Let's Hear it for Simple!

My wife had me re-fill the LP tank for our grill today, so that I could grill potatoes.

Getting the tank filled was more work than the grilling.

My wife had wrapped the potatoes in metal foil, and carried the lot out to the grill wrapped in a towel. I followed, set the potatoes in two rows, lit the grill, made sure the flame was stable, closed the lid and noted the time.

I'd carried a lawn chair over, and had a book and some notebooks out with me.

A half hour later, I turned the potatoes over. I'd had the flames at the lowest setting, since this new grill runs hotter than our old one. The potatoes were firm. Definitely not squishy.

Ten minutes later, I checked again, and set the flames to the highest normal setting.

About an hour after I started, I was carrying a towel-full of grilled potatoes back to the house, where #3 daughter took over the job of transporting them to the kitchen.

I turned off the gas, shut the valve on the cylinder, picked up my stuff, and went inside.

Sure, I was grilling, and keeping a close eye on the grill. But, I also spent a most relaxing, tranquil hour in the shade of the garage, under a fine blue sky.

No big deal, no straining every nerve to achieve culinary perfection - and the potatoes came out tasting pretty good.

Sort-of-related post:

• "Winter: Best Grilling Season of All?"
  (August 4, 2007)

Winter: Best Grilling Season of All?

Grilling is often regarded as a summer activity, with spillover into spring and autumn. For most, this is true. Summer is by far the most popular season for grilling.

That is understandable: Summer temperatures favor outdoor activities such as grilling; A long tradition has grown up in America around Independence Day burgers, and summer picnics where burger briquettes and mosquitoes are the order of the day; And, for so many, grilling is viewed as a sort of incidental activity, a hobby at most.

For one who treads the path of Guriru-do, however, winter is perhaps the best season of all in which to grill. For it is in winter that the grill can best be perceived for what it is: a source of heat, a dwelling for fire, a forge on which meat patties and frozen wieners may be transformed into delicious burgers and hot dogs.

Besides, here in Minnesota, frozen meat stays frozen when you leave it outdoors in the winter: You may get frostbite, but there's no danger of spoilage!

Personally, I enjoy the solitude of winter grilling, the stark beauty of snow-covered yards, the crystal-clear air that's so cold, all the water has been frozen out.

Grilling: a Four-Season Pursuit

Outdoor grilling: that's just for summer and maybe fall, right?

Especially in places like Minnesota, where water becomes a mineral for several months each year, and National Guard arctic maneuvers have been canceled, due to inclement weather.

For the casual griller, perhaps.

For one dedicated to Guriru-do, all seasons are one. There is not the griller, the grill, the burgers, and the weather. There is only the grilling.