I'm going to try this thread in Extra Time, as I've tried to engage friends in this discussion in public on the internet but few have taken it up apart from when we see each other face to face. I'd probably have somewhere between 30-60 friends who are excellent cooks.

I've been a keen cook since 18 years old and have found two wonderful recent acquisitions to our culinary repertoire. My better half is a keen cook too, as well as my adult kids. Most who like cooking, love eating!


The first fabulous acquisition is a Weber BBQ. 


Recently we bought a Weber 3200. It was the same price as a Beefmaster we'd previously bought, and other brands all of similar price - about $700.

The assembly of the Weber  was simply awful, with very poor instructions including installing four critical bolts  back to front.

Conversely, the cooking instructions for the Weber are fabulous from an Aussie on Youtube videos. I'm not sure if he is a chef, but I'm cooking the best BBQ food I've eaten for these following foods.

*Beef steaks.

*Pork steaks.

*Lamb cutlets.

*Lamb chops.
.
*Chicken  breast kebabs.

*Marinated  butterfly lamb.

* Corn on the cob.

* Zucchini. 



Things cooked things slowly like sausages, patties and rissoles are no better on the Weber.

The cooking performance of the Weber is superb for the aforementioned items. Previously I'd five different instructions from five different chefs on how to cook steak, which has previously resulted in intermittent success with all of the  other BBQs I've used.

I always failed cooking chicken breast kebabs and had to use chicken thighs instead.

We haven't done it yet, but roasts are supposedly excellent on the Weber too.  




The Weber also stands up well in Choice tests. Moreover, they perform very well relative to other BBQs when  it is windy.

They are so good, don't even consider other BBQs, although some friends have a Ziegeler and Brown which looks like similar technology. They are gourmet cooks, but to date what they've cooked for us on their Z &B is nothing like the Weber.

The cleaning instructions are also excellent and it is easy to keep a Weber clean. 

I won't even order most of the successful things cooked when we dine out, because they are often expensive and even the best are no better than the home cooked Weber.

Onya D..
Food, I'm in.
My wife is a good foodi, her part time job at a good local gov school is being the support staff for the Yr11/12 Food Tech Hospitality Course, in other words she's a Master Chef assistant but can do what they do anyway.
So the kitchen is her domain and I'm the bbq'er !
I have gone through quite a few 4burner usual bbq good brands etc and got sick of them tbh and on our 2nd weber for use.
They are brilliant for us as well.
Consistent burn.
We don't need the big mother like yours but have Q2200 and the baby Q1200 that we take on hols with us.
We cook everything anything meats/chicken/vegs and if you get yourself a nice thin alloy tray they do great thin pastry pizzas as well !
We get people over and having half a dozen of these suitable trays they love our crusty margaretta's amaongst other styles.
Easy to clean, easy to strip apart easy to get parts.
Here's a tip - I saw my sister inlaw lines the base from under the grills with tin foil bud, done the same since even easier to clean :)

You know when we go out - I'm a entree/nibbles/anti pasto/tapas grazier - love this much more than the mains that end up being anti climax's.

The tin foil sounds like an excellent idea!

The Weber BBQ is superior to anything else we've had, It has opened up a whole new culinary world.

One other brilliant recent cooking acquisition  has been Kylie Kwong's Simple Chinese Cooking cookbook.

I've cooked a lot of Chinese wok food over the years, using sesame oil, garlic, ginger, spring onions and varying amounts of Jalapeno chilli,  plus soy sauce in most recipes, and stocks, occasionally using  oyster or hoisin sauce. This has created some nice flavours.

What Kylie K often uses as well are dry sherry, malt vinegar, small amounts of sugar and/or salt, as well. Most meals require marinating the meat for 30 mins before cooking.

She also has many fabulous, easy recipes for accompanying vegetable dishes, like adding tiny amounts of oyster sauce and sesame oil to steamed vegetables. This  has created intense flavours.

I've already cooked 12 recipes or so from this book. The quality of food  is as good as the best local Chinese restaurants - one being a recent Australian winner for best Asian restaurant.

The KK cooking instructions have made every one of these home cooked meals a gourmet event, and, a significant step up from any other Chinese recipes I've used over the last 40 years.

Can't disagree on the weber.
Its compact simple design makes it very easy to pack in the back of my 4x4 with gas bottle or not hire one where away and cook in the outdoors instead of the dirty communal bbq's and where we stay at caravan parks etc......
Heck even pack the mini nespresso !

The wife does many stir fries similar to what you've quoted.
I know  her shopping routine is the Asian supermarket every week.
I know we used to watch KK on cable or free to air many times - love asian food, even though we are european background we love Asian food !
I think she has the KK book amongst many others - I'll check up and see and report on other Chef books.
Thai, is one of my favs but a nice fresh veg stir fry with those awesum flavours is to die for !
Home cooking 99% of the time beats going out to restaurants countless times.
I used to take her to many middle to top end restaurants in our early day, yes some were to die for but you never get enough on the serves AND the nice reds or whites I wish to consume cost you a bomb so we have backed off very much going to pay OTT for that so called dining experience.
I do have to attend quite a few due to business in Sydney/Melb and OS, have dined in some amazing places But nothing beats a great home feed or feast.

Something I suggest you try, is switching out the Dry Sherry for actual Chinese Cooking Rice Wine. Dry Sherry is basically the western substitute but Chinese Cooking Wine is now fairly readily available even in normal supermarkets, not just Asian ones. We made the switch about a year ago and meals that were already good are even better now. Especially if you need to marinade in the stuff.

In all KK recipes it suggests either Chinese Cooking  Rice wine or dry sherry.

Chinese rice wine  isn't as readily available, but thanks for the tip.

I'll keep an eye out for it.

We have a portable electric BBQ, but I can't face using it if we go away because of the vastly superior Weber cooking performance.