>I have no idea what you blokes think is so time consuming? </p>
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<p>Easy-Lite head beads! 10 seconds. Life changing!</p>
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<p>No need for fire lighters.</p> -
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Crucial" data-cid="555790" data-time="1454370328">
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<p>I use both. A charcoal smoker/cooker for the long slow stuff and a gas weber Q for everyday use (cooking steaks chicken etc)</p>
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<p>Yes, for certain occasions I can set up and use the charcoal one as a grill to cook meat on but it does take more effort than just 'turn on and heat up'</p>
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<p>If you haven't used a good lidded gas BBQ like a Weber I can tell you that there is a massive difference in cooking method and result between that and your standard 4 burner with a lid. They work with the lid closed and act as an oven/grill. You can get the temp down enough to cook a pav or up really high. </p>
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<p>Have you made a pav on the BBQ crucial?</p>
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<p>I've been thinking about having a go at baking some bread, now that I'm confident with controlling the internal temperature. </p> -
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Crucial" data-cid="555790" data-time="1454370328">
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<p>I use both. A charcoal smoker/cooker for the long slow stuff and a gas weber Q for everyday use (cooking steaks chicken etc)</p>
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<p>Yes, for certain occasions I can set up and use the charcoal one as a grill to cook meat on but it does take more effort than just 'turn on and heat up'</p>
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<p>If you haven't used a good lidded gas BBQ like a Weber I can tell you that there is a massive difference in cooking method and result between that and your standard 4 burner with a lid. They work with the lid closed and act as an oven/grill. You can get the temp down enough to cook a pav or up really high. </p>
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<p>I turn the heat down as low as it can go on my BBQ then close the lid and within a couple of minutes everything is burning :(</p>
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<p>So Weber is the best option? They are fairly pricey but if they are that much better then the rest then I'm happy to pay...</p> -
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="No Quarter" data-cid="555796" data-time="1454371743">
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<p>I turn the heat down as low as it can go on my BBQ then close the lid and within a couple of minutes everything is burning :(</p>
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<p>So Weber is the best option? They are fairly pricey but if they are that much better then the rest then I'm happy to pay...</p>
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<p>I can't big-note Weber enough. It is so easy to regulate heat and even if you have it a bit hot, it doesn't destroy what you are cooking.</p>
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<p>I baulked at the price too but no regrets. They last too, unlike those Matador/Masport etc. </p> -
<p>Have a 7 burner gas bbq, small charcoal weber and a cold smoker (gas) and to be honest I still use the gas bbq more than anything. We've been doing major renos for past 4 months so been bbq cooking A LOT in recent times. Havent done a pav in one but wife has made lasangas, carbonaras, plenty of roasts etc on the gas setup as well as a few puddings, pies, pizzas etc. So much you can do on them.</p>
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<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="mariner4life" data-cid="555791" data-time="1454370460">
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<p>I'm thinking about building a house this year. A schmick as fuck outdoor kitchen is on my "must haves"</p>
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<p>Make sure you put in running water (including hot). No use having an outdoor kitchen and having to keep going in and out to the indoor one. You'd be surprised how many outdoor kitchens I have seen without it. Even a cold tap nearby is handy at minimum.</p>
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<p>In fact running a hot water feed to the outside of your building (even if just a back to back from the laundry or something) is really handy. Especially if you have pets to wash.</p> -
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="SammyC" data-cid="555795" data-time="1454371635">
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<p>Have you made a pav on the BBQ crucial?</p>
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<p>Nah, just heard it can be done. I can't be bothered when I have a perfectly good indoor oven for that purpose. Interesting challenge though.</p>
<p>The key to cooking on the Weber Qs is learning the lid down method. It is how they as designed to be used. Trapping and circulating the heat and smoke. Also means that once your cooking surface is hot it stays hot without having extreme heat under it.</p>
<p>Once I got used to it and realised it was a bit like pan roasting as you tend to do in restaurants I was away.</p> -
<p>I have a ceramic kamado.</p>
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<p>Haven't used it as much as I should have because of the hassle in getting it going and the fact that I'm usually only cooking for 2 max, but have used it 3 times in the last week with outstanding results each time.</p>
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<p>Did butterflied leg, beef rib and then a chook.</p>
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<p>Two other tips not mentioned - the importance of resting your meat. I rested the beef for 40 minutes and it was perfect.</p>
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<p>the other thing I like to do is cut up a pile of herbs on the board I'm going to carve on and give it a splash of olive oil, then carve over this mixture.</p>
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<p>It adds a real depth of flavour and gives you an instant sauce.</p>
