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Few rookie questions

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Auburnegger
Auburnegger Posts: 127
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
Good evening eggers! I will be getting my egg Monday or Tuesday. Have a few questions...

1. I plan on playing with it the first night just working on regulating temperatures etc... What is the best method of lighting the egg with the fire starters?

2. How many cooks should I do before getting to 500 or 600 for steaks and pizzas? :unsure:

Thanks in advance...
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  • Laker
    Laker Posts: 110
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    Light in 3 or 4 places. Do not light in the center.

    Your #1 should be steaks. Just watch the temp, but sure and "burp" before opening the lid and lookout for flashback.

    Good luck.
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  • Auburnegger
    Auburnegger Posts: 127
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    What about burning the gaskets? I have read a lot about that lately.
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  • JLOCKHART29
    JLOCKHART29 Posts: 5,897
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    I break a stick in half and burry them about 6 inches apart in the middle of the Egg. Never really had a problem with the gasket but have heard about that. Just to be safe I would do a couple cooks under 400 first however high temp sears will work on the stock felt gasket anytime.
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  • Broc
    Broc Posts: 1,398
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    It's only a matter of time before your gaskets fry...

    Mine have been AWOL for about 18 months... don't miss 'em much...

    Gaskets are over rated...

    Really!

    B)
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  • jlspitler
    jlspitler Posts: 55
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    ok my question is why not light it in the middle. the dealer i bought mine from said to use one square and stuff it in the middle and lite it. i have done that for the past year and i get my fire going in about 10 or 15 min. just curious is all.
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  • BENTE
    BENTE Posts: 8,337
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    that peice of square can be broken into a few parts and lit.. thus a fire in several places. ;)

    your dealer gave you the textbook reply.. but there are several diffrent ways to light your egg i have a mapp torch {that does not have mapp gas anymore}. stike lights his egg with some paper towels and some olive oil.. rick's tropical delight lights his eggs with a weed burner.. my point is there are several ways to light your egg find the best thing that works for you!!! just don't Follow The Rules ;)

    happy eggin

    TB

    Anderson S.C.

    "Life is too short to be diplomatic. A man's friends shouldn't mind what he does or says- and those who are not his friends, well, the hell with them. They don't count."

    Tyrus Raymond Cobb

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  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User] Posts: 0
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    Lighting - starter cubes broken in halves, place in 3 equally spaced locations. Leave your dome open till they're done burning. the only "problem" with lighting one spot in the center is you may get what I think they call a center burn. Not necessarily a problem but I guess it could be.
    ON-4.jpg
    This is after an 18 hour cook. In the picture, the center of the fire is at the bottom of the firebox while youcan see the sides are up at the top of the box.

    Get some cooks under your belt before you get too hot. There's only two cooks that I do really hot- 1)searing steaks (which I have found I don't need in order to get an excellent steak) and 2) Pizza -which I have found I like best at 550-which ain't that high! I also get pretty hot when using the wok, but that's a different cook and I leave the dome open for that so there would be no gasket abuse.

    There's lots of cooks you can do at 400 and below, so I'd focus on these for the first week or so.
    Chicken - regular or spatchcock, thighs, wings, breasts,
    Beef - steak (roasted), roast beef, Brisket
    Pork-tenderloin, boneless chops, country style ribs (from the grocery store), spare ribs, baby backs, Picnic shoulder, Boston Butt
    Seafood - fish (filets or steaks), scallops, shrimp
    Baked goods - Pies, Bread
    Vegetables - Baked taters, sweet potatoes, asparagus, all kinds of squash.

    ...and those are just the cooks I've done and I'm no great chef!

    Some here like to do their Pizzas at 450 so you could try that. There are many different ways to cook everything on the Egg and Pizza is a good example of that. There are people here who have favorite cooking temps for pizza from 450 all the way up to 1200(I think). There is no one single right way to cook anything. you will need to experiment and find out what is right for you.

    Good luck and have fun!
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