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OT-BBQ grills?

I love the griddle, as I have one for searing. I would highly recommend one too, but you are getting rid of a lot of variety of meats on a griddle alone, ones that that are my staples. You want to get the flavor of smoke wood you need a smoker too. I love my griddle, but it can't do everything like my Kamado

Pork Butt
Brisket
Whole Chicken
Turkey
Pork Ribs
Prime Rib

Yeah, they're all really completely different devices for different purposes...griddle, grill, smoker. You can get by with just a smoker that also grills plus a griddle. But I don't know of any that can do it all, at least not well.

It's also nice to have a gas grill for quicker cooks. And don't even get me started on pizzas. None of those can do pizza well, at least not without a conversion kit.

Ideal setup:

Kamado - for smoking & charcoal grilling
Gas Grill - for quicker grilling
Griddle - for griddle cooking
Pizza Oven - for pizza
 
I love the griddle, as I have one for searing. I would highly recommend one too, but you are getting rid of a lot of variety of meats on a griddle alone, ones that that are my staples. You want to get the flavor of smoke wood you need a smoker too. I love my griddle, but it can't do everything like my Kamado

Pork Butt
Brisket
Whole Chicken
Turkey
Pork Ribs
Prime Rib
Totally true

But, I use a crockpot for pulled pork, pork ribs, stuff like that.

I guess I sort of just am over my smoker. I thought I was going to really get into smoking but I just never really did.
 
Yeah, they're all really completely different devices for different purposes...griddle, grill, smoker. You can get by with just a smoker that also grills plus a griddle. But I don't know of any that can do it all, at least not well.

It's also nice to have a gas grill for quicker cooks. And don't even get me started on pizzas. None of those can do pizza well, at least not without a conversion kit.

Ideal setup:

Kamado - for smoking & charcoal grilling
Gas Grill - for quicker grilling
Griddle - for griddle cooking
Pizza Oven - for pizza
Yeah, anyone have a pizza oven??
 
I guess I sort of just am over my smoker. I thought I was going to really get into smoking but I just never really did.

Same. Tried to get into it pre-covid with one set up and then gave it another go during covid with a new one. Same result...just never got into it. I think it's probably that it's hard to justify unless you're cooking for a lot of people which, for me, is about 1% of the time.
 
Same. Tried to get into it pre-covid with one set up and then gave it another go during covid with a new one. Same result...just never got into it. I think it's probably that it's hard to justify unless you're cooking for a lot of people which, for me, is about 1% of the time.
Nah... make a couple racks of ribs = dinner for 2 days

Pork Butt = Dinner for 3 to 4 days. Freeze what you don't use and then reheat in a pot at simmer heat

Brisket = Dinner for 3 to 4 day same as PB

It takes a little time to prep, but it is worth it for the food you get for days
 
Nah... make a couple racks of ribs = dinner for 2 days

Pork Butt = Dinner for 3 to 4 days. Freeze what you don't use and then reheat in a pot at simmer heat

Brisket = Dinner for 3 to 4 day same as PB

It takes a little time to prep, but it is worth it for the food you get for days

Yeah, that's what I kept telling myself. And I'd talk myself into it 3 or 4 times both go-rounds, then at some point in the process when I'd think about doing it, the "eh, I don't feel like effin with it" would take over.
 
Yeah, that's what I kept telling myself. And I'd talk myself into it 3 or 4 times both go-rounds, then at some point in the process when I'd think about doing it, the "eh, I don't feel like effin with it" would take over.
you must not like beer, because while it’s not typical to throw back a couple while making a casserole in the kitchen, it is expected that you’re gonna pop a few while sitting on the deck ‘ watching the grill’ it’s hot outside and stuff
 
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you must not like beer, because while it’s not typical to throw back a couple while making a casserole in the kitchen, it is expected that you’re gonna pop a few while sitting on the deck ‘ watching the grill’ it’s hot outside and stuff
Yes. It’s a perfect way to get self imposed solitary. No one wants to help because it’s too hot or it takes too long. All the while, I pounding a 12 pack and watching the grass grow and monitoring the temp gauge.
 
