The Grill and BBQ thread

[zhangliao04]

Not a happy camper this morning. My Traeger shut itself down somewhere around 3 am and I (foolishly) didn't set the low temp alarm. That 10lb shoulder sat in the danger zone way too long for me to risk it, so I'm pitching it. We had a quick power outage just after I put it on, but I restarted it and all seemed to be fine. Not sure what happened, but I'm glad it wasn't during the 7.5lb boneless prime rib on deck for tomorrow.

Dang, man. Sorry to hear that. Maybe give it to the dog?

Btw, what Traeger do you have? And thoughts on it?

 

[StarRaider]

My father (Marquis) was and still is a man of simple tastes. He didn't particularly care what kind of grill he had, as long as it was charcoal. He always said that the flavor of charcoal was much better than propane. I believed him because he's my dad. But he'd usually have a basic, cheap charcoal grill that you could get at Walmart. He had one thing he'd add to enhance the flavor: garlic salt. Sprinkle some on the coals just before they're ready for the meat, and the smell will permeate through the neighborhood. We'd have neighbors come over to ask about the smell of what we're grilling, what secret marinade we were using (usually none), that sort of thing. He's upgraded to a better quality grill now (a pretty nice Char-Broil), but he's still a charcoal purist.

He passed that down to me and to my younger brother. We both will only use charcoal (basic Kingsford coals and basic lighter fluid), with garlic salt on the coals. It creates its own flavor, but it also complements whatever marinade you use.

Charcoal is the way God intended man to grill. Propane sucks.

 

[JCHateSteve]

I got a shoulder and put it on the rec tec 370 at 10:30, how long you think? 12 hours?????

The general rule is 1 to 2 hours per lb. But a lot can effect that. Size and shape of the butt, cook temp, altitude, ECT. You can speed things up a bit by using the Texas crutch to power through the stall. Also, what temp are you cooking to? I like 203 personally. 12 hours is a decent estimate, but there is a fair amount of variation to it.

 

[Go aeiou]

Not a happy camper this morning. My Traeger shut itself down somewhere around 3 am and I (foolishly) didn't set the low temp alarm. That 10lb shoulder sat in the danger zone way too long for me to risk it, so I'm pitching it. We had a quick power outage just after I put it on, but I restarted it and all seemed to be fine. Not sure what happened, but I'm glad it wasn't during the 7.5lb boneless prime rib on deck for tomorrow.

Oops, but better safe than sorry. You'll appreciate that prime rib even more.
We've had the power go off for several days two times this spring. A tornado and straight line winds. We lost everything in the freezer and much of the refrigerator side both times.

 

[JCHateSteve]

Not a happy camper this morning. My Traeger shut itself down somewhere around 3 am and I (foolishly) didn't set the low temp alarm. That 10lb shoulder sat in the danger zone way too long for me to risk it, so I'm pitching it. We had a quick power outage just after I put it on, but I restarted it and all seemed to be fine. Not sure what happened, but I'm glad it wasn't during the 7.5lb boneless prime rib on deck for tomorrow.

That stinks. Hopefully it's just a one time aberration and not a bad part.

It seems to be a weekend for grill stuff breaking. My chimney sister finally gave up the ghost yesterday. Luckily for me that's easy to replace.

 

[volmanbill]

View attachment 290526
That stinks. Hopefully it's just a one time aberration and not a bad part.

It seems to be a weekend for grill stuff breaking. My chimney sister finally gave up the ghost yesterday. Luckily for me that's easy to replace.

After removing the victim, I did a reset and cranked it up to 500 to test it. No issues, unless you count taking 45 minutes to get to temp. I love my Traeger for smoking, but a grill it is not. Even with the grill grates, it just takes too long and too many pellets to be efficient.

 

[JCHateSteve]

After removing the victim, I did a reset and cranked it up to 500 to test it. No issues, unless you count taking 45 minutes to get to temp. I love my Traeger for smoking, but a grill it is not. Even with the grill grates, it just takes too long and too many pellets to be efficient.

I've heard that about pellet grills in general. That and the extra maintenance is what has kept me away from them. They sure are good smokers though.

 

[zhangliao04]

After removing the victim, I did a reset and cranked it up to 500 to test it. No issues, unless you count taking 45 minutes to get to temp. I love my Traeger for smoking, but a grill it is not. Even with the grill grates, it just takes too long and too many pellets to be efficient.

I've heard that about pellet grills in general. That and the extra maintenance is what has kept me away from them. They sure are good smokers though.

Interesting. I will definitely take this info into consideration.

 

[zhangliao04]

The general rule is 1 to 2 hours per lb. But a lot can effect that. Size and shape of the butt, cook temp, altitude, ECT. You can speed things up a bit by using the Texas crutch to power through the stall. Also, what temp are you cooking to? I like 203 personally. 12 hours is a decent estimate, but there is a fair amount of variation to it.

