Anyone Get Strange Flavors from the EGG?

Craig

I sometimes get some "off" flavors sticking to my food from the EGG. It typically seems to happen when I use an oil base for marinating. For instance, I've had it when I've drizzled some zucchini with olive oil and then grilled it. Last night the chicken breasts I grilled had the "off" flavor too (they were marinated in italian dressing).

The best way to describe this "off" flavor is that it's kind of a nasty smokey flavor. Not a good smokey flavor, but a nasty smoke.

I let the egg come up to temperature, and I also wait for the exhaust through the top vent to be clear prior to cooking. This usually takes around 1/2 hour.

Anyone else experience this?

lowercasebill

i suspect you are dripping oil into the lump and are tasting burnt oil..
also i have notice if i have too much crud from a greasy cook left on my grate, that crud eventually starts to smoke and it is not good..
clean your grid and try less oil.

how to clean your grid clic the pic

jeffinsgf

Craig,

How are your damper and vent set? I describe what you're explaining as a "sooty" taste rather than a smoky taste. I've seen it happen when the top vents are almost completely closed and the bottom damper is used to control burn temperature. I make it a habit to always make sure the top is more open than the bottom. Since doing this, I have never experienced sooty taste again.

It could also be over-smoked. Even if you wait for the blue smoke, if you have too much wood on the fire, the smoke can seem too heavy. I think you would recognize over-smoke, however, so take a look at how you're setting the vent and damper.

dhuffjr

Two things may be coming into play I'm guessing. Oil smoke as Bill mentioned is one thought. The other is that the 'wet' food ie oiled food is collecting the smoke particles ie smoke flavor more so than other things.

I've cooked things that tasted great the day I cooked them and when reheating leftovers (microwave not Egg) I can tell it has a lot smokier flavor......kinda too much.

[Deleted User]

Good description of your problem and Good responses!

I know what you mean about nasty smoke. I have seen it generated from two causes resulting in two different kinds of smoke.

1- drippings as mentioned earlier, will create a bitter smoke.
2- Lump that hasn't burned enough gives off sort of a fuel-smelling smoke.

Sometimes you get a bad batch of lump. I had some once that I had to burn for an hour and still wasn't sure if it was ready.

I agree with the earlier hypothesis that the oil is dripping on the coals causing bitter smoke. Chicken and vegetables are particularly sensitive to smoke anyway so they'd be most likely to suffer the effects.

I'd recommend cooking indirect or at least with a drip pan for these kinds of cooks.

stike

olive oil burns (smokes) at a fairly low smoke point.

lots of recipes recommend, say, using olive oil (or any oil) on meat when grilling. for roasting it is fine, or for pan searing, but at the temps we sear at, oil will burn, providing no benefit other than acrid flavors.

though fashionable perhaps beloved "EVOO" isn't always the best thing to use.

Essex County

I grill veggies a lot and always use evoo. I brush it on lightly. If it's drippy, yeah, the oil will burn. I think dhuffjr's got it right. The oiled zucchinis may capture bad stuff in the smoke. I've had that experience when I'm too impatient to wait for the lump to fully light or I stupidly dump in the dust from the bottom of the bag.
Paul

stike

yeah. grilling veggies i usually use olive oil too, but not drippy as you say. i think that's th key.

i had a tritip marinating once and much of the marinade was oil. i had the egg at sear temps, and fa-FOOM that thing flared up like crazy. i had that acrid taste too.

but zukes and squash at 400-450 don't give me much of a problem.

i see you, bob, and i are the only guys not going to eggtoberfest, eh?

going to be quiet around here.

RRP

This weekend while you guys are tending the home fires out East I'll be doing the same out here in the Midwest. Yes it will be more quiet than usual, but not that quiet! BTW stike - by your long absence I figured you had another paying illustration gig going.

stike

no. not any more work than usual i mean.

just not a lot going on here besides the eggfest talk. i'm not going, so have nuthin to add to it.

went golfing yesterday with my dad before he and mom fly south for the winter, so i was out for a while.

Bacchus

No Stike at Eggtoberfest???????

Fidel

He has pumpkin carving he needs to concentrate on.

Craig

Thanks for the reply guys. I appreciate it. I have a nice little list of things to look out for. Here are some of the things from your list that could be my problem:
Too much lump
Top vent closed too much
Too much oil
Dirty grate

I'll look into those things. Thanks again!