Kalamazoo K500HB-2-NA, Use And Care Manual

Page: 28 / 64

+1.800.868.1699 51 KalamazooGourmet.com 50
Cooking with Your Hybrid Fire Grill
IMPORTANT: Kalamazoo Hybrid Fire Grills are high-performance pieces of equipment that
get very hot. Use caution when working with the grill and do not leave the grill unattended.
Use insulated gloves with a long cuff to protect your hands and forearms from heat.
Essential Equipment
„ Leather insulated gloves with long cuffs to protect your hands and forearms
„ Stiff, dense stainless steel brush or a grate scraper for cleaning the cooking surfaces
„ Long-handled grill tongs (18" long)
Other Helpful Accessories
„
Cast iron skillets, dutch ovens, fajita pans and other cookware
„ Thin and flexible turner for burgers and delicate fish fillets
„ Silicon basing brushes
„ Kalamazoo laser-cut custom grilling surfaces with patterns optimized for cooking meat, fish
and vegetables
Preheating
Always preheat the grill before beginning to cook. When cooking with gas, preheat the grill
with the lid closed. Keep the lid open when starting a charcoal or wood fire.
„
Gas-fired Cooking:
Follow the lighting instructions on page 41. Light all main burners. CLOSE THE
LID and open the lid vent half way. The thermometer should read above 500ºF within 15 minutes. Turn
off or adjust individual main burners as needed for the desired cooking temperature after the first 15
minutes have elapsed.
„
Charcoal-fired Cooking: Place an even layer of charcoal in the Hybrid Fire Grilling Drawer or the area
of the drawer where the charcoal fire is desired. Follow the lighting instructions on page 41. Light
all main burners. LEAVE THE LID OPEN while the charcoal fire starts. Once the charcoal is burning
at a sufficient level, you may turn off the main burners as desired. The charcoal fire will go through
an intense heat cycle before it is ready to be used for cooking. Wait until the fire has subsided to an
appropriate level before proceeding with cooking on the grill. Generally, charcoal grilling is done over
coals that show little visible flame, but are glowing red underneath a layer of white ash.
Kalamazoo strongly recommends the use of natural, lump charcoal rather than briquettes.
IMPORTANT: Before cooking, become familiar with all the information in
this Use and Care Guide regarding safe operation of your grill.
„ Wood-fired Cooking: Place a moderate amount of hard wood splits or chunks in the Hybrid Fire
Grilling Drawer. Follow the lighting instructions on page 41. Light all main burners. LEAVE THE LID
OPEN while the wood fire starts. Once the wood is burning at a sufficient level, you may turn off the
main burners as desired. The wood fire will go through an intense heat cycle before it is ready to
be used for cooking. Wait until the fire has subsided to an appropriate level before proceeding with
cooking on the grill. Generally, wood grilling is done over a fire with a low and even flame that does
not reach as high as the cooking surface.
„ Combination Fire Cooking: You have a choice. You may extinguish the main burners to cook with a
pure wood or charcoal fire, or you may leave the burners on to supplement the heat. When cooking
over this combination fire, you should use less charcoal or wood than you would if the burners were
turned off. This is one of the best features of the Kalamazoo. You can enjoy cooking with the dry heat
of a charcoal fire while burning less charcoal by using the burners below to supplement and prolong
the heat.
Temperature Range
Your Kalamazoo Hybrid Fire Grill is designed to support the full range of outdoor cooking techniques. Direct
grilling, indirect cooking or roasting, intense searing and traditional American barbecue are all possible (see
the following section on cooking techniques).
The temperature range of each grill will vary somewhat based on altitude, local gas supply and ambient
temperature, but it should be reasonably close to the following performance guidelines.
„ Direct Grilling, Gas-Fired: The main burners are capable of heating the grill to 700ºF or greater.
Remember, the cooking surface is hotter than the reading on the grill thermometer.
„
Indirect Cooking, Gas-Fired:
You can create indirect cooking zones at temperatures between 250ºF and
500ºF for slowly- or quickly-roasting foods by leaving at least one main burner turned off and adjusting
the control valve on the remaining burners. It is recommended that you pre-heat the grill with all main
burners on and the lid closed for 10 minutes before adjusting the grill for indirect cooking. It is also
recommended that the indirect zone (the burner that is off) be the far-right or the far left of the main
grilling area. You may also use the ignition burner as the source of indirect cooking heat.
„
Charcoal or Wood Fire: Intense, searing heat in excess of 1,000ºF can be created by a wood or charcoal
fire. It is recommended that these temperatures be used in only a single zone of the grill and not for the
entire cooking area. Temperatures as low as 200ºF can be maintained with a charcoal fire. Add just a
couple of briquettes at a time to the stable fire in order to maintain the heat at the desired level.
WARNING: The grill lid must remain open any time the lid thermometer is reading temperatures above
750ºF.