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Greetings

Hello everyone!  My wife told me on Saturday that my egg arrives this Thursday.  I am blown away by this amazing gift.  I have been pining for an egg for years.  At any rate, I am eager to learn.  I've been a charcoal (natural lump) fan for years and have extensive weber experience.  I would love to know what hurdles you had to navigate during your early days on the egg and how I could avoid them.  Thanks!
When you get to a fork in the road, pick it up, spear something with it and throw it on the grill!!!

Comments

  • Charlie tuna
    Charlie tuna Posts: 2,191
    Your weber experience will come in handy here.  The difference is the weber couldn't hold a true temperature, the egg can!!  Every once in a while i would really come up with a good cook with my weber  ---  with the egg, it's normal...
  • Thanks Charlie tuna!
    When you get to a fork in the road, pick it up, spear something with it and throw it on the grill!!!
  • Your weber experience will come in handy here.  The difference is the weber couldn't hold a true temperature, the egg can!!  Every once in a while i would really come up with a good cook with my weber  ---  with the egg, it's normal...
    +1.  I'm a kettle vet and the egg is a whole new ballgame with much better results!  Have fun discovering your new obsession and if you get stuck, people here are only too happy to help you.  Post some pix when you get a chance!
    Flint, Michigan
  • jccbone62
    jccbone62 Posts: 248
    Welcome and happy egging.  Seems like the forum is getting a lot of new members these days. The more the merrier....
    XL owner in Wichita, KS
  • Mama Roneck
    Mama Roneck Posts: 386
    edited June 2013
    You'll find lots of Weber kettle vets here.  Some even think that kettles out-perform BGEs in certain situations, and they may be right (I'm looking at you @zippylip)
    Mamaroneck
  • TexanOfTheNorth
    TexanOfTheNorth Posts: 3,951
    Welcome. I'm an old Weber guy to. Hurdles? Figuring out a way to spend more time cooking then you did on your Weber!
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Well, "spa-Peggy" is kind of like spaghetti. I'm not sure what Peggy does different, if anything. But it's the one dish she's kind of made her own.
    ____________________
    Aurora, Ontario, Canada
  • SmokinDAWG82
    SmokinDAWG82 Posts: 1,705
    It won't take long. You had a grill, now you have so much more. Keep reading here and you'll catch on fast.

    Welcome, enjoy the ride!
    LBGE
    Go Dawgs! - Marietta, GA
  • The most useful thing to remember when starting out, IMHO, is not to overshoot your cooking temp when stabilizing the Egg.  It's much easier to bring 'er up a few degrees than to cool the Egg down.

    [Northern] Virginia is for [meat] lovers.
  • finster
    finster Posts: 136
    The hurdles are part of the deal.  But read a lot here.  Read everyday.
    MBGE in Charleston

  • dpittard
    dpittard Posts: 126
    I got my Egg a few weeks ago, but I'm an experienced smoker/griller.  I've used everything from a kettle to a side firebox.

    The biggest hurdle I had in my first week or two of using the Egg is really understanding getting the charcoal lit and up to proper temperature without way over shooting the temp or way undershooting the temp and killing the fire early.  I read everything I could about starting the Egg and had a theoretical understanding, but I still ran into a few hitches along the way.  I suggest planning a few easy cooks first so that you can learn your Egg.

    LBGE with a massive wish list
    Athens, Ga.
  • lousubcap
    lousubcap Posts: 32,168
    Welcome aboard.  Many on here willing to help if you have questions-we all had our initial challenges.
    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.
  • Streetglider
    Streetglider Posts: 104
    Welcome, enjoy learning to cook out all over again.

    _________________________________________________

    LBGE, Grill Extender, 5 burner Char-Broil gasser that hold my eggessories
  • Village Idiot
    Village Idiot Posts: 6,959
    Welcome !
    __________________________________________

    Dripping Springs, Texas.
    Just west of Austintatious


  • Chubbs
    Chubbs Posts: 6,929
    Welcome. Biggest lesson early on is temp contol. With any ceramic cooker, overshooting temp big time takes a while to get back down to temp as the ceramic absorbs the heat. If shooting for 400 I start closing vents down around 375. With a little practice you will figure out what vent settings achieve what temps. Another important thing is to make sure your dome thermometer is calibrated. This can easily cause undue confusion if you rely on that for monitoring temps. Thirdly, don't get discouraged if your gasket starts to fail. It will happen sooner or later. Finally, ask questions and post pics
    Columbia, SC --- LBGE 2011 -- MINI BGE 2013
  • bbqlearner
    bbqlearner Posts: 760
    Welcome! Look forward to pics of your great cook here.

    Houston, TX - Buddy LBGE, Don SBGE, Tiny Mini & Shiny Momma Pitts n Spitts

  • Zippylip
    Zippylip Posts: 4,768
    You'll find lots of Weber kettle vets here.  Some even think that kettles out-perform BGEs in certain situations, and they may be right (I'm looking at you @zippylip)

    Mama Roneck, that's true.  Most of what I've talked about is in the mini v. joe category which is always a fun debate, but some of the same things apply to the large v. the bigger kettles.  Though unlike the mini, I believe the larger eggs are far more formidable and their attributes meet or exceed the kettles in many areas.  The eggs get the nod for all temperature extremes including low 200's & anything over 500, so for low & slows & baking the large eggs are just unbeatable in my experience.  But the big kettle gets everything from say 300-500 which is still a great deal of cooks.  I've discovered a sweet spot in that range, usually involving the kettle with a roaring fire off to a corner with a big chunk of cherry & hot smoking on the remaining 3/4 of the grid, lots of chicken, sausage, burgers, appetizers, corn & so on... 

    It's all good


     

    happy in the hut
    West Chester Pennsylvania
  • Mama Roneck
    Mama Roneck Posts: 386
    Agreed.

    Whole chickens come out just as good on a properly set up Weber kettle as on an egg. But the egg is easier to set up and maintain.

    Fire away everyone else!
    Mamaroneck
  • TexanOfTheNorth
    TexanOfTheNorth Posts: 3,951
    I never had any trouble turning out delicious food on my Weber. However, I can see that the egg is much more versatile (e.g., would not even have thought of doing a pizza on my Weber) and a whole lot less labor intensive when it comes to maintaining temp over longer cooks.
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Well, "spa-Peggy" is kind of like spaghetti. I'm not sure what Peggy does different, if anything. But it's the one dish she's kind of made her own.
    ____________________
    Aurora, Ontario, Canada
  • Thanks so much everyone!  This has to be the nicest forum on the web.  The egg lands tomorrow.  Hope I can sleep. :)
    When you get to a fork in the road, pick it up, spear something with it and throw it on the grill!!!