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Had to hang my head and say "awe boy" again

Once again I bring a nice piece of meat in and place it on the table for dinner. Looks fantastic coming off the egg. Then I hear this..... does everything that comes off of that thing have to taste like or be smokey? What kind of wood did you use this time?

Im really at a loss here fellow eggers.... I start the egg get it stabile and wait for the bad smoke to clear. Before I do anything and even if I dont use chips or chunks for smoking my significant other doesnt like the taste. All she ever cooked on was a gasser and I cant seem to get her converted over. She does admit that everything coming off of the egg is very moist and tender unlike some cooks of the weber but she doesnt want everything coming off the egg to taste smokey.

So where do I start from here??? Your thoughts and suggestions would really help out here or I'm afraid she might ask me to sell it. I was really holdin out for the minimax for a second egg until I realized it was that big of an issue. Holdin off on that thought in hopes to find a solution.

Any help would be appreciated.....
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Comments

  • Grader07
    Grader07 Posts: 264
    Uh not a chance cazzy... Shes been brainwashed i guess.... Or should I say she's been gassed
  • cazzy
    cazzy Posts: 9,136
    Okay...that makes it more difficult. :-?

    Let's start withy the lump. What brand and have you tried another?
    Just a hack that makes some $hitty BBQ....
  • Grader07
    Grader07 Posts: 264
    I used wicked good at first. Then I tried bge brand at her request. Then went to royal oak which I heard was packaged same as bge. Was wondering if rockwood would be any better?
  • bo_mull
    bo_mull Posts: 363
    edited April 2014
    I have found that Ozark Oak and Rockwood has a more neutral flavor than Royal Oak or BGE. IMHO I like Ozark oak best of all.

    Cleveland, TN.

    LG BGE, PSWOO2, Stoker WIFI.

  • Grader07
    Grader07 Posts: 264
    Ok I will have to keep that in mind @bo_mull. Was thinking of getting a bag of the rockwood to try from firecraft
  • bo_mull
    bo_mull Posts: 363
    Rockwood is good lump and Firecraft has free shipping on orders over $99.

    Cleveland, TN.

    LG BGE, PSWOO2, Stoker WIFI.

  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
    edited April 2014
    I doubt it's the charcoal as much as technique. 

    You want an established fire with smoke that smells good.  This is accomplished via a hot coal bed on top of your pile of lump.  You want just enough burning coals to generate the heat you need, and you want it burning with plenty of air, maybe even raise the grate to handle the heat.

    The hotter the fire, the less smoke.

    For direct grilling, light the top, enough area to cover what you're cooking, and let the fire establish - hot, little smoke, smells good.  This might take 20-45 minutes. 
    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..
  • Grader07
    Grader07 Posts: 264
    Thanks @nola Maybe my looflighter is lighting to far down in the lump maybe??? I know i dont have as much time everyday to mess with it like some, thats why im asking for some good advice on here. I just get her tastes going the right way and quick too
  • cazzy
    cazzy Posts: 9,136
    edited April 2014
    I doubt it's the charcoal as much as technique. 

    You want an established fire with smoke that smells good.  This is accomplished via a hot coal bed on top of your pile of lump.  You want just enough burning coals to generate the heat you need, and you want it burning with plenty of air, maybe even raise the grate to handle the heat.

    The hotter the fire, the less smoke.

    For direct grilling, light the top, enough area to cover what you're cooking, and let the fire establish - hot, little smoke, smells good.  This might take 20-45 minutes. 
    While I mostly agree, Cen told a few of us offline that he used BGE lump and it was incredibly smokey and understood now why people complain about the oversmoke.  He gave the bag to his neighbor.  I'd imagine that guy knows what he's doing...unless he was day drinking again.   :P

    Either way, I think he should try Rockwood or Ozark Oak.
    Just a hack that makes some $hitty BBQ....
  • grege345
    grege345 Posts: 3,515
    Sorry to hear this. Keep us posted.
    LBGE& SBGE———————————————•———————– Pennsylvania / poconos

  • Grader07
    Grader07 Posts: 264
    Alrighty then, I will try one of those brands. What the "awe boy" to come from her the next time or maybe get an "atta boy"
  • cazzy
    cazzy Posts: 9,136
    Or maybe you should just make her a sammich!   :P

    Do you think it's smokey?
    Just a hack that makes some $hitty BBQ....
  • Grader07
    Grader07 Posts: 264
    grege345 said:

    Sorry to hear this. Keep us posted.