Interestingly enough, I'm smoking my second butt. Both butts have been 10-lb'ers and both are taking only 7 hours to smoke. I've been able to keep the temp at 250-260°F the whole time with maybe a spike to 270 a time or two. Using a regular Kamado Joe.

 

[JCHateSteve]

It varies by smoker too. My Pit Barrel Cooker will do a 10 pounder in about 8 hours. But the kettle takes about 12. At this point my philosophy is it's done when the grill thermometer says it is.

 

[zhangliao04]

It varies by smoker too. My Pit Barrel Cooker will do a 10 pounder in about 8 hours. But the kettle takes about 12. At this point my philosophy is it's done when the grill thermometer says it is.

True that! If it tastes good, I don't care if it was 5, 10, or 15 hours. Just let it do it's thing.

 

[zhangliao04]

Btw, happy Independence Day to all and happy smoking/BBQ'ing to those who are today!

 

[volfanjustin]

7lb butt about 3 hours in

 

[gordonr24]

Boston Butts on American Holiday weekends is a safe, forgiving, and mouthwatering go to.

 

[zhangliao04]

The finished product of the 10-lb butt from today. Everybody told me that even though they enjoyed the other one I did a couple weeks ago they really enjoyed this one. Looks like applewood is going to be a staple from here on out.

 

[volmanbill]

I've heard that about pellet grills in general. That and the extra maintenance is what has kept me away from them. They sure are good smokers though.

I love this thing for ease of use. My wet/dry vac makes quick work of the ashes and I use drip pans under everything. My grease trap stays dusty.

Side note, I picked up a bologna chub earlier. I'll throw it on early tomorrow to tide us over until the main event. I haven't smoked one before but have been wanting to.

 

[JCHateSteve]

I love this thing for ease of use. My wet/dry vac makes quick work of the ashes and I use drip pans under everything. My grease trap stays dusty.

Side note, I picked up a bologna chub earlier. I'll throw it on early tomorrow to tide us over until the main event. I haven't smoked one before but have been wanting to.

I haven't tried bologna yet.

As for maintenance, I more meant replacing the auger, heating element, temp control, and that kind of stuff. I doubt keeping a pellet grill clean is any worse than charcoal.

 

[volmanbill]

Dang, man. Sorry to hear that. Maybe give it to the dog?

Btw, what Traeger do you have? And thoughts on it?

Just saw this. I have the Timberline 1300. You saw my comments above, I love it for the set it and forget it ease. Hot, cold, windy...it holds temp. Very heavy construction. Just not for grilling.

 

[volmanbill]

I haven't tried bologna yet.

As for maintenance, I more meant replacing the auger, heating element, temp control, and that kind of stuff. I doubt keeping a pellet grill clean is any worse than charcoal.

I haven't had those issues yet, but I found it a little humorous that I was wondering if I could use a UPS battery for backup in case of future outages.

 

[JCHateSteve]

I haven't had those issues yet, but I found it a little humorous that I was wondering if I could use a UPS battery for backup in case of future outages.

I don't see why it wouldn't work.

 

[volinbham]

After removing the victim, I did a reset and cranked it up to 500 to test it. No issues, unless you count taking 45 minutes to get to temp. I love my Traeger for smoking, but a grill it is not. Even with the grill grates, it just takes too long and too many pellets to be efficient.

Yeah, I wouldn't rely on mine for a grill. I'm also one of those people that doesn't like smoked steaks or burgers. The Weber Genesis for grilling, the Rec Tec for smoking and the Weber kettle for in between.

 

[volinbham]

Did wings on the pellet (2nd time). This time I didn't mess with low then high for crisping. Set it at 365 and checked in an hour. They were running close to 200 internal and I was worried about that but they were the best I've done. Skin had snap; no rubbery or tough texture. Easy off the bone and still juicy. Let sit on rack in refrigerator for about 5 hours before cooking to dry out.

Also I used to sauce them then cook more to set the glaze like ribs but did the sauce toss after cooking dry (just some rub). Way better.

Will definitely do this method going forward. Big hit and much easier.

 

[Boca Vol]

Anyone have a good step by step rib recipe/ directions?

I’m somewhat familiar with the 3-2-1 method but they never turn out perfect. Using an electric smoker.

Here's a rack of St. Louis ribs I cooked today. Cooked at 250. 2:45 on, 1:15 wrapped, and 0:45 back on to set the glaze:

 

[Smokeytom]

Capped off the weekend right!

 

[Boca Vol]

Capped off the weekend right!

View attachment 290874

Damn right, you did! Nice bark!