Kabobs of all types whether a mix of proteins and veggies or all veggies are perhaps one of the most traditional fares found at cookouts around the world. From tailgate parties to Korean BBQ steakhouses, if you don’t have a typical gas or charcoal grill then, usually a small hibachi will do just fine.
https://youtu.be/xClw1sw_pIEMaybe you marinate your protein, maybe you use a dry rub, maybe you use fruit instead of veggies – there are so many choices. The upside is that the combinations are limitless, especially when you consider the prospect of bacon wrapped anything! The down side to kabobs is that it’s difficult to get everything to cook to just the right doneness all at the same time.
Regardless of the combination you choose, the primary difficulty of getting every piece of the kabob to finish cooking at the same time can seem like a colossal undertaking the likes of which make scaling K2 seem like a walk in the park. Multiply that task by the total number of guests you’ve invited to dinner and the problem becomes exponentially more difficult.
Underdone veggies and perfect proteins or perfect veggies and dry, overcooked proteins – neither seems an appealing option, right? For that reason some have taken to skewering the proteins and veggies separately. Others use smaller pieces of fruit or vegetable so that they will cook more quickly. However, that all but ruins the perfect bite – you know the one where you have just the right sized veggie with just the right sized piece of meat. So, what do you do to accommodate all these variables?
Enter yet the Himalayan Saltware™ salt block yet again! The benefit of a grill with the consistency of an oven when cooking kabobs – at least that was what we had hoped for. What we wound up with was something entirely different and ultimately more noteworthy than just another cooking on a Himalayan salt block video.
It’s your worst nightmare when cooking with a gas grill, it’s something akin to dropping the entire plate of just finished burgers and chicken in the dirt – the dreaded empty tank – and dinner is ruined. Only this time, it seemed dinner was ruined before we even started cooking. . . we ran out of gas part just as we were getting started. Warm up went fine, twenty minutes of good solid 51,000 BTU heat had done it’s job and the block was hot and ready to go. But, just as we opened the grill to start filming no warning, no nothing, just the sickening pa, pa, POOF, as the flame went out.
Normally, if you were just grilling without the benefit of the salt block that would be a deal breaker. This is especially true with chicken. You can’t afford to serve (or eat) undercooked chicken, and it’s tough to cook chicken when the grill has no more gas! It’s game over, no more grilling unless you have a tank in reserve – and if you have guests over, well not only are you mortified, but you’ll never hear the end of it. (yeah, been there done that, and swore it would never happen again – so much for THAT hollow promise)
We rotate at least three tanks (they come in handy when smoking brisket for up to 16 hours) but on this particular day the other two were already empty. You can imagine the disappointment, even frustration at the lack of gas, lack of foresight to make sure the other two tanks were full before filming and the utter lack of planning that left us saying, “now what?”
We won’t spoil the ending, just watch the video and see for yourself. Is cooking on the grill with a salt block worth the extra effort and the cost of the salt block. . . you tell us!