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<p>Great if you have slightly over-cooked your meat as it disguises a multitude of sins although TBH (touch wood) I have never overcooked on the kamado.</p>
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<p>Also for impact I like to roast a whole sirloin and then slice the steaks at the table.</p> -
<p>A good mate of mine is South African, he's my height but 130kg and is an expert on everything. In typical fashion he swears that Schalk Burger is better than Richie McCaw, NZ only beat SA in the cricket semi final cos we poached Grant Elliot......etcetcetcetc.......and one statement which has elements of truth. Kiwis ( and Aussies ) don't do "Barbecues" all we are ok at doing is "cooking outside", anyway over a few brews with a couple of other ( kiwi ) mates he was talking up his ability to cook a "Braai" so we enlisted his services for another mates 50th. He talked himself up, we were keen to see if he could deliver.....</p>
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<p>Fuck it was amazing eating. It's certainly not a quick process and the wood and coals take ages to heat up but the meat ( we did Steak, Lamb and Pork ) had a certain texture and flavour that was just delicious. BBQ 101 teaches you not to "crowd" the meat as all you'll end up with is "boiled" meat but with the Braai ( he was cooking for about 30 odd blokes ) everything was crowded together and the end result was sensational. I guess it's almost smoking the food for want of a better expression......</p>
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<p>I've seen documentaries when the ABs have played in SA and it's a nice tradition they have where they all cook up Braais in the carpark before the game. All I can do is recommend trying one if you get a chance.</p>
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<p>Our beer is, and always will be, better though.</p> -
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="dogmeat" data-cid="555820" data-time="1454378755">
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<p>I have a ceramic kamado.</p>
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<p>Haven't used it as much as I should have because of the hassle in getting it going and the fact that I'm usually only cooking for 2 max, but have used it 3 times in the last week with outstanding results each time.</p>
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<p>Did butterflied leg, beef rib and then a chook.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Two other tips not mentioned - the importance of resting your meat. I rested the beef for 40 minutes and it was perfect.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>the other thing I like to do is cut up a pile of herbs on the board I'm going to carve on and give it a splash of olive oil, then carve over this mixture.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It adds a real depth of flavour and gives you an instant sauce.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Great if you have slightly over-cooked your meat as it disguises a multitude of sins although TBH (touch wood) I have never overcooked on the kamado.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Also for impact I like to roast a whole sirloin and then slice the steaks at the table.</p>
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<p>I'm doing a lot of slow cooking at the moment. Mostly in a faux weber breville kettle but I recently bought a chargriller Akorn which is a poor mans' kamado which I have yet to christen. My favourite meats so far were a pork belly and rib cooked for 6 hours and a beef short rib that got 6 hours but probably needed 7. Good point about resting the meat, I generally don't rest it long enough because I want to eat it already!!!</p> -
<p>I have a ceramic kamado from vision the C series <a href="http://www.visiongrills.com/�"></a> for a couple of years. I did a bunch of research and its basically the big green egg but at 1/2 the cost (here a BGE will run you CAN$1500). one thing to look out though with some of the cheaper ceramics is they are not as heavy duty as the BGE (and vision) therefore heat retention would be an issue. </p>
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<p>On the cooking side I have never looked back ~ pizza's, smoking fish, roasting turkey, pulled pork etc there is plenty of really good chat groups out there with lots of recipes.</p>
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<p>The gas bbq is great when the kids just want a hot dog.</p> -
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Gary" data-cid="555912" data-time="1454430117">
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<p>I have a ceramic kamado from vision the C series for a couple of years. I did a bunch of research and its basically the big green egg but at 1/2 the cost (here a BGE will run you CAN$1500). one thing to look out though with some of the cheaper ceramics is they are not as heavy duty as the BGE (and vision) therefore heat retention would be an issue.</p>
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<p>On the cooking side I have never looked back ~ pizza's, smoking fish, roasting turkey, pulled pork etc there is plenty of really good chat groups out there with lots of recipes.</p>
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<p>The gas bbq is great when the kids just want a hot dog.</p>
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<p>I find I can get results with my kettle but from what I've read all of the kamado style bbq's use far less charcoal and have more temperature control. Is that your experience?</p> -
<p>I know the question was for Gary but just a couple of thoughts. I used to have a Webber 20 years ago and I agree the kamado uses way less charcoal. </p>
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<p>Temperature control takes a bit of getting used to but once you get the idea its pretty easy.</p>
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<p>One thing I learned the hard way was to be patient and only adjust one vent at a time and then check the results. Pretty quickly you work out what works best.</p>
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<p>The other thing is the temp gauges aren't that accurate. Mine is OK to about +/-10 degrees but over 6 hrs that's a massive variance. There are also like with every oven hot spots inside so I used a digital thermometer placed at various points to work out where the best place to evenly cook was and as I use mainly indirect constructed a fire well using a couple of bricks to force the heat straight up. Every time I cook I take a digital reading just to confirm the temp and then leave the lid closed as much as possible.</p>
