One pleasant weekend at the cabin stirring, smoking food, packaging and wrapping will produce a sack’s worth of terrific home-grilled presents. But, if you’re crunched for time or not feeling crafty, a visit to a store or website that sells barbeque accessories year-round will get the job done. Whether a new gadget or a yummy treat, a gift from or for the grill is welcome. Here are seven ideas.
1. Homemade Spice Rub
Mix up a batch of your signature sauce, marinade or spice rub and pack it into mason jars. Cut a square of fabric, place it over the lid and tie it with a ribbon. If you’re willing to reveal your secret recipe, write it on an index card, hole-punch the corner and thread the ribbon through it. Add a silicone basting brush, marinade injector or saucepot to complete the gift.
2. Smoked Nuts
What do you give teachers, coworkers, hairdressers and party hosts? Homemade smoked nuts! To make, prepare a grill for indirect cooking over medium heat (about 350°F) and add a handful of water-soaked wood chips to the fire. When chips are smoldering, place a roasting pan with a single layer of almonds, walnuts, cashews or pecans on the “cool” side of the grill, and smoke for about 10 minutes. After cooling, pack in pretty tins.
3. Beef Jerky
For homemade beef jerky stocking stuffers, slice a lean, top round roast across the grain into quarter-inch-thick slices, then into strips. Marinate, drain and place in a single layer on the cooking grid and smoke over very low, indirect heat (about 150°F) for up to 12 hours, until dried. An electric smoker automatically maintains temperatures over the long drying time, but a gas grill with one burner on low and the rest turned off works well too. On a charcoal grill or smoker you’ll need to add a few coals periodically to maintain the temperature. (The USDA recommends precooking jerky to an internal temperature of 160°F before smoking to destroy any pathogens.)
4. Must-Have Supplies
Arriving at the cabin for a weekend of fun is no time to discover that the propane cylinder is empty or the charcoal is damp – especially if the nearest store is miles away. The gift of a propane monitor or waterproof charcoal container eliminates these annoyances all year long. The pen-size GasCheck device presses against the side of a tank and takes an ultrasound reading of the propane level, flashing red to indicate no propane at that level, or green to indicate fuel is present. For charcoal protection, see the Kingsford Kaddy.
5. Smoked Cheeses
Forget cookies; your friends would much prefer a nice smoked Colby. Firm cheeses like cheddar, Gouda, Swiss, and pepper jack work best, and should be cold-smoked without heat so they won’t melt. First, using solid charcoal-lighter cubes or an electric charcoal lighter (not lighter fluid), ignite wood chips in a disposable aluminum pan on the grid of an unlit grill. When chips are smoking, place cheese wedges on a sheet of foil beside the pan and close the lid. The smoke will delicately flavor the cheese in about 30 minutes.
6. Seasoned Salt
While you’re cold-smoking cheese, smoke a pan of kosher salt to make a delectable seasoned salt. Gift-pack it in clear spice jars with pretty labels designed by hand or by computer.
7. High-Tech Tools
Die-hard alfresco chefs don’t hang up their tongs when summer’s over. A wireless remote Bluetooth meat thermometer lets them monitor grilling progress from the comfort of the cabin, minimizing trips outside in the cold and snow. The device also signals when food is ready or if the grill temperature fluctuates too much. Check out the iGrill.
See also Spring into the Grilling Season
Dutch Oven
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