Must have accessories for starter?

jmy2469

Ok, one more question. What are the must have accessories for someone who is just starting out? Thanks again. John

td66snrf

Propane or Mapp self ignighting torch.

henapple

Time. A placesetter or deflection device. Wait. Don't buy a bunch of crap you won't use. Buy meat and alcohol. 

Thatgrimguy

Thermapen, raised grid, and platesetter or ceramic stone.  Everything else can wait.

WeberWho

Easy to spend others money here. I'd wait and give it some time and see what you really need. You can't go wrong with a ThermApen though... 

jmy2469

WeberWho said:

Easy to spend others money here. I'd wait and give it some time and see what you really need. You can't go wrong with a ThermApen though... 

Already have a Thermapen. Money well spent, use it all the time. 

MotownVol

Platesetter and thermapen.   Wait on everything else, but you have to know your meat temp and a good instant thermometer is a must. 

Carolina Q

I'm with the minimalists here. In fact, I wouldn't even say the Thermapen was necessary. If you don't have one already, you have somehow managed to survive. It's a great tool, and yes, I do have one, but I was cooking long before I got an egg. And I had no instant read thermo until I got here. Never even heard of the T-pen!

Many will say you MUST have a Maverick remote thermometer too. And yes, I also have one of those. Which I absolutely NEVER use. Not worth the bother to me.

Bottom line... if you ask people here what you should buy, you'll get plenty of suggestions. Been there. So, don't ask. Just pay attention and figure out what you need based on the type of cooking you want to do.

Use the money I just saved you on some food!

WeberWho

jmy2469 said:

WeberWho said:

Easy to spend others money here. I'd wait and give it some time and see what you really need. You can't go wrong with a ThermApen though... 

Already have a Thermapen. Money well spent, use it all the time. 

Smart man. Next step would be looking at a way to go indirect. Most common would be the platesetter but others will go with a spider and stone that works with an adjustable rig. An egger here has a store called the Ceramic Grill Store. It might be the way to go over the BGE stone. I've owned my egg 6 years and the BGE stone has been great but at times I've wished I've gone with the adjustable rig with the spider and stone. If you have a good thermometer and a way to go indirect you're in good shape. Easy to go crazy with purchases right away. Best bet is to sit back and play with the egg and get to learn it. Time will tell what you really do and don't need. 

DoubleEgger

^^^ This is solid advice. The platesetter on the xl does not have much depth to it for holding drip pans. I'd consider a CGS product. 

jhl192

Thermapen, platesetter, pizza stone,  Woo2.  Only my opinion. 

lousubcap

@jmy2469 - What follows is a collection of info that you may find of use about the eBGE and accessories.  FWIW-
Here’s a link to all things ceramic-chances are if you have a question the answer is within this site somewhere.  Check out the recipe section for some great ideas.  http://www.nakedwhiz.com/nwindex.htm

 After-market toys- With the BGE there are three basic styles of cooking;  “direct”-where the cooking grid is on top of the fire ring; “raised direct”-where the grid is elevated at least to the gasket-line (this setup requires after-market stuff-easiest is to get another grid and then use three fire bricks (or three empty aluminum beer cans) and place them on the grid at the fire ring and then put the second grid on top. The third is “indirect” where there is a heat deflector (platesetter or some other type stone) between the burning lump and the cooking grid.  This is the setup for low&slow long duration cooks.  I would get comfortable playing around with the BGE before any major after-market investments.  Will save you $$ in the long run.

Short answer-get what you need to maximize the various ways to use the BGE and go from there.

StillH2OEgger

I agree completely with those who suggest not going overboard right out of the gate. You'll want an indirect piece, whatever form that takes, and I also recommend a fast-read thermo of some sort. I wouldn't want to be without my Maverick and they're reasonably priced. There's a lot of stuff I looked at right away and I'm glad I resisted. I may still get a blower at some point, but it's nice to know I can pull off an overnight, much less regular cooks, without one. I also recommend starting with Royal Oak or BGE charcoal. You'll appreciate the difference so much more if you decide to try a more premium fuel after going through a bag or two of the other stuff.

1move

Get yourself some good gloves! I use these myself and have worked out great. 

http://www.amazon.com/Charcoal-Companion-Ultimate-Barbecue-Mitt/dp/B003FZAVZ6

bhedges1987

Ash tool #1 IMO

Vegas Eggus

jmy2469 said:

WeberWho said:

Easy to spend others money here. I'd wait and give it some time and see what you really need. You can't go wrong with a ThermApen though... 