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<p>It does retain heat really well so by now I can accurately gauge how much I need for the length of time I will be cooking.</p>
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<p>I do still see the attraction of a gas bbq for essentially cooking yr steak or sausage outdoors but a) I almost never cook just a basic piece of meat and b) if I do my oven is 6 metres from my kamado anyway.</p> -
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="dogmeat" data-cid="555966" data-time="1454452093"><p>I know the question was for Gary but just a couple of thoughts. I used to have a Webber 20 years ago and I agree the kamado uses way less charcoal. <br>
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Temperature control takes a bit of getting used to but once you get the idea its pretty easy.<br>
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One thing I learned the hard way was to be patient and only adjust one vent at a time and then check the results. Pretty quickly you work out what works best.<br>
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The other thing is the temp gauges aren't that accurate. Mine is OK to about +/-10 degrees but over 6 hrs that's a massive variance. There are also like with every oven hot spots inside so I used a digital thermometer placed at various points to work out where the best place to evenly cook was and as I use mainly indirect constructed a fire well using a couple of bricks to force the heat straight up. Every time I cook I take a digital reading just to confirm the temp and then leave the lid closed as much as possible.<br>
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It does retain heat really well so by now I can accurately gauge how much I need for the length of time I will be cooking.<br>
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I do still see the attraction of a gas bbq for essentially cooking yr steak or sausage outdoors but a) I almost never cook just a basic piece of meat and b) if I do my oven is 6 metres from my kamado anyway.</p></blockquote>Do you use lump or briquettes for a low n slow? I have a maverick wireless thermometer, it measures the temperature of the meat and the inside of the bbq. Schweet -
<p>I was almost sold on the kamado.... until I saw the price... :(</p>
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<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="No Quarter" data-cid="556091" data-time="1454470912">
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<p>I was almost sold on the kamado.... until I saw the price... :(</p>
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<p>I did a lot of research, got my bro in law to buy this in Oz then I just bought one on sale in NZ</p>
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<p><img src="http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/productImages/400/fa/fa2e0767-897b-4c20-a8cb-9c4e473cba0e_400.jpg" alt="fa2e0767-897b-4c20-a8cb-9c4e473cba0e_400"></p>
<p>Chargriller Akorn, simulates the kamado cooking style using twin layers of steel, internal porcelain coated, filled with insulation between. Cheap as compared to the kamado and BGE at about $500 kiwi All that top dollar performance without the big dollar pricetag</p> -
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-time="1454452093" data-cid="555966" data-author="dogmeat"><p>I know the question was for Gary but just a couple of thoughts. I used to have a Webber 20 years ago and I agree the kamado uses way less charcoal. <br> <br>Temperature control takes a bit of getting used to but once you get the idea its pretty easy.<br> <br>One thing I learned the hard way was to be patient and only adjust one vent at a time and then check the results. Pretty quickly you work out what works best.<br> <br>The other thing is the temp gauges aren't that accurate. Mine is OK to about +/-10 degrees but over 6 hrs that's a massive variance. There are also like with every oven hot spots inside so I used a digital thermometer placed at various points to work out where the best place to evenly cook was and as I use mainly indirect constructed a fire well using a couple of bricks to force the heat straight up. Every time I cook I take a digital reading just to confirm the temp and then leave the lid closed as much as possible.<br> <br>It does retain heat really well so by now I can accurately gauge how much I need for the length of time I will be cooking.<br> <br>I do still see the attraction of a gas bbq for essentially cooking yr steak or sausage outdoors but a) I almost never cook just a basic piece of meat and if I do my oven is 6 metres from my kamado anyway.</p></blockquote><br>Yeah temp control is a bit more than a gas BBQ but its just down to being patient. I like it as I stand out on the deck drinking beer and move the vent a fraction of an inch and looked concerned every time my wife pops her head out ~ "no can't help with chores have to watch the BBQ"<br><br>You have to use Lump but once you stop cooking just shut down the vents and what over lump is left over is good for the next cook.<br><br>One thing I've noticed is that is faster than ovens when roasting.
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<p>I have the kamado joe and have had it for about 4 years now.</p>
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<p>It gets used year round, in winter about once a week and in summer a couple of times. I even use it just for steaks in the weekend. I also have a 5 burner gas which only used for quick stuff on week days.</p>
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<p>I am lucky that I work for a meat company so have access to a lot of different red meats at great prices so have a lot of good things to use.</p>
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<p>We have done all the standard meats on ours, along with pizzas, bread, buns, cakes and even a pavlova. Took 2 goes to get the pav right.</p>
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<p>It is great for temp control and easy to get going and economical on the charcoal. Only real lump should be used on a ceramic.</p>
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<p>We did pulled pork yesterday, cooked it for 8 hours at about 150F and it was just superb, fall apart tender and very moist. Used, apple cheery & mesquite smoking chips at the start to get some additional smoke flavour imparted</p>