Grillmaster

Yours truly has just recently purchased a used Weber 22.5" charcoal grill at a steal for seventy dollars. I opted for charcoal because a) I prefer the flavour, b) propane barbecues are a bit of an eye-sore,  c) true Grillmasters use charcoal (and I have decided this is a title for me) and d) I was reminded that with a little patience and a pan of water, you can turn one of these little guys into a smoker.

Today being Sunday, my friend came over and we made a barbecue dinner using the new household addition.
He came ready with some ground pork and bison from "Meat Island" and I was waiting for him with some butterflied pork loin chops and a fat bison steak purchased at Slater's Meats in Oak Bay, both of which are purveyors of fine island meats (Eat Magazine's most recent issue has done a story that I requested called "The Hunt for Local Meat." This made me feel very important and I'm really impressed with Gary Hynes', Eat's editor, quick response to my emails and fulfilled promise. Way to go!)

A few quick notes about using a charcoal grill

• Using lighter fluid or charcoal that is soaked in lighter fluid is cheating and will impart a funky flavour on your food.
• Chimney starters are a fun-to-use and effective replacement for lighter fluid
• Soak your wood chips overnight if possible, but at the very least for several hours
• Charcoal briquettes are slow burning, while Hardwood lump charcoal is fast burning
• When placing your hot coals on the grate, remember that when grilling most meat, a direct heat will lead to a burnt crust and a raw centre. Create an indirect cooking surface by only laying charcoal on half the grill or on both ends, leaving the centre without 
• Don't clean your grill super well right after you use it. The crust on the grate seasons it and keeps rust from developing. Instead, clean it each time you go to use it, while you wait for the grill to heat. The warmth will make it easy to clean and you'll scrub off any beetles that managed to find their way in there in the days between use
• Cover your grill when you're not using it! Rust is a nasty thing and propane or not, everyone likes a nice looking grill
• Grease your food not your grate

Phew! After all of that I'm sure you're done hearing from me. Instead I will provide you with photos of this evening's delicious dinner.

Brooding peppers! So artsy!

We roasted red pepper and tomatoes on the barbecue for the spaghetti sauce. I'm not sure if it was a placebo effect but the flavour was impeccable. It was full of herb's from my friend's apartment garden and their was a smoky depth to the dish.

Not local, but sure was worth it. Sweet, juicy pineapples grilled right where we had cooked our meat. Thus imparting a saltiness to pronounce the caramelized sugars of the pineapple. (For good measure we threw on a little extra sea salt too! I thought only south-Asians liked salt on their fruit, boy was I wrong, my Italian co-chef was gaga for it!)

Note the charcoals only on one side of the grill.

Hope this blog update was helpful to some of you and doesn't come off as too bossy. These are tips I picked up from being around kitchens and reading official Grillmaster websites. If there's anything I missed/got wrong or you have tips for my voyage to Grillmaster's paradise leave 'em in the comments.