What I hate about outdoor cooking equipment is that every company out
there has some gimmick to get you to buy their stuff, whether it’s golf
handles on the tools or something that sounds so cool you have to have
it. For the most part, these things are designed by non-grillers and
are useless. The tools end up taking up space.
Here’s my list of stuff I really use:
First
is a charcoal chimney. I hate lighter fluid, and I wouldn’t use
charcoal if that’s all I had available. With the chimney, I get a fast
light, and I’m ready to grill as fast as I would be with a gasser.
Weber makes what I think is the best chimney; well made with lots of
vent holes. It lights the coals quickly and lasts a long time.
The
next item I really have to have is a decent pair of welding gloves. I
don’t generally buy expensive grilling gloves, as they’re just welding
gloves remarketed. However, some have longer cuffs which can protect
your arms from sparks. I can pick up hot coals and touch about
anything I have to that might be hot. I use them inside in the kitchen
a lot, too.
When
I’m cooking low and slow, I don’t use a lot of tools for food handling;
mostly, insulated rubber gloves are used for any food touching while
cooking. There’s nothing better than just grabbing a brisket or boston
butt right off the grate. Chicken thighs are less likely to get messed
up, too, though I tend to use tongs for ribs.
Speaking of tongs,
that’s my next item. I generally use OXO tongs, but I had a set of
Steven Raichlen tongs that are huge; they got broken, and I need to
replace them because I really loved using them.
I also use a rib
rack, but not a regular one. I have teflon coated, v-shaped roasting
racks that I turn upside down to put the ribs between. This works
great, and also works to hold turkeys, roasts, etc.
The last item I use a lot by the smoker or grill is heavy duty Reynolds Wrap aluminum foil; there’s none better.
For after the cooking, there are two other items I must have…
Wood cutting boards. Throw out those plastic ones; they hide bacteria and dull your knives. Wood is the way to go here.
And
the last item is a set of good knives. I don’t buy them by the set; I
get knives I need. For brands, Forschners seems to be popular among
barbecue people, but I took a knife skills class and got to try
different knives. I found Shun knives this way, and, for even double
or triple the money, I’d put them up against anything. From Alton
Brown:
The core is made of VG-10 steel, a special recipe containing carbon,
chromium, cobalt, manganese, molybdenum, silicon and vanadium. It’s a
very Zen metal in that it is hard but flexible at the same time.
They
look like little samurai swords… Very cool, but, more importantly,
extremely sharp. These are Japanese made, but not Ginzu knives.
Lifetime warranty that says they will replace any issues, and free
sharpening for life. These are just great knives. I tried them up
against Global, Wustof and Henckel, and these were by far my favorite.
That’s my short list of must haves! If you’ve got anything you use a lot, let me know!