Already have a Thermapen. Money well spent, use it all the time. 

If you like the Themapen you will likely like the Maverick. I use mine on all slow cooks. Love being able to monitor both grid and meat temps at the same time from inside the house. 

jmy2469

Vegas Eggus said:

jmy2469 said:

WeberWho said:

Easy to spend others money here. I'd wait and give it some time and see what you really need. You can't go wrong with a ThermApen though... 

Already have a Thermapen. Money well spent, use it all the time. 

If you like the Themapen you will likely like the Maverick. I use mine on all slow cooks. Love being able to monitor both grid and meat temps at the same time from inside the house. 

Which Maverick do you have? I'll pick one of those up also

bgebrent

Thatgrimguy said:

Thermapen, raised grid, and platesetter or ceramic stone.  Everything else can wait.

This, and save money for your next egg.

SMITTYtheSMOKER

Thermapen, yep it is that important.

Jeepster47

If you decide to buy a Maverick, then the 733 is probably the best choice.  If only for the ease of set up.  The 732 set-up establishes the standard for stupid.

You already have the only necessary implement ... namely a quick read thermometer ... the Thermapen is/was a good choice.

Everything else can be cobbled together to achieve the cooking method that you are trying to use.  For instance, you'll want to cook indirect and/or raised.  Indirect can be as simple as three rods in a triangle across the fire ring and a clay flower pot balanced on top of the bars.  Raised can be slightly crushed beer cans, kiln posts, standard bricks, or cut up fire bricks.  None of the above is expensive and, although not as convenient as purpose built accessories, will cook just great.

Toxarch

jhl192 said:

Thermapen, platesetter, pizza stone,  Woo2.  Only my opinion. 

I went Adjustable Rig and pizza stone instead of the Woo2. I almost never use the platesetter now. Either way works. I'd also suggest a decent pair of welding gloves.

SmokeyPitt

Just something else to consider.  Note- I don't know for sure that this will fit the XL, but the big joe has the same size grid diameter.

 http://amzn.com/B008BVAXCA

If I were getting an XL I would consider this instead of the plate setter.  It comes in two pieces so you can split direct/indirect.   You could also remove both stones and have a raised direct setup.  

Jeepster47

The best set-up for indirect cooking depends upon your choice of egg ... large vs XL.

I love the plate setter and PSWoo set-up on my large egg, but would not buy a plate setter for an XL.  The cost of the OEM plate setter for the XL is almost double the cost of the one for the large egg.  The Ceramic Grill Store is your friend if you buy an XL!  You can start out with the XL Woo2 and a stone for about the same cost as a plate setter ... and then build on the Woo2 as you see fit.

jtcBoynton

I am in the take your time camp.  A good instant read thermometer is very useful for all cooking, not just for egging.  Specifically for the egg, an indirect cook setup is very useful.  You have options on how to do this, so don't assume that a BGE platesetter is the only option.

Most of the accessories are not necessary. The good ones make certain cooks/functions easier/more convenient.  Learn you egg and then add as you need/understand what would make improvements.

DoubleRay415

Hopefully you don't run into a BGE showroom, you're going to go nuts.  As a newbie egger myself, a thermapen and an instant read thermometer made my first cooks on the egg a lot more enjoyable.  Glad to see you have that already.

I think the first issue you'll face is not having enough space for certain cooks.  I picked up the drumstick/wing rack as one of my first accessories.  I was able to fit 10 drums and 5 half breasts on the grill, that's a lot of food on one cook. You'll notice that "raised grid" is referenced a lot on here.  Easiest way to do that is to get some Rutland firebricks, that'll do the trick. 

It's tough to weigh practical v impulse, especially with all the awesome link folks post daily.  Good luck with that lol.   

Eggzellent

I would get a stone or cheaper substitute of some kind for indirect and use commonly found materials for dome height as others have suggested. I would then start looking for a good vacuum sealer (instead) if you don't already have one.This 'accessory' investment (we do big cooks/start packaging and always have leftovers on smaller ones) will pay itself back most every time that you cook or come back from the market beforehand.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VacMaster-VP215-1-4-HP-Chamber-Vacuum-Sealer-/131750822044?hash=item1eacf6009c:g:-gUAAOSwvgdW37FN