Difference between cooking on a BIG GREEN EGG and a gas grill- some thoughts

westernbbq · May 2014

the worst part of cooking on the BGE is that it ends and I have to wait until the next time I get to fire at least one of them up!

I've done a lot of outside cooking on many, many devices, and the Big Green Egg stands above them all.

Being asked to use a gas grill yesterday reminded me of things I don't have to worry about with the BGE- temp control, flare up control, consistent heat delivery, clean up, and most of all, FLAVOR.

westernbbq · May 2014

I don't know the brand of grill, it had pretty fancy controls and the host told me it cost $4K installed. It was stainless with an infrared burner and a gas grill does have some merits- like the water boiling capability but I still maintain the BGE is the easiest outdoor cooker I've ever used.

Skiddymarker · May 2014

td66snrf said:

westernbbq I'm not sure what you consider a "high end" gasser. If it was purchased at the depot it wouldn't be in the category of high end IMHO. Another thing is not all gassers run on propane tanks. Mine is hard lined into natural gas so I never run out and there is no propane taste. I've cooked on Kamados for over thirty years, and I currently have six, but my gasser still has its place in my arsenal of cooking. I SV'ed chix brst tonight and if you think I was going to fire up one of my Kamados so I could sear one side for a total of three minutes it doesn't make sense. You are not going to impart any smoke flavor in that amount of time. Saturday I had beef ribs going on my XL and I boiled the water for mac and cheese on one side burner while I sautéed bacon and onion on the other, I haven't seen anyone doing that on an egg. I know there's a lot of gasser bashing here but they do have their place in outdoor cooking.

Agreed. Gasser has its place. My 12 year old Broil King Regal was panned by Consumer Reports because one of their tests is to leave it unattended and to load it with 6 full rib eyes, full flame and they were surprised that the grill got hot enough with dripping fat fire that it almost took the bottom out of the grill. The heat is fantastic to sear, buries the 700ºF thermo in minutes.

I like it for indirects, veggies and searing. The single side burner is fantastic. I clean the bottom once a year and have put maybe 3 burners and flavour bars in it. Still the original CI grids, although the SS shelves are getting rather crappy looking. There is a hot spot on the outer two inches of both sides - other than that it still cooks very evenly. It is not better than a egg, it is just different, never be without one.

Canugghead · May 2014

Skiddy, in hind sight I must confess I have seller remorse for getting rid of my BK Signet 90 two years ago, our tiny yard was getting overcrowded :(

jfm0830 · May 2014

4Runner said:

Agree with the gasser vs BGE. One thing, I still have hot spots on my Egg. I just jockey the meat around a bit. Seems to be worse at the 350 -500 range...if I'm low n slow or fast and hot I'm pretty even.

I am glad I am not alone here. This is the one area I still struggle with on my Egg. At that temperature range I end up with areas of lit coals clustered around where my fire starters were. The insulating qualities of the Egg allow it to reach that temp range before there are enough lit coals to try to spread around and create a uniform bed of coals. If someone has a good solution to that problem, I'd love to hear it.

Also while I never went back to using my 6 burner gas grill after I got my first LBGE, there are some areas where it was clearly better. The first was evenness of temp. My last gas grill held even temps to within about 1-1 1/2" of the grill edge. The ones I owned before that were pure crap in that department, but they were cheaper models. The second thing I miss is the ability to easily do a two or three zone fire on the 6 burner gasser. Also direct/indirect cooks were a lot easier. If I have much food to do, I will often use one Egg for the direct and the other for indirect. Now I don't want to go back and I don't regret retiring (sounds so much nicer than disposing of) my gas grill. But there are some things that some gas grills do better than the Egg. Just not enough of them for me to want to keep one around.

Jim

stemc33 · May 2014

Personally. I've always had bad luck with gassers. Never used a quality grill but all seemed to have the same problems with grease build up and tubes blocking. Also, grease fires that I couldn't cut the O2 off to smother the fire. Before the egg i would use weber kettles with okay results without the problems listed above using a gasser. Just glad I stumbled across this forum and got an Egg.

Foghorn · May 2014

"If someone has a good solution to that problem, I'd love to hear it."

Depending on the cook, I sometimes purposefully start the fire toward the back of my XL so I can use the back as my hot/direct spot and the front of the grill as the cooler/indirect spot. I try to use it to my advantage.

jfm0830 · May 2014

Foghorn said:

"If someone has a good solution to that problem, I'd love to hear it."
Depending on the cook, I sometimes purposefully start the fire toward the back of my XL so I can use the back as my hot/direct spot and the front of the grill as the cooler/indirect spot. I try to use it to my advantage.

