Men who can't grill?


 
L

Lew

TVWBB All-Star
We play tennis and cook out on Friday nights in the neighborhood. I usually play first, then do the cooking.

Last night, my match went long, so one of the guys said he would start the grill. I had brought one of my kettles, my chimney, charcoal, newspaper, a long lighter, gloves, and all the tools. I looked over and a couple of guys were looking at the chimney like it was a new species. They dismissed it and someone got some lighter fluid.

The next thing I know the flames were roaring 15 feet in the air! When I got off the court, the burgers were burning over an open flame. I checked the grill and the charcoal was stacked like a volcano, with the center almost touching the cooking grate. The burgers that had already been taken off were like charred hockey pucks.

Maybe I just take these things for granted, but I thought cooking hamburgers over a charcoal fire was a rite of manhood, passed on from father to son. What has the gas grill done to our men? And don't even get me started about electric smokers.
 
They dismissed it and someone got some lighter fluid.
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Maybe they siphoned some gas ..
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As I watched my two girls (now young ladies), court and marry a man, I've been very disheartened at their skills for doing manual things like working on a car, a house, or a grill. It's a shame but in my limited sample, fathers don't appear to be teaching their sons how to do man things. Sad.
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Originally posted by Rob_Fox:
It is only going to get worse.
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This right here...is SO true. Most of us were raised in households where women ruled the kitchen. I'm 33. I find there are many women who can't cook like one would often assume. I actually know more men that cook today than women. Be that as it may, the number of men who haven't a clue how to cook on a charcoal grill, is staggering. You should see the looks on the faces of the the friends I have over when I go about food prep and grill prep. You'd think I was pulling teeth from a hippopotamus. I learned grilling from my uncle and grandfather when I was growing up in Chicago. I moved out to Philadelphia when I was 14, for high school. I started grilling after I'd graduated, inspired by the experiences I'd had with my aforementioned uncle and grandfather.

I rarely even cook in my kitchen, as I'm confident that anything I can cook in the kitchen, I can not only cook on my Performer, but do it better. Most of my friends have gas grills. I always joke they should have just wheeled their range from the kitchen to the porch, because the only difference between the two is that one is indoors, and one is outdoors.

It is truly painful to see what often appears to be the slow death of charcoal grillmasters. Charcoal grilling is a lot like hockey. Perceived as a niche sport by the masses, loved and adored by the fanatics. And that's more than ok by me. No one likes a bandwagoner. :-p
 
I'm 32, and I can tell you that my dad passed a number of things down to me, but charcoal grilling and smoking was not one of them. That said, I think it is a valuable thing to learn because there really is no other way to cook in my opinion. I have a nine month old, and I can assure you that he will learn how to use power tools, mow his own grass, and cook with charcoal (to name a few things).
 
Now hold on a minute...

Power tools and charcoal grilling are fine to start now, but I really don't think you should be letting him cut the grass until he is a bit older
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I learned a lot about building & fixing things from my dad, but I don't think anyone in the Canadian branch of the family ever owned a bbq, whether gas or charcoal. Cooking outside was something you did when camping, using a Coleman stove fuelled by naptha.

The rest of the family is scattered around the UK, where frying and mushing seem to occupy the spots filled by grilling and smoking here.
 
Originally posted by John Bridgman:
Now hold on a minute...

Power tools and charcoal grilling are fine to start now, but I really don't think you should be letting him cut the grass until he is a bit older
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It's never to early to learn to cut grass!
 
Originally posted by John Bridgman:
Now hold on a minute...

I learned a lot about building & fixing things from my dad, but I don't think anyone in the Canadian branch of the family ever owned a bbq, whether gas or charcoal. Cooking outside was something you did when camping, using a Coleman stove fuelled by naptha.

The rest of the family is scattered around the UK, where frying and mushing seem to occupy the spots filled by grilling and smoking here.
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Not sure about north of the border, but here in Georgia EVERYONE has some kind of grill. The trouble is, fancy gas grills have been gradually replacing charcoal grills. IMHO, gassers are fine (I have one) but everyone should be able to cook over a charcoal or wood fire.
 
I have four sons ages of 21-25-29-33.
They are all fairly adept on using a Weber kettle,chimney and cooking over a charcoal fire.
Its a rite of passage, and one I hope they share with my grandsons.( actually our 11yr old granddaughter is very keen at helping her dad out on the OTS,)
I get what you're sayin, cause a couple of my nieces better half's wouldn't know what end of a hammer to use, and a George Foreman grill is the only way to grill outside.
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Tim
 
Originally posted by Jerry N.:
As I watched my two girls (now young ladies), court and marry a man, I've been very disheartened at their skills for doing manual things like working on a car, a house, or a grill. It's a shame but in my limited sample, fathers don't appear to be teaching their sons how to do man things. Sad.
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You have a point. Guys in my street keep coming to my door asking to see my "smoking equipment" which I take to mean the WSM. They always stare at it like aliens landed in my yard and left their technology. I'm now a legend just for knowing how to make a fire without lighter fluid let alone cooking edible food over charcoal.

