I too love my Bluestar but have also been rather disappointed in the broiler. It's very small and beyond that I find the heat inconsistent from front to back so that I need to spin even small things 180 degrees to get a consistent doneness.

I love the broiler -- you need to position the food close to the flame. I usually put the food in a foil pan using the top rack position. Tonight I broiled chicken strips basted with teriyaki glaze; it needed about 5 minutes. I stir-fried some veggies and cooked ramen noodles at the same time, a very quick, tasty dinner.

The house favorite here is broiled salmon fillets, plain or sprinkled with garlic powder. Turn them over after about 3 minutes. I broil with the door closed.

Here's another idea: I have a Wolf AG and my husband LOVES a NY strip finished under the infrared broiler. Sear 3 minutes per side in a very hot preheated cast-iron skillet on the rangetop and then finish (4 minutes for medium-rare) on top rack under the broiler (door is closed on my Wolf). Yummy! Costco sells beautiful, thick NY strips.

Also great for roasting/charring peppers, tomatoes and tomatillos (sp?), and other veggies.

There is a learning curve with a new infrared broiler!

abd1,

I've had my BS about as long as you have. I haven't used the broiler as much as the burners and grill. Last night I decided to try an old Julia Child recipe that I used to cook often - a spatchcocked chicken with a mustard-garlic topping that's done under the broiler. I remember how it cooked in my previous oven - a Gaggenau wall oven with electric broiler, so I could do a comparison.

I used the broiler pan (lined w foil) that came with the oven, which was a good size once the chicken was laid out. I put the pan in the center of the oven rack but didn't try to do anything special in terms of lining it up under the broiler. It broiled evenly but was getting done faster than in my old oven. (One mistake I made was brushing the final mustard-garlic mixture on at the beginning - should have been the last five minutes. Sooo, it was getting dark too quickly. I moved the rack down one level and kept on going.) With this recipe, you cook the chicken for 15 minutes on side one, brushing with oil/butter every 5 minutes, flip it over and cook another 15 minutes, again basting every 5 minutes. The mustard topping goes on for the last 5 minutes.

Despite my trying to do the recipe from memory and thus messing up part of it, my DH and I loved it - thought it was very juicy and tender. The skin was nice and crisp. I didn't have the chicken as close to the burner as I did with my electric broiler - the heat seemed much more intense. By moving down one level, it didn't affect the broiling area - the entire chicken from end to end was definitely getting exposed. It will take a bit more playing around but I was very pleased with how the chicken did. A few months ago, I broiled a rack of lamb using a butcher's recipe I've used many times in the past - in the Bluestar, it was definitely the best I ever did, as good as any restaurant.

FWIW, I broil with the door open and pull out the drip pan slightly to protect the knobs from getting overly hot.

deegeegirl -- I'm wondering what rack did you start your chicken on? Was it the highest or 2nd to highest? I tried salmon on the highest but it literally touched the broiling element so I usually use the 2nd highest rack.

I'm curious how you did the lamb? Thanks!

Zoenipp,

I have a similar recipe except I preheat the skillet under the broiler and complete the whole cooking process under the broiler at 4 minutes and 3 minutes each side for 1 1/2 inch thick NY strip to medium rare. It works great and is very close to the Ruth's Chris (if you are familair with them) style of cooking steak. I would also plug Allen Brothers' dry aged prime beef (online Chicago butcher shop). It is outstanding!

Hi abd1,

Here's the rack of lamb recipe, from John Dewar, a Boston area butcher - I've been using this for years --

Rack of Lamb for Two

Note: This marinade is great with Loin Lamb Chops Too!
1 8-Rib Lamb Rack
4 tb. Olive Oil
2 tb. Dijon Mustard
1 tb. Parsley
2 tb. Soy Sauce

2 grinds Black Pepper
1 Garlic Clove

Whisk all ingredients together until it forms mayonnaise consistency. Coat lamb rack (both sides). Broil 5 minutes each side.

Turn oven to 400 degrees. Bake for 10 minutes (for rare).

Remove from oven, let stand 5 minutes before carving.

As for the chicken, I started it on the second level from the top and ultimately moved it lower, to the third level. It was broiling nicely even at that distance.

Annas Suprese

Quartered pineapples covered with meringue.

Quarter a pineapple, leaving tops on. Run a thin, sharp knife between the skin and fruit, resulting in a 'log' of edible pineapple. Leaving the log in the pineapple skin, cut log vertically into large bite-sized pieces.

Make a standard French meringue.

Pipe meringue over top of pineapple in a 3/4-1" thick layer, using a star tip. Run under broiler to brown. Enjoy!

Hmmm, I've been doing it wrong! I was reading something else re broiling (on a Viking) and went back and read my bluestar manual again. It says "Keep the door closed during lighting and broiling. Open the door only to insert or remove food." I remember my mom used to broil with the door open or otherwise the broiler would turn off. BS manual also says the broiler cycles on and off - when it turned off with the door closed, I mistakenly thought that was a sign the door should be open. I know, I know, read the manual....!!

You can still broil with the door open in order to "trick" the thermostat into thinking it needs to keep firing. In theory, this will get your broiler hotter than if you were to keep the door closed and allow the unit to cycle. If you're going to broil for any extended length of time with the door open, you could try pulling out the drip tray a few inches to shield the knobs from the heat.

deegeegirl -- thanks for the lamb recipe. I'll have to give it a shot. I prefer to leave the door open too to keep the broiler on and pulling out the drip tray 3-4 inches does work well as a heat shield to keep the knobs from heating up.