Thanks for the suggestion. There is an advantage you have with your XL. The LBGE isn't really big enough to do that. The problem I was referring to is doing a direct cook at 350 to 500 degrees and not having a enough lit coals to spread evenly across and get a uniform bed of lit coals.

Cymbaline65 · May 2014

I love my Weber Genesis. I use it as much as the Egg for the exact reasons td66snrf states. It's just another tool in the arsenal and the side burner is great for sautéing veggies and other prep work. I prefer the Egg overall and it IS more flexible IMHO, but I won't ever get rid of my gasser. My Weber Kettle is more the bastard stepchild now and usually gets pulled out when we have guests. My pocket book cannot afford an XL anytime soon.

tcampbell · May 2014

I have a weber genesis also along with 5 eggs and I like the gas and use it often,not near as much as the eggs,but I do use it.The gas is handy for a fast burger,hotdog etc.

Griffin · May 2014

NPHuskerFL said:

These days I don't have a gasser but, I still have my 2 LPG cylinders and a turkey fryer setup with several other pot size variations for use on that setup. I'll still occasionally will use for crab boils, fish fry, low country boil etc.

I do the same thing.

As with others, I got rid of my gasser as it wasn't being used. There are times (especially since we are in a new house with more backyard room) that I wish I still had it. At least I know it went to a good home...my parents home. And I still get to use it over there while swimming in their pool.

Foghorn · May 2014

jfm0830 said:

Foghorn said:

"If someone has a good solution to that problem, I'd love to hear it."
Depending on the cook, I sometimes purposefully start the fire toward the back of my XL so I can use the back as my hot/direct spot and the front of the grill as the cooler/indirect spot. I try to use it to my advantage.

Thanks for the suggestion. There is an advantage you have with your XL. The LBGE isn't really big enough to do that. The problem I was referring to is doing a direct cook at 350 to 500 degrees and not having a enough lit coals to spread evenly across and get a uniform bed of lit coals.

Ah. Got it. I guess some options are 1) light it in multiple spots and/or 2) raise the grid as that seems to minimize the heat disparities

R2Egg2Q · May 2014

@jfm0830‌ - in those situations where I need a more uniform bed of coals, I usually light with my weed burner and light the area I need. If I need to use the fire starter cubes I'll slice them in half and put 4-5 of them spaced evenly in and light. This seems to give more smaller hot spots.

Skiddymarker · May 2014

@jfm0830 - the egg does not lend itself to a uniform bed of coals at temps much under 400º, it does lend itself to a cooking chamber with very uniform heat distribution. I think it is all about air flow. You can't really get the whole surface area of the lump pile burning evenly, edge to edge, without having the vents open quite wide. We cook with the dome closed so the fire concentrates in one area, based on where the air is.

A Weber using briquettes can get even heat, albeit a bit harder to control the temp, over the whole grill area. I think raised direct is popular for medium high grilling (400º-550º) as most of the food is exposed to the IR from what lump is burning. A compromise.

BuckeyeBob · May 2014

I too have seen the issue with hot spots on my Large in that 350-500 range. I know to keep a close eye and move stuff around so doesn't really pose too much of a problem.

As for the Gasser discussion, we put in a Weber Summit when we redid our patio and it has been great for me. I have had my Large for over 2 years but still use the gasser. With kids in multiple activities, we don't always have time to fire up the BGE and the the Weber does a great job for me. The BGE is still my go-to but I don't see myself getting rid of the gasser.

ElCapitan · May 2014

The best thing about my old weber is it makes a good shelf when I'm changing out my setup on my egg.

CosmicVoyager · May 2014

Hey Guys, sorry for the Westboro Baptist Church picture. It was a distasteful and disrespectful joke that was clearly funnier in my head than it was in this audience. We ALL know that god does not hate, so why get upset about it? I won't do it again.

I personally have a hard time taking Westboro Baptist Church lawyers seriously. Their business is to piss people off to start a confrontation which usually leads to litigation and a hefty settlement awarded to them. That's their business model with a nice tax write off since they are considered a church! 8-} 8-}

Peace!

westernbbq · May 2014

It's surprising to me that there are so many of EggNation experiencing hotspot issues. I've never had any on the L or XL. When I sear, I use a cast iron grate and the plate separator covered with rock salt for the drippings. I get a HOT fire (600 plus) and use the cast iron grate to sear steaks. If I do over direct coals, I make sure that the coals are fully fired and spread fairly evenly around the firebox so that a relatively uniform fire can be achieved for direct grilling. I don't remember having hotspot issues but I've certainly stirred the hot coals around to get them as evenly distributed underneath the grill grate as possible. XXL is NEXT for large parties and big smoking jobs!

