explanation of "raised" cooking - new BGE owner

Tennisjon

looking for recipes for boneless leg of lamb as first cook and I see a lot of variance and use of raised cooking; not totally sure how to do that

buzd504

Raised cooking means raising the grid to gasket level or higher.  There are a number of ways to do that.

It's not necessary to do that for leg of lamb, IMO, since you probably want to do that indirect anyway.  I cooked one last weekend.  Rubbed in salt, pepper, granulated garlic and onion, cayenne and paprika.  Then crusted with a fresh herb mixture of mint, oregano, rosemary and parsley.  Cooked indirect at about 275 to 130.  I think it took right about 2 hours or so.

Came out great.

Tennisjon

Thanks Buz!

shtgunal3

Here is a shot of some chicken breast and sausage cooking "raised direct" on a large. I am using a pswoo from https://ceramicgrillstore.com

Killit_and_Grillit

This was my solution. I bought another grate and some stainless steel 4 inch bolts, washers, and nuts and made a second one. 4 inches in a large gets you flush with the gasket, which has been perfect for chicken. Edit: just set it on the original grate

morrobayrich

Or you can use what i have used for years ... the elevated grid from Big Green Egg  http://biggreenegg.com/product/folding-grill-extender/

lousubcap

Here's my explanation of the various cooking options (short of cave man) on the BGE:
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.  FWIW-

SGH

Tennisjon said:
raised cooking; not totally sure how to do that

There several ways to go raised direct. Some folks use long bolts, some use bricks, and just about any other thing that you can think of to raise the grid. 
However for just a few bucks there is the Woo. To me it's the "most bang for the buck". It's cheap, simple to use and durable as hell. It works great for raised direct cooks, and it works equally well for indirect cooks by using the plate setter.  
Woo:

Woo with plate setter installed. (Indirect)

Woo without the PS. Raised direct. 

Then there is the AR (adjustable rig)

AR set up for raised direct. 

The AR will put the full size 17" grid as high as practical in the dome. To go any higher you will have to use a smaller grid. When sitting on the very top of the AR, the full size grid will rub the dome a little until you get it situated just right. Nothing to worry about though. Again there are numerous improvised methods out there, but for just a few bucks the Woo gives you a sturdy, well built, and very easy means of going both indirect and raised direct. As with most things, it's your money my friend. So spend it wisely. If we had Rons money we would not give minor things like this a second thought
And sorry for the crappy pics but it's dark and raining here. 

feef706

Killit_and_Grillit said:

This was my solution. I bought another grate and some stainless steel 4 inch bolts, washers, and nuts and made a second one. 4 inches in a large gets you flush with the gasket, which has been perfect for chicken. Edit: just set it on the original grate

I'm in need of a raised rig also, is the extra grate a aftermarket or BGE? I know Weber makes a few sizes and are cheap in comparison.

Hub

Other than when I'm searing at high heat, I cook EVERYTHING raised grid because it results in less flare ups, less burns, etc. and it is still plenty close enough to the fire to cook.

g37

Im glad some brought up this  question. I've  been  on the fence about  ordering  the pswoo. Is cooking raised direct really beneficial?  I haven't  experienced to many flare ups. 

SGH

g37 said:

Is cooking raised direct really beneficial?  

Absolutely it is beneficial for some things (maybe not all things). But for large cuts such as whole turkey & chicken, whole hams etc, etc, there is no doubt about it. Even for chicken parts there are several advantages to raising the grid. Again, it's not a absolute necessity across the board, but for some things it certainly makes life much eaiser. Try a raised grid just once and you probably won't turn back. If nothing else, one huge benefit of a raised grid is food removal. It's much easier to remove your food at gasket level or higher than it is having to reach down to the factory level. This alone makes it worth it to me. 

bhedges1987

I go raised direct for any grilling. Unless I'm really low on charcoal and the fire is down really low.

IMO the pswoo2 is the way to go... It's cheap and it's not ghetto rigged..

SGH

bhedges1987 said:

it's not ghetto rigged..

This is priceless my friend. And I know what you really wanted to say. For being a deep thinker, I proudly award you the double seal my friend. 

g37

Thanks SGH. 

SGH

g37 said:

Thanks SGH. 

My pleasure. 

bhedges1987

SGH said:

bhedges1987 said:

it's not ghetto rigged..

This is priceless my friend. And I know what you really wanted to say. For being a deep thinker, I proudly award you the double seal my friend. 

My first double seal from the man, the myth, the legend.  Tonight is starting off on a good note.

Killit_and_Grillit

feef706 said:

Killit_and_Grillit said:

This was my solution. I bought another grate and some stainless steel 4 inch bolts, washers, and nuts and made a second one. 4 inches in a large gets you flush with the gasket, which has been perfect for chicken. Edit: just set it on the original grate

I'm in need of a raised rig also, is the extra grate a aftermarket or BGE? I know Weber makes a few sizes and are cheap in comparison.

It was a BGE brand one. Only because I had a ton of credit at the store after Christmas. I also took a Weber grid and made a 6 inch off of a burnt out older one. 

My buddy ordered a generic one off Amazon and it worked as well. The only thing is 4 inches doesn't give a lot of room when trying to cook on both levels. 

I I wouldn't discount that Woo though. Interesting. 

SGH

bhedges1987 said:

My first double seal 

You more than earned that one my brother. I'm still laughing my a$$ off from your above response.  

GrateEggspectations

Smokeware now makes a grate raiser as well. It is of durable construction and, if you have the right size baking stones, it can be used to stack them for simultaneous cooking. It ia also a good fit to hold my wok in place, a little further down into the flames. It's a good option!

fence0407

@Tennisjon of you need a cheap/quick fix, I use 3 fire bricks from Home Depot to get to felt level. Less than a dollar a brick:

tgs2401

fence0407 said:

@Tennisjon of you need a cheap/quick fix, I use 3 fire bricks from Home Depot to get to felt level. Less than a dollar a brick:

Yep. This works great and is cheap and easy.

jak7028

Another vote her efor the PsWoo - I use it for raised direct and indirect.  Rarely do I do a cook without it.

Also have a homemade raised grid.  I bought an off brand 13" grate, and went with 6" bolts.  This way I can raise and lower the second grid to get more clearance for the first grid if needed.  Usually keep the nuts in a position where there is about 4" of clearance to cook with, only time I had to raise the second grid more than that was to cook 3 pork butts on a large.

Toxarch

Here's the AR and I think it's called the AR extender on top of that to get high in the dome for raised indirect. There's an oval stone under the drip pan.