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Yeah, that's what I kept telling myself. And I'd talk myself into it 3 or 4 times both go-rounds, then at some point in the process when I'd think about doing it, the "eh, I don't feel like effin with it" would take over.
See, I thought I would LOVE smoking, tossing something on and then sitting around drinking.

Turns out that I LOVE drinking but basically have little desire to sit around the smoker. I would rather toss a butt or ribs in the crockpot.

I really thought I would me a smoker guy! I started up during covid and was really into it for the first 2 months.

I watched soooo many videos from Malcom "How to BBQ right" and was obsessed.

Now I see that even he is doing griddle videos.
 
I don't like taking mine above 425. It never seems to act right above that temp. I've had mine for a about 6 years, it's been great.

Made the same move to blackstone for burgers.
Yeah I mostly just use it to smoke big cuts, another turnoff I have with mine is there are definite hot spots on it where it can cause inconsistency if cooking lots of meat at once.
 
you must not like beer, because while it’s not typical to throw back a couple while making a casserole in the kitchen, it is expected that you’re gonna pop a few while sitting on the deck ‘ watching the grill’ it’s hot outside and stuff

I like beer. I just don't need an excuse to do it whenever I want.
 
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Smoked a couple of top round roasts Sunday. I wanted to try it because they're called a poor man's brisket. So my wife likes her meat well done (no jokes here) so I put probes in both (geez, this isn't going well) and got hers the way she likes it and made sure mine was medium rare. Both turned out good, except she decided that she liked a little pink in the roast (just stop) and so now I'm finishing off the well done roast.

Gotta say that I like this cut. Not quite as juicy as a brisket but also costs a lot less.

If anyone's interested here's the recipe. The dry rub has a nice kick to it.

Top Round Roast
 
Smoked a couple of top round roasts Sunday. I wanted to try it because they're called a poor man's brisket. So my wife likes her meat well done (no jokes here) so I put probes in both (geez, this isn't going well) and got hers the way she likes it and made sure mine was medium rare. Both turned out good, except she decided that she liked a little pink in the roast (just stop) and so now I'm finishing off the well done roast.

Gotta say that I like this cut. Not quite as juicy as a brisket but also costs a lot less.

If anyone's interested here's the recipe. The dry rub has a nice kick to it.

Top Round Roast
This is a delicious cut to smoke. Smoke until about 115 let sit a bit and it was fork tender.
 
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I just did some wings on the Weber kettle. They were great. The way to get the best wings in the grill is as follows:

-Pat them dry with paper towels and then place on wire rack above a sheet pan. Get the outside as dry as possible. Put in the fridge for several hours. Overnight is fine too. Make sure there is enough space around every wing. The fridge will circulate air that will dry out the skin. This will help with crisping the wing during cooking.

-two zone fire on the grill. Vents wide open and plenty of charcoal. 450-600F. Get that sucker hot on the hot side.

-remove wings from fridge. Lightly season. Usually a salt/pepper/garlic and a bbq rub. Then spray with duck fat.

-place wings on cool side of grill. 45-60 mins. Until internal is 200+. Some were 208F internal when I pulled them tonight.

-toss in whatever sauce you want. Butter with SPG, hot sauce, bbq sauce. Dealers choice. I also charbuff some on the hot side of the grill. Right over the coals. Keep an eye on them, you don’t want to make them meteorites.

-then serve. Trust me, they’re the best grilled wing you can get. I’ve found I don’t need baking powder or anything to help the crispy skin. The fridge does a lot of the work.
 
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I think my endgame is my PK360, a black stone and a Komodo Kamado. And I would probably just ditch the PK unless I wanted to have it around for small cooks.

My father in law lives and dies by his traeger, but I don’t really see them as outdoor grilling so much as outdoor ovens.

I don’t mind messing with charcoal and getting a fire just so, but he doesn’t want to do that which I can appreciate. I’m not looking to go full on Texas stick burner either.
 
I just did some wings on the Weber kettle. They were great. The way to get the best wings in the grill is as follows:

-Pat them dry with paper towels and then place on wire rack above a sheet pan. Get the outside as dry as possible. Put in the fridge for several hours. Overnight is fine too. Make sure there is enough space around every wing. The fridge will circulate air that will dry out the skin. This will help with crisping the wing during cooking.

