Love grilled salmon or chicken! I just tried grilled Romaine lettuce and liked it. I hope you enjoy your new grill. ♥

“or the smell of lighter fluid.”

There is a certain nostagia go the smell of lighter fluid, but I wouldn’t use it for my food. Nor would I use quick lighing (impregnated) charcoal, just more chemicals for your food. Chimney starters are pretty easy to use.

I got a kettle grill for Fathers Day a couple years back after years of wanting one, but truth be told I haven’t used it much. Despite good intentions, gas is so much more convenient even if you’re lugging propane bottles back and forth to the hardware store. Glad I have it though, and hope it gets more use in the future.

I have a Weber Kettle as well as a Weber gas grill and a smoker and I use all three for different food and preparations. I often use the gas and charcoal grill for the same meal. I prefer to cook most meats over charcoal but most often use the gas for veggies, brats and hotdogs, chicken wings.

If you have access to newspapers or similar I would buy a charcoal chimney to fire up the coals so you don't have to use charcoal lighter fluid. It takes about 20 minutes from lighting the charcoal to cooking using a chimney. I save junk mail and the fliers I get in the mail from the grocery for starting the coals in the chimney.

Other accessories that you may want:

1) A sturdy grill brush

2) Long handled grill utensils (fork, tongs, spatula, basting brush, meat flipper hook)

3) A storage tote to have near the grill to store the charcoal, chimney, utensils, newspaper, etc.

4) If you will be using the grill on a wooden deck you might want to get some cheap 12"x12"(or larger) ceramic tile to put under it to protect the deck from ember burns.

ETA: I like to grill my salmon on cedar planks. The ones they sell in the grocery stores are pretty pricey though. I just buy a 8' x 6" x 1/2" cedar board at HD and cut it into 14" lengths ( the length of a salmon fillet) myself. HD will cut it for you if you ask.

One of the three things I miss most about my house (after downsizing) is my Weber grill. We had the kind that uses charcoal, but fires it up with a small propane tank, so it was the best of both worlds. We grilled everything on it, from hot dogs to turkey breasts. Now I can have only an electric grill on our balcony, but I have a Weber one of those, best I can do. Electric grills are okay with even items, like burgers and sausages. But I do miss the turkey. It was our traditional Mother's Day meal, so I didn't have to cook.

And in case you are wondering, number two was central vac, and number three was being two blocks from the train into NYC.

Thank you, I already have a chimney starter on the way, along with various brushes and utensils and baskets.

My DH and I received a large Weber kettle as a wedding present and used it for years for both grilling and smoking. We liked it so much, we even purchased the small version to take on picnics or camping.

But I moved away from charcoal in my life as a single person and opted for the propane fueled Weber Q grill as a much better size and transportability than the kettle and so much easier and faster to use.

The great thing about Weber products is that virtually all parts are easily replaceable and parts and accessories are easily found just about anywhere - Lowe's, HD, Walmart, Ace Hardware, etc.

I bought a small used one and had it for years. DH bought a big propane one when he decided we needed a bigger one. I prefer charcoal with wood chips for flavor. Only good thing about the gas one is it has a rotisserie. The bad thing, it is a bear to clean. We hardly use it any more.

One can now buy as an add on accessory a rotisserie for a Weber kettle:)

@foodonastump...I actually hate anything cooked over a fire....even pizza. :0) Smoked flavor or "lighter fluid"....just my memories of kettle grills. I bundle everything in aluminum foil now or just fry it in a cast iron skillet to give it little more oomph.....:0)

I've used a Weber kettle for as long as I can remember. Years of experience have helped me develop the confidence and capability to BBQ most everything I want to cook, many things different ways, to do new things competently and all with consistent results.

I use an electric starter - it's like a thick heating coil that glows red hot to start the charcoal. It takes a bit longer than using a chimney starter (which i also have). There's no petrochemical smell from either.

