Grilling For Geeks 169
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.
More like grilling for the gadget-obsessed (Score:5, Informative)
Personally, I think most of these gadgets are worthless. Yes, a thermometer is useful (but I prefer the instant-read kind like the Thermapen for quick checks in multiple locations). Otherwise, you really only need a good pair of extra-long tongs (that 3-in-1 thing in TFA looks clunky as heck) and a spatula.
If you really want to grill like a geek, check out Kenji Alt's Food Lab [seriouseats.com] posts over on Serious Eats. He's got a nice guide up right now on how to grill a steak the right way [seriouseats.com] (complete with explanations based on food science and his own experiments), and he's been doing a series on the best inexpensive steaks (at least, inexpensive compared to porterhouse and tenderloin).
Real Geeks Hack (Score:4, Informative)
Real geeks hack their tech. And when it comes to cooking, you can buy something that is half as good as what you can build, for twice the price -- as this ridiculous article handily demonstrates. Food hacking (or Modernist Cuisine, if you prefer) is a very big field these days. Want a great steak? Start with sous vide immersion cooking to get the perfect medium rare, then hit it with a flamethrower for the char. Play with your food.
Immersion Cooker (about $100 all-in):
http://beach.traxel.com/img/hopped-up/whole-rig.jpg [traxel.com]
Weedburner Charring (about $35 at Harbor Freight):
http://beach.traxel.com/img/sous-vide/weedburner-char.jpg [traxel.com]
Here's some more info on building your own meat jacuzzi:
http://qandabe.com/2011/70-diy-sous-vide-universal-controller/ [qandabe.com]
Grilling steak (Score:5, Informative)
This is low-tech, but it's yielded consistent, good results for me:
Texture and taste are best when it's medium-rare on the inside. Once I accepted this, everything fell into place and everyone now loves the results I get.
And, to get my results:
- Use high heat on the grill.
- Judge done-ness by how much resistance the steak offers when you push on it with tongs or whatever. I'm sure this could be measured, but it only takes a few steaks to developed your own judgment.
- Letting the steak rest for 5 minutes before serving really is a good idea. It's when the final internal cooking occurs (so you can avoid over-cooking the outside), and it seems to reduce how much juices leak out when you cut it.
- It's worthwhile to spend your money on a smaller cut of good steak, than a bigger cut of cheap steak. (If you're serving the steak on its own merits, as opposed to in a chili, stew, etc.)
Re:I guess a thermometer is a "gadget" (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Amazing (Score:2, Informative)
No, a thermometer. A timer will tell you when it should be done, given a set of conditions. A thermometer will tell you when it is done, regardless of the food thickness, flame temperature, using an unfamiliar grill, etc.