Weber Q 220 Comments

I have been a big fan of Weber's Charcoal grills for a number of years (I have 3 of them), and recently purchased a Q220 because I wanted something that was quick and easy to use during the week.

Frankly, I've been disappointed so far. I do like the cooking grates, built-in thermometer and the quick preheating. However, I have issues with the following:

1) Taste -- I probably should I have expected this coming from charcoal. I know I can marinate, add rubs, etc., (and I do some of this for the 220) but even after all of that charcoal is still better.

2) Lack of heat control -- I have a much harder time of controlling the temperature with this thing than my charcoal grills. I find it hard to get below 300 degrees, even on the lowest setting.

3) Inside the grill quickly becomes a mess -- the cooking box and drip pan needs cleaning out on a regular basis. So far, I haven't found all of this talk about easier maintenance and cleanup with a gas grill to be true. With charcoal, I dump the coals and I'm done, and don't have to worry about the cooking box, the burners, the burner tubes, etc.

4)Lack of versatility -- there's only one burner, so while indirect is sort of possible, it doesn't work nearly as well as a grill with multiple burners or a charcoal grill. It seems it is either on or off and the grill temperatures are either very hot or not quite as hot.

I'm sure I'll continue to use the grill, but unless I'm really pressed for time, I don't see ever choosing to use this over my charcoal grills.

I'm not trying to be bitter about this, because I know that a lot of people love these grills. Any tips from users would be appreciated -- thanks!

Mac
Hi, I will try and offer you some tips but before I do, can you expand a little on your post.
What have you been cooking on the Q?
How did you cook it?
Do you add smoke wood when grilling with charcoal?
What is your favourite dish on the grill?

You are correct when you say there is a different taste between using gas and using charcoal, there is also a different taste between using charcoal and briquettes as there is between using different types of charcoal and grilling direct, indirect or a combination cook. Which one do you like the best?

To give you a bit of background on myself and what my experience is with the Q series of BBQs is: I have had a Q200/220 (I changed the lid) for over 4 years and swear by it, I admit that the taste of grilling over charcoal is slightly different to gas. In Australia, in blind taste tests people were divided about 50/50 as to which one tasted the best.
I demonstrate for Weber Australia every Saturday for the 3 months leading up to Christmas, I demonstrate on the Q, Genesis, Kettle and WSM (occasionally), I own 5 BBQs Q220, Genesis E320, Performer and 2 x OTS) and borrow the Demo WSM. I also have a Tool Box smoker, which is a homemade hot smoker for fish and small cuts. I like to use the performer of a weekend when I have time and use the Q220 during the week, I use the side burner on the Genesis all the time and the Genesis when I am doing a larger BBQ I regularly (about once a month/6 weeks will have 3 or 4 BBQs going doing different dishes.

Cleaning the Q is an easy task compared to cleaning other gas grills. I find it is only marginally longer than cleaning a charcoal grill. On my Kettles I need to wait until the charcoal/briquettes have extinguished to remove them. I need to clean the inside of the lid, wash and clean the bowl and scrub the grill. On the Q I turn it to high for 10 minutes and brush the grill and wipe the inside of the lid or wash with a bit of warm soapy water and rinse (while it is still warm) I then empty the drip tray and give it a quick rinse with hot water. After the Q has cooled or before next use I scrape out the base of the Q with a plastic scraper and give it a scrub with a nail brush and some warm soapy water. Every 2 months I line up all my BBQs (except the Genesis) and give them all a clean with oven cleaner, soapy water and a high pressure hose. I am pedantic about the cleanliness of my BBQs so I probably over clean them. The bottom line is that I don’t find the Q hard to clean, the one that is hard to clean in comparison is the Genesis.

The temperature control on the Q is great for what it is intended and for a gas BBQ, but this is dependant on what you are trying to cook and how you go about it. I cook as much indirect as I do direct on the Q. I cook cakes, deserts, quiche, pizza and bread on the Q so it has versatility. I expect that you are trying to do low and slow on the Q if this is the case it is difficult and I would recommend that you use the WSM/Kettle for this. The Q is designed for quicker cooks - grilling and roasting. There is no single BBQ that can do all ( my wife wishes there was as then I wouldn’t be cluttering up the outdoor area with BBQs) for it’s design the Q is the best.

Cooking indirect on the Q is a simple task there is several different set-ups that can be used you, once you understand the basic method you can come up with different ways to meet your requirements. The basic method is to place a doubled over sheet of foil on the grill ensuring that you have an air gap between the edge of the foil and the sides of the Q of at least 1” on the long side and 1 ½” – 2 “ on the short sides. Then place a roasting trivet or a wire rack on the foil, which sits at least 3/4” above the foil, providing an air gap between the foil and the food being cooked.

If you post the answers to the questions at the beginning of this post I will try and expand on my answers and give you some more specific tips.

If you send me an email or put your email address in your profile I will send you a copy of the recipes that I have developed specifically for the Q.

Hopefully we can help you to better enjoy the experience of using the Q.

Regards

Thanks for the reply! I had hoped you would respond, as I've seen your posts and knew that you were an experienced user. I appreciate your taking the time to reply.

