Hi, I'm back. I didn't renew my subscription two years ago because I had learned pretty much all I needed to know. I bought just about everything this site recommends and brought it over in my luggage: Weber 22" kettle, Slow-n-Sear, Thermopop, a couple Super-Fast to give away as gifts, a Maverick ET-732, a Smoke (when I thought someone had stolen the Maverick but it turned out I had left it at a friend's house when I brought it over to use for the Thanksgiving turkey, so now I have two), Hovergrill, CharGon, OXO 8" chef's knife, a Premiala injector that I have never used, and Meathead's cookbook. I printed the cook records and filled them in. I made paraffin and cotton ball firestarters by hand because nobody stocks lighter fluid.
I've learned how to make damn good chicken thighs, leg of lamb, and lamb lollipops. I can also make pork or chicken kebabs using the marinades. I once made a pork loin that turned out really well, and last week I did some steaks that someone bought. But all other meats are hard to find. Things have gotten better, and now you can get some traditional American BBQ meats like pork butt or brisket in Shanghai, but the price is through the roof. I did recently stumble out of the bar at 2am one night, and just down the street was a place where they had a bunch of whole pigs piled up, I made a note to go back there and see if I can get some ribs.
My cookouts are well-known locally and everyone thinks I'm the king of BBQ, all because I can follow instructions from this website. I have this sweet outdoor terrace area on the roof between two buildings that is perfect for parties. The spring just sprung last week so it's cookout time again. I'm going to be cooking 2 or 3 weekends a month until it's too cold.
So, AmazingRibs.com and the Tao of Meathead have been a big success story for me. Thanks for all of you who endured my endless strings of literal-minded questions back when I was learning. I really learned a lot and put it to good use. Now it's time to take it to the next level.
A friend who owns a local bar (different from the other ones I've talked about in the past) asked me to do cookouts once a week at his establishment, and offered me some cash plus all I can drink for free. I didn't actually want to take the deal, but I'm at a point now where I need every bit of cash I can pull in, and I drank enough for free at his bar so I figure I kind of owe him. I'm trying to learn more about not just cooking for friends, but for larger groups. I did kebabs outside the bar a few weeks ago, and it was kind of a pain. It was from 9pm - 1am, and the charcoal fire won't burn that long. But if someone orders a kebab, I can't just light the fire, cook a couple, and then let it die out. It takes too long and is wasteful of charcoal. If I light one big fire, it dies out within an hour or so. So, I don't know what to do.
I could just cook something else, but generally you have to eat my BBQ chicken/lamb right away, as if you let it sit for a while it gets cold and the wonderful juices turn into solid fat. Not that cold chicken isn't nice, but this is a fancy establishment. I could make burgers, but the Chinese have a different mental idea of where is appropriate for burgers and it wouldn't work at a bar. I'm at a loss.
Anyway, it's nice to be back. There has been some progress on making American style BBQ known in my town, but I'll save that for other posts. Thanks for all your advice!
I've learned how to make damn good chicken thighs, leg of lamb, and lamb lollipops. I can also make pork or chicken kebabs using the marinades. I once made a pork loin that turned out really well, and last week I did some steaks that someone bought. But all other meats are hard to find. Things have gotten better, and now you can get some traditional American BBQ meats like pork butt or brisket in Shanghai, but the price is through the roof. I did recently stumble out of the bar at 2am one night, and just down the street was a place where they had a bunch of whole pigs piled up, I made a note to go back there and see if I can get some ribs.
My cookouts are well-known locally and everyone thinks I'm the king of BBQ, all because I can follow instructions from this website. I have this sweet outdoor terrace area on the roof between two buildings that is perfect for parties. The spring just sprung last week so it's cookout time again. I'm going to be cooking 2 or 3 weekends a month until it's too cold.
So, AmazingRibs.com and the Tao of Meathead have been a big success story for me. Thanks for all of you who endured my endless strings of literal-minded questions back when I was learning. I really learned a lot and put it to good use. Now it's time to take it to the next level.
A friend who owns a local bar (different from the other ones I've talked about in the past) asked me to do cookouts once a week at his establishment, and offered me some cash plus all I can drink for free. I didn't actually want to take the deal, but I'm at a point now where I need every bit of cash I can pull in, and I drank enough for free at his bar so I figure I kind of owe him. I'm trying to learn more about not just cooking for friends, but for larger groups. I did kebabs outside the bar a few weeks ago, and it was kind of a pain. It was from 9pm - 1am, and the charcoal fire won't burn that long. But if someone orders a kebab, I can't just light the fire, cook a couple, and then let it die out. It takes too long and is wasteful of charcoal. If I light one big fire, it dies out within an hour or so. So, I don't know what to do.
I could just cook something else, but generally you have to eat my BBQ chicken/lamb right away, as if you let it sit for a while it gets cold and the wonderful juices turn into solid fat. Not that cold chicken isn't nice, but this is a fancy establishment. I could make burgers, but the Chinese have a different mental idea of where is appropriate for burgers and it wouldn't work at a bar. I'm at a loss.
Anyway, it's nice to be back. There has been some progress on making American style BBQ known in my town, but I'll save that for other posts. Thanks for all your advice!
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