ilovemyweber

Howdy fellow people,

Hope you are all excited about this weekend – I know I am cause I will have some 1 on 1 with my Weber.

I would like to share an experiment but first I need to explain the difference between direct and indirect cooking method on your weber.

Indirect Cooking Method – in simple terms it putting coals on each side of the
weber and when the lid is closed it creates an oven effect – perfect for fillet of
beef, beer chicken, roasts, leg of lamb ect

Direct Cooking Method – in simple terms the more traditional braai
where the bottom grid of covered in coals and this cooks the meat
and requires turning – perfect for steaks, chicken wings, lamb chops.

So now that you got the basics of weber cooking I can share my experiment.

What you will need:

 1 Rack of Lamb (I got mine from Spar)
 Salt and Pepper
 Fresh Rosemary
 40 Coals

Open all vents, Prep your Weber with 20 coals a side (see picture above – Indirect Cooking Method) light them and wait approx. 30min – NB the coals needs to be “cooked through” iow no more black on the coals.

Place a drip tray between your coals (now this is where you can be creative… throw some baby potatoes or vegetables in there with some olive oil and all the yummy meat juices drips down and makes the veggies taste super awesome) basically this prevent the juices from dripping on your weber and makes cleaning a SCHLEP!

Anyhooo – too much theory… more action!

Once coals are ready, drip tray is in place, put the top grid on and then sear the rack of lamb over the direct coals (you could do this in a hot pan but seriaaasly what is the point – more dishes)

Then place your meat in the centre of the grid over the drip tray, bone side down, fatty side upwards (hope this makes sense ???) then place your weber lid back on and set a timer for 20min.

Open the lid 20min later and here is the twist…. Add fresh wet rosemary (I grabbed some from the garden) and I threw it on the each side on top of the coals – closed the top vent and smoked it for another 10min.

Remove the Weber and rest it for a few minutes…WARNING: This might blow your mind so have paper towels ready!

Happy Weekend

As it was Masterchef Braai Challenge I decided to come home early and start a oxtail potjie. PLEASE NOTE: I am not a chef, foodie or know-it-all.. i love what i can do on my weber and i want to share my passion and joy!

Start your fire… i used about 10 coals (direct method) in a potjie cooker.. see photos below. every 30min i added 4 coals…

Here is what i prepped in the kitchen

1 Carrot – diced
2 Onions – diced
3 Celery – diced
1 Chilli – seeds removed and diced
2 Cloves of Garlic

Or what I like to refer to as “My MirePOW”

Next I added my Oxtail into a bowl of seasoned flour and shook it like a polaroid picture.

What else do you need:

I bought a bag of small peeled carrots and baby potatoes – keep this for later
Open a bottle of Red Wine and pour yourself a glass and keep 500ml for the potjie
Also about 400ml of stock

So when the potjie is lekka hot throw in a nice lump of butter and some olive oil…. sear the flour covered oxtail till it is nice and brown… (note… do not throw all in at once – it will steam it and will be tough as an old boot) -… key to a good potjie is patience

Remove Oxtail  from potjie

Add “My MirePOW” – stir the pot until the onions are cooked through… .

Add Oxtail and all the sexy juices from the tupperware back into the potjie.

Followed by the 500ml of Wine & Followed by 400ml  of hot stock – does seem like a lot of liquid but cooking time is minimum 3 hours.

Close the lid of the potjie pot & i closed the lid of the weber as well… in my head it will cook evenly oppose to direct heat from below.

Step 1 complete – your Oxtail will start bubbling away – pour yourself some more wine

1 hour & 30min later I would say go check on it to make sure there is still enough liquid. There should be….

Step 2 : Add baby potatoes and carrots to the mix and close the lid… – if you add the veggies early it will disolve into mushiness! Good job… now open another bottle of wine.. add a litte to the potjie mix and reward your hardwork with another glass of vino!

Wait for 1 hour and 30min and take it off the heat – if you leave it off the heat it thickens.

Step 3: Serve with Rice, Mash or whatever your heart desires – and maybe, just maybe another little glass of wine…

I could have cooked this for 4 hours but Masterchef started and Ii could NOT wait anymore….! it did fall off the bone.

Please feel free to message me if you need any help.