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Where do you get your BGE inspiration?

I often think I'll cook on the egg this weekend, but then don't know what to cook. Today is the same. After 2yrs ownership and having done all the basics, I'm starting to use it less, particularly in cold weather
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Comments

  • TheToast
    TheToast Posts: 376
    @nolaegghead I understand. It's just a tool I'm using less and would like to use more
  • Honestly ... coming here, reading posts, looking and pics and making stuff based on what I can get.

    And what @nolaegghead said.
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    | Cooking and blogging with a Large and Minimax in deepest, darkest England-shire
    | My food blog ... BGE and other stuff ... http://www.thecooksdigest.co.uk
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  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
    TheToast said:
    @nolaegghead I understand. It's just a tool I'm using less and would like to use more
    I dig, yo.

    Has to be some smashed pea-burger that no-one has invented yet.  Think vegetables.
    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..
  • Eoin
    Eoin Posts: 4,304
    When it's cold and dark outside in the evening, it's hard to get motivated to cook outdoors.
  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
    edited February 2018
    Eoin said:
    When it's cold and dark outside in the evening, it's hard to get motivated to cook outdoors.
    Totally.  I've just gone through one of the laziest periods of my life.  Since I broke my leg on a dirt bike at the Texas Tornado Boot Camp, I haven't climbed back on the horse.  Leg is healed, but mentally I need to pull myself back up, get my shop cleaned up, get back on the bike, etc. 

    I cook almost every day, but most of it is in the kitchen lately.
    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..
  • YukonRon
    YukonRon Posts: 16,984
    I have been trying to up my seafood game, basically trying to keep up with Brent and Nicole, as of late. Each time I try, I go back to red meat, or pork.
    My Beautiful Wife provides inspiration when she tells me what she wants. I do that, life is easier.
    "Knowledge is Good" - Emil Faber

    XL and MM
    Louisville, Kentucky
  • g8golfer
    g8golfer Posts: 1,025
    I try to switch up the menu as much as i can. I get my ideas from this forum and a couple of different YouTube pages. As the weather gets better and the days get longer I tend to cook more. 
  • TheToast said:
    I often think I'll cook on the egg this weekend, but then don't know what to cook. Today is the same. After 2yrs ownership and having done all the basics, I'm starting to use it less, particularly in cold weather
    I can understand that, I've backed way off using the BGE but in my situation it was diet drivin!  I met my weight lost goal of losing 50lbs (did Optavia) so now thinking what I can jump back into the game with, need to make a splash, HAHA.  
    Retired Navy, LBGE
    Pinehurst, NC

  • NPHuskerFL
    NPHuskerFL Posts: 17,629
    From virtually any menu I see. Meaning take a delicious "idea" and tweak it to work in the egg. And for those on a diet or other dietary restrictions whether self or medical recommended you can still use the egg. A little self-control and imagination go a long way. 
    LBGE 2013 & MM 2014
    Die Hard HUSKER & BRONCO FAN
    Flying Low & Slow in "Da Burg" FL
  • SciAggie
    SciAggie Posts: 6,481
    @NPHuskerFL Exactly. Well said. 
    Coleman, Texas
    Large BGE & Mini Max for the wok. A few old camp Dutch ovens and a wood fired oven. LSG 24” cabinet offset smoker. There are a few paella pans and a Patagonia cross in the barn. A curing chamber for bacterial transformation of meats...
    "Bourbon slushies. Sure you can cook on the BGE without them, but why would you?"
                                                                                                                          YukonRon
  • Focker
    Focker Posts: 8,364
    When I get in the rut, I look for different avenues to explore, Italian, Mexican, Asian, baking, desserts, etc. are a few of my favorites.


    Brandon
    Quad Cities
    "If yer gonna denigrate, familiarity with the subject is helpful."

  • I have found myself with a craving, then thinking about if I can make it on my mbge.
    A few weekends ago I cooked chicken tikka in the grill and sautéed the masala sauce on the stove top.
    last week it was blue cheese stuffed burgers. 
    Before that it was a few weeks before I wanted to fire up the mbge. 
    I know from past cooks what I like to cook on the mbge and what tastes the same in the oven or even the crock pot.
  • lousubcap
    lousubcap Posts: 32,171
    Compared to many here I am a pretty simple employer of the BGE and other outdoor toys.  That said, I follow @NPHuskerFL 's approach especially when it comes to protein.  Play around with it-a cast iron pan is a great tool for changing it up.  FWIW-
    Louisville; Rolling smoke in the neighbourhood. # 38 for the win.  Life is too short for light/lite beer!  Seems I'm livin in a transitional period.
  • jamesj
    jamesj Posts: 36
    Whole chicken 400 degrees one hour is simple, cheap and great. Maybe get a few when they are on sale and try with different rubs. 
    Large BGE  Houston TX
  • Eoin said:
    When it's cold and dark outside in the evening, it's hard to get motivated to cook outdoors.
    I respectfully disagree, sir ... but I have one of these which does help :)
     

