Welcome to the EGGhead Forum - a great place to visit and packed with tips and EGGspert advice! You can also join the conversation and get more information and amazing kamado recipes by following Big Green Egg to Experience our World of Flavor™ at:
Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram  |  Pinterest  |  Youtube  |  Vimeo
Share your photos by tagging us and using the hashtag #BigGreenEgg.

Want to see how the EGG is made? Click to Watch

Searing temps on the Egg

Options
The Naked Whiz
The Naked Whiz Posts: 7,777
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
If you like to tell folks how hot you can sear steaks on your Egg, you might be interested in the following information. I thought you'd like to be passing on information based on some sort of actual measurements.[p]If you close the dome and open the vents and "let her rip", the temperature at the grid, 3" above the burning charcoal is about 1200 degrees. In comparison, the temperature you can get in a cooker like a Weber kettle is only about 650 degrees (with lump) or 575 (with briquettes). Of course, conditions vary, but clearly the Egg sears at a much higher temperature than a regular grill. So, don't short-change the Egg by claiming it can sear steaks at 700 degrees. :-)[p]Needless to say, a web page is in the making, LOL![p]TNW
The Naked Whiz
· Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Comments

  • R C Waterfront
    R C Waterfront Posts: 15
    Options
    How long can you hold that temp.? When searing do you keep the egg open?
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • AZRP
    AZRP Posts: 10,116
    Options
    The Naked Whiz,
    On an Americas Test Kitchen episode they did a comparison of lump versus briquettes and said that the briquettes actually burn hotter, what gives? I'll see if I have it tivo'd, II don't remember the particulars of how they measured it. -RP
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
    Options
    The Naked Whiz,
    i've been trying to say this for a while. finally someone with street-cred agrees.[p]charcoal doesn't burn at say 250 during a lo-and-slo, and then 500 when you move then vents.[p]it burns at 110-1200, always. dome temp is an indication of how much charcoal is lit. for me, dome temp is only relevant at low temps. it is reflective only of the air moving through the dome, not the direct radiant heat. when indirect, dome temp is an accurate indicator of the temp of the environment. 350 is a pretty good difference compared to 250, but an 800 degree reading isn't much different than 700. the lump is WAY hotter than that.[p]i most often trot that out when someone says their infrared sears "at 1800". well, ours sears at 1200. heck, it actually goes lo and slo at 1200 too.[p]maybe it'll stick if you say it!
    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • BYC
    BYC Posts: 358
    Options
    The Naked Whiz,[p]Further-keep her at 500 using a cast iron grate and you'll receive the same results and save yourself a torched gasket post. I really do not understand this 700 degree thing...not at all!

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • drbbq
    drbbq Posts: 1,152
    Options
    The Naked Whiz,[p]Will there be video?
    Ray Lampe Dr. BBQ
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • The Naked Whiz
    The Naked Whiz Posts: 7,777
    Options
    stike,
    Actually the charcoal is burning around 1900 if you measure right next to the glowing red burning carbon. But your point is right on. The heat of combustion is constant, it is just a matter of how much combustion you have to heat the air in the cooker, and how far away from the actual combustion you are....[p]TNW
    The Naked Whiz
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • The Naked Whiz
    The Naked Whiz Posts: 7,777
    Options
    drbbq,
    LMAO! You think I could get on The Today show with a clip of my little thermometer's display flashing numbers like 1197, 1217, 1205, etc?[p]TNW
    The Naked Whiz
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
    Options
    The Naked Whiz,
    when we lay in the sun at the beach and tan, we are tanning at around 5000 degrees celsius, at least. thankfully, the sun's very far away!
    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • galoot
    galoot Posts: 69
    Options
    The Naked Whiz,
    What did you use to measure the temps?
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • drbbq
    drbbq Posts: 1,152
    Options
    The Naked Whiz,[p]Yeah maybe when someone burns there porch down and they have the "What NOT to do" segment.

    Ray Lampe Dr. BBQ
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • The Naked Whiz
    The Naked Whiz Posts: 7,777
    Options
    stike,
    Aren't some of the thingys where the gas explodes and all that reach 1,000,000 degrees? Whew! More sunblock![p]TNW
    The Naked Whiz
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • The Naked Whiz
    The Naked Whiz Posts: 7,777
    Options
    Smoke2much,
    I held my hand over the coals and counted the number of seconds before I had to pull it away. :-)[p]Seriously, I used a type K high temp ceramic fiber-insulated probe good to 2500 degrees F. The unit the probe was attached to goes up to 2000 degrees F.[p]TNW

    The Naked Whiz
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • HungryMan
    HungryMan Posts: 3,470
    Options
    The Naked Whiz,
    They did it on some show measuring the temp of lava. Why not an Egg. I think it was on The worlds dirtiest jobs.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Fidel
    Fidel Posts: 10,172
    Options
    The Naked Whiz,[p]That made me laugh. I can imagine you holding your hand over that inferno...
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Bobby-Q
    Bobby-Q Posts: 1,994
    Options
    The Naked Whiz,
    That's the recipe for a burnt gasket. The gasket will melt at about 1100°.[p]Not sure why you would want to sear anything above 750°
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • The Naked Whiz
    The Naked Whiz Posts: 7,777
    Options
    Bobby-Q,
    In the web page I just published, I said that the dome temp was only 720. This was the temperature of the air 3 inches above the charcoal, where the grid is. The ceramic and the gasket never got anywhere near the 1200 degree temperature. [p]TNW
    The Naked Whiz
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Categories