As Lonejack mentioned I too use it on a wood deck. I prefer to not use the chimney because it produces a lot of sparks. Rather than putting something like tiles underneath, I keep a hose handy and the deck damp while the Weber is in use. I don't use it when it's windy. It takes maybe 25 minutes from the start until when I'm ready to cook, I factor in the time. It's not like items cooked indoors are ready start to finish in 10 minutes. Kitchen ovens need to be started in advance before use and mine seem to take about the same length of time to reach a temperature setting.

I have a Weber three burner gas grill at my second house. Mostly for convenience and to avoid storage and handling the extra pieces of equipment the Weber kettle needs. I use it but I don't like it. The flavor of gas grill cooked food doesn't remotely compare to food cooked over wood or charcoal flames. I've tried using a wood chip device in it, I don't find the minimal effect worth the extra hassle and cleanup.

To me, a gas grill is an inept broiler. Because the infrared heat of my grill doesn't get as hot as my broilers do, the exterior sear of the meat isn't as good. Cooking on a gas grill can keep cooking odors out of the house if one's broiler isn't well exhausted (one of my broilers is and produces no house odors) but other than that, given a choice, I think a broiler is better.

We have been using a Weber since we were martied in '94. My husband has even learned how to smoke a brisket in it (he's been in Austin a lot these past two years ;-)

Like Elmer, we are not big gas grill fans.

I have a big gas grill because one year our power went out at Christmas and the old gas grill we used to cook the rib roast set it on fire. This one is big enough that you can put your roast on the side and use the burners on the other side. It keeps smells out of the kitchen but adds nothing in the way of flavor. We have a Webber charcoal grill and it is good for steak and such. The absolute very best grilling/roasting is to start with chunks of wood that burn down into coals. Cooking a chicken over that sort of fire makes a remarkable chicken but it is slow and messy.

We've grilled regularly for decades, but have moved on from briquette to gas grills these last years. I rarely even brown something indoors any more, DH willing to take things outside to sear (like last nights pot roast).

Grill lives in the garage, climate is mild. Open the (wide car) door and push it out into the driveway to use, roll it back in when it has cooled. If raining or snowing, we can still use it, just a little closer than in Spring and Summer. There is a very wide overhang all the way around this one story house that protects the grill (and grill-er).

Back in the 60s my dad fashioned his own charcoal chimney out of a coffee can.

Coffee can and can opener, right? I remember those!

I have a small outdoor grill. I think it's a Weber. It's a very basic one.

I love my Weber charcoal grill and recommend the Weber Grills app for their grilling guide. I use the grilling guide for grilling steaks. Choose the cut of steak, thickness of the steak, doneness (rare, medium, etc.) and it tells you how many minutes of direct cooking and indirect grilling.

In L.A. we have a large Weber grill, a large Big Green Egg (with pizza stone insert), and a propane grill that we have just in case of earthquake. We mostly use the BGE, and it retains heat very well for a long time, since the walls are very thick and provide insulation.

In Cathedral City we have a small charcoal BBQ, a large propane BBQ (which came with the house), an electric smoker with WiFi, and an Ooni pizza oven - all of which we use outdoors.

We do quite a bit of cooking outdoors and various types. I especially like to grill fish, but mainly salmon and only in season, which isn't that long. We especially like smoke flavor and mainly use mesquite wood and mesquite charcoal.

I'm making pizza dough this afternoon for lunch tomorrow. I like to let the dough rest overnight in the fridge.

Dh has used an Old Smokey for decades. He enjoys sitting down while grilling. He used to do it in the yard, but now prefers doing it on the garden shed porch (background).

https://www.oldsmokey.com/

We've had Weber Kettles since our wedding in 1977. Much prefer them to our Weber gas grill that does comes in handy every so often. We grill year round here in SoCal so everything gets a major workout.

Another topic but we have some of Weber's cookbooks that include favorites such as these that will be dinner tomorrow night. Can't count how many times I've made them. They can be made as meatballs or patties. They're better if allowed to sit for the full 8 hours before grilling, or even 24 hours. I haven't tried the sauce since I have a Tzatziki recipe we like.

