Char-Broil Patio Bistro Electric - A Score Especially if You Can't Play with Fire

CB hooked me up with the Char-Broil Patio Bistro, since I am always on the look out for a good electric grill.

Now, some people say, "Cyndi, electric isn't really grilling."

I say, "Well, my hair isn't dirty blonde either, but I like it that color. And, there are people who do not do well with fire and others who can't have fire due to regulations in their areas or where they live. Why cut them out of the outdoor cooking fun?"



Nailing an electric grill is difficult, because the United States was first on with using electricity and uses the 110 standard versus the more powerful 220 like for the washing machine. So, it's hard to get heat and especially with any size on a grill.

Char-Broil did a great job with the Patio Bistro which is large enough to hold my grill wok which is pretty good sized and with room left over.

Also, it hit 550 degrees F on the warm up and much faster than expected. I was looking at around 350 F so opened the lid to drop the temperature back down a bit lower for crab.

The top range on the thermometer is 650. I did not run it max out, but it did do a sear on some country style pork ribs. So, yes, it does crank some heat out. That's with the lid down. Heat is lower if you're grilling open style.



No. You do not get a charcoal flavor or smoked flavor with electric. You don't with gas either. I compensate for that with Baxter's wood products. His wood chunks and sawdusts work great in foil packs on gas or electric to provide some extra smoke flavor. And, he has loads of great wood types too.



I must confess that trying out something totally new on a new grill is not a super idea. The crab balls were not spot on in a wok. Basically they needed more binder - eggs etc.

But, I think the best bet for crab would be a casserole in a toss out aluminum pan grilled lid down like in the oven or maybe with mini muffin pans and a little more grease or oil.

As far as the taste, the crab balls were delicous. But they did not turn out so pretty and did not hold together well. But, that wasn't a grill problem.



Fortunately I did have a couple of extra country pork ribs that I put on after I made the wacky grilled crab balls, and they grilled up really nice on the electric Char-Broil Patio Bistro.

Char-Broil has done well with electric grill models. The ratings have been high online. This is the next generation patio electric grill model, and I give it the thumbs up. It has a good amount of space, hits high temps, will do a sear, and the little warming shelf is a nice extra touch.

I do all sorts of grilling and smoking and even have a fire pit in my yard where I use wood and grates or Dutch Ovens. But, that is not the reality for everyone. If you can't have flames or just are not comfortable with charcoal and gas, get an electric and go for it. And, if you always wanted blonde hair and didn't get it, go get you a box of color too. Life is too short not to make some fun of it.

Turkey Breast on Char-Broil Big Easy - Infrared Fryer Vs Gallons of Hot Oil

We decided to test drive the Char-Broil Big Easy today. It's an oil-less turkey fryer but also a smoker and grill that Barry sent out to see what we'd think of it.

I love deep fried turkey, but I don't love the heat, mess, and the cost of all that peanut oil. So, this sounded like a good idea - infrared to cook the turkey with no oil and very little mess. The heat source - the 20 pound gas bottle.



To get smoke, you fill up this little side box with wood chips. My favorite chips or chunks for grill smoke wood are Baxter's which I added to my OpenSky store. I've tried a lot of wood chips, and his are just fresher and packed nicer.

I must say that I never did see much smoke. With the box so far from the heat, there just wasn't much smoking going on. But, the smell of the wood was still there and excellent. I didn't detect it much on the turkey though.



As you can see, you have a chamber here with the Big Easy. I put in the rack and rasied the turkey about to the middle. It can go on the bottom with a second turkey or other meat on top. The unit will hold a lot of food, but we were just cooking for tonight with four eating.

Or you can add the grill grate on top and grill with the lid open like a traditional gas grill.



The recipe booklet was not a big help. It said to use a rub and smoke up to 165 degrees. Hum. That's awfully basic I must say.

I used a little olive oil and rubbed on Chef of the Future Cajun seasoning which is a great product. Don't let the cajun part fool you. This is not a hot seasoning. It is nicely balanced with great flavor. I serve it lots of ways and to all family and friends, so it makes a terrific multi purpose seasoning or rub.

I also added some parsley - more for color than anything. It adds a tad of flavor but mostly just makes dishes look prettier.

Smoke time on low was an hour and 40 minutes and then a rest time (in tin foil) for 15 minutes, so that gives you a ballpark on time. The turkey breast was right at 4 pounds. A full turkey will take quite a bit longer. I'll try to do one of those and get the numbers for that too.



The smoked turkey breast turned out looking real nice, but the proof is in the eating when it comes to grilling or smoking. And, I can say that the turkey breast was very moist and though it did not have a lot of smoke taste, the cajun seasoning took care of that.



I had been wanting to try out Diane's Sweet Heat Holiday Cranbanero Jam, so this was a perfect time. It wasn't a holiday, but we had turkey, so I broke out the jam. These jams are sweet but with some heat. The cranberry is a mild one - just a hint of heat.



Whoa buddy. The smoked grilled turkey with the hot cranberry jelly was fabulous. I like cranberry sauce fine (though others in the family do not), but this is much better than the store cranberry products. It was the perfect topping for our Char-Broil Big Easy turkey. And, I must say that we ate the whole thing and then wished we had done two turkey breasts after all.

Sneak Peak at Grill of the Future with Tom from Char-Broil

Tom from Char-Broil drove out today, so I could test out a new grill they are looking at for the future. The company wanted a good down-to-earth griller with experience and big opinions (I guess), so they asked if I'd like to test drive this new one with a full day grill-a-thon.

First, let me say that Tom is a great guy and that testing a new grill is fun. And, then second, let me say: Whoa buddy I am full enough to pop. And I only took nibbles of all that food we grilled. I could not do this often without being a super fluffy chick. Even the boys maxed out, and that is unusual for teen boys.



Well, you can see the guys here chowing down, and I had to clear the table a couple of times just to have room for more grilled food. The table is a six footer in case anyone was wondering. Yeah. We had gear on there too, but this was a feast that ran several hours.



We started with nacho chips. Never grilled those? Neither had Tom. They are super easy and quick, and here is the Nachos on the Grill recipe. I bet the other guys at Char-Broil are gonna love them too.

We grilled so many foods that I can't recall them all, but we had chicken tenders, pizza, Lit'l smokies, and cake for a few.

I also got to try out the new Char-Broil barbecue sauces. They have a tomato and a mustard based sauce just out on the market. Plus, they have a Char-Broil rub, but we did not get to that. I have a bottle Tom gave me, so I'll give that a try and let folks know on it too.



Well - here we are the partners in crime (me and Tom) - or the crime of grilling more than a body ought to eat in a week. What fun! But, I am doing salads or something the rest of the weekend . . . maybe (-: