Without fail, every time I share with someone what it is I do for work I am then asked “what is your favorite thing to cook?”. This is a question I have come to despise. Not at the fault of the asker, it is always meant as a pleasant conversation starter, but because of my own insecurities around not having a good answer.
I cook so much these days that if I didn’t enjoy it all I would be utterly miserable. I’m relatively fearless in the kitchen and happy to tackle any tedious task with many unnecessary steps because I really do enjoy doing it all. Like all of us, I have my simple classics that I love and fall back on but I’m continuously moving forward and working on something new. So for a favorite…one favorite? It is impossible to choose.
If Marco and I are together the question asker will turn to Marco and ask him a follow-up question while I am thinking of what to say, “what is your favorite thing she cooks?”. Like a true salesman, he has a perfectly finessed response that answers the question without answering the question. “Ah, well, she’s always working on something new. We never eat the same thing, the menu is always changing. I love it all. She’s the best cook.”
Eventually, the gaze will shift back to me and I always say the same thing. “Well, baking is my first love (true), that’s what I have my degree in (also true), and I love getting lost in all-day baking projects. I can’t pick a favorite dish but my favorite way to cook is over an open fire. I spend a lot of time grilling in my Big Green Egg and I would love to turn our firepit into a big grill with a spit for rotisserie chickens” (still telling the truth). This is usually satisfactory and the conversation shifts away from my cooking.
The first time I cooked over an open fire was on a camping trip. Two weeks across the country with Marco. We brought along a camp stove that we borrowed from my dad. I used that at the beginning of the trip but eventually began experimenting with the single adjustable grill grate that every campfire ring across the country has. For our next trip, we added a cast iron skillet to the packing list and the majority of our meals were cooked over the campfire.
The summer after we bought our home, a five-burner Dyna Glo gas grill was impulsively purchased during a trip to Home Depot that was definitely not to buy a grill. It lived on our deck and I used it constantly. One of the first things I learned is how little clean-up there is when you grill. Tongs, a tray or two, one spatula, and maybe a few bowls? It was nothing compared to pots, pans, and all the miscellaneous tools that I grab while cooking indoors. “Throw it on the grill” quickly became our go-to when we were short on time, feeling lazy, or didn’t know what to cook.
The gas grill was fun but I quickly became bored and wanted to cook over a real fire. This is where the Big Green Egg came in. I started researching outdoor wood-fired ovens but quickly realized it was too much work for our nonpermanent home. Because of how much you can do in a kamado grill, I settled on a Big Green Egg.
Currently, I would say I spend fifty percent of my time cooking on my Egg. If I go a week without using it, I feel weird. I have cooked pizzas, baked cookies, smoked meat for hours, grilled on grates, and grilled directly on hot coals. I have perfected a perfectly grilled chicken and also burned ribs to an inedible crisp. Many smoky tearing eyes and burns along my arms later, it is still my favorite way to cook.
As much as I love grilling, I have the most anxiety around writing grilling recipes. Part of me feels like I am not experienced enough to teach this skill (imposter syndrome?) but mainly this has to do with the unpredictability of cooking with fire. The reason most people grill with a gas grill is because it is more predictable and easier to control but I never use my gas grill anymore and don’t want to just for the sake of recipe writing.
My number one tip when someone needs help with grilling is — grill more. There is something deeply primal and intuitive about cooking over an open fire. I can’t teach you how with a few sentences but you have the instincts to learn your way around an open fire. Everything from the type of grill you have, the brand of charcoal you use, the size of the charcoal lumps, how open your vents are, and the weather outside will affect your grilling on any given day. I can’t write a simple “5-7 minutes, repeat” and guarantee a perfectly grilled zucchini because I don’t know your fire, only you do. I can give you visual cues and indicators to look for but the rest is up to you. So as a recipe writer, knowing that my grilling recipes won’t be foolproof gives me major anxiety!
Cooking with fire requires patience and acting as fast as possible at the same time. You can’t rush lighting a fire or it will come right back at you ablaze. You can cool one down when it gets too hot but it will make you wait until it’s ready. This is a process that might be therapeutic to you or you might not have the time for. If you choose to get into it, just stick with it and really get to know your fire.
For the month of June, I will be sending out five grilling recipes as part of a series I call 🔥Easy Summer Grilling🔥. As the title implies these grilling recipes are easy and achievable for every type of griller out there. All five can be made on a gas or charcoal grill and easily adapted to be made inside if you don’t have a grill. My goal, for all my charcoal grillers, is to teach some of the basics and more importantly the sensory cues to help you feel more comfortable working with fire.
You don’t need a lot of fancy tools for grilling but today I have a list of my essentials to help you get set up with some items you might not have.
I have a large Big Green Egg. It is a pricy investment but truly wonderful and I recommend one for sure. I have heard Kamado Joe is just as great and a little more affordable. I haven’t cooked with one so I can not confirm. If you are thinking of purchasing a kamado-style grill, this article is a must-read. It breaks everything down in great detail.
Lump charcoal > briquettes. Lump charcoal is pieces of real wood, briquettes are manufactured wood products and contain additives. That alone should sell you on lump charcoal but other benefits are cleaner taste, easy to light, and it burns HOT. Cowboy Charcoal is my go-to for the price, flavor, and size of the lumps.
Fire starters to get the fire going. You can also use a charcoal chimney but I just nestle these guys right into my charcoal.
Heatproof gloves are a must to have on hand. I’ll be honest, I had to toss mine a long time ago and haven’t had any since. I stick my hand right up to the fire and wrap towels around them when I need extra protection but I don’t recommend anyone else do that.
Fish spatula for flipping. The plastic handle allows it to go through the dishwasher.
All metal tongs for grabbing.
Sheet trays for transporting things to and from your kitchen to the grill.
Silicone basting brush. These can run through the dishwasher for high heat sanitizing after being used on meat.
Thermometer for checking meat temps.
This week’s Kitchen Club recipe…
A nice wife ⬇️
Friday we had a boat day with a group of friends and picked up boxed lunches from King Gs. Four Italian muffuletta, four turkey and swiss sandwiches, potato salad, pasta salad, and cookies. The muffuletta was a little too bready but for the most part, everything was great. I'll be back to try the other sandwiches for sure and for group events their box lunches were 10/10.
In the Black Pepper Cornmeal Scone recipe, I call for the dough to be shaped into a 4x6 inch rectangle before cutting. You need a ruler to measure your rectangle! Of course, you can wing it but just like using a thermometer to have accurate temperatures, I love whipping out a rule for accurate sizing.
Talk to you next week, I can’t wait to get grilling!
Xx M