Weber's Mount Olympus Meatball Kabobs

Serves 4-6

Meatballs:
2 medium garlic cloves
1 small red or yellow onion, roughly chopped (about 1 cup)
1/4 cup lightly packed fresh mint leaves
3/4 pound ground lamb
3/4 pound ground beef
1 T. red wine vinegar
1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. paprika

Sauce:
4 ounces English cucumber
1 cup plain yogurt
2 T. olive oil
2 T. finely chopped fresh dill
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/8 tsp. Tabasco sauce

For Meatballs: In food processor (or by hand) finely chop garlic, onion and mint. Combine in large bowl with lamb, beef and remaining meatball ingredients. Blend lightly with your hands until well combined. Form into meatballs about 1 1/2 inches in diameter (you should have 20-25 meatballs). Thread long, wide skewers through meatballs, about 4 or 5 per skewer, leaving a little room between each meatball. Place kabobs on baking sheet, cover and chill for 2 hours and up to 8 hours.

For Sauce: Grate cucumber. Drain in colander and squeeze out most of moisture. In medium bowl, whisk together cucumber and remaining sauce ingredients. Cover and chill until ready to serve (can be made 1-2 days in advance).

Lightly brush or spray kabobs on all sides with olive oil. Grill over direct medium heat until fully cooked, 8-10 minutes, gently rotating meatballs 2 or 3 times during grilling. Serve warm with the sauce.

Years ago, I almost burned our house down grilling on our outdoor deck. Steaks caught fire and started to burn the deck railing behind it. Major scare. Got it under control but I am very careful grilling on a wood deck.

BTW, our house was built on a hill so the deck was up two stories. Difficult to get a hose up there.

Jane

I can't imagine how steaks could catch on fire or could set fire to a railing, Putting any cooking equipment too close to something flammable, including a house's exterior, is ill-advised. That would be a problem even at ground level. In the event of a serious flare-up, which I can't remember ever experiencing with a Weber, replacing the top and closing the air vents should calm down any fire.

In the absence of a hose, a bucket of water works fine. I use one when my wife has moved the hose from the nearby spigot and not returned it.

A friend's brother thought he would be clever on a hot day and use his gas grill under a roof overhang that shaded part of his patio. There was apparently a gas surge while the lid was open, the roof caught fire, and the fire department needed to put out the flames but weren't able to do so before a good part of his house had been damaged. I doubt the gas surge story because i know the guy and he's always been a few sandwiches short of a full picnic but that was his story.

Elmer, to clarify, I was grilling four thick steaks. We had a deck which wrapped around our house. Had sliders off the kitchen. I often cooked inside with the meat outside on the grill. Got the steaks going, went back inside to finish cooking the side dishes. All of a sudden I saw flames shooting out on the deck. I ran out there and thought the railing (behind the grill) was in flames. There were so many flames, I couldn't get near the grill. flames were coming out all over, including the grease trap beneath the grill.

Having learned over the years that the best way to stop a grease fire was to smother it...not to use water.

I ran back in the kitchen, grabbed a canister of flour and doused the grill with the flour. It put out the flames. Flour everywhere and of course, the steaks were ruined. But the deck and house survived. I have no doubt that this fire could have been a disaster if I didn't see it through the glass sliding doors.

One other point, our house in NY was built on the side of a hill. The back of the house (kitchen, living room) was 2 stories high. The deck was on this level.

It was the most frightening thing I've experienced. I never believed grilling a few steaks could become such a explosive situation.

From that point on, the grill is always away from the house, and certainly not on a wood deck.

Jane

In my opinion, it's never a good idea to leave a stove or grill unattended no matter where it's located.

Jane, that must have been a scary experience. I'm glad you were able to contain the flames.

If there's a next time, I suggest using something other than flour. Flour is highly combustible and using it might have made the situation worse.

I agree with Judi - other than when a grill or Weber is warming up, I never leave them unattended when I cook. Same with cooking indoors - I monitor progress and am always very close, never more than a few steps away.

The 22 inch Weber turned out to be a little larger than I wanted, and my son had no grill so it is going to live at his house and he is delighted. Instead I now have a Char-grill Akorn Jr. which is small enough to conveniently cook for 1 but still big enough for burgers for the family or a pork butt.