Top 3 Wood-Fired Grills on the Market Right Now Plus Must-Try Recipes

The Grillery

Made by Grillworks | Fuel: Wood and/or charcoal | Starts at $3,575 | Bonus: Made in Michigan!

This rock star grill was designed by Charles Eisendrath, once an international correspondent for Time Magazine who fell in love with Argentinian- style wood-fired grilling while working there in the 1960s and ’70s. After returning to the states, Eisendrath spent years perfecting his version of the grill. His final product had culinary icon James Beard swooning. Today, Eisendrath’s son Benjamin runs the company, and fine restaurants worldwide use Grillworks’ grills. The Grillery model is just the right size for a home patio.

Recipe | Grillworks’ Dill Poached Lake Trout

• 1 4–6 pound whole lake trout, butterflied, head on
• 1 large bunch of fresh dill fronds Kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
• 4 Tablespoons melted butter
• 1 lemon, halved
• 2 Tablespoons fresh dill, minced

1. Rinse cavity of fish, pat dry and place on dill fronds skin side down. Sprinkle the trout’s flesh with sea salt and lemon zest and brush with melted butter. Let fish stand for 5 to 10 minutes.
2. Using applewood staves, build a medium fire in the grill and burn down for 15 to 20 minutes. Squeeze half a lemon over fish. Transfer dill fronds to grilling surface and top with fish, skin side down. Roast fish, basting periodically with melted butter, for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the flesh just begins to flake. Transfer fish and dill fronds to a large platter, and season to taste with salt. Squeeze the second half of lemon over flesh, garnish with minced dill and serve immediately.

Shokunin Kamado Grill

By Kalamazoo Gourmet | Fuel: Wood and/or charcoal | Starts at $6,495 | Bonus: Made in West Michigan

Kalamazoo Gourmet’s newest grill is a twist on the traditional-style Japanese wood-fired ceramic kamado. Look for the ancient and loved qualities of a kamado, including gentle heat, but with better insulation (maintains 225 degrees for 65 hours on just 12 pounds of charcoal), cross-ventilation for precise control and a little added height so the fire can be up close or well below your food— sear, roast or smoke! Fabricated from stainless steel, the Shokunin also boasts furniture-quality Ipe handles.

Recipe | St. Louis-Style Spare Ribs on Kalamazoo Gourmet’s Shokunin Grill

Recipe and Photo by Matthew Eads, Grillseeker

3 to 4 racks St. Louis-cut pork spare ribs

Sauce

• 3 cups ketchup
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup yellow mustard
• 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 Tablespoon onion powder
• 1 Tablespoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
•  

Dry Rub

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup paprika
• 1 Tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 Tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 Tablespoon onion powder
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard

1. If possible, make your sauce the day before you grill. You can make the sauce the same day as the ribs of course, but the flavors are better after the sauce has set for 24 hours. Add all ingredients to a medium-sized saucepan. Place over low heat and whisk together until thoroughly combined. Cover and allow the sauce to simmer at a very low temperature for an hour, stirring occasionally. Turn off heat, and al- low the sauce to cool to room temperature before putting in glass jars and refrigerating.

2. For the ribs, start by setting your Shokunin up for low and slow cooking. Adjust your exhaust vent in order to maintain a cooker temperature of 255°F. For pork spare ribs
I recommend a combination of hickory and applewood chunks.

3. While your grill is coming up to temperature, trim your ribs. Trim- ming spare ribs is less labor-intensive than trimming a brisket but requires slightly more labor than trimming a pork shoulder. You’ll notice a somewhat loose piece of meat on the back of the ribs, trim that off.

4. With the ribs trimmed, it’s time to get them seasoned. In a shaker bottle, combine rub ingredients and shake well to mix. Season your ribs liberally starting with the bone side of the ribs, flipping them and then doing the meat side. This allows the meat side, or presentation side, to remain presentable after the rub is applied.

5. With the rub applied, and the temperature in the Shokunin stable at 255°F, place your ribs on the cooking grate and allow them to bathe in that beautiful hickory and apple smoke for two and a half hours. This is where the Shokunin differs from just about every other cooker. There’s no need to open the grill every hour to spritz in order to ensure the ribs stay moist.

6. After two and a half hours the ribs have taken on some delicious smoke and are starting to look beautiful. You’ll notice the bones are just barely starting to peek out, but the racks are still pretty firm. Now it’s time to get them tender. Pull the ribs off the grill and close the hood. Adjust the exhaust vent in order to increase grill temperature to 285°F.

7. While the grill is heating up, place each rack of ribs on a double layer of foil and top with a generous amount of warm sauce. Wrap the foil tightly around the ribs.

8. Return to the grill for one hour. After an hour, the ribs should be just about done. Remove the ribs from the grill and unwrap.

9. Checking the internal temperature of the meat with a reliable meat thermometer should show an internal temperature of about 193°-195°F. You’ll notice now the bones for each rack are very prominent.

10. Glaze each rack with an even lay-er of sauce and return to the cooker for 10 minutes. This allows the sauce to “set” and become very tacky. Remove ribs from the cooker and allow them to rest for 10 minutes. Using a large slicing knife, slice into individual ribs and serve with your favorite BBQ sides.

Big Green Egg

Fuel: Lump charcoal; can mix with wood chunks and chips | Starts at $948, for the large size | Find a dealer: Maxbauer Ace Hardware, Traverse City or Meyer Ace Hardware, Petoskey.

Ask legions of Big Green Egg fans and they’ll tell you the Egg isn’t just something for throwing the burgers on. It is to be worshipped. Known far and wide as the original modern version of ancient, dome-shaped ceramic cooking, The Egg can grill, roast or smoke. It comes in seven sizes and includes a variety of custom tables and “nests” (i.e. stands) for creating an outdoor kitchen. The Egg fuels on hardwood charcoal available from The Big Green Egg, Inc.

Recipe | Steak Pizzaiola in the Big Green Egg

• Grass-fed New York strip steaks (True Aussie Beef and Lamb steaks shown in photo)
• Big Green Egg Classic Steakhouse Seasoning
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 5 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 sweet onion, chopped
• 2 bell peppers, sliced
• 1⁄2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1⁄2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1⁄8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes 3 cups fresh spinach
• 1⁄4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1. Set the EGG for indirect cooking with a convEGGtor at 275°F; add the cast iron skillet to the EGG to preheat.

2. Season steaks generously on both sides with Big Green Egg Classic Steakhouse Seasoning and place on the EGG.

3. While the steaks are cooking, add 2 teaspoons olive oil and minced gar- lic into the cast iron skillet. Cook until fragrant. Add onions, peppers, oregano, basil and red pepper flakes to the cast iron skillet. Cook until the veggies are tender. Add toma- toes and spinach, cook, stirring until sauce begins to thicken, 3–5 min- utes, then stir in the grated parme- san cheese. Remove from the EGG and set aside.

4. Once the steak reaches 125°F, remove from the EGG. Reset the EGG for direct cooking without a convEGGtor and raise the temperature to 550°F.

5. Sear each side of the steak for 1 minute. Remove the steak from the EGG when the internal temperature reaches 135°F. Let rest for 10 minutes. Serve steaks smothered in pizzaiola sauce.

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