-two zone fire on the grill. Vents wide open and plenty of charcoal. 450-600F. Get that sucker hot on the hot side.

-remove wings from fridge. Lightly season. Usually a salt/pepper/garlic and a bbq rub. Then spray with duck fat.

-place wings on cool side of grill. 45-60 mins. Until internal is 200+. Some were 208F internal when I pulled them tonight.

-toss in whatever sauce you want. Butter with SPG, hot sauce, bbq sauce. Dealers choice. I also charbuff some on the hot side of the grill. Right over the coals. Keep an eye on them, you don’t want to make them meteorites.

-then serve. Trust me, they’re the best grilled wing you can get. I’ve found I don’t need baking powder or anything to help the crispy skin. The fridge does a lot of the work.
I think I’m going to adopt some of your technique with my wings. I agree with the fridge method to dry out the skin. I do not like using the baking powder.

I would add that I put them in a brine for 12 hours too. To cook, I use a device called the vortex. It creates a lots of heat that washes over the entire grill. My inexpensive hack is to actually use an old aluminum angel food cake pan for the charcoal, not a commercial vortex. Also, youll want to block a lot of the airflow by putting tinfoil on the bottom rack around the vortex. Do not skip this step . You will seriously get your temps up over 500 no problem with only one chimney full of charcoal.

Then, I put my wings all around the perimeter of the grill, put on the lid and let her rip for 40 minutes. I’m not even gonna check them or flip them. The skin will crisp up nicely and then it’s time to sauce em up toss em up and down the hatch

I do need to buy my wings intact and cut them myself. When I buy the portions that are frozen, the quality is terrible.

 
I think I’m going to adopt some of your technique with my wings. I agree with the fridge method to dry out the skin. I do not like using the baking powder.

I would add that I put them in a brine for 12 hours too. I use a device called the vortex. It creates a lots of heat that washes over the entire grill. My inexpensive hack is to actually use an old aluminum angel food cake pan for the charcoal. Plus, block a lot of the airflow by putting tinfoil on the bottom rack around the vortex. You will seriously get your temps up over 500 no problem. Then, I put my wings all around the perimeter of the grill, put on the lid and let her rip for 40 minutes. I’m not even gonna check them. The skin will crisp up nicely and then it’s time to sauce em up toss em up.

I do need to buy my wings intact and cut them myself. When I buy the portions that are frozen, the quality is terrible.

I have a vortex too. But I bought the large size because I have the 26” kettle. It was a mistake. It doesn’t get near as hot as if I two zone it.

I also get my wings from Fareway. Their meat is quality and they often run amazing deals. The other week they were doing $0.99/lbs on chicken legs. I lollipopped them (which takes forever, but it’s so worth the effort). Amazing.
 
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I have a vortex too. But I bought the large size because I have the 26” kettle. It was a mistake. It doesn’t get near as hot as if I two zone it.

I also get my wings from Fareway. Their meat is quality and they often run amazing deals. The other week they were doing $0.99/lbs on chicken legs. I lollipopped them (which takes forever, but it’s so worth the effort). Amazing.
I’ve had good luck with the legs too. I didn’t mess around with the lollipop method, just had them in a configuration, where the larger part of the leg was closest to the vortex, and then fanned out. That’s a good way to feed a larger group for not a lot of money.
 
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Gas: Napoleon
Charcoal: Weber kettle
Pellet: Recteq

All 3 have different purposes/what they’re good at. Want to grill? Charcoal tastes the best. Get a kettle. Don’t have 30 mins to build the fire? Don’t want the mess? Get a gas grill. Napoleon makes a killer grill. Pellet “grills” are not grills. They’re smokers/ovens. The recteq is one of the best. Blows traeger out of the water.

Was looking at the Rec tec 1100, Is that good Pellet Smoker? I have a GMG and hate it as i can't keep the temperature consistant throughout the grill.
 
