Wendi and I didn’t grill out at our home last summer because our barbecue grill rusted out, and we never replaced it. It was somewhat aggravating because we only had the old unit for what seemed like a couple years. It was the most expensive grill we had ever purchased; it had a stainless steel top, and I thought that was a good thing. The problem was only the cover was stainless steel, and it held up well. The rest of the unit: The burners, the grates and everything just kept rusting and rusting (and we had to replace parts frequently).
The intent was to purchase a new grill in the summer of 2016, but we never did. As the summer progressed, we kept meaning to buy one, but we just didn’t make a move. Not having a grill was difficult for us, because we both love to enjoy grilled Certified Angus Beef burgers and steaks, along with Johnsonville bratwursts. Wendi also likes to cook potatoes and vegetables that are seasoned and wrapped into aluminum foil packets. Wendi wanted to make sure we got a grill this summer, and she wanted a good one. So, we started saving money. (We do not like to use credit.) So, she checked with our brother-in-law Shaun Vahl, who works for Home Appliance in Lodi and Brunswick, and he recommended a new line the company started selling: Broil King.
When Shaun and his wife, Randi, arrived, we unloaded the carton from the back of Shaun’s truck, and it was heavy. I later saw on the box that it was 153 pounds. The unit is very solid. While I helped Shaun assemble the grill, he did most of the work. It was amazing to watch him look at those terrible instructions that were slightly better than gibberish and methodically assemble it. What was even more amazing was Randi and Shaun ran 11 miles just before coming down to Wooster from Lodi. We gave them an opportunity to get some rest and come down on a different day, but they did not listen. When he was in the homestretch, Wendi and Randi went out to purchase a new tank of propane so we could begin grilling.
As soon as the grill was done, we covered the cast-iron grates with oil and cranked the sucker up to high burn off the oil and season the grates. And, when everything was ready, we grilled hamburgers, hot dogs and bratwursts. And, we grilled fresh corn. That was Sunday. Monday, I had a night meeting in Rittman, so no grilling out. Tuesday, I was home, so we cooked more burgers and brats. I also grilled some corn and charred an Anaheim pepper because I was going to make a grilled corn salsa for carnitas.
I ended up making the grilled corn salsa and a red chile-tomatillo salsa. I had searched how to make Chipotle salsas, and I didn’t have the exact ingredients, so I tweaked them and got close. I had made the pork for carnitas already, and Wendi said on Wednesday we would be eating them. Well, I really wanted to write a blog about the new grill, and I didn’t want to do it without making grilled pizza. So, on Wednesday, we didn’t have carnitas, we had grilled pizza.
Actually, I had grilled pizza, and Wendi had pan pizza … in the grill. Shaun told me if I wanted to use the Broil King (it is the Baron series) as an oven, use the MoM method: The two outside burners set to medium, and the two inside burners turned off. Because I was cooking a pizza, I used the High-Low-Low-High method. But, for my pizza, I cranked the middle burners up to high.
Wendi said she liked her pizza. “It was good, really good. It had a good chew to it,” she said. I was concerned about the bottom getting burnt before the top of the crust was fully cooked. There was a little char on it, but Wendi said it was good.
As for me and pizza, I like the Neapolitan-style: Thin crust, crispy and charred on the edges; San Marzano tomatoes; and cheese. I got the char I wanted, but it was nearly too much. I used dough I bought at a grocery store, and it is a pretty good dough, but it is not as good as my dough. Still, the pizza came out tasting pretty good.
If you are looking for a grill, give Broil King a look. It is not the cheapest, but it is not the most expensive, either. And with the warranty that comes with it, we plan on using ours for many years to come.
