Over the holidays my friends at Mr. Bar-B-Q offered to send me out one of their grill accessories to use.  They also offered to give another set of whatever they sent as a giveaway on the blog.  I couldn’t pass up a chance to get my readers something nice so I accepted.  (Note:  This is my way of saying, so I’m in compliance with all stupid laws and rules, that the pizza grilling kit I’m going to talk about here was free to me.)

This isn’t so much a review of the Mr. Bar-B-Q Grill Stone Pizza Set they sent me, but a review of my pizza making skills, which are somewhat lacking.  The pizza stone and giant pizza spatula, I  hesitate to call it a pizza peel, worked great.  Mrs. Grail bakes an awesome pizza in the oven so I attempted to duplicate her efforts on my 26 inch Weber Kettle.  Take a look at how I did it and offer up some suggestions at the end in the comment section for your chance to win your own Mr. Bar-B-Q Grill Stone Pizza Set.

Keep in mind this is a Weber 26 inch Kettle which is considerably larger than the 22 inch most people have in their backyard.  The first thing I did was fire up a whole chimney of charcoal and once it was ready form it into a ring around the bowl.  Because of the size of the kettle I needed to add some extra charcoal.  Once all the charcoal was hot I placed the pizza stone on the grill.

For some reason, I’m not quite sure why, I thought it would be a good idea to have the pizza stone a little higher up into the dome lid so I placed the pizza stone on top of my GrillGrates.  I’m not sure if this was a good idea or not.  I’ll need to try this again without them to see how the process goes.

The pizzas I cooked seemed to take longer than I would have anticipated, about 15 minutes.  I don’t know maybe that’s the right time frame, but it just seemed like a long time.

The flavor was great and Mrs. Grail’s Pizza Dough Recipe was fantastic but for some reason I just wasn’t satisfied with the results.  I was hoping for more of that “wood fired pizza” flavor.  It just wasn’t there.

Here’s what I would do next time to try to improve.

I think I need a much hotter kettle than I had.  I didn’t the get the temperature in the dome over 400 degrees.  To do this I need to either use more charcoal or use my smaller 22 inch kettle.  Is the ring of charcoal a good idea?  Or should I have spread it out?

I’ll probably try using the pizza stone directly on the grate instead of trying to raise it higher.  Thoughts?

Want to win a Grill Stone Pizza Set from Mr. Bar-B-Q so you can make great pizza outdoors?  Here’s how to get an entry:

• Leave a comment here about cooking pizza outdoors.  It can be a comment about how you’d like to do it for the first time, it can be a comment about how I can improve my pizza making skills. Just leave a comment.  You can leave multiple comments for multiple entries, but not more than once a day.
• Next if you have a Facebook account you can get an additional entry by “Liking” this post on Mr. Bar-B-Q’s Facebook Page.  (You’ll need to “Like” their page first, please do so.)
• You will also get one more entry if you “Reshare” the link on Mr. Bar-B-Q’s Facebook page.

On the morning of January 28th all entries will be transcribed into an Excel spreadsheet.  A number will be selected using a random number generator at Random.Org.  And that will decide our winner.  Winner will be notified that morning via email and/or Facebook!  Easy?  I sure hope so…

Thanks to Contestgirl for the promotion!

Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2012 Larry Gaian

“Weber Kettle Cooking opens a whole new world of food enjoyment to both novice and expert cooks.  Whether your purchase was a Weber Charcoal or Gas Covered Kettle, you will enjoy preparing the traditional barbecue foods as well as the great number of specialites possible only with a Weber Covered Kettle.

“Kettle fans use their covered grills for complete outdoor meals and as a supplement to kitchen range and oven.  You can broil, bake, roast, braise, stew, barbecue and grill…

“The Weber cover reflects heat for even cooking.  The cover shortens cooking times and uses fuel more efficiently than any other barbecue method…

With the Introduction above the 1972 BBQ cookbook “Barbecuing The Weber Covered Way” documents an amazing outdoor cooking revolution.  I don’t know if this is the first Weber cookbook but it certainly is one of the first.  The reason it’s still of value to backyard cooks is the 2010 Weber kettle looks and functions much like the 1956 version of the kettle.

I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a cookbook, dedicated to a particular product, with as much “how-to” information as this one does.  It doesn’t matter what you want to cook or how you want to cook it you’ll get the information you need to master the Weber kettle.

An example of one of the many charts in the cookbook

The first five pages is one of the best tutorials on how to do direct and indirect cooking.  The section provides instruction for both the  charcoal and gas versions of the kettle.  I had no idea there was a gas version of the kettle available back “in the olden days.”  Each of the sections provides diagrams and charts to help you learn to cook the various recipes.  Each chapter has charts that tell you how much meat to purchase along with how long to cook it.

Besides the traditional outdoor grilling foods like steaks, chops, burgers and veggies there are a variety of different recipes for casseroles, breads and desserts.  There’s even a section on the proper wine pairings.

One of the more interesting Chapters is how to roast a suckling pig on your 26 inch kettle.  For years this part of cookbook was obsolete due to Weber discontinuing the 26 inch kettle.  But with the release of the new 26 inch kettle last year you can now prepare these recipes.

