I am replacing the briquettes in my outdoor propane grill. The old ones
looked like they were volcanic rock.

We bought some replacement briquettes that don't look so good. They
look like poured or molded concrete. They are not very uniform. The
edges are crumbly and some of them are broken into pieces. They came 60
in a bag for $7.

What would some more expensive ones be like?
Would they break easily and fall apart?
Would they last longer or have other advantages over these cheap ones we
bought?
How much should I be paying for some good ones?

"Matt" wrote in message
We bought some replacement briquettes that don't look so good. They look
like poured or molded concrete. They are not very uniform. The edges are
crumbly and some of them are broken into pieces. They came 60 in a bag
for $7.

So? Try them They act as heat diffusers and trap dripping. they will
still work.


What would some more expensive ones be like?
Would they break easily and fall apart?
Would they last longer or have other advantages over these cheap ones we
bought?
How much should I be paying for some good ones?

Just buy a new grill that does not use rocks. Get a www.napoleongrills.com
and be done with it.

Matt wrote:
I am replacing the briquettes in my outdoor propane grill. The old
ones looked like they were volcanic rock.

We bought some replacement briquettes that don't look so good. They
look like poured or molded concrete. They are not very uniform. The
edges are crumbly and some of them are broken into pieces. They came
60 in a bag for $7.

What would some more expensive ones be like?
Would they break easily and fall apart?
Would they last longer or have other advantages over these cheap ones
we bought?
How much should I be paying for some good ones?

My last grill (the one someone stole) used metal grids. I liked them
best. I don't grill for looks, but for taste, so who cares what they look
like. As long as they do the job (provide a hot surface to burn the fat and
create that barbecue flavor.)?

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit

I use volcanic rock in my grill, actually from the PNW volcano! Picked up
enough to keep me grilling for years.

Searcher

Those lava briquets you have can be boiled in water to remove the grease
embedded in them

I put mine in my self sleaning oven, they came out looking brand new.

"Matt" wrote in message
...
How much should I be paying for some good ones?

When designing my grill for my outdoor kitchen / BBQ area, I bought a bag of
landscaping lava rocks... These are quite a bit cheaper than the small bags
that are sold just for the grills... Some of them are smaller than the ones
that are sold explicitly for grills, but I just adjusted the size of the
support grid so that they wouldn't fall through... I have about a 3" layer
of these rocks in my grill with about an inch or so between the burner holes
and the bottom of the lava rock support gridwork... It takes a bit longer to
heat up, but I'm using natural gas, so it's cheaper anyway... I can get the
rocks cherry red and turn down or off the gas and still cook... For the
grill surface, I use 1/2" square solid bar stock from a metal / welding
supply shop like is used in the better quality metal fencing... Most of the
metal fencing that you see these days is the square tube type, but the solid
stuff is about the same price as the 16-gauge stuff when you're buying 20 ft
sections of it... Because it's so thick, it lasts a *long* time even if it
was just left outside in the rain...

"Edwin Pawlowski" wrote in message
om...
Just buy a new grill that does not use rocks. Get a
www.napoleongrills.com
and be done with it.

Those look kind of wimpy... I don't think they would survive a tornado... I
designed my grill area so that even if my house is no longer standing, my
grill will still be there... Gotta have your priorities, ya' know...

Joseph Meehan wrote:
Matt wrote:
I am replacing the briquettes in my outdoor propane grill. The old
ones looked like they were volcanic rock.

We bought some replacement briquettes that don't look so good. They
look like poured or molded concrete. They are not very uniform. The
edges are crumbly and some of them are broken into pieces. They came
60 in a bag for $7.

What would some more expensive ones be like?
Would they break easily and fall apart?
Would they last longer or have other advantages over these cheap ones
we bought?
How much should I be paying for some good ones?

My last grill (the one someone stole) used metal grids. I liked them
best. I don't grill for looks, but for taste, so who cares what they look
like. As long as they do the job (provide a hot surface to burn the fat and
create that barbecue flavor.)?

REAL BBQ is cooked over charcoal or wood.

wrote in message
oups.com...
REAL BBQ is cooked over charcoal or wood.

True, but it is also Beef Brisket and it is not possible to get REAL BBQ
outside of Texas...

Many of us just like the convenience of using gas to grill... Yeah, it's not
anywhere close to grilling over mesquite, but it's quick... If I had to do
REAL BBQ, I'm pretty sure that I wouldn't do it quite as often...

On the other hand, some people use propane / natural gas to fire the wood up
initially... That's a perfectly acceptable use of gas within the definition
of REAL BBQ...

I like the searing high heat of gas or charcoal. Gas is just so much
more convenient. Even below freezing in the snow we grill food.

With charcoal it just takes too long, and winter forget it

wrote:
I like the searing high heat of gas or charcoal. Gas is just so much
more convenient. Even below freezing in the snow we grill food.

With charcoal it just takes too long, and winter forget it

I completely agree,

Our home is in the desert. We cook outside virtually every
evening. Why in the world would we want to use the stove or
oven in the house, while cranking up the A/C to keep it cool
inside? On rainy nights, I have a large Market Umbrella
that I unfurl if needed, or use a golf umbrella if just
checkin' the food. To me, the outdoor gas grill is a
cooking appliance as useful as a range or oven. Ours cost
about $1100 at Sam's Club, is all stainless with a double
walled hood, drawers and a side burner. It's made in China,
as are most of the similar grills at Sears and even the
expensive BBQ stores. By any standards, it is very well
built. The grates are SS bars for good seering.

Mine also has a separate burner beneath a shallow tray that
can be filled with charcoal or wood chips to "smoke" what
I'm cooking. Being a barbecue fanatic (barbecue is a noun
where I come from), I know and understand how to cook butts
over COALS for hours at a time, and have cranked out some
pretty decent 'que on occasion. This isn't the same thing.
We use ours to grill chicken, chops, steaks, salmon,
shrimp, scallops and about any other kind of meat. We roast
ears of corn on it, use the spit for rib roasts, pork or
beef tenderloin. By grilling, you don't get all the fat and
the mess is minimal.

I have a friend who has a gas grill that cost $4000 and is
inset into a $3000 ceramic tile island. Mine just sits on
casters and I recently wheeled it out to paint the patio
beneath it. We have often compared grills when visiting and
he agrees that his $4000 grill from a barbecue store offers
less than my $1100 grill from Sam's Club.


Mark

Matt wrote:

I am replacing the briquettes in my outdoor propane grill. The old ones
looked like they were volcanic rock.

We bought some replacement briquettes that don't look so good. They
look like poured or molded concrete. They are not very uniform. The
edges are crumbly and some of them are broken into pieces. They came 60
in a bag for $7.

What would some more expensive ones be like?

Like porous ceramic tiles:

http://www.johnstones.com/parts/11072.html
http://www.du-co.com/grillgreats/
http://www.thenoflaresquare.com/

Would they break easily and fall apart?

They last for years.

Would they last longer or have other advantages over these cheap ones we
bought?

I've used a set of them for years. More uniform heat distribution,
cleaner, and lower-profile than lava rock or ceramic briquettes, which
is especially important when I'm fitting a large piece of meat on the
rotisserie.

I like them much better than the lava rock or ceramic briquettes, both
of which I've used in the past.

How much should I be paying for some good ones?

I got mine at a local hardware for about $12 for a carton. They can be
found on the internet under a variety of brand names and usually go
for $20-$30/set.

HellT