BBQ Question

[Oblio]

I know Winter Lent is nearly upon us, but I was wondering if anyone has experience with one of these (http://www.biggreenegg.com) ?

[Paisley]

We have a smoker, but it's not one of those. Is your question specifically about that one kind, or is it about smokers in general? They are wonderful, by the way....

[Oblio]

I was wondering about Kamado style (ceramic) in general, and the Big Green Egg brand in particular. There are several brands out there, but the BGE is available locally. Apperantly there are fanatics out there, see www.nakedwhiz.com (yes, it's a family safe site, despite the name)

[Prawnik]

I have got to get me one of those!

[eoe]

I don't have experience with those but they look neat. They also look like they will do exactly one thing - smoke.

I bought a smoker / grill from New Braunfels a few years ago and like the fact that I can smoke, bbq or grill on it. it also has a ton of space in the closet like smoke area. The first day I got it I smoked 4 racks of ribs, 8 quail, 2 whole chickens and grilled 8 steaks. IT was a glorious carnosaur fest of meaty goodness. mm.....meat... (man you have some bad timing to be thinking about this...)
http://www.americasbestbbq.com/images/productimages/offset_bandera_lg.jpg

They are also expensive. My cast iron monster of a smoker cost me all of $175. That is FAR less than the 800+ they want for just a large egg. You are getting into the kind of $$ there where you might get one with an auto loading wood chip hopper. Then you can smoke all night long with zero intervention. The people that have eggs are apparently very enamored with them but for that kinda coin I would want something with a hopper.

(Edit: just saw that you can cook for some 20-40 hours on a single load of charcoal with the BGE - I have no clue how that is possible and it sounds very strange to me. IT also sounds like there would be little if any smoke produced and that you would have unlit charcoal somewhere waiting to catch fire...... I dunno...)


((Edit edit: found the deal killer for me. You can not use wood in a ceramic cooker..... If I can not use wood I would personally stay away))

[Oblio]

I think they go so long on one charcoal load because they are so well insulated and the airflow is almost nil. I think the issue with wood is that the tars build up with such a low air flow. I do like using the lump charcoal rather than briquettes, which they also do not recommend. BTW, did you see the subsection on lump charcoal on nakedwhiz ? Talk about fanaticism ! They analyse each brand, sort the different sizes, along with pictures of each group of chunks along with the mix. IMO, if lump charcoal is your bag, this is the place to go ^_^

[eoe]

I guess that is why they are talking about bar-b-queing instead of smoking. I gotta have the pink ring. At that point - why not use one of these?

http://www.lpappliances.com/images/Verona/FSGG424F-SS_small.gif
Perfect temp control, no pink ring..
mmmm pink ring....

[Oblio]

Actually, they go into the pink ring somewhere on the site (or via a link). Anal detail about the chemical process (nitric acid or some such thing) that causes it. You can certainly use wood to smoke in ceramics, just not for the primary fuel.

[Oblio]

From nakedwhiz

What is a smoke ring?

This is the pink to red ring of coloration which can penetrate the surface of a piece of meat as deeply as a quarter inch. It is caused by a series of chemical reactions which take place when meat is slowly heated by the burning of organic fuels. Nitrogen dioxide which is formed when these organic fuels (wood, charcoal, even gas!) burn, dissolves on the surface of the meat where it is converted to nitric acid. The nitric acid diffuses into the meat (hence the penetration of the smoke ring's coloration) where it is then converted to nitric oxide. Finally, the nitric oxide reacts with myoglobin (a protein in meat which contributes to it's color) to form a pink molecule that forms the color of the smoke ring.

Note that the smoke ring only forms while the meat is below a certain maximum temperature, in the vicinity of 140 degrees. Above this temperature, the myglobin breaks down and the smoke ring can no longer develop. Also, the smoke ring takes time to develop. If the meat is rapidly heated to this temperature, the reaction doesn't have a chance to occur. But if the meat is allowed to rise slowly to this temperature over the span of an hour or two, then a smoke ring can develop.

[DonVA]

I think they go so long on one charcoal load because they are so well insulated and the airflow is almost nil. I think the issue with wood is that the tars build up with such a low air flow. I do like using the lump charcoal rather than briquettes, which they also do not recommend. BTW, did you see the subsection on lump charcoal on nakedwhiz ? Talk about fanaticism ! They analyse each brand, sort the different sizes, along with pictures of each group of chunks along with the mix. IMO, if lump charcoal is your bag, this is the place to go ^_^
I was shocked that there was a website dedicated to this subject! I thought it was hilarious.

