As with millions of Americans, I am blessed with the fun township ordinance of “No propane or charcoal grills on the patios of apartment buildings”. Due to this wonderful ruling :rolleyes:, I have not been able to grill outside in years. I mean sure, I don’t die in a fiery blaze when one of my neighbors leaves their grill on overnight, but at the cost of not getting juicy steaks… well, it’s a tossup at the least. I digress.
There has got to be a method I can use inside that won’t set off all my fire alarms yet will still have that nice smoked grill flavor. Those small George Foreman counter top grills are nice, but my steaks and burgers just don’t taste the same (I don’t think it gets the meat hot enough, but I’m not positive that’s the reason).
What are my other cooking options for getting that ‘outdoor grill’ flavor that I can do from inside? We’re talking steaks, burgers, brats, BBQ chicken, shishkabobs, salad, etc. You name it, I want to grill it.
Do you have a fireplace? I had a wood burning fireplace in my apartment once that was just the right size for a 14in hibachi sized grill. Still probably not legal, but no one else knew what I was doing and I trusted myself to be safe.
Just put a couple of drops in your marinade. If you’re not using marnade, you can mix it with a little olive oil and brush it onto the meat.
Some are better than others. And a little goes a loooong way. I always try to get a bottle that has one of those little inside caps with a hole in it, so it doesn’t pour out.
Aside from a grill pan, you can also smoke in a pan, though I’ve never done so myself and don’t know if you really get a grill flavor that way. Anyway, see for example:
Try using Spanish smoked paprika. The peppers are dried over an oak fire before being ground. It has a wonderful smoky flavor. You can get it at specialty food stores or on-line from Penzeys.com.
From experience, I can tell you that a hot cast-iron grill pan on the stovetop will approach the results of outdoor propane. If you want genuine charcoal flavor indoors, liquid smoke or not, you can just forget it.
More importantly, you can’t be too finicky about the air quality in your dwelling for a couple of days. A good char can be achieved only with a rocket-hot pan and the resulting smoke, most of which will elude your overhead vent. I triggered the smoke alarm only once, but after three attempts at indoor grilling, I abandoned the concept completely.
Therefore, it’s advisable to deploy cuts of meat that require short cooking time, on the order of three to five minutes per side. Put stripes on a thick New York strip and let it rest in a warm oven (200 degrees or less) for twenty minutes while you get the rest of dinner ready. Brats and other sausages require frequent turning for a delicious, blackened skin. Fresh firm fish filets respond very well as well, but again, the smell.
My best advice would be to adopt a stealth grilling strategy. If you can avoid attracting unwanted attention, you can achieve grilling success very quickly outdoors before the neighbors notice what you’re doing. Pick a good spot for a scorching hot grill pan (cast-iron, please, not that namby-pamby non-stick bullshit), and get in and out of there. Coleman makes camp stoves that might do the trick. I settled on a Bayou Classic high-pressure propane cooker that will heat a grill pan inside of five minutes and sear meat virtually on contact. Under your local ordinances, this method is not for the faint of heart.