I see you created two threads for this. I'll repost what I wrote in the other thread for continuity. ------ I have the Weber Performer. It's an awesome grill. I used a Weber kettle for years with great success, but in a moment of weakness I retired it for a Weber Genesis gas grill. Gas grilling is convenient, but it's not the same. Last year I purchased the Weber Performer to get the convenience of gas starting, but the cooking flavor/performance of charcoal. First, the propane assist is just a charcoal starter. I stack the charcoal in a compact pile over the starter and ignite it. Of course the bottom vents are wide open and the lid is off at this point. After about 3 or 4 minutes, I can hear the charcoal snapping, popping, and smoking to indicate it's "lit." I turn off the propane and let the charcoal burn down until nearly all sides are covered with fine layer of ash. Then, I knock the pile down and spread it evenly across the bottom grate for cooking. Now, I put the top grate and the lid on and open the top vent wide open. I watch the temperature climb to >400 degrees, then open the lid and brush the top grate to clean it. Close the lid and use the upper and lower vents to control the airflow and thus the temperature. After some experience, I know just about how much to close them down to hit a temperature range I'm after. This assumes you're using good quality charcoal and not using too much of it. I prefer the hardwood "lump" charcoal. The old standard Kingsford briquets don't seem as high quality as they once were. If, for instance, I'm cooking hamburgers, I'll have just enough charcoal to cover the bottom grate with the chunks spaced 1/2" to 1" apart. Hamburgers cook pretty quickly. Don't use the little half-round trays Weber includes to hold the charcoal for normal grilling. Those are for special circumstances when you want indirect heat. When I'm done cooking, I close all the upper and lower vent to extinguish the charcoal. I use the leftover charcoal from the previous grilling as the base of for the next cooking and add a little more from the bag to make the pile I want. One more tip, use the lower vent control lever in a back-and-forth motion BEFORE you begin to sweep the ashes into the built-in collection can. Clearing out any build up debris in the bottom of the kettle helps the airflow. Return the lower vent to full open position before lighting the new charcoal. If you aren't getting to the temperature you want, you may have crappy charcoal, inadequate airflow, or impatience. ------ After reading the additional information you posted in this thread, I'd want to reemphasize the need to mound the charcoal tightly on top of the propane igniter for the initial lighting and burn down. Turn the propane ALL THE WAY ON and leave it that way for the 3-5 mins it takes to light the charcoal well. It should sound like a weak torch with a touch of whistle to the outlet flame. Let the charcoal burn down in its mound before spreading it. Lid off and bottom vent fully open for the initial burn down. The propane igniter works great.

''I'm just trying to understand. Is there a reason why you don't want to grill? Just trying to understand why you want to broil if you have a grill handy?'' Are all you sadists trying to shame me into being a real man and, gasp, grilling outdoors?! I knew women had a cruel streak, but golly! During the nice days of spring, summer, and fall I do use the gas grill - so that's about a month each year. Feels like it, anyway. The rest of the time . . . this week, for instance, it has been about a wet 34-38F, raining with occasional light hail. I'm not sure there's been more than 5 genuinely sunny days since October ended. Today we are a pleasant 32F with periods of wet snow, tonight is supposed to be 20F with snow/freezing rain. I could put on my rain gear and stand, shivering and dripping in the soaking wind, in front of a steaming grill watching my chicken turn soggy. If I had an umbrella, it would be better. I'd merely be shivering. No, what actually happens is that everything in my backyard gets covered with tarps in November and doesn't get unwrapped and scrubbed down for mold until April. I hardly even set foot in my backyard during those months. One January, I took a wrong turn and found myself standing in a 6'' pool of water out there - the drain had clogged and the patio where the grill lives had been underwater for weeks, maybe months. I admit it. I am a wimpy Californian. I live in a place where we get 42 inches of rain a year and everyone is Vitamin D deficient. Sigh.

I've been grilling BF the past couple of days on his views about getting a grill. He says, "We don't need one, we won't use it." But I know he has been eyeing that little Weber one whenever we go to K-mart or the hardware store. I like the little front tray part on the marine one Tricia posted. I think the cheif plus for us about having a gas grill would be ease of use and the chance to have some outdoor cooking space to supplement our tiny kitchen. My stove area is claustrophobic to say the least. It would give BF a chance to cook without having me in the way making the salad or whatnot. As it is, cooking together is a study in patience in my "one butt" kitchen. We dream of having our own place someday, with room for a big garden too. I've had some rounds of illness that have made it hard just to keep up with what I have here. BF is my rock, G-d bless him! BF has a covered back patio at his house just off the kitchen back door so he can grill year round and he definately has used it as a kitchen extension since his kitchen is almost as small as mine, albeit maybe a little bit better laid out. I don't see us grilling in the winter when the patio is full of snow. We'll not be covering our tiny patio for a good long while, if ever. I do have an extra patio umbrella though, so maybe I could leave it set up over the grill in the winter, lol! BTW, anyone who doubts the benefits of vegetation for combating the heat island effect should hang out in my yard. It is probably 10 degrees cooler out there than it used to be when I just had a big ol' wooden deck on the back of my house. I never went out there in the summer, it was hot and I felt like I was on display for the whole row/neighborhood.

Uncle Wilson is not my uncle; I truly have no recollection of where I got this recipe. If it was from someone here, please claim as the contributor, and I will update my files. Uncle Wilson's Grilled Onions 6 large white onions -- sweet white onions such as Vidalia 12 strips bacon 2 tablespoons butter Salt and pepper Peel and wash the onions. With the point of a small, sharp knife, cut a 1-inch core from the top of each onion and make shallow slits in a circle around the top. Wrap 2 slices of bacon horizontally around each onion, and secure them with toothpicks. Then put 1 teaspoon of butter in each core. Season with salt and pepper. Place each onion on a square of aluminum foil and bring the edges together at the top, leaving a small opening for steam to escape. Put the foil-wrapped onions on the grill and cook for 1 hour, or until the onions are tender when pierced with the tip of a knife. You can also bake in the oven at 350 degrees F for 1 hour. Cool the onions for a few minutes then unwrap and cut into quarters to serve.