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Wednesday, August 4, 2010

The Lodge Sportsman's grill

This is the Lodge Sportsman's grill. It's a small cast iron hibachi style charcoal grill. It's 33 pounds, and grills enough for about 4 people at one time.

The Japanese invented the hibachi to be an economical user of fuel; It was compact since living space was limited in Japanese city apartments.

There's some illustrated reviews here and here.

It's great for camping or tailgating.

You can cook anything directly on the surface, AND you can use it as a burner to cook in a skillet or pot.

The grates are close enough together, that you can grill fish and veggies on it. If you're cooking hot dogs, flip the grill part over, so they don't roll off.

A consumer reported placing foil-wrapped potatoes directly on the coals and baking them for 40 minutes before grilling their steaks.

Others report building a wood fire in it to roast marshmallows, or grill-baking a pizza.

You want to get some cinder block and patio stones to set this grill on; It will be easier on your back, and you won't damage your deck.

And you definitely want the waterproof polyester cover, since it will rust if left out in the elements, and hauling it inside / outside would be a pain.

You could buy a "chimney starter", or make your own using a coffee can and a key can opener.

A recommended cookbook is "Honorable Hibachi", with recipes specifically for this type of grill.

This grill will not roast or smoke, since there's no lid. That's a drawback, but it's still a useful tool.

The Sportsman's cooker referred to in my previous post was meant to be used with this grill; It was discontinued, but Camp Chef still makes one.

Apparently the Lodge fish pan* was also meant to be used with it. Also discontinued.

*There was an oval shaped fish pan that fit right on this grill; The rectangle one would work too though.

I gave up charcoal grilling after I got frustrated when the charcoal wouldn't light. But this looks like an awesome grill, and I'll get one eventually.

It's just a question of, will I actually use it or not, since I don't grill outside much?

But reportedly, this grill makes food taste better than when cooked on a gas grill. Which I believe, since cast iron always makes food taste better.

So maybe I'll like this grill so much, that I'll start grilling more often.

4 comments:

  1. this grill works best with the lodge or camp chef oval pans for baking large quantities of bread. I have the grill but need the oval pan with lid. The knock offs have too many defects for me to spend the money.

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  2. I never thought about baking bread with this but that would work, with the sportsman's cooker. Unfortunately the Lodge one is hard to find.

    Old Mountain has a similar pan but the lid doesn't fit right.

    I haven't heard anything negative about the Camp Chef one though.

    Bayou Classic makes one but their quality of cast iron is not great.

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    the best I’ve ever seen. I am awed by the fact that it can be folded after use. These are utilities that I really am fond of. Thanks for sharing an awesome selection.

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