a griddle: nice grill accessory

Call me a fanatic, but I have eight outdoor cooking devices:

1. double-barrel smoker (where my bbq comes from)
2. chimenea
3. outdoor fireplace with grilling rack
4. charcoal water-smoker
5 & 6. charcoal grills (Weber and Old Smokey, a sentimental thing, since it was what my late father used for grilling; for smoking, he used a hand-built cinder-block smoker)
7. propane gas grill
8. propane turkey fryer/boiler/wok

Um . . . I'm also thinking about getting a chest-style slow smoker, and building a brick pizza oven.

But that's beside the point.

One of the best things that I've purchased in the past year was the Griddle-Q, a welded, hefty, sturdy stainless-steel griddle that takes high heat, cleans up nicely, and has a grease trough. I've used it on the gas grill, one of the charcoal grills, and even atop the high-output burners on my gas stove.

Here it is in action, cooking up Mexican-style marinated chicken-breast strips with tomatoes, onions, and red and green bell peppers:



And one of a number of sources:

http://www.barbecue-store.com/griddle-q.htm

Hmm . . . make that nine, if you count my Alton Brown cardboard smoker.

Cheers,
Wade

I knmow that this is not a true piece of equipment for a grill master, but I was wondering what you thought of an electric smoker. I am new to the smoking game and seem to think that this is a fool proof way to start out.

What do you think?

KevinT wrote:I knmow that this is not a true piece of equipment for a grill master, but I was wondering what you thought of an electric smoker. I am new to the smoking game and seem to think that this is a fool proof way to start out.

What do you think?

The foolproof way to learn how to smoke/barbeque is to purchase a Weber Smokey Mountain, go to THIS WEBSITE, follow the instructions, and forget about electicity and propane.

I concur completely.

I bought a combination charcoal/A.C. water smoker decades ago when I got my first apartment. I tried the electric accessory once and then tossed it. It was too hard to maintain the temps that I wanted.

I only use electricity to cold-smoke (jerky, salmon, etc.)

I do have to confess having had some terrific brisket and pork in the South cooked in old refrigerators (or tall metal school lockers) converted into smokers with a electric heating coil smoldering wood dust. (That would make for a nice cold-smoker.) When I bought a new refrigerator a few years ago, I ALMOST did this, but I finally decided that my neighbors would probably not prefer to see a soot-blackened icebox on my rear deck.

I am pretty much of a traditionalist, but I sometimes use the propane grill for things like the aforementioned Mexican marinated chicken (with the griddle).

Cheers,
Wade

KevinT wrote:I knmow that this is not a true piece of equipment for a grill master, but I was wondering what you thought of an electric smoker. I am new to the smoking game and seem to think that this is a fool proof way to start out.

What do you think?

I own an electric smoker. It's not foolproof. It is wimpy. You don't have any way of controlling the heat, so outdoor temps make a difference. You will not get results as described on Gary Wiviott's Web site for serious meats.

However, if you want to smoke things like turkey breasts and fish, it's fine.