    -----------------------------------------------------------------------
    | Cooking and blogging with a Large and Minimax in deepest, darkest England-shire
    | My food blog ... BGE and other stuff ... http://www.thecooksdigest.co.uk
    -----------------------------------------------------------------------


  • A lot of my inspiration comes from here, or just from going to the butcher and seeing what looks good to me. Today I went looking for pork spare ribs but they only had baby backs. They did have beef ribs though, so that’s what’s on right now. 
    Grilling year round in Orlando, FL on a large BGE & Santa Maria
  • Hans61
    Hans61 Posts: 3,901
    My motivation comes from my cravings pure and simple 
    “There are three rules that I live by: never get less than twelve hours sleep; never play cards with a guy who has the same first name as a city; and never get involved with a woman with a tattoo of a dagger on her body.”
    Coach Finstock Teen Wolf
  • TheToast
    TheToast Posts: 376
    Today I decided to get out of the rut and have just prepared a curry butter lamb shoulder to put on for 9hrs tomorrow until it pulls and a cauliflower which I've also rubbed with an Indian spice mix I've made. So combined with a smobot I just have to stick them on tomorrow and not worry about them until the evening. 
  • YukonRon said:
    I have been trying to up my seafood game, basically trying to keep up with Brent and Nicole, as of late. Each time I try, I go back to red meat, or pork.
    My Beautiful Wife provides inspiration when she tells me what she wants. I do that, life is easier.
    trying to keep up with Nicole-FTFY
    Keepin' It Weird in The ATX FBTX
  • The Cen-Tex Smoker
    The Cen-Tex Smoker Posts: 22,951
    edited February 2018

    TheToast said:
    Today I decided to get out of the rut and have just prepared a curry butter lamb shoulder to put on for 9hrs tomorrow until it pulls and a cauliflower which I've also rubbed with an Indian spice mix I've made. So combined with a smobot I just have to stick them on tomorrow and not worry about them until the evening. 
    Uh- yes please. Out of the rut indeed! Sounds awesome to me. 
    Keepin' It Weird in The ATX FBTX
  • Theophan
    Theophan Posts: 2,654
    TheToast said:
    I often think I'll cook on the egg this weekend, but then don't know what to cook. Today is the same. After 2yrs ownership and having done all the basics, I'm starting to use it less, particularly in cold weather
    Like you, I cook more when the weather's nice, but I do cook sometimes in the cold (rarely when it's raining, and so far, I don't think I ever have when there was (rare in NC) snow on the ground.

    But I completely don't have your problem, and maybe it's just that I love food so much, and I keep saving recipes, so anytime I feel like cooking, I have literally hundreds of recipes that I've saved because they all look good to me, many of which I've cooked, even more of which I'm looking forward to cooking.  I look at this forum a lot, and have copied many recipes.  I have several cookbooks related to grilling or smoking, and a few general cookbooks with grilling recipes.  And I often get recipes online.

    All of my recipes I keep in Paprika, an app that's both on my computer and my phone.  It makes it super easy to copy recipes from online sources, and, since it's also on my phone, all of those recipes are with me anywhere I go.  So, for example, I have a "Big Green Egg" folder on it and I see that there are 268 recipes in it!  :)  So anytime I'm wondering what to cook, all I have to do is look at my Big Green Egg folder and look through 268 recipes (today, anyway -- it'll be more very soon!) for grilling or smoking, many of which I've made, many of which I haven't made yet but looked good enough that I wanted to save them.  I also have separate folders within the Big Green Egg folder for Beef (46 recipes), Chicken (also 46) , Chicken Wings (18), Fish (6), etc., so if I'm in the mood for shrimp, pork, whatever it might be, I can just go to that folder.

    I just did a search for which recipes have this forum as where I got the recipe, and it found 74 recipes!  One of the great things about this forum is that if someone posts a recipe, you can see pictures and see what it looked like, and you know that they actually cooked it, and they're telling you whether it was very good or not.  We all have different tastes, but I figure if someone on this forum raves about something they cooked on a Big Green Egg, there's a pretty darn good chance I'll like it, too.

