Ultralight grilling setup

Recipes that work best for teardroppers

Ultralight grilling setup

Postby robertey » Sun May 05, 2013 4:45 pm

Thought I would share my ultralight grilling setup. I tow a 750 lb galley-less tear with a Toyota Corolla, so a few pounds and a few cubic feet here and there can make a big difference. Although I try to save weight wherever I can, I always like to eat like I'm at home, so that sometime poses some challenges. I normally cook over a small propane Zodi burner that also heats my shower water, but I'm sometimes not in the mood for anything I can cook in a pot. My caveman brain needs charred meat. I have a weber baby q at home that works great and fits both the 1 lb and 20 lb propane containers, but it’s bulky and heavy and much larger than I need. I looked at the fuego element portable grill and would love to have one, but they're quite expensive. I have used other, cheaper portable grills and have no use for them. I was looking to do it on a budget, so I cobbled together this thing. It's nothing more than one of those tabletop korean bbq type grills, and a number 10 can with holes poked in it. I got the can for nothing, and the grill for $2 at a thrift store. It can’t weigh more than a couple of pounds, fits in a small bag I can put on the outside of my tear, and is pretty easy to clean up.

Here’s how I use it.



Take a couple of pieces of newspaper, crumple them up and put them in the bottom of the can. Add your charcoal on top. Use enough pieces of charcoal to line the trough on the pan, plus a half dozen or so extra, which we’ll get to later. Light them up. You will recognize this as a simple charcoal chimney starter. Nothing fancy. But it gets better.
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Once the coals have all ashed over, line the trough on the grill and slap the lid on.
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Now set the grill, which has a big hole in the middle, on top of the starter, with the remaining coals still in there. Leave it sit for about five minutes to get hot, and proceed to grill. You can use the grill without setting it on top of the can, but I find that the extra coals left in the can provide a nice little boost of heat to the center of the grill, which helps brown things faster, so you can get the food in your mouth faster.
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Now throw your grillables on there. Take care to keep from cross contaminating cooked items with uncooked items. I use a pair of tongs just for the meat that’s not completely cooked, and chopsticks (or a fork) to nab the items that are done. I find that the veggies get a better brown on the outside if they get a tiny bit of oil first. The meat I usually marinate or a few hours before hand. Pork, chicken, and beef all work well. I've done a mixture of chicken and pork here. Dark meat really shines in this application
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A bit of ponzu type sauce to dip the veggies in and you’re all set. This one’s made with chives, ginger, yuzu juice, soy sauce, and a few other things Pickled veggies or something on the side for a little extra crunch.
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This method can also be adapted to grilling meat (maybe strips of seasoned flank steak) for tacos and veggies, regular bbq, or other things that I have not thought of.
robertey
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