Busy Weekend

Griffin

We had a pretty busy weekend this weekend, but I still managed to squeeze in a few cooks. Saturday night was burgers. Mrs. G picked them up from Central Market. Patties made with Bacon and  cheddar cheese in 'em. Then topped with cheddar. No pics cooking as I had a few drinks and didn't think about it.

Sunday for lunch, we had some legs seasoned with JH Texas chicken tickler on the Mini.


And when that finished up, we did two spatchcocked chickens. Not to eat. Just to save for casseroles and stuff. 2 birds produced about 8 cups of shredded chicken, so one bird = 4 cups of shredded chicken. Not sure I've ever read that or thought about it before, but might be a handy piece of information. That I'll probably forget by next week.

SGH

Brother, everything looks excellent. Nice job.  

Jeremiah

That has to be the best looking burger I've seen on here in a while. 

tarheelmatt

I agree with @Jeremiah , that's burger looks good.  

SmokeyPitt

I will 3rd or 4th...that is a fine looking burger!  All the grub looks great.  

Griffin

Thanks guys. I didn't even finish it because I was full on snack food and appetizers. It was on a brioche bun.

bgebrent

Great lookin grub right there!  That burger looks amazing!  I was planning on jucy Lucy next weekend with bacon in the cheese.  Is that what you did here or did you mix the cheese and bacon with the beef @Griffin?

Hotch

@Griffin That is a great burger. So have you made any of your world famous sausage and homebrew lately?

fence0407

Looks like a successful weekend! 

Griffin

bgebrent said:

Great lookin grub right there!  That burger looks amazing!  I was planning on jucy Lucy next weekend with bacon in the cheese.  Is that what you did here or did you mix the cheese and bacon with the beef @Griffin?

They were store bought with the bacon and cheese mixed in with the meat, not stuffed.

Griffin

Hotch said:

@Griffin That is a great burger. So have you made any of your world famous sausage and homebrew lately?

The kid has been keeping me too busy. I might try and make some sausage weekend after this one. Heading to the ranch on Thursday for some dove hunting this weekend.

JohnnyTarheel

Great cooks there!!

feef706

@Griffin Awesome looking cook, not trying to hijack but have a question, I've followed your blog and see you have lots of experience. what are your thoughts on the mini vs the mini max. Not sure if you have maybe cooked on one at an effect. I'm looking for a small grill for weeknight cooks. I haven't seen a mini in person but have seen the max, I like the slightly larger cook grid and the shallower pit seems perfect for filling a chimney and dumping her in and letting her rip. Any feedback is appreciated.

Focker

Good lookin' grub all around Grif.

JRWhitee

Great look cooks Griff. Nice job!

Griffin

feef706 said:

@Griffin Awesome looking cook, not trying to hijack but have a question, I've followed your blog and see you have lots of experience. what are your thoughts on the mini vs the mini max. Not sure if you have maybe cooked on one at an effect. I'm looking for a small grill for weeknight cooks. I haven't seen a mini in person but have seen the max, I like the slightly larger cook grid and the shallower pit seems perfect for filling a chimney and dumping her in and letting her rip. Any feedback is appreciated.

That's a really good question, but unfortunately I don't have an answer as I've never cooked on the mini max. When I got my Mini, the max wasn't an option.

I like my mini. Its fun to cook on, but is it really practical? After having it a few years, I'd say not really. At first, it was a novelty. What can I cook on it? Let's try this. Then, I started using it a lot when my wife had her old job and traveled a lot. Great for cooking for one person. I know some people claim they cook four burgers on it, but what size burgers? I can get one "Griffin" sized burger on it. Or one ribeye. As you can see, it holds 6 chicken legs. But cooking for more than 2? I just don't see it.

Yeah, sure, you can cook some appetizers on it. Or some side dishes. It's nice to have when you've got the large filled up and need some extra room, but it just isn't a stand alone grill IMHO. 

The most important question, if I could go back and buy it again knowing what I did now, would I? I struggle with that question. I have to admit that I got if from a friend who sells home appliances and grills and such and I got their family discount so I got it for a steal. Would I pay the $399 or whatever they go for now? NO. I might be bucking the trend, I might not have drunk enough of the Kool-Aid lately, but I don't think I would. It doesn't make sense to me. Does the MiniMax extra grill space make it worthwhile and a better option than the Mini? I can't say. I can say that I think that if I had to do it over, I would probably just buy a Weber Smokey Joe or a Jumbo Joe. OR maybe an Old Smokey. My brother bought me one of those in college for my birthday and it was the first grill I ever owned. While we put out some ok food on it, I wonder what I could do now...

I hope that helps, but I'm pretty sure it doesn't. Sorry. You've gotta look at the money it costs and decide if its worth it to you.

YukonRon

Griffin said:

feef706 said:

@Griffin Awesome looking cook, not trying to hijack but have a question, I've followed your blog and see you have lots of experience. what are your thoughts on the mini vs the mini max. Not sure if you have maybe cooked on one at an effect. I'm looking for a small grill for weeknight cooks. I haven't seen a mini in person but have seen the max, I like the slightly larger cook grid and the shallower pit seems perfect for filling a chimney and dumping her in and letting her rip. Any feedback is appreciated.

That's a really good question, but unfortunately I don't have an answer as I've never cooked on the mini max. When I got my Mini, the max wasn't an option.

I like my mini. Its fun to cook on, but is it really practical? After having it a few years, I'd say not really. At first, it was a novelty. What can I cook on it? Let's try this. Then, I started using it a lot when my wife had her old job and traveled a lot. Great for cooking for one person. I know some people claim they cook four burgers on it, but what size burgers? I can get one "Griffin" sized burger on it. Or one ribeye. As you can see, it holds 6 chicken legs. But cooking for more than 2? I just don't see it.

Yeah, sure, you can cook some appetizers on it. Or some side dishes. It's nice to have when you've got the large filled up and need some extra room, but it just isn't a stand alone grill IMHO. 

The most important question, if I could go back and buy it again knowing what I did now, would I? I struggle with that question. I have to admit that I got if from a friend who sells home appliances and grills and such and I got their family discount so I got it for a steal. Would I pay the $399 or whatever they go for now? NO. I might be bucking the trend, I might not have drunk enough of the Kool-Aid lately, but I don't think I would. It doesn't make sense to me. Does the MiniMax extra grill space make it worthwhile and a better option than the Mini? I can't say. I can say that I think that if I had to do it over, I would probably just buy a Weber Smokey Joe or a Jumbo Joe. OR maybe an Old Smokey. My brother bought me one of those in college for my birthday and it was the first grill I ever owned. While we put out some ok food on it, I wonder what I could do now...

I hope that helps, but I'm pretty sure it doesn't. Sorry. You've gotta look at the money it costs and decide if its worth it to you.

I have a MM, and I love it. I actually chose it over the small, and not the mini, because, although heavy, it is great as a mobile cooker. We camp a lot, by a lot I mean, 8-12 meals per trip, trips mostly 4 days, every week but the summer, unless we are going for altitude. We use it tailgating, and have brought it to a few parties as well. I have double tiered mine on more than one occasion, feeding 6, and could possibly done enough for 8. The small is a great home cooker, and could be used for travel, but it is my opinion, if you want a travel companion, the MM is my choice, and I would recommend.