    If you're in the mood for beef, click on "Beef" in the "forums" list to the right, or pork, or seafood, or whatever, and read a bunch of posts, and look at the pictures.  You'll find tons of stuff that's already been tested for you!  :)
  • surveyor
    surveyor Posts: 124
    had my first egg for over 20 years, saw the dealer cooking out in the snow, that was the first inspiration. now have three eggs and still cook out at least 4 times a week, rain snow or sunshine now matter what temp. Just my way of relaxation 
  • SciAggie
    SciAggie Posts: 6,481
    @TheToast I’m looking at this again with a bit more time to think. When you don’t cook on the egg what are some meals you like to cook? Is there a particular type/ethnicity of food you enjoy (Mexican, Italian, Chinese, etc.)?
    Someone here once called an egg the Swiss Army Knife of cookers. There is very little you can’t cook on the egg. It’s an oven, a grill, and a smoker - often combining them. Maybe you need help seeing how much you can do with your egg. Many tasks are accomplished equally well in the house using the stove - but you have a choice of where you want to cook. 
    Coleman, Texas
    Large BGE & Mini Max for the wok. A few old camp Dutch ovens and a wood fired oven. LSG 24” cabinet offset smoker. There are a few paella pans and a Patagonia cross in the barn. A curing chamber for bacterial transformation of meats...
    "Bourbon slushies. Sure you can cook on the BGE without them, but why would you?"
                                                                                                                          YukonRon
  • northGAcock
    northGAcock Posts: 15,164
    I generally plan my meals around what I want and like. I figure out the methodology when it’s time to prepare it. 
    Ellijay GA with a Medium & MiniMax

    Well, I married me a wife, she's been trouble all my life,
    Run me out in the cold rain and snow
  • By what is on special in the meat department of my local grocery. What I do with it depends on who is going to eat it. Tomorrow is hamburger or mince as you might call it. I am simply going to form patties and season them with Mickey’s Coffee Rub.
  • My inspiration is that i really, really like cooking on the egg. Granted my back porch is covered and all of the needed equipment is close at hand...but i honestly couldn't imagine skipping a weekend cooking at least once if i'm at home. Snow is so rare in South/Central Alabama that i make it a point to cook on those days. My big thing is rotation. Steak hits the board once a week usually but at least every 10 days. And i rotate between many of the different cuts. Ribeye, NY Strip, Filet, Sirloin, Flat Iron, Hanger, Skirt, etc.  This helps us always look forward to the next steak cook. And the same thing with the other basics- Chicken and Pork...i can't say for sure if i ever use the same seasoning twice. And it always seems to be pretty good! 

    I have my music going the entire time and always enjoy as much "beverage" time as possible. I guess to answer your question...for me...it's just a way of life. I'm not always gonna have my health and be able to work and then egg 2-3 nights a week. So for me there will never be a regret that i should have used my egg more. My passion at 1 time was when would i be able to fish next. It's now when will i be egging next...and what will i be cooking. 

    This May will be 5 yrs for me. Sure we have an inside rotation, but nothing beats an egg night! 
    Wetumpka, Alabama
    LBGE and MM
  • caliking
    caliking Posts: 18,727
    There's only so much chicken, pork butt, steak, ribs you can egg before feeling like you're in a rut. 

      I've been a subscriber to most of the popular cooking magazines in past years, but currently only have a subscription to Saveur. I dig their scope, in terms of cuisines/countries they cover, and much of it can be cooked on an egg. Especially grilled foods from different countries. Their website is screwy though. I like thumbing through magazines and books, and enjoy the feel of paper, so it works for me. Many of the threads I've posted have been cooks inspired by recipes in Saveur. 

    The egg is  just a source of heat. With some added flavor of charcoal or wood. It can work like a crock-pot, stove, oven, smoker, grill, pizza oven depending on what you want to accomplish.

    #1 LBGE December 2012 • #2 SBGE February  2013 • #3 Mini May 2013
    A happy BGE family in Houston, TX.
  • TheToast
    TheToast Posts: 376
    SciAggie said:
    @TheToast I’m looking at this again with a bit more time to think. When you don’t cook on the egg what are some meals you like to cook? Is there a particular type/ethnicity of food you enjoy (Mexican, Italian, Chinese, etc.)?
    I cook a lot of casserole / one pot dishes but don't see the benefit of cooking those on the BGE when they turn out really well on the hob / oven. I appreciate beans and gravy taste loads better on the BGE - I imagine because they absorb the smoke

    Love cooking Mexican too. I've not tried carnitas on the BGE before - normally do those on the hob