The Macadamia Nut Stuffing used in the suckling pig sounds amazing.  I’m hoping to actually cook some of the recipes in this cookbook and share them with the readers of The BBQ Grail.

I’ve used my Weber Kettle for a variety of different U.S. Regional dishes and some International meals, but this section has detailed instructions on how to set your Weber Kettle up for cooking with a Wok.  Who would have thought about cooking Sukiyaki or Shrimp with Chinese Pea Pods on the Weber kettle.

If you are a Weber Kettle outdoor cooking enthusiast like I am then you’re going to want a copy of this cookbook.  I did a little searching on the internet and discovered used copies are still available on Amazon and Half.com.  Take a few minutes search them out and get yourself a copy.

Brand new on the 26" Weber Kettle

Seasoned and working on the Char-Broil RED gasser

As best as I can tell you can use the Grill Grates on just about any outdoor cooking device.  I fell in love with them immediately.  Great looking grill marks are not the only reason to use Grill Grates and I’ll address those later on, but first the grill marks.

A double cut pork chop was first up for testing the grill marks.  One challenge I’ve always had was when I cranked up the heat to get a good searing grill mark I’ve over cooked the meat.  Take a look at this pork chop, I was sure hoping I didn’t screw-up this great piece of meat.

After French cutting the bones I dried the chops and gave it a light coat of olive oil.  I also sprayed the Grill Grates with a light coating of non-stick spray.  The chop was seasoned with a little Simply Marvelous Season All and placed on the pre-heated Grill Grates.

NOTE:  Brad Barrett, creator of Grill Grates said he gets a lot of calls from RED users about clogged pin holes and smoking with the Grill Grates.  I have yet to experience clogged pin holes but I found if you pre-heat your Grill Grates on the “Sear” setting for just a couple of minutes and then turn the heat down to half you won’t get the the smoking.  I think the key to success is to not keep the heat cranked up high on the RED grills.

Check out the grill marks on the finished meal!

Does a great job on a pork burger

Grill marks on boneless chicken breasts without drying out.

But it’s not just about great grill marks.  What I’ve discovered about using them is meats cook much more evenly.  I’ve found I can get the meats to cook evenly at a little lower heat.  This was apparent more on the Weber kettle with charcoal than the Char-Broil gas grill.

When using charcoal I have a tendency to just light up a chimney and dump it in.  When using this technique it’s hard to control the temperature and that leads to flare-ups and food not properly cooked.  The raised rail design keeps the juices from the meat from dropping directly onto the heat source and this keeps flare-ups from happening.

According to the Grill Grate website the science behind the product makes them unique:

• GrillGrate panels eliminate flare-ups and act as a heat shield to protect foods from burning and drying out.
• Juices sizzle in the valleys and steam back up into the food for juicier more flavorful grilled foods.
• The raised rail design delivers perfect sear marks every time
• Grilling is healthier as fats drip through the holes and burn up on the bottom of the GrillGrate not on the outside of your food. Charring is also prevented.
• The GrateTool coupled with the raised rail design make it much easier to grill and handle fish, vegetables and pizza.
• GrillGrates smooth out grill hot spots for more even cooking.
• The hard anodized panels provide enhanced cooking via conduction, convection and infrared.
• Hard anodized finish is 2x harder than stainless steel and will never rust.
• GrillGrates season with use.
• Easy to wipe clean on the grill or in the sink with sponge or brillo.

There are few products that come along that provide as many great features AND work as advertised as Grill Grates.  To find out more about Grill Grates or to purchase the product use the link directly below.

When I first started using a charcoal chimney I had to deal with the frustration of not being able to get the chimney lit and having it stay lit.  I know for many backyard grillers this is a problem they face and why they continue to use lighter fluid.  Finding the best way to light my charcoal chimney has been a project for me.   This method seems to work the best for me.

Start with at least three full sheets of newspaper.  Roll two of the sheets of newspaper and give them a little twist or crumble as you go.  Turn your charcoal chimney over and place the rolled newspaper along the inside of the charcoal chimney.  You should have a hole in the middle with no paper in it.

Next crumble up another sheet of newspaper into a ball. Drizzle or spritz a little cooking oil on the ball of newspaper.  You don’t need a lot of oil, about a tablespoons is it.  Place the ball of oiled newspaper in the center of the chimney.

Turn the chimney over and add your favorite charcoal.  Using a match or lighter to light the paper in the chimney and watch the charcoal chimney do it’s job.

I don’t need another backyard cooking device, 8 of them is enough.  But it’s FREE.  What are you gonna do?  You don’t bring home a red 18″ Weber Kettle…you bring home a red 18″ Weber Pepper Planter!

It’s been quite some time since I felt like breaking out the charcoal chimney and lighting the fires.  Today I felt like it.  And it was great.   Rubbed down some thighs and a breast with Yardbird Rub for dinner tonight.  Also, rubbed some chicken breasts with adobo for enchiladas tomorrow.

Put them on the 26″ Weber Kettle.

Glazed the chicken on both sides and gave it a little time to set.

