Best Grilling Tools

[mcohen]

What are the best grilling tools?

I kept waiting for the Webers to go on sale, and finally broke down and paid full retail when it became evident they never went on sale.

Now, I've got a lot of grilling to make up for.

What's the best grilling brush?

What's the best grilling thermometer to measure how hot the grill is? I don't see myself doing any BBQ so I'm not really interested in a BBQ thermometer, which just measures the temp at top of the lid. Even in that scenario, why would you want the measure the temperature at the top of the lid?

What's the best grill sheet to grill vegetables that would otherwise fall through the grates? I see these flat stainless steel sheets with some holes in them, but wouldn't that mass of metal block the food from picking up the smoky flavor? Don't you want to expose the food to as much smoke and heat as possible without falling through?

[ChickenStu]

What's the best grilling brush?

What's the best grilling thermometer to measure how hot the grill is? I don't see myself doing any BBQ so I'm not really interested in a BBQ thermometer, which just measures the temp at top of the lid. Even in that scenario, why would you want the measure the temperature at the top of the lid?

A long and easy to clean brush.

Infrared thermometer.

[TimS]

My go-to tools:

-long-handled, spring-loaded tongs

-after pulling a brass bristle from my son's gums after a grilled meal a couple years back, I switched to the 'billy bar' for grill cleaning; no more brushes for me. Works like a charm.

-instant-read thermometer

-those stainless sheets for grilling vegetables work just fine. With the lid closed, you'll get the smokey flavor you're looking for.

-I do have a dome thermometer installed on my grill; it's nice to know what the temperature range is that I'm working with to aid in the determination of cooking times.

-diner-style burger spatula

-fish spatula

My advice is to steer away from any 'bbq kits'; at most, you only seem to get one useful tool out of the set.

[mgaretz]

I prefer a silicone brush with a stainless handle.

[boilsover]

Not exactly what you ask for in the body of your post, but the most useful grilling tool I own is a "pigtail" turner. I'm embarrassed to say that while I've been grilling for 30+ years, only this year did I ever condescend to try one. I bit at my state fair, where a blacksmith was pounding out ornate ones for $15. Best $15 I ever spent (except buying a drink for the beauty who became my wife).

[ericthered]

I'm not big on fancy he-man grill tool sets. Mine includes:

1) Weber charcoal chimney--faster than the fluid and no funny taste.

2) Long, steel, spring-loaded tongs.

3) Thermapen brand thermometer (handy if you're not experienced in testing done-ness of meat by touch--otherwise a callused finger works and is much cheaper)

4) Lodge brand cast-iron grill (pre-heat it on the grill grate and it leaves excellent sear marks).

5) Battery-powered LED headlamp (in case it gets dark)

6) Silicone brush with a longer handle

[scubadoo97]

For me it's

For the food

Heavy duty spring loaded locking tongs

thin large spatula

Thermapen

Silicone brush

For the grill

Little dish of oil and rolled paper towel to season the grill.

Grill brush

Edited November 23, 2010 by scubadoo97 (log)

[OliverB]

any good wire brush with a long handle will work. Just make sure to buy one for your grill, I think some of the coated grills can get damaged with a steel brush and you might want to use brass or what it is instead.

Long tongs, the longer the better. And squeeze them, some of the bbq set ones have more spring back than I like, my favorite is a long kitchen style one, locking and with a spring in the handle. Get one extra for moving hot coals around.

A wireless bbq thermometer. I have one that has a small temp desiplay in the thermometer unit that stays with the grill, and a wireless temp display and timer unit. Really handy if you are running back and forth doing stuff in the kitchen.

Wood chunks for smoke, I prefer chunks over chips.

The chimney for sure.

Infrared thermometer for fun.

Cast iron grill is great for high heat steaks etc.

Those veggie grates are great too, but do buy quality stainless steel. I had a cheap weber knockoff that got warped during the first use, returned and exchanged it for the square weber one which works great.

Down the road a fish holder, not sure what they're called, can be handy. Those fish shaped grill things where you put the fish inside and you can then just flip the thing instead of trying to flip the fish with tongs and a spatula.

Oh, yes, a spatula is handy too.

Some like a bbq glove, I find them more cumbersome.

And don't forget the most important bbq tool: beer bottle opener :-)