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Grilling For Geeks
A lot of us are going to be standing over a grill today cooking for friends and family. Here's an article that lists some of the best gadgets to help you grill like a geek. Whether you want some high-tech tongs, thermometers you can monitor from your phone, or a complete grilling station with wi-fi, there is bound to be a tool here that will make your day easier and a lot more fun.
I'm probably burning some karma with this post, but I'm very disappointed.
Well if you are, then I'm right there with you. Hell, I remember seeing the guy with what looked like a homemade PID controller for his cheap smokers on that BBQ "reality" show, winning competitions and so on against people with stupendously expensive equipment and thinking "I've seen code for that." Indeed, I've been thinking harder about doing some PID projects since they're so simple (once someone else has done the hard parts.)
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
To my fellow geeks, if you've never grilled now's the time to start! If you fail, don't worry. This is how you learn, like learning how much you hate java but don't mine C#. But the secret? The secret is to find a sauce, or make a sauce that's all your own. But grilling in itself? You don't need hightech junk, you need patience and the want to learn.
My personal recipe: All done to taste,
Ketchup, yellow mustard, parmesan cheese (powder or bricked shredded), garlic powder, pepper(varieties are your friend), dried sweet red pepper, sweet dried onion. Dash of milk or cream, dash of sugar(icing, brown or white to sweeten, can also use honey), then 1/3 to 1/2c of your favorite beer or 1 to 2 shots of your favorite hard booze.
Om, nomnomnom...
Hamburgers should not be made in a press. If you're going to do that, you might as well use pre-formed patties. They should be carefully formed, with as little pressure as possible from 4 to 5 ounces of beef - 6 at the most. The center should be slightly thinner than the edges - use your thumb to make a small depression on each side. Mashing the burger together in a press will make it harder to break apart on the grill, but a little care and a CLEAN grill will make it unnecessary without sacrificing texture and juiciness. If you want to be really obsessive about it, line up the strands of ground beef vertically in a ring mold and then press them lightly together, but that can be a bit of a pain.
These are some pretty piss poor "Geek grilling gadgets"
Those that get their geek on grilling want the best information gathering for the experience. How about this top 5?
1.) A good IR thermometer. I use this for everything from candy, to my grill, to my pizza oven, to my forge, to my fire pit: http://www.amazon.com/Fluke-62-Mini-Infrared-Thermometer/dp/B000MX5Y9C
2.)A meat grinder. I personally prefer a manual one, as I had two electric models burn out on me. I know there are plenty of good electrical ones out there, but I now have a bit of a prejudice... Want the most juicy and tender burger? Grind your meat into a line on saran wrap, and roll it tight, protecting the grain of the grind as one long line. Then slice into patties. No cross grain in these patties, so they are a bit structurally weaker, but it is a fantastic burger grind... That and you can experiment with sausages, fish burgers, mini nut roasts for vegetarians... http://www.amazon.com/Weston-Heavy-Manual-Tinned-Grinder/dp/B000T3ONH4
3.) Build or buy a Sous Vide immersion circulator - Nothing more geeky than this perfection, and it can tie in to some really magical finishing on the grill. http://seattlefoodgeek.com/2010/02/diy-sous-vide-heating-immersion-circulator-for-about-75/
4.) I found this years ago, after watching the smoking episode on Good Eats, and this trashcan build is my smoker of choice since. Though I've since modified it with an entrance hatch so I could change the wood more frequently, and a wrapping of water heater insulation. http://cruftbox.com/cruft/docs/elecsmoker.html . But this leads to more interest in temp. Want a lower temp smoking for magnificent smoked ham this holiday? Lower and slower.... I found a couple refrigerator boxes stacked in the winter could really do some great things.
5.) Last one, not grilling per-say, though the others were not so much as well. This space I would geek out about my knife, but I think the Sodastream (or other similar ideas... I just got an adapter valve so I could refill my CO2 canisters from a standard tank. Super cheap... Playing with CO2 makes BBQing fun for all. Ever carbonate slices of fruit, so it is effervescent on the tongue? Carbonated spirits? Making your own soda syrups?
Well, this is my 2 cents. I'm sure everyone else has an equally passionate top 5 every geek should look into who wants to geek out over the grill.