Our friends can all swing a golf club, but they don't seem to have much by way of practical skills. They roll their eyes because we have alternative power, a stock of food and water in the basement, battery operated radio, and a good first aid kit. Being organized for an emergency seems like common sense to me - and with our charcoal cookers, we can make food if the power is out, too! If that makes us nuts...oh, well...
 
Our friends can all swing a golf club, but they don't seem to have much by way of practical skills. They roll their eyes because we have alternative power, a stock of food and water in the basement, battery operated radio, and a good first aid kit. Being organized for an emergency seems like common sense to me - and with our charcoal cookers, we can make food if the power is out, too! If that makes us nuts...oh, well...
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Yeah Jennifer, I hear ya! My neighbors think I'm paranoid because I have a fully stocked earthquake kit in my backyard and I always have a spare tank of propane for the gasser and my Coleman stove, and lots and lots of briqs for my kettle. I tell them I am not paranoid, just ready and they should be as well. Then they tell me that they don't need a kit because they're coming over to my house! Doubtful!
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BTW, my Hubster does most of the cooking around here but now that I've been bitten by the BBQ bug, the grill duty is mine!
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To true Lew! I myself am 30 and not really a hand person. I'm a jock and always have been. However, I can do lots of things just not build a house or work on my car. But grilling and smoking...that I've got down. I've even shared a lot of knowledge I have learned myself and through here over the years. Introduced many to the chimney starter I will say that. Horrified me the look I'd get when some guys were amazed I didn't use lighter fluid. But, in any event, I do agree, nothing wrong with gassers but I also agree that it will get worse.
 
I'm happy to say that my son, 23 yr, has had quite a bit of experience with carpentry, plumbing, general construction, etc. due to several jobs working in that area. As a result, he was the building manager of the co-op he lived in at school for a couple years. He's helped me out with several home projects and generally has good advice and common sense when it comes to work. He also seems to know his limits and seeks help/advice from experienced adults as needed. I've been impressed by that, frankly.
Back to your friends burning burgers. You'd think a little experience would set them straight, no? Maybe offer to teach charcoal grill basics...
 
Originally posted by Jon Des.:
I would bet you a beer that the same guys that couldn't light your grill can't drive a manual transmission.
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Hey now. I can't drive a manual. But I've been grilling for 15 years despite only being 33, I own 7 Weber charcoal grills, and have my own pallet of Kingsford in the garage. So...I think I'm off the hook.
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Originally posted by Hayden McCall:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Jon Des.:
I would bet you a beer that the same guys that couldn't light your grill can't drive a manual transmission.
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Hey now. I can't drive a manual. But I've been grilling for 15 years despite only being 33, I own 7 Weber charcoal grills, and have my own pallet of Kingsford in the garage. So...I think I'm off the hook.
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</div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Can't drive a manual???? SIGH youth these days!
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Do they still make manual transmissions?
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For the record, I can drive one. I think it's important to know how to in case of an emergency.

I have a buddy who can turn out good food on his ECB, but he lights his lump with lighter fluid. I'm still trying to convert him.
 
i'm 32.

i have very fond memories of my dad grilling with a red weber kettle.

i have scary memories of me almost burning down the house by sweeping the one-touch cleaning system back and forth and watching the glowing embers fall from the bowl onto the wooden deck.

I didn't learn to grill until i was 24 or 25.
My first few attempts were down right embarrassing.

I'm notoriously UN handy and I don't partake in MOST of these 'manly' stereotypes. I don't work on my car. I don't watch sports.

I don't think of grilling (over charcoal of course) as manly. However, I do feel it's something that will be passed down and kept alive as a family tradition.

I sometimes task my wife or my 14yr old daughter with lighting the charcoal for me. It's pretty easy on my performer though.

I'll get them cooking soon
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Annnd - regarding the rise in people who can't grill or even light charcoal...
Society is in a rapid declination of culture, intelligence, and consideration. Idiots and morons are breeding, producing a cancerous population that will eventually end the world.
 
Manual transmission- are you talking about synchronized or unsynchronised ones?

I can do both..
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But speaking of knowledge, it seems like a lot of people disregarding age, does not see the value of knowledge. I something har more than one button, and takes some time to master, they are not willing to give it a try.

It seems like it is better be a passive spectator to the fun, than to do an effort and do something that others can enjoy.
 
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