First time Korean indoors grill (2024)

When my kids were younger we used to go to this Korean restaurant. We'd go with friends who also had kids. The place had rooms with a grill built into the tables. You'd sit around the table, order raw meat and grill small cuts. It was a lot of fun for the kids. They'd use these small tongs to flip the meats and serve us adults. The place closed 6-7 years ago. Their prices were high and I guess demand became low after the novelty wore off.

Wondering through ebay I saw this thing and had to order it:

It's made in Thailand and has three parts. The bottom which is some heavy feeling metal, that also serves as an ash pan. A charcoal grate. And the top which feels like cheap aluminium.
I lit up some coals and chopped corned beef, leftover strip steak and turkey breast.

Also some chicken breast.

Poured some sauces into bowls: Teriyaki, Soy, Chilli, sesame oil for pre cook dipping, just like they had served at the restaurant. Added after cook options like bbq sauce, spicy mayo, hot sauces. Brown rice as sides.

I put the grill on two butcher blocks to protect the table. The legs conduct a lot of heat as the top butcher block got some bad burn marks. It was hard to clean the top. A lot of burnt sauce. I had to use an oven fat dissolver several times, but I got it cleaned in the end. Mostly.

It was a lot fun. My kids really enjoyed the whole cooking experience. Experimenting with different combinations. There was not meat left!

Titch said:

Love fun cooks, wheres the cooked food?

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Gone! all gone...
I didn't take pics. Was to busy.

Kempshark said:

We use those fairly often, and yes, the tops are a pain to clean. Soaking them afterwards makes it a little easier. We use them to cook/eat Lao sukiyaki when we have relatives over sometimes. We pour soup/broth into the outside area to cook noodles and vegetables to eat with the grilled items. We use the top grill area to grill marinated beef, seafood, etc. They like to always have a slice of two of pork belly fat on there to act as a cooking fat and somewhat keep stuff from sticking as badly to the grill.

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Those are some great tips. Thanks!

There was a real deal Korean eatery here in my little hamlet until some junkie burnt it down. :mad2:

They had grills on the tables with exhaust hoods, and would serve some food over that exact cooker.

Good times! :-D

Very well done, OferL! :thumb:

cowgirl said:

OferL, that looks like a lot of fun and tasty too. Thanks for posting!
Kempshark, thank you for the info too, sounds delicious!

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Thanks I appreciate it.

Smoking Piney said:

There was a real deal Korean eatery here in my little hamlet until some junkie burnt it down. :mad2:

They had grills on the tables with exhaust hoods, and would serve some food over that exact cooker.

Good times! :-D

Very well done, OferL! :thumb:

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Thanks :grin:

IXL said:

Does this grill have a brand name? Maybe it could be had in the U.S.

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I really don't know. My order came from Thailand. I had a quick look on amazon and found this:
[ame]https://www.amazon.com/Aluminum-Charcoal-Barbecue-Topper30cm-Thailand/dp/B008X08M8Q/ref=sr_1_20?ie=UTF8&qid=1499837161&sr=8-20&keywords=korean+bbq+grill[/ame]
I also saw much nicer options. You should hav a look:
[ame]https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_1_11?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=korean+bbq+grill&sprefix=korea+grill%2Caps%2C264&crid=2CM7ZCQMVM70&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Akorean+bbq+grill[/ame]

Bacchus2b said:

Charcoal indoors? Carbon Monoxide???

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You're right of course. The room was very well ventilated and we moved the dining table from under the lights.

Bacchus2b said:

Charcoal indoors? Carbon Monoxide???

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Yeah I was wondering about that myself. Seems like a bad idea if you don't have a proper exhuast hood. The CO is dangerous, and smoke from the charcoal will make the whole house stink, and can stain the ceiling.

Love the idea, but I'd do it outside!

dgaddis1 said:

Yeah I was wondering about that myself. Seems like a bad idea if you don't have a proper exhuast hood. The CO is dangerous, and smoke from the charcoal will make the whole house stink, and can stain the ceiling.

Love the idea, but I'd do it outside!

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Of course one needs to know what they are doing....
Non of those things happened. It was a light coal bed of good quality which I've been using for years. No smoke or bad smalls.
However those are good things to notice for anyone who wants to give this a try.
Don't call me if your house burns down :becky:

Somewhere on this forum is a story about a couple who brought their cooker inside their tent because it was raining. The coals had been extinguished (or so they thought).

One of them didn't make it.

I agree with not using indoor charcoal. I would like you and your family to be here for a long time.

IXL said:

^^^Oh, if my house burns down, I'm going to call you all sorts of things....

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:becky:

mchar69 said:

I think it looks fantastic and would love to have seen
some finished pics - next time.

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Sorry about that. I was too busy EATING. :heh:

SmokinJohn said:

Somewhere on this forum is a story about a couple who brought their cooker inside their tent because it was raining. The coals had been extinguished (or so they thought).

One of them didn't make it.

I agree with not using indoor charcoal. I would like you and your family to be here for a long time.

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I don't know. If the tent was completely closed I can understand. You have to consider burning oxygen in a closed space as dangerous. However in the army we used to warm our tents with burning coal or wood when there weren't electric or disel stoves. But those were chity tents which leaked the heat out and oxygen in all the time. We were very aware of the dangers. The biggest was that fire inside a tent is against the rules. If you're caught you'll be trialed :laugh:
Seriously too many soldiers didn't watch the fire and woke up in a burning tent.

IXL said:

People used to cook indoors, over a fire or coals, all the time. It's simply a matter of having enough ventilation. We use our Lodge Sportsman Grill indoors by placing it in the fireplace, with nary a problem. Charcoal briquettes or lump charcoal are the fuels of choice.

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That's right. Just think and be responsible.
And I'm not advocating the use of charcoal for indoor cooking. Do whatever you think. Just think...