The glaze for the chicken was made with:

Chicken Glaze

1/2 cups of Chili Sauce

1/4 cup of Coke

Reduced on the stove about 1/3.  It tasted pretty darn good.

Cooking can be theraputic and it sure felt fantastic to break out the kettle and cook.

Here’s the racks ready to go. Already trimmed and rubbed with world famous Simply Marvelous Sweet and Spicy Rub.

Close up of Big Brother Smokes fantastic rub:

The ribs are on in-direct. I only used one side of the kettle for heat and it seems to be okay. The thermo in the kettle reads 275 while the digital on the grate reads 235. We shall see how hard it is to keep the temp up.

Using some avocado wood from C Rocke in So Cal.

I have already figured my first mod for this large kettle. The lid needs another handle on the front of the lid. I’ve already burned by arm twice lifting the with one hand.

Here they are about half way through…

Ribs are done…
(and eaten for that matter)

The 26″ Weber Kettle performed as an indirect smoker just fine. Tending the fire wasn’t that hard. I used what was left of my Lazzari lump and it went through it pretty good. I’d like to give it a try with some briquets to see what that’s like.

What was interesting is that the thermometer in the lid never got above 300 degrees but the digital thermometer I had on the grate varied in temp at times by 25 degrees. I’m going to pop the thermo out of the lid and test it to see if there’s some wrong there.

Over all this 26″ Kettle rocks. It’s big enough that I don’t think I’ll need a Ranch Kettle any time soon and because of the size you can do an adequate indirect smoke.

As I mentioned earlier in this thread the lid of the kettle needs another handle. It’s to big to move with one hand and when trying to hold a thermo or tongs it would be easier to lift the lid with the top handle and then slide it on the guide with the front handle.

I would have liked to see the charcoal baskets (char-baskets in Weber terms) a little larger, maybe about 50% bigger. It would have got the kettle up to temp faster and would have been easier to maintain with a little more charcoal. I’m probably going to use some expanded steel and try to make a little bigger basket.

Now that we have a 26″ kettle could the new 26″ WSM be all that far behind?

Here’s the ribs all done and ready to cut:

Close up:

They look pretty good. Don’t they?

All plated and ready to eat:

This rib dinner is in honor of my friend Big Brother Smoke. My wife and I had planned to take off for a few days off this weekend and BBS had offered to open his home to us. My wife selected a nice hotel instead. (For some reason she didn’t buy the “it’s just a coincidence that a BBQ Brethern member lives there.”)

Any way we were planning to have a nice dinner at Steph’s house tonight and were actually planning to break in the kettle. However, my daughter’s sudden wedding plans put a halt to the weekend get-a-way.

So, I salute you Big Brother Smoke with ribs rubbed with your rub and sauced with your sauce. Thanks for the offer and after the first of the year we will be down.

This new 26 inch kettle is huge. Here is is with a whole bag of lump in it.

Got a nice rib eye, seasoned with Just “Southern Flavor” and salt.

Rib Eye and boneless chicken thighs seasoned with Plowboy’s Yardbird.

Lots of shrimp and a couple of jumbo sea scallops. Shrimp is seasoned with “Cajun Blast” and the scallops with “Crabby Dirt” and spritzed with Cajun Blast “Herb and Butter” spray.

Look how much room is still available on the picture above.

Here’s the plated and final pictures. And yes, I can still get fresh corn on the cob!

My wife’s steak…

And here’s the rubs, seasonings and stuff I used:

I can’t even imagine needing something bigger. For those that have a Ranch Kettle I can’t even picture cooking that much.

I’m going to love this Kettle. This weekend I’m going to smoke some ribs to check out the thermometer in the lid and see how cooking indirect works.

You just gotta love a Weber Kettle…

“Whose There?”

“Fed Ex”

“Fed Ex Who”

Fed Ex with your brand new 26 inch Weber One Touch Kettle”

Oh Yeah! Baby Oh Baby!

Wonder what I’m doing tonight?

It’s all put together. The first cook will be Monday night, I want some time to plan something special. And my daughter surprised us by driving home from college in Idaho and the wife promised her something for dinner tomorrow.

Here’s the first picture with the box open:

What’s missing from the picture above. What’s missing is some packing material between the lid and the kettle. The lid is placed upside down and everywhere the lid touched the tabs that hold the grill it was rubbed all the way to bare metal.

Three places. Talk about a downer. I found the packing material in the bottom of the box. It’s obvious that who every packed this thing didn’t pay much attention to detail.

Here it is all put together. It’s huge!

The thermometer in the lid is going to be nice. It is big enough to do some real indirect type heat. Will even give it a shot at some low and slow.

Here’s the difference in size compared to the 22 inch:

I called Weber and they will send me a new lid as soon as they are available. I’m sure glad their customer service is first rate.

More on Monday with the first grill session.

It’s well over 100 degrees today so we didn’t want to heat up the house with stove and oven so the whole dinner got cooked on the Weber.

A couple of shots of the final product:

And a couple of close-ups.

I’m not sure there is a better BBQ device in the world than the Weber Kettle.