[Oblio]

Here the bag is sorted into large, medium and small stuff. The pile on the far
right was small chips and powder, not that much. As you can see, the biggest part
of the bag was the large and medium pieces.

http://www.nakedwhiz.com/lumpdatabase/bag25sort.jpg (http://www.nakedwhiz.com/lumpdatabase/lumpbag25.htm)

And the summary from the link in picture (actually a very small part of the review, but gives you an idea of the robustness of the narrative)


This is a great charcoal with excellent size distribution, mild pleasant smell and very long-lasting. As for the lighting issue, we suggest using a MAPP torch or a chimney starter to get the lump started if you are in a hurry. Once you get it started, it burns well and can handle both the requirements of low and slow as well as high-temperature searing. We don't own a WSM, but we would think that the longevity of this charcoal might help metal smokers achieve longer cooks than they can presently achieve. (We'd be interested in hearing of anyone's results.) This charcoal gets a 4.9

[ModernDaySpyridon]

I know Winter Lent is nearly upon us, but I was wondering if anyone has experience with one of these (http://www.biggreenegg.com/) ?

I haven't used one personally, but I hear they are great, especially with chicken.

I don't have experience with those but they look neat. They also look like they will do exactly one thing - smoke.

I bought a smoker / grill from New Braunfels a few years ago and like the fact that I can smoke, bbq or grill on it. it also has a ton of space in the closet like smoke area. The first day I got it I smoked 4 racks of ribs, 8 quail, 2 whole chickens and grilled 8 steaks. IT was a glorious carnosaur fest of meaty goodness. mm.....meat... (man you have some bad timing to be thinking about this...)


If ever there was a need for a drooling emot-con, that would be now...:(

[Paisley]

I like ours because it can have hickory chips placed into the charcoal that give it a wonderful flavor.

Note: Yeah, this is a bad time for discussing these things!! :eek:

[eoe]

Oblio - have you seen this fellow here? Looks pretty nice to me and you get real smoke...
http://www.barbecue-store.com/images/bradleydigitalsmoker108l.jpg

Just a little over half the price of a BGE. - Autoloading hopper, digital temp control.....

The new 6-rack Digital Smoker includes all the features of the Original Smoker along with the benefits of digital technology. Temperature, time, and smoke are now completely controllable so you can decide how much smoke you want, how long your food is going to be smoked for, and at what temperature. Perfect for entertaining, creating gourmet foods in your own home, or just enjoying the flavor that smoking brings, the new Bradley Digital Smokers offer an easier and better way to automatically roast, smoke and barbecue in the outdoors.

[DonVA]

Can you smoke rice?

[ModernDaySpyridon]

Can you smoke rice?

Well, yeah, but the next morning...:sick:

:P

[OnTheWay]

Personally not my area, but a guy I play hockey with is like king of the BBQ. He says he doesn't like ceramic products because he thinks it alters the taste of the meat.

[Oblio]

Just a little over half the price of a BGE. - Autoloading hopper, digital temp control.....


Was it wood biscuits and hoppers in 18th century Russia ?


He says he doesn't like ceramic products because he thinks it alters the taste of the meat.


Interesting, I know the ceramic folks claim just the opposite. They also claim that the meat is much more moist due to almost zero airflow. Kinda makes sense, but I really wish we had more first hand experience. The BBQ king is the best so far.

[Orthocat]

Personally not my area, but a guy I play hockey with is like king of the BBQ. He says he doesn't like ceramic products because he thinks it alters the taste of the meat.


The taste all depends on how fast you get the critter off the road.

Fresh is much better than 2 or 3 days old.

[Theophorus]

I was shocked that there was a website dedicated to this subject! I thought it was hilarious.

But I have already become obsessed with the lump charcoal concept.

I am looking around for a 55 gallon drum, anyone have an extra?

[Asinner]

I haven't used one personally, but I hear they are great, especially with chicken.



If ever there was a need for a drooling emot-con, that would be now...:(


http://home.nc.rr.com/redsweater/smilies/drool2.gif

[Oblio]

I think it would be cool to make homeade lump charcoal. I also want to try it for the powdered incense charcoal.

[Asinner]

Don't encourage Theophorus, Oblio . . . he is already obsessed. ^_^

[Oblio]

If you pay me enough, I won't post the UK link where a charcoal nut makes hundred of kilos in a homemade kiln :)

[Asinner]

Inconceivable and yet, at the same time, completely boring. :P

[OnTheWay]

This whole thing sort of reminds me of "King of the Hill."

[Oblio]

Boring ?

Just wait till we exhaust all our fossil fuels, and homes and cars and even airplanes are fueled by lump charcoal. Then we'll see whose laughing. As for me, I'll be a Charcoal Baron :idea:

[Asinner]

Boring ?

Just wait till we exhaust all our fossil fuels, and homes and cars and even airplanes are fueled by lump charcoal. Then we'll see whose laughing. As for me, I'll be a Charcoal Baron :idea:

:)