    Will do! Hoping for the best.
    :)
  • cazzy
    cazzy Posts: 9,136
    oh oh oh, for the next month, mess with her head and tell her every meal she makes is too salty.  Let her try different things and just add salt when she's not looking.    >:)
    Just a hack that makes some $hitty BBQ....
  • grege345
    grege345 Posts: 3,515
    Grader07 said:
    Alrighty then, I will try one of those brands. What the "awe boy" to come from her the next time or maybe get an "atta boy"

    don't forget to start up top like mentioned earlier. I use a chimney and dump hot coals on top of unused lump from the previous cooks. I know I'm in the minority with the chimney but it works for me. Just my 2 cents. Again I hope it all works out for you.
    LBGE& SBGE———————————————•———————– Pennsylvania / poconos

  • Grader07
    Grader07 Posts: 264
    @cazzy Yes i think its smokey but not to that extent. Im sorta use to eating stuff from a fire as we camped out a lot with m&d as we grew up.
  • Grader07
    Grader07 Posts: 264
    Cazzy thats funny. =)) That oughta go over well

    @grege345‌ might have to invest in a surface lighter. Ha! Or a chimney i guess.... At this point whatever works. Just dont want ol humpty dumpty goin over the wall and goin into a million pieces
  • johnmitchell
    johnmitchell Posts: 6,546
    I doubt it's the charcoal as much as technique.  

    You want an established fire with smoke that smells good.  This is accomplished via a hot coal bed on top of your pile of lump.  You want just enough burning coals to generate the heat you need, and you want it burning with plenty of air, maybe even raise the grate to handle the heat. 

    The hotter the fire, the less smoke. 

    For direct grilling, light the top, enough area to cover what you're cooking, and let the fire establish - hot, little smoke, smells good.  This might take 20-45 minutes.


    I think this is exactly what you need to follow. What happened to you happened to me. I also turfed the BGE Lump and now use Rockwood...No more problems.. You can look forward to great cooks going forward.
    Greensboro North Carolina
    When in doubt Accelerate....
  • johnkitchens
    johnkitchens Posts: 5,227
    +1 for Rockwood. My wife was the same way to start with. Her main complaint was when I cooked steak. She said it tasted better on the charcoal grill. 

    I started waiting longer for the VOC's to burn off, but then I switched to Rockwood, and she has never been happier!

    Louisville, GA - 2 Large BGE's
  • Griffin
    Griffin Posts: 8,200
    For your next cook, try doing something indirect where the fat isn't dripping directly on the coals See what kind of difference that makes to her if any. I've recently gone back to cooking chicken indirectly and much prefer it that way as it isn't as smokey.  

    Rowlett, Texas

    Griffin's Grub or you can find me on Facebook

    The Supreme Potentate, Sovereign Commander and Sultan of Wings

     