So far I have stuck to the basics, like chicken, fish, meat, and vegetables. I have only tried direct with the grill. I've done tons of indirect cooking with the charcoal grills I have.

I am not sure about Australia, but the manual you get with the Q in the U.S. doesn't even mention indirect cooking in their cooking guide. It simply ranges from High Direct to Low Direct. And the trivet you have mentioned in other posts isn't even available here, although I'm sure that something else could work well.

I think one of the biggest adjustments I've had to make is with the grate. I really like the grill marks you get, but the grate seems to really hold heat well, so I'm wondering if I need to lower the temperature a bit when using the grill.

Cleaning the grill is something I'm going to have to get used to -- plain and simple.

I realize I'm probably biased, but I really like the taste of charcoal. I usually add smoke when using it, but not always -- it depends on what I am grilling.

My favorite dish is a bit tough -- I like a little bit of everything. But lately, I've really been enjoying pork and fish of all kinds -- I really enjoy the wide variety of flavors and cooking techniques that can exist in both pork and fish.

If I get better at using this grill and understanding it's capabilities, I'm sure I'll enjoy it more. I must admit that I have enjoyed getting home from work, preheating the grill, cooking the food, and enjoying dinner in less than 30 minutes.

Any other information would be appreciated!

You can do some indirect on a Q if you use a perforated pan to get the meat off the grate. It won't necessarilty be low and slow, but it will let you do some smoke roasting if you throw a wood chunk next to the burner.

Mac
Hopefully the recipes and the photo of the Indirect Cooking set-up was of some help.

You need to have your grill on high for quick grilling to get great sear marks. When I am doing a steak thicker than 19 mm (3/4") I will preheat on high and then put the steak on and then turn down the control knob 2 stokes, The heat in the PCI grill will give great sear marks without drying out the meat on the surface. The grill marks on the other side won't be as predominate but will be there and the steak will be extremely moist.

If you are cooking chicken fillet which is one of the dishes that I love you grill it on high.
Bring the fillet to room temperature and brush the fillet on both sides with some EVOO or vegetable oil, Preheat the Q on high for 10 minutes and brush the grill clean before cooking. Place the fillet on the grill and sprinkle with a little salt ( I always use salt flakes) close the lid and grill on one side for 3 1/2 - 4 minutes depending on the thickness, Turn and grill on the other side for the same time. Don't enhance the fillet with any rubs or marinades just cook it plain, you will find that this is an amazing natural taste with just enough searing/caramelization coupled with the burning of the oil to give a slight smokiness that does not overpower but enhances to natural taste. When I was demonstrating at the end of last year I was showing potential buyers how to cook a chicken fillet on a Q220, after cooking it, I sliced it up and served it to the potential buyers, one of them was the Chef from the hotel next door. He and the hotel manager had come in to look at BBQs as they were going to start doing a BBQ lunch of a Sunday on the Roof Top beer garden, He said it was the best BBQ chicken he had tasted, I then gave him a slice of slow roasted pickled pork which I had double glazed with honey they asked for the recipe for that so they could put it on the Menu and bought a Summit 650. However I did not use smoke for any of these cooks as the smoky flavour is not so popular here in Australia.
Pickled pork is like corned meat It is pickled the same way, I just rinse it off and slow roast it until the internal is 70 C then I glaze with honey and cook for 10 minutes, then glaze with honey again and cook for another 10 minutes and take it off at 77C internal.

Fish on the Q - a few ways You can use the Weber grill pan (part number 3032903) direct on the grill. Brush the fish with oil or a mixture of 75% butter and 25% oil and sprinkle with salt. Preheat Q for on high for 10 minutes, place fish on grill pan and place grill pan on Q grill close lid and cook for 5 - 8 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish and whether it is a fillet or a whole fish. Turn and cook the same length of time on the other side. The fish should be cooked so it is just turning opaque in the middle. It takes a bit of trial and error to perfect cooking fish on any particular BBQ - remember it is easier to cook a little longer than to have dried out fish.

The other method that I have started to use for grilling fish is by using a Magic BBQ Cooking Sheet
BBQ Grill Sheet. I cooked some Salmon on this at Easter and it was unbelievable - perfect sear marks clean taste moist and it did not stick at all. You need to trim the sheet so that it does not cover all the grill, what I do is just have it on 1/2 the grill with the remainder of the sheet hanging out the side. It is great for Vegetables and for hamburgers - no sticking. There may be a similar product available in North America.

If you go to the accessories section of the Weber Australian Site you can see Roasting trivet in there Aussie Weber Q site You should be able to make a trivet from a heavy duty wire rack Just make sure the feet hold it at least 1/2" above the foil and the feet are long enough to stop from slipping between the grill.

Most grilling should be done on high or two strokes below high, roasting is done 2-3 strokes below high cakes are done at about 4-5 stokes below high, however with the Q220 you have a temp gauge so you can set it relatively easy. You need to set the temp about 5 or so degrees above what you would use in an oven.

Has this helped you? Do you need any more info/tips at the moment?

Regards

Thanks Phil -- your tips are extremely helpful. I'll give them a try and if I have any problems, I'll certainly let you know.

Thanks again!