Was looking at the Rec tec 1100, Is that good Pellet Smoker? I have a GMG and hate it as i can't keep the temperature consistant throughout the grill.
How your bought the cover? You can’t use treager pellets in a gmg I believe they are to long, I have smoked a turkey in 0 degree weather had grill inside a building it worked great
 
Was looking at the Rec tec 1100, Is that good Pellet Smoker? I have a GMG and hate it as i can't keep the temperature consistant throughout the grill.
RecTek was my dream pellet smoker but didn’t want to spend the money at the time. Now I’m trying to kill mine off so I can get new but the ol traeger won’t die!!
 
Was looking at the Rec tec 1100, Is that good Pellet Smoker? I have a GMG and hate it as i can't keep the temperature consistant throughout the grill.
The GMG I had was a giant, steaming pile. I bought the Recteq 1200 Dual Zone recently and am happy with it. The direct heat area got to about 740F, which was good for a reverse sear on a few costco filets. They had a decent deal running on that model (with a cover, 160lbs of pellets, rubs, and tools) for far less than the high end Traeger.
 
How your bought the cover? You can’t use treager pellets in a gmg I believe they are to long, I have smoked a turkey in 0 degree weather had grill inside a building it worked great
Yes I have cover. It is about 7 years old and I have replaced all items in it. Fan twice, motherboard once, auger once,

The biggest issue though is variance. I can have 50 degrees either way and it’s a pain to move the heat shield in the one I have.
 
The GMG I had was a giant, steaming pile. I bought the Recteq 1200 Dual Zone recently and am happy with it. The direct heat area got to about 740F, which was good for a reverse sear on a few costco filets. They had a decent deal running on that model (with a cover, 160lbs of pellets, rubs, and tools) for far less than the high end Traeger.

I’m looking at back yard beast or flagship 1100
 
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Was looking at the Rec tec 1100, Is that good Pellet Smoker? I have a GMG and hate it as i can't keep the temperature consistant throughout the grill.
I have the 1100. It’s awesome. Never struggle to hold a temperature. It’s built like a tank. I frequently put a brisket or pork butt on and go to bed without a worry. It’s never gone out or done anything other than work perfect. Recteq is the only company I’ve ever seen put their owner’s cell phone number in the packaging in case their regular customer service isn’t satisfactory. If you can afford it, the recteq is worth it. I’ve convinced 3 people I know to buy one and they all say the same
 
I have the 1100. It’s awesome. Never struggle to hold a temperature. It’s built like a tank. I frequently put a brisket or pork butt on and go to bed without a worry. It’s never gone out or done anything other than work perfect. Recteq is the only company I’ve ever seen put their owner’s cell phone number in the packaging in case their regular customer service isn’t satisfactory. If you can afford it, the recteq is worth it. I’ve convinced 3 people I know to buy one and they all say the same

I am going to get a rec tec just not for sure which one. Trying to deceide between the back yard beats or flashship 1100
 
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I am going to get a rec tec just not for sure which one. Trying to deceide between the back yard beats or flashship 1100
My only complaint is the 1100 is too big for my purposes. I usually make a brisket or two pork butts. Lots of empty space. The only time I use the whole thing is when I make jerky…and i just need to buy jerky racks and then I wouldnt use the whole surface. I wouldn’t buy anything bigger than you need or it just uses more pellets and takes longer to heat up.
 
My only complaint is the 1100 is too big for my purposes. I usually make a brisket or two pork butts. Lots of empty space. The only time I use the whole thing is when I make jerky…and i just need to buy jerky racks and then I wouldnt use the whole surface. I wouldn’t buy anything bigger than you need or it just uses more pellets and takes longer to heat up.
Was looking at the Deckboss 590 which is bigger than what I have now - and more than enough for what I would use it for. Assume the controls and such are the same as the larger - do you guys like the app?
 
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Was looking at the Deckboss 590 which is bigger than what I have now - and more than enough for what I would use it for. Assume the controls and such are the same as the larger - do you guys like the app?
I honestly don’t use the app much if at all. You need an old school dual band router to stay connected to the grill, which I don’t have. The damn thing holds such a steady temp that I just walk away and check the meat probe temp from time to time. I’ve had no issues. I almost always put meat on the night before we plan to eat it. I sleep like a baby while it rolls all night in the driveway. Only time I had an issue is when I forgot to check my pellets and ran out in the middle of the night. That was a bummer. Good thing it was $1.49 a pound pork butt and not a SRF brisket.
 
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