Controling heat on large egg

Unknown · July 2007

Just a few days since my turning 'green'...[p]Friday, my first burn I cooked chicken thighs. I have a hard time keeping dome @ 350 degrees but after some time the chicken had some charcoal taste but very good.[p]Saturday, 2nd burn - bratwarst & cheep hot dogs (to 'season' I was told) hard time to control heat at 350 degrees. Kept climing to 390 - 410 dome. [p]Both dogs and brats were very good, a little over done but that was me not the bge.[p]Sunday right now actually, pork roast...[p]
My goal is this burn, cook at 200 grill temp for 6 to 7 hours for the pork roast to reach and internal temp of 150, then rest to 165 degrees - at this point this looks like it is going to be a failed cook - roast is cooking way too fast. [p]I have been smoking for a long time (non egg smoking). I used gas, water, temp at 200 ot 210 degrees and wood chips for smoke. Always got good comments and nice tasting roasts - but I have always been want something better. [p]Now the large BGE. I can not get the dome below 280 degrees(concerned fire is going out and this is just part of the cooling process) bottom vent open about the 1/4 inch, daisy slighty open, possible 1/8 inch.[p]At this point in time I can not invision being able to stablize the Lg BGE cooking tempeture at 200 - 225 degrees for a low and slow.[p]One last thought. I put the lump to the bottom of the fire ring. Use the BGE fire starters, 3 cubes spread equally around the lumb. I let the fire get to 350 dome (no smoke from lump) then began to cool down. Wondering if I lit the lump in too large of an area.[p]When adjusting to low temp is it best to close the daisy and leave the lower vent somewhat open, otherwise, what combination of top to lower vent movement does one use.[p]I need some help with some of the eggers that have a bit more BGE cooking experience under their belt.[p]Any help will be appreciated. thanx in advance, kent

Legally Blind Egghead · July 2007

Kent,[p]I am a Large Egg owner for about 8 years and I am legally blind, hence my handle.[p]First thing I'd do is check your calibration on dome thermometer. You never really need to cook below a dome temp of 250 (unless smoking cheese or making jerky).[p]I'd cook a pork roast at around 325-350 direct to an internal just over 140, rest under foil for about 15 minutes and slice.[p]IMO dome temps between 250 and 400 are easiest to control. I am visually impaired and use a magnifyer to view gauges and it is simpler and safer than a gasser for me. One thing I only use ONE starter cube/stick and "catch" temp just before your ideal temp. If you want a dome of 350, start closing down vents as it gets to 300 or so. If you let temp get to 500, it is harder to bring back down or at least it takes longer. Remember you can always increase temp quicly by opening vents slightly.[p]Finally, there are many (at least a few) ways to regulate temps as far as bottom vents and daisy wheel combos. I usually leave bottom open wider but at times I can almost completely close bottom and just open top more than normal.[p]My best advice is to eggsperiment and close bottome maybe to 1/8" or even 1/16" inch and Daisy just barely open and you should have some success.[p]I