Charcoal or Gas? Depends on What Youre Grilling.

[elleng]

'Gas or charcoal? It is a question that has bedeviled American consumers and cooks for decades, since the first LazyMan propane grill went on sale in the 1950s and left the Smiths with their briquette-fueled brazier looking jealously over the fence at the Joneses and their new outdoor science stove.

In the abstract, there is no one correct answer. You can have affirmative responses to the use of either fuel. You can stack them as high as summer corn.'>>>

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/23/dining/grill-charcoal-or-gas.html?

Charcoal for me! And thighs! HOPE I can do some soon, rain forecast.

[tazkcmo]

1. Charcoal

or wood. No propane or propane accessories for this caveman!!!

[Botany]

2. " .... there is no one correct answer."

Yes there is charcoal. About 5 years ago NPR did a story about
grilling before the 4th of July and they interviewed top chefs all
over America and to a person they all said that preferred charcoal.


A Weber "little smokey" is the bomb.

And if possible don't use lighter fluid. Use a charcoal chimney w/newspaper.

Also for salmon and pork tenderloin a soaked piece of cedar is awesome.

[elleng]

4. YES!

I love my 'little smokey,' even tho my daughter + son in law gave me a larger something, with different surfaces. So I'm mostly home alone with 2 options! (plus oven, of course.)

[Botany]

6. If you want I'll send you my cooking on soked cedar stuff.

BTW do not buy the cedar @ a cooking store ..... go to Lowes and
buy a piece of 1x6x1/4" cedar fencing. $3.00 and just cut it the needed
size. 12 1/2" for a little smokey.

[Warpy]

5. I actually prefer fish and veg on the gas grill

because it's less likely to incinerate the outside before the inside is cooked.

For anything else, it's the hibachi.

[yallerdawg]

3. My wife bought a smoker to slow cook meats.

After one time, it ended up in the same place as our turkey fryer!

"The Island of Misfit Toys."

Now it's strictly propane! Fire it up!

[flamin lib]

7. Gas makes an excellent outdoor oven and can add some smoke with pellets or chips.

But you can't beat the 1500f radiant heat that good charcoal gives you. 

I have and use both. Even been known to use the charcoal starter bucket to get a REAL HOT REAL FAST CHAR on tuna steaks.

[Kali]

8. real wood

mesquite or catclaw

[csziggy]

9. Monday my husband just grilled for the first time in decades

On the cheap itty bitty grill his brother gave us after he "upgraded" to a propane grill.

I'd brined four chicken breasts and five leg quarters according to Alton Brown's "Ring of Fire" recipe - http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/ring-of-fire-grilled-chicken-recipe-2014542

I used his dry rub recipe with two changes - used my "sweet" curry with no hot peppers and left out the chili powder. For the cocoa powder I used some old Hershey's Special Dark chocolate.

We bought a little two pound bag of easy light charcoal - you just set fire to the bag and by the time the paper burns off, the charcoal is ready to go - and a bag of hardwood bricketts to add some flavor.

We had to cook the chicken in two batches, the grill is so small, but it turned out great. The chocolate spice rub from the Alton Brown recipe is so good, no sauce is needed, but next time I might use a different rub for less flavor just so I can have some sauce on my chicken.

If this becomes a habit, we'll have to buy a real grill - this one is like a toy one to have something to cook on after a hurricane.