Smoked Meatballs With Kate’s Sugo In The @weberGrills Ivory Mastertouch

Last night’s dinner was a collaboration with my beautiful wife Kate.  Quarantining has been pretty great when you love being with the ones you’re quarantined with.

img_6869

Two lbs 80/20 chuck (if I had veal and pork I would have used those too)

Chopped Basil

Chopped parsley

Two Cloves Garlic Minced

2/3 cup Parmeseasn

2/3 cup Riccotta

2/3 Cup Panko

Red Pepper Flakes and Black Pepper

img_6870

Indirect cook 400F for 30 minutes

img_6873img_6875

Transfer to pot with Kate’s sugo to simmer for a half hour on the stove

img_6880img_6881

Time to Eat!

img_6883

How To Process Steak Tips (Not Tri-Tip) For Marinating and What is a “Northeast Steak Tip” Video

Link to purchase steak tenderizer on Amazon- https://amzn.to/2tWlcjt

People outside of New England have no idea what the term Steak Tips refer to but it is a staple in restaurants all over the region.

Here is a great article from Serious Eats explaining just what part of the cow a steak tip comes from.   It’s also referred to as Flap meat.  It’s inexpensive, super flavorful and with just a little preparation they are crowd favorites for short money.  Think Superbowl Party.

 

Video- Quality Grill Parts Heavy Duty Charcoal Baskets vs Stock Weber Baskets

Buy The Quality Grill Parts Heavy Duty Stainless Charcoal Baskets On Amazon At This Link 

For comparison, the stock Weber aluminum charcoal baskets vs the Quality Grill Parts Heavy Duty Stainless Charcoal Baskets.  A pair of the Weber charcoal baskets weighed in at 1.9 lbs vs the Quality Grill Parts baskets at 3.15 lbs. the Quality Grill Parts Baskets cost $29.99 with free Prime shipping on Amazon at this link vs $14.99 for Weber aluminum Charcoal baskets which ship for free with Amazon Prime at this link

2016-12-29-11-22-282016-12-29-13-07-08

You can see the difference in thickness in these photos.

2016-12-29-11-36-092016-12-29-11-36-23

So my conclusion is this- If you want the best and BBQ often then these lifetime charcoal baskets are a no-brainer.  If all you do is throw burgers on the grill occasionally you probably don’t even know what the charcoal baskets are for in which case the stock baskets would work out just fine.  Seeing as the charcoal baskets are such a large part of my BBQ routine these were at the very top of my BBQ wish list.  there are many BBQ accessories that are frivolous and end up being used once and then stuck in a drawer.  these get used about 85% of the time I fire up teh kettle.  no-Brainer purchase!

The Latest… A DR Code Green 2nd Generation @WeberGrills Performer

Our buddy Anthony Caturano At Tonno took the second SS Performer.  Immediately I had a empty pit in my stomach, without a Performer to cook on at the dock. Truth be told I really enjoy the restoration process and needed another project so I searched out another Performer looking for some love.

So this beautiful gem fell into my lap look at the bottom of this post:)

It’s a second generation Weber Performer.  Each of the Generations of the Performers have things I like about them.

The classic lines on the first generation Stainless Steel ones, the only performers to use stainless steel. (Here’s the performer Anthony took)

wp-image-1292473495jpg

The Black Frame on the second generation.(This is the first Performer I ever acquired)

20160402_124155_hdr

The Wheels on the third Generation.

20160427_174232_hdr-01.jpeg

The Black Metal table on the fourth generation. (This is actually my 3rd gen with a 4th gen table.

20160519_185214_HDR-01

And here is the latest- The DR Code Green, should clean up nicely.  When the light comes I’ll test the gas assist to see if it’s working.  With or without the gas assist I love the functionality of the attached table and bin on the Performers.

The Before Pictures- DR Code Green Weber Performer

20161007_053846.jpg20161006_190435.jpg