Ladeback69 · May 2014

CosmicVoyager said:

Hey Guys, sorry for the Westboro Baptist Church picture. It was a distasteful and disrespectful joke that was clearly funnier in my head than it was in this audience. We ALL know that god does not hate, so why get upset about it? I won't do it again.

I personally have a hard time taking Westboro Baptist Church lawyers seriously. Their business is to piss people off to start a confrontation which usually leads to litigation and a hefty settlement awarded to them. That's their business model with a nice tax right off since they are considered a church! 8-} 8-}

Peace!

I live in Kansas City and we all know about the hate that the Westboro Baptist Church speals and can't stand it. I thought they would have gone away after their leader died. Were not that lucky. I got your joke, but the part about dead soldiers is what I think bothered people the most. Don't worry about it, no harm. Now gas vs the egg, I am glad I have the egg now and didn't buy the new gas one I was looking at. I can't afford both, so I choose the egg that I have been wanting for allmost 20 years and finally got one. I still have my old gasser, but its in bad shape and needs retired to the curb. My wife likes the taste of the food and that I do most of the cooking now. My kid is coming along liking it, but he still wants McDonald's nuggets every night, YUCK! I don't know if I will ever have a gas grill again, but if I did it would be the Weber Q series.

Zmokin · May 2014

I still use my gasser. As for flare-ups, I always have a spray bottle of water to put out the undesired fire.

Maybe I'm not an EggHead because I don't use it for everything. I still like to make my spaghetti sauce in a crock pot. I have no plans to try and cook a lasagne on the egg, I like cooking them in my oven. I don't understand why I would put a Dutch Oven in my egg. My CI Dutch Oven I use for camping, coals underneath and coals on top, no egg required.

My recent cook of Bone-in Ham was done on the gasser with a rotisserie, and smoke box. After it was done smoking, I wrapped the meat that wasn't covered with skin with aluminum foil, fired up the rear rotisserie burner and finished it off. I was very pleased with the result and my new rotisserie remote temp gauge worked awesome.

Skiddymarker · May 2014

@CosmicVoyager - good on you, takes a big fellow to apologize.

NPHuskerFL · May 2014

CosmicVoyager said:
Hey Guys, sorry for the Westboro Baptist Church picture. It was a distasteful and disrespectful joke that was clearly funnier in my head than it was in this audience. We ALL know that god does not hate, so why get upset about it? I won't do it again.

I personally have a hard time taking Westboro Baptist Church lawyers seriously. Their business is to piss people off to start a confrontation which usually leads to litigation and a hefty settlement awarded to them. That's their business model with a nice tax write off since they are considered a church! 8-} 8-}

Peace!

Agreed! They are an abomination! And as a USN Veteran I find their actions repugnant! Thanks @CosmicVoyager‌ your a stand up guy :-)

bbqlearner · May 2014

The picture and joke bothered me but after the apology, it's all good.

CosmicVoyager · May 2014

Thanks guys for understanding. I wasn't here to shake things up ,insult anyone or disrespect others. I'm here to hopefully make friends, share BGE experiences and learn. I do have a dark sense of humor which contributed to this fallout. I assure you that I'm a decent human being.

Yes. this was a bad choice of pictures and I see why and get it. I served in Iraq so maybe I'm a bit callused and see things different.

Thanks again!

Difference between cooking on a BIG GREEN EGG and a gas grill- some thoughts

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In the Hinterlands between Cumming and Gainesville, GA
Med BGE, Weber Kettle, Weber Smokey Joe, Brinkman Dual Zone, Weber Genesis Gas Grill and portable gasser for boating

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Difference between cooking on a BIG GREEN EGG and a gas grill- some thoughts

Comments

In the Hinterlands between Cumming and Gainesville, GAMed BGE, Weber Kettle, Weber Smokey Joe, Brinkman Dual Zone, Weber Genesis Gas Grill and portable gasser for boating

Categories

In the Hinterlands between Cumming and Gainesville, GA
Med BGE, Weber Kettle, Weber Smokey Joe, Brinkman Dual Zone, Weber Genesis Gas Grill and portable gasser for boating