Was going to grill outside today- now what?

Lousy rain, bleh!

Because of our busy work schedules, I usually grill outside in good weather on the weekends, for the following week's meals. Great system as long as the weather holds up. I could grill on the big charcoal powered Charbroil outside in the rain of course.... but rain is icky.

So, help me out with some suggestions! From Caputo's in Algonquin, I have whole chicken breasts, pork butt steaks, little sirloin tip steaks, Caputo's own fresh bratwurst and their own andoulle sausage.

Thanks!

Buy a large deck umbrella and a base, and grill away. They're not terribly expensive and you'll use it over and over again. No reason to let the weather change your plans!

=R=

I agree with Ronnie - rain don't mean you can't grill/bbq.
Rock ON!

Might not have a problem, the rain has slowed down to almost nothing here in Batavia.

I agree we grill in rain or not. If its a driving rain or storm maybe not but it looks like it will clear up and maybe just be "drippy". If the grill is covered, there is no problem.

I'm planning on smoking a turkey breast this afternoon on the Weber Smokey Joe Platinum, come hell or high water and high wind and low temperatures.

Grilled chicken last night and pizza at noon today on the BGE lots of rain while, cooking but
I was not standing around watching the temp gauge or anything....

Thanks guys- you got me to grill outside. Turned out well.

adipocere wrote:Thanks guys- you got me to grill outside. Turned out well.

Cool . . . a lot easier than changing the game plan (at least for me).

=R=

C'mon, adi...you can't claim to be a serious griller if you let a little rain deter you

Or a little hail, a little snow, a LOT of snow or whatever. Tornadoes, earthquakes... well, maybe that's sort of an excuse.

We moved back to Clarendon Hills from Santa Barbara, CA in a September and I set my grill up behind the house and kept on grillin' all winter. I shoveled a path to it when I had to. The word quickly spread in the neighborhood that the new neighbor was a really weird Southern Californian, and I could only plead guilty. I still grill year-round and the he!l with the weather.

MikeLM wrote:C'mon, adi...you can't claim to be a serious griller if you let a little rain deter you

Or a little hail, a little snow, a LOT of snow or whatever. Tornadoes, earthquakes... well, maybe that's sort of an excuse.

We moved back to Clarendon Hills from Santa Barbara, CA in a September and I set my grill up behind the house and kept on grillin' all winter. I shoveled a path to it when I had to. The word quickly spread in the neighborhood that the new neighbor was a really weird Southern Californian, and I could only plead guilty. I still grill year-round and the he!l with the weather.

I couldn't agree more . . .


Grilling after the blizzard in January 2011

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Absolutely right Ronnie! Hell, if I let a little snow deter me, I'd *never* get to grillin' up here in Montréal!!

Keep the faith!

Geo

Smoking and grilling in the winter is a beautiful thing.



ETA Date: Feb 2011
ETA2: Hey Ronnie, I've considered the gas assist Performer for years to avoid the hassle of the chimney. I see you have the tank but still using the chimney. Does the propane charcoal starter not work well? Anyway, my primary rationale against getting one is size as the 18.5" grills are better suited to my small household needs. Plus, the accys are interchangaeable with my 18.5" WSM. Speaking of...spares, wings and maybe a turkey breast with pecan chunks (my new favorite) tomorrow.

BrendanR wrote:ETA2: Hey Ronnie, I've considered the gas assist Performer for years to avoid the hassle of the chimney. I see you have the tank but still using the chimney. Does the propane charcoal starter not work well? Anyway, my primary rationale against getting one is size as the 18.5" grills are better suited to my small household needs. Plus, the accys are interchangaeable with my 18.5" WSM. Speaking of...spares, wings and maybe a turkey breast with pecan chunks (my new favorite) tomorrow.

I just place the full chimney over the propane starter, which works great. It's easier than using newspaper. And I prefer the chimney to the baskets that came with the Performer because it holds more. But that's an older Performer and as cliche as it sounds, they don't make 'em like they used to. What used to be an openable, stainless cabinet with a nifty weather-proof storage compartment under the door is now a simple, plastic/resin surface with no enclosed storage. The Performer I have uses a nice-size, on-board refillable propane tank. The current version uses small, disposable propane tanks. So, they're still nice but not as good as they once were. I'm guessing you can find and older version on Craig's List or someplace like that.

The one in the picture above was given to me in 1996 and it's just now beginning to go. At its core, it's still great and even though I have 8 cookers, it's my everyday workhorse. If I knew how to weld, I could probably repair it and keep it going for at least another 16 years. It's essentially the cart, which has been left exposed to the elements for all those years, that's beginning to give out.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:The one in the picture above was given to me in 1996 and it's just now beginning to go. At its core, it's still great and even though I have 8 cookers, it's my everyday workhorse. If I knew how to weld, I could probably repair it and keep it going for at least another 16 years. It's essentially the cart, which has been left exposed to the elements for all those years, that's beginning to give out.

=R=

Hi,

I had a favorite kitchen tool that snapped. Only welding would give me a chance to keep it useful. When I needed my car fixed, I brought the broken tool with me. They welded it back together without any quibbling.

It can be done!

Regards,

ronnie_suburban wrote:I just place the full chimney over the propane starter, which works great. It's easier than using newspaper.
=R=

I don't have a Performer, but I've been using my turkey fryer for years and it works great. Using gas and a chimney I can pre-heat a Weber kettle to 450 in a little less time than it takes my oven to pre-heat.

Oh - and if you (or anyone) needs anything welded just send me a PM. I'll work for beer if it's a noble cause (i.e. keeping an old Weber going).

My kid laughs at me for using my outside smoker to do duck outside in a Wisconsin winter for our xmas dinner. My excuse for avoiding the (now long gone) MIL. He understands now.

However, might I suggest the emson pressure smoker?
http://www.amazon.com/Electric-Smoker-Pressure-Smoker-Cook-Brisket/dp/B005G6TQE4

Pulled pork, cold smoked cheese, garlic, decent smoked chicken (but pressure cooker type, not crispy skin) all inside. Long stories about pulled pork with this, but considered awesome by contestants in contests. I will be getting the larger one.

Attrill wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:I just place the full chimney over the propane starter, which works great. It's easier than using newspaper.
=R=

I don't have a Performer, but I've been using my turkey fryer for years and it works great. Using gas and a chimney I can pre-heat a Weber kettle to 450 in a little less time than it takes my oven to pre-heat.

Oh - and if you (or anyone) needs anything welded just send me a PM. I'll work for beer if it's a noble cause (i.e. keeping an old Weber going).

Thanks! Have lotsa' beer, need welding! I'll be in touch shortly.

=R=