Mel Magazine:
Whither the lost art of broiling?
Broiling is the same thing as grilling, just with the heat up top instead of underneath. Both use intense heat (about 550 degrees) for the pleasures of charring and caramelization. Ideally, you want that heat source to be about 4 to 6 inches away, and with broiling, and it’s far healthier if you catch the fat juice in a pan below, and far tastier if you let it cook right in it. It’s all over in under 10 minutes, too. The main drag of broiling is the fire hazard and high propensity for burning and flare-ups, or what you might call a kitchen fire.
Unlike my mentally unstable friend Vito who has grilled outside in minus 20 degree temps, I have no interest in freezing when I cook. So I’ll give this a try for “grilled” winter steaks.
My favourite homemade steak is a cast iron skillet but I need to move and buy a much higher power exhaust fan before I do it again.
Get that skillet up in temperature and toss a steak on, and it doesn’t seem to even dent the heat of the skillet. But so much smoke!
Agreed! I *love* my Lodge Cast Iron stuff.
Since I have a BBQ and a home, I never eat a steak or hamburger
from the stove. We live a in winter country… so we BBQ in the winter too !
I don’t see any problem there !
Broiling days are over after moving into our
new condo. The geniuses placed the electric smoke detector too close so any smoke trips the alarm even if we have the hood fan at top speed.
I only wish we had the counter space to add another appliance.
Yet another place where the UK and US differ. Over this side of the pond the “broiler” is the “grill”. Great for Sausages, Bacon, cheese on toast, omlettes (helps the cheese melt when you add it at the end)
I had not put it together that broiling was essentially grilling. I live in Minnesota…I’m not grilling outside at the moment.
*looks at snow falling heavily outside window*
I will try this!
I love my Lodge stuff, but the surprise cast iron star in my kitchen is a cheap cast iron skillet… that my grandmother bought probably 50 years ago.
At this point it’s so smooth and worn I don’t think it’d even need seasoning if it became unseasoned somehow.