If you like a spicy little kick or bang to your steak here is a tasty Rib Eye Steak Recipe that is great for hibachi grills. We will start by seasoning-up a couple of rib eye steaks (bone-in or boneless) with a crushed peppercorn, chili powder, and brown sugar mixture prior to grilling and then prepare a tasty little sauce (with a kick!) to pour over them when they come off the hibachi. Easy as that.

It is no secret that my personal outdoor grilling preference is cast iron hibachi grills but obviously, this recipe can be just as easily prepared on any grill, gas or charcoal.

Fiery Rib Eye Steak Ingredients:

• 1 TBSP crushed peppercorn
• 1 tsp + 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp light brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp + 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 C ketchup
• 1 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
• 1 TBSP red wine vinegar
• 1 TBSP dark brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/4 C water
• 4 (3/4 lb) rib eye steaks (1 inch thick)
• Olive oil

Here are the Steps that I use:

1. Pull the rib eye steaks out of the fridge and let them stand at room temperature for about 30 minutes prior to grilling.
2. If you are grilling with charcoal, this would be a good time to prepare and light the grill. I prefer to use charcoal chimney starters for this.
3. Mix the peppercorns, light brown sugar, salt, 1 tsp chili powder, garlic powder and 1/4 tsp onion powder together in a mixing bowl.
4. Coat both sides of the rib eye steaks with the peppercorn mixture. You want to be sure to press the seasoning firmly into the meat.
5. Brush the olive oil over both sides of the steaks.
6. Grill the steaks 12 minutes for medium turning once during grilling time.
7. Allow steaks to rest 10 minutes before serving.
8. Prepare the “fiery” sauce while the rib eye steaks are breathing. In a saucepan over low heat simmer together the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, wine vinegar, dark brown sugar, 1 tsp chili powder, 1 tsp onion powder, pepper and water.
9. Allow to simmer 10 minutes being sure to stir often to insure the brown sugar dissolves completely.
10. Pour the sauce over the steaks before serving or use as a dip on the side.

Tip: Using kosher salt will insure that the salt cooks into the food instead of being washed away by the juices as would regular table salt. If you would like to use regular table salt reduce the amount by half.

Hopefully you get the chance to try this rib eye steak recipe out. If you would like to see more tips on grilling steaks with hibachi grills you will want to check out the previous post, 7 Tips for Grilling Steaks.

A hibachi barbecue grill can be a great tool for preparing healthy meals. Grilling in general is healthy by nature, especially when compared to some of the other popular methods of cooking. Here are a few easy tips that will ensure that the next cookout with your hibachi barbecue grill is a healthy one.

When it comes to grilling chicken, first and foremost, cut off the excess fat before placing it on the hibachi barbecue grill. The quickest way to accomplish this is to simply buy skinned and boneless chicken. When purchased this way, the majority of all the fat has already been removed prior to packaging

Removing the fat is a bit different with steaks. You want to remove the fat on the outside of the steak but not the marbled fat that is within the meat. That’s the good stuff! One of the reasons grilling is considered healthy is that the fat will drip away during the cooking process. The same should be done with pork. Don’t be afraid either to ask the butcher for recommendations when selecting the right cut for the grill. They spend their days dealing with meat and are usually experts on the subject, and more than happy to offer advice.

Another reason to consider removing the excess fat is that it falls into the fire and creates flare-ups. These flare-ups can burn and char the meat. Anybody that has spent much time grilling knows what it is like to burn and ruin a top dollar cut of meat by flare-ups.

A hibachi barbecue grill is also great for cooking more than just meat – so why not grill up some vegetables too! The barbecue grill is already hot and they require little preparation. They can be grilled right on the grate or even steamed. An easy way to steam veggies on hibachis is to place them in a piece of aluminum foil that has been lightly sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Wrap the foil around them, tent the foil some to allow the air to circulate within the foil, and toss them on the grill. The heat will create a convection current inside the foil.

A healthy alternative to other meats is fish. Salmon is a favorite of mine and has the added bonus of being packed with omega-3 fatty acids (one of the good fats your body needs). Hibachi grills are an excellent choice for grilling fish. Depending on the type of fish and cut of meat there are numerous ways to grill it. Steaks are the easiest to grill over direct heat, but filets can be done too, with a little care. An easy method for flaky filets is to simply crumble them up in tin foil (like the vegetables) and grill them that way. Even try tossing in some onions and squeezing a little lemon juice over them.

Another healthy alternative is to avoid using salt. Try experimenting with some of the many other, low sodium alternatives. The grilling process sears in the natural flavor of the meat and seasonings will be seared to the outside. These seasonings will combine with the succulent juices once the meat has been cut and add flavor.

Using your hibachi barbecue grill to cook healthy does not mean that flavor has to be sacrificed at all. With a few tweaks here and there you can be grilling up tasty, flavorful, mouthwatering meals that your friends and family won’t even realize are healthy.

What better way to learn how to use charcoal chimney starters for hibachi grills than by example. Leave it to YouTube – check out this useful video by grillingguru. It does a great job at demonstrating the use of a chimney starter.

Chimney starters are inexpensive and are THE preferred way to start charcoal hibachi grills. They are made by all of the major barbecue accessory manufacturers and can usually be picked up for anywhere between $10 to $40.

What are chimney starters? They are inexpensive devices that can be used with hibachi grills to start lump charcoal or charcoal briquettes without the need for inducing chemicals such as lighter fluid. Also known as a charcoal chimney, chimney starters are basically metal cylinders that have some kind of grate or plate with holes built in near the bottom and a handle on the side.

How to use chimney starters? The simplest and most common method is to simply:

1. Fill the cylinder with unlit charcoal
2. Place newspaper under the inner grate
3. Place the chimney starter on a safe surface
4. Light the newspaper with a match or lighter

The paper will light the charcoal at the bottom of the cylinder first and the remaining coals on top will then be ignited by the chimney effect.

When the coals are ready (20 – 25 minutes) use a barbecue glove or oven mitt to carefully pour the hot embers into the hibachi grill and spread them out into an even layer with a long pair of tongs.

Most seasoned grill masters prefer the use of chimney starters for hibachi grills over lighter fluid for a couple of reasons.

• The charcoal is ready for cooking quicker
• The charcoal burns more evenly
• There is no chemical aftertaste

I recently read about a trick that can be used to make the newspaper burn longer in chimney starters. By applying a little non-stick cooking spray or vegetable oil to the crumpled paper, the paper will not burn up until the oil burns away which in turn prolongs the burning time. This could be a helpful method to ensure that a single load of newspaper is enough to get the coals going and your hibachi grill ready for cooking.

Hibachi grilling with charcoal can be a bit of a challenge compared to grilling with gas but with a few tips and pointers I think you will find that it is not only rewarding, but fun too!

First off, the amount of charcoal you use (or number of briquettes) not only depends on the size of your grill, but also on how much food you intend to cook, cooking time required, and weather conditions.

My general rule of thumb is to use approximately 30 briquettes for 1 lb of meat (for comparison, a 5 pound bag typically contains about 75 – 90 briquettes). This can vary some depending on the size of your hibachi grill but you basically want enough charcoal to cover the grill pan in a single layer. If conditions are windy, you will want to increase this some.

Until you get the feel for quantity for your grill, a good trick is to first spread a bed of briquettes in the grill pan. Once the proper quantity has been chosen it is time to prepare for lighting them.

There are 3 basic ways for lighting charcoal:

1. The pyramid method, which we will cover in this post
2. Using a Charcoal Chimney Starter (which is covered in the Chimney Starters post)
3. Using an electric charcoal starter.

To use the pyramid method, simply stack the charcoal briquettes in a pyramid shape. Use approximately ½ a cup of lighter fluid (never use gasoline) to soak the charcoal and allow a few minutes to let the chemicals soak into the briquettes. Next, use a long handled match or lighter to light the charcoal.

Once the flames subside and the charcoal begins to ash over you can use a pair of long handled tongs to spread them back out over the grill pan and your charcoal hibachi grill is now ready cook.