I'm rather turned off by celebrity-endorsed products. So when everybody and my mother got on the George Foreman Lean Mean Fat Reducing Grilling Machine bandwagon (that's one long bandwagon) a few years ago, I rolled my eyes and continued the time-tested practice of setting off smoke alarms every time I set foot in the kitchen.And then when I was home a few weeks ago, Mama served up lemon pepper chicken, prepared on her trusty GFLMFRGM.
I knew I had to have one. Yum to the yum yum.
Last week I made a beeline to the extraneous appliance aisle of Target and found a handful of models on sale. I hemmed and hawed (do I need removable, dishwasher safe plates? Must I pay ten dollars extra for the "broil" feature, when I could simply hold the thing up myself to melt the cheese?) and finally took home a basic model.
This is where my happy grill story turns into a fairy tale. I hadn't even taken George out of the box yet when the meat man came knocking on my door. Literally. The traveling meat man was in Torrance within twenty-four hours of my purchase, and he chose our house to make a cold call. Normally, I send salespersons of all ilk packing (that's right; I don't even buy Girl Scout cookies), but when he slyly asked if I like steak, the GFLMFRGM in my peripheral vision forbid me to deny an opportunity for red meat. I ended up buying about a hundred bucks worth of meat, which turned out to be quite a lot of cow. (And to think, I used to be a vegetarian!) It's very much a knock-off of Omaha Steaks, but so far so good. That very night we got to give our GFLMFRGM a whirl, and I'm completely smitten. We've done steak, chicken, and pretty soon we're going to see how George likes eggplant. It's a whole new world in which cooking dinner does not feel like such an insurmountable task.
If only George had endorsed the Toddy Maker instead. I never would have wasted my cash on the George Foreman Lean Mean Acid-Reducing Coffee Machine, and I wouldn't have wasted away all these years without my GFLMFRGM. Such a shame.
I, too, belatedly discovered The George this month! Well, I think I had one back in "the day", but managed to break it somehow. Anyway, my children have celiac disease -- which means their meals usually have a meat component -- but I am squeamish about meat myself. This little baby has made cooking much easier and less disgusting. Go, George!
ReplyDeletevery funny.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the morning lift.
We almost took the plunge last month--but we were at Costco and the only model they had was the delux one that does everything but plant tomatoes and wax the car, so we held off. But I have a feeling a simpler version might hop into the cart on the next trip to Target . . .
ReplyDeleteWe love our George Foreman, but we had mixed results with the Truck Meat, (which I have blogged about).
ReplyDeleteWe have Truck Meat in our (glorious new) freezer still, from over a year ago, and we are serious carnivors.
I'll admit to being on my 2nd grill -- upgraded to a slightly larger one, no bells and whistles. Although, I wouldn't mind having one with the removable grill plates...
ReplyDeleteA word to the wise -- I stay away from fish on the Foreman. I find it difficult to clean, not to mention fairly stinky. For what it's worth...
As far as cleaning a Forman, my wife puts a wet paper towel on the plates and lets it cool off. It makes it very easy to wipe off.
ReplyDeleteGlad you got one, kewp.
I was also GF resistant for quite a long time. I can't remember what finally pushed me over the edge. I think maybe the promise of having to cook everything in half the amount of time. Or maybe it was grief at not being able to grill outside anymore.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, since I'm the cook and D is the dishwasher, I've gotten in the habit of lining the grill with non-stick aluminum foil. This makes D's life oh-so-much easier.
do you know what freaks me out about george foreman? all his kids are named either george and georgina. ew. anyhow, i too am a closet george foreman grill user. i'm not sure where it is right now, but since the cooking partner is no longer here during the week, i think it might make a reappearance in my life.
ReplyDeleteWe too enjoyed the Foreman, but I must say grilling out with charcoal beats it by a longshot.
ReplyDeleteThey have a removeable plates one now? I think I may have gone that route, but oh well.
I have a meat story this week too. Some parishioners of ours tithed a "quarter cow." Yes, that's exactly what it is. I feel like a Levitical priest. I used to see these black angus cattle graze in a field right next to our house. Now, 1/4 of one of them is sitting in our freezer. They unloaded 50 pounds of every cut of steak you can get, a brisket, pot roast, and about 50 pounds of ground beef in individual, vacuum sealed packages (the ground beef is in pound packages.)
Beef, it's what's for dinner. (and will be for the next two years.)