Go to the Article: Tips & Tricks: Tiny & Mighty, This Grill Is Hot
My Dad's way was to recycle a big, commercial size can, punch holes with a beer can opener all around the bottom at 2 or 3 inch intervals, then two opposite each other on the top to attach wire for a handle. He would fill it with alternating balls of scrunched up newspaper and charcoal, then light it. In a few minutes he had glowing coals to cook over . He learned this in Argentina, watching workers cook steaks for lunch in a vacant lot near their job. He deployed it on riverbanks to cook fish, and at home to start charcoal for the home made grill: stacked bricks, recycled stove grates. Dad was all about great ideas that were cheap or free.
Great idea!
Who said it was new?
Snarkstar
Thanks for sharing this! The cast iron grates are amazing. And they have griddles for your grill, which is what I'm after.
For the hardcore types, if you're really interested in Alton's episode on the subject, this is the link to a complete transcription. http://www.goodeatsfanpage.com/season14/porterhouse/porterhouse_trans.htm Scroll down to "Scene 9 Back Yard". This method was subsequently addressed by America's Test Kitchen; however, one has to be an online subscriber to access it. https://www.americastestkitchen.com/recipes/8418-ultimate-charcoal-grilled-steaks?extcode=MKSAZ00L0&ref=new_search_experience_24 . And last, I'd also recommend the video by Kenji López-Alt from Serious Eats & Adam Savage from Mythbusters. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JB1x0O-bhrw .
This is nothing new. Alton Brown did a show using this method about twenty years or so ago
Thanks Patrick!
1200+C or 2400+F
This is awesome! Can anyone tell me how hot this can get? And what do you do when you're done? I'm assuming you have to just let it burn out? How bad is the clean up?
Don’t need to do that. Just use a Weber chimney starter and buy a Mexican tile or two to put it on.
Yes.
Lowe’s, Home Depot. you’re looking for a “replacement grill.” Also Craycort makes a great grill for the 14.5” Weber Smokey Joe. https://www.cast-iron-grate.com Not cheap but fabulous. Cast iron.
Per Brad's campfire cooking series over on Bon Appètit, a stainless steel cooling rack would work great for this as well.
cast iron is expensive to buy new. There's no use for it anymore so it's rare. I got mine off Craigslist. You could use any steel pipe though but getting it in 8 inch will be pricey. Take an 18 inch section and scribe a circle around the outside about 3 inches from the base. Take your grinder and grind out 4 2 inch sections of that circle..like you were going to cut it. Castellate the bottom so air can get in when its stood up. Cut a circle of 1/2 expended metal ( if galvanized burn it off after assembly ) about 1/2 larger in diameter than the ID of your pipe. The idea is to push it down until parts protrude out your cuts on the bottom, locking it in place. If you don't want to go that route skip the cuts and drill 6 holes in the same circumference from the bottom as the cuts and penetrate them with bolts. No bother to tap as they are going to rust soon enough and go nowhere. Light the coals and pour them in to the expanded metal bottom. Heat will channel up but it will be far enough away to avoid sooting and charring.
We made a bunch of these for Amazonian villages a few years ago. All they cook with there is lump charcoal and they worked great. Never bothered to rig up dampers but you could.
Now you have me thinking hmm a 12 or 14 inch wide steel pipe, gonna need some plate steel and 1 inch flat bar couple of pieces of expanded steel, now why did he say 18 inches tall that seems like a long way from the fire to sear steaks maybe because of the charcoal amount?
to light the charcoal starter use two sheets of newsprint, and pour about a cap full of cooking oil on one sheet spread it around and crumple loosely insert in bottom of charcoal starter and fill with lump charcoal. light it up then watch to make sure it is well lit, come back in ten or fifteen minutes and the coals should be ready to use. I agree with the comment below about spend the money and get the Weber charcoal started it is worth the extra ccost more heavy duty and holds more charcoal.
WHAT YOU'LL NEED:
loved the write-up.
shoulda listed matches,.......
or a zippo? magnifying glass?
I use the grill off of my 22" weber kettle charcoal grill. After crusting my meat, I dump out the charcoal into the kettle and grill veggies while resting the meat. (I think the grill they are using comes off of a gas grill.)
I also recommend the weber brand chimney starter which costs a couple bucks more but totally worth it because of it's size and features. I don't work for them.
hi, where i can buy that type of bbk/ grill
Suppose I use that technique to sear sous-vide steaks or burgers (relatively short searing time). Will I still obtain that wonderful chargrilled flavor?
I actually think you could probably find the right size metal cylinder that will fit a webber; just might be a bit safer. I'm gonna experiment. Thanks for the inspiration!!
You can do this. It was called "warp 10" when I was working with it but.....it produces serious heat. It's very easy to ( in fact hard not to ) pyrolyze what you are cooking. That's burning it not cooking it. If you chose to do this it's a good idea to flip often and at short interval and rig up a basket to hold your steak. You'll need the basket to get the meat away from carbonizing flair ups that make the meat sooty.
For those with mechanical inclination and imagination: an 18 inch length of 8" cast iron pipe, a 90 angle grinder and a square foot of expanded metal. It builds itself.
