Grilling trends for 2011
The good folks at Weber-Stephen Products, LLC have sent me the 22nd Annual “Weber Grillwatch Survey,” which seeks to determine what kind of grilling behavior will be on tap this season.
As part of the survey, they hid in bushes with binoculars and observed American grill masters in their natural habitats. OK, I made that part up. According to their release, they used “a third-party research firm using pristine methodology.” I think my plan sounds more fun.
Here are the trends revealed for 2011:
* More Americans will cook outdoors than in previous years, which continues an upward trend.
* Not as many people own multiple grills as before. Thirty percent own two or more grills or smokers, which is down 5 percent from last year. Only 5 percent of Americans own three or more grills. This all makes sense, given the economy.
* Ownership of grills with side burners and rotisseries is down; ownership of grills with a sear zone or a sear area has gone up.
* Grilling and smoking accessories also continue to rise in popularity.
* More than half of American grill owners want to learn how to grill breakfast.
Does any of this interest or surprise you? I am most interested in the last fact. It seems like it would be fun to cook breakfast on the grill. Does anybody have any recipes or ideas for breakfast on the barbie?
April 27, 2011 - 6:31 AM
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I grill sausage patties for breakfast all the time.
I wouldn’t say breakfast is tops on my list, but I’d like to see more grilling desert recipes! It’s nice to be able to do a full meal (meat, starch and veggie) on the grill, but would like to finish it off with a nice desert too!
I’d also like to see statistics on gas versus charcoal and if there is any trend there…
30% of people own 2+ grills? Is this due to tailgating? Are people counting a smoker as a grill?
I’ve got two grills, but never really thought about it. One is for home use, and one, my little Weber lunchbox type grill is for tailgating. My home grill is a Weber 22″ kettle that I converted into a gas grill. It’s complete with a chip tray for flavor infusion, so all you folks getting ready to lecture me about not using charcoal just hush. It’s clean, it’s efficient, it’s consistent, and it tastes just as good.
Breakfast recipes would be good. Stuff like frittatas and omelets are things I already do on summer weekends. Other ideas would be helpful.
The way I read it, they are counting grills and smokers, so I’ll bet most of those people have one of each. Also, you could count vacation or beach homes as a site for a second grill.
I have a gas grill for pork, chicken, and fish. I use a charcoal grill for beef. Why? My wife says steaks and burgers on charcoal are better, but I cannot tell a difference. I have always heard there is no difference – the flavor comes from the dripping of the juices onto the coals or burner.
Well, as I stated, a small tailgate grill would count as a second grill. For me that is applicable, but for several it is not. I guess that is where the ‘beach grill’ comes into play.
I use the grill our beach landlord provides, and don’t have one designated for that. That’s where I intake my annual consumption of carcinogens via ‘charcoaling’…
Well, does it count that I often grill all three meals on wood .. outside. Then in the winter time I hardly use my kitchen stove .. most of my cooking is done on and in my woodstove ..
In my opinion, nothing tastes as good as wood cooked food ..
Seems like you could put a cast iron griddle on the grill for pancakes, eggs and bacon.
Well, that’s what I’m wondering, Debbie. I hate to sound like a doofus, but I’m not the grillmaster in my house. Does anybody do that? It seems like the heat would be as even as a stove, depending on where you put the pan. We have only used the grill pans with holes in them for things like vegetables. I have a flat, cast iron griddle that’s supposed to cover two eyes of the stove- that would be great for pancakes on the grill.
Any way to avoid heating up the oven in the summer is worth a try.
ChuckieP, I’ve done grilled fruit and it’s a big hit. Pineapple works especially well…you could do a skewer alternating pineapple chunks with something else.
We have the small red Coleman foldable grill for football and the beach, so I guess we’re in the multiple grill demographic. Nothing so yummy as grilling our brats right near the water, plus we don’t lose our spot!
I wonder if you could mix up a breakfast casserole and put the whole Pyrex right on the grill and close it to cook, instead of baking it?
I have made a grilled fruit salsa in summer that’s excellent with fish or chicken. You just grill slabs of pineapple, papaya, mango til they get nice grill marks, then dice them up and add some jalapeno, lime juice, red onion, cilantro. It’s yummy. Grilled pineapple with ice cream and caramel sauce… also yummy.
I find myself a little apprehensive about the Pyrex since all the horror stories about exploding Pyrex began to circulate. But you can put it in the oven, so why not the grill?
I was going to say, I wouldn’t do Pyrex on the grill. Most care instructions that come with Pyrex say not to use it on the stove top, just in the oven, so don’t try it on the grill.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20091121164514AACeLFv
An answer to the Pyrex question.
My summer cooking goal is to perfect grilled pizza on our gas grill. I’ve been reading up on techniques including different recipes for dough. I’m not one of those thick-crust lovers – rather, I adore thin, crispy crusts.
@Kristen: I’ve done a lot of camp cooking on gas and wood and I wouldn’t recommend putting Pyrex on a grill. Especially if it’s Pyrex bought in the last decade. You could definitely do it with an enameled cast iron casserole or a stoneware casserole. Just use indirect heat to cook it. Don’t place the casserole directly over the flame.
Thank you Rebecca…my Pyrex is all sort of new, so that would probably have been a disaster. And thanks Debbie for the link.
I had no idea Pyrex was combustible. Another reason to thank goodness for the blogosphere.
On another note…I made mozzarella last night for my first adventure in cheese-making. It tastes good but it’s not as stretchy as I’d like and it’s a little drier tasting than I wanted. I don’t think I kneaded it enough – it was super hot and I didn’t use my hands but used two silicon paddles instead.
Has anyone else tried thei hand at cheese-making? Any thoughts on suppliers or advice?
Amy, when we make pizza on the grill we use tortillas. They get just cripy and strong enough to hold the toppings, but aren’t overwhelmingly bready.
I have not made cheese, but I’ll bet you a dollar someone on here knows.
If you are in a hurry and want to make homemade pizzas on the grill, you can buy dough. I bought a lump of dough from On the Rise last summer and made some extraordinary, bubbly, crispy pizzas on the grill. It was pretty cheap, too.
I grew up learning on a gas grill. It’s quick, efficient, and easy to control. I prefer, however, my lump wood charcoal grilling of today. The smoky flavor imparted upon the food makes the difference for me. That smoke flavor has nothing to do with the drippings from the meat and isn’t possible without adding chips, so I cut out the gas middle man. I own a gas grill, too, just don’t use it much. Upper Management complains about the lingering smell of cooking bacon and sausage, so it’s going outdoors, too!