  • pgprescott
    pgprescott Posts: 14,544
    If you put BGE lump or any other brand in a new egg and light it, the exhaust will be virtually clear in 15-20 minutes. You can bake bread and cookies that would absorb huge amounts of bad flavor if it were present. It is not the lump, it is the fire or residual materials in your egg. I would suggest cleaning it out and be careful not to let too much dust into the egg when filling with your lump. Let it burn a little longer as suggested by others. The fuel should burn very clean and efficiently. That's my 2 cents.
  • Letz4wheel
    Letz4wheel Posts: 236
    Change your lump! BGE has a smokey burn to it. I happen to think it is ok but some say it is too smokey. Ozark and rockwood both have a might lighter taste IMO.
    Southern Indiana
  • Lit
    Lit Posts: 9,053
    Have you tried fruit woods? I use peach wood for everything and its not the traditional smoke flavor like hickory or oak its a sweat smell. Also think you should try OO or Rockwood.
  • BuckeyeBob
    BuckeyeBob Posts: 673
    Another vote for OO or Rockwood. I had a large bag of RO that for some reason was imparting much heavier smoke flavor than before. When I switched to the other brands, the issue went away. Some like more smoke flavor but my family likes less.
    Clarendon Hills, IL
  • tulocay
    tulocay Posts: 1,737
    +1 on Rockwood. Very neutral. My experience is that anything cooked direct, even raised to slightly above felt line, produces food with a slight smokey flavor. This is especially true of food that has fat and drips into the fire. Maybe less lump and a red hot fire will produce less of that. The other avenue would be indirect. In any case give Rockwood a try.
    LBGE, Marietta, GA
  • jhl192
    jhl192 Posts: 1,006
    The smoke flavor from most lumps, if done correctly, should be mild and pleasant.  There are two other flavors that you can get that are not pleasant and can be bad.  I am hoping that it is one of the last two that your wife is tasting because those are preventable.  The 2 bad flavors are VOC's and rancid residue or build up from previous cooks. I have experienced those with my family and they almost lost confidence in me.  (Please note that out of 200 cooks I may have messed up only three times but that smell / taste to sickening to some and my family lets me know and I agree with them)  I have ruined pizza's, expensive steaks and vegetables.  
    In retrospect my major downfall was impatience.  I blame the bad taste on one of two things:
    1) poor lighting technique (this has several aspects to it)
    2) I was too lazy to do a clean burn after I saw evidence of grease and residue build up on the inside of the egg.  (250-350 degrees is enough to cook food over time but it will leave fat residue coating the interior of your egg and this build up over time) To rectify, I always keep my eye on the grill and when I see significant build up, I let it burn at 600 - 750 for an hour or so.  This problem solved.

    As for VOC's, that stems from poor lighting technique, as mentioned above and this is more complicated to correct.  I have seen a ton of advice on this forum and most of it is spot on.  I have however, found that if done correctly you can get even the cheapest lump to burn clean and not smell.  The primary cause of having bad smells on your food is impatience and air flow.  So here are my collection of lighting pointers.  They do not belong to me.  I have gathered them all here. Some people may do all of them and some don't do any.  I view them as an insurance policy over a ruined meal and lost confidence.

    1) Clean out the firebox more frequently so there is no restricted air flow.
    2) Light the fire in multiple places so there is a even distribution of heat amongst the lump, If you light in only on place, light it in the middle.  
    3) SIZE MATTERS..Large lump has better air flow and the VOC's will burn off quicker.  Wait longer on smaller sized lump as there is more surface area and less air flow. 
    4) I always thought to catch my desired temperature on the way up rather than wait for it to cool down to my desired temperature.  It does take less time that way but you risk starting your cook too soon.  I always bring the internal temperature to at least 350 with the vents open before I start to back it down.  Obviously if I am cooking direct at higher temps I will go above that. 
    5) Once you feel the fire is established and before you put in your platesetter or AR/Woo2 stone give the fire a stir with your charcoal tool to evenly distribute the lit coals amongst the lump.
    6) Now wait for the fire to burn clean.  Like others have said,  it should burn clear and smell good.  If it does not,  let it go longer. 

    OTHER THINGS that should help:
    *After your cook, collect your left over unburned lump in a bucket and use it to add lump to a fire or for a fire that you want to be sure has it VOC's burned off.
    *Try the better lumps as rated on NakedWhiz.com.  ( This helps but bags vary and even the cheap crap can burn well given time)     

    Good luck.  This is a real problem but I am hoping it can be solved for you. 
    XL BGE; Medium BGE; L BGE 
  • Mattman3969
    Mattman3969 Posts: 10,457
    Rockwood or Ozark, raised grid of some sort and a higher cookin temp for direct cooks will help this. I had the same problem so I made a raised grid got some OO from @henapple and raised my temps by 100* and suddenly no more smoke complaints Good luck buddy!!

    -----------------------------------------

    analyze adapt overcome

    2008 -Large BGE. 2013- Small BGE and 2015 - Mini. Henderson, Ky.
  • stevesails
    stevesails Posts: 990
    Try using just the left over lump.
    XL   Walled Lake, MI

  • Hungry Joe
    Hungry Joe Posts: 1,566

    Using left over lump like stevesails suggests might work. Just make sure there are no drippings from the previous cook.

    Also maybe try Cowboy lump. It is available almost everywhere and is pretty much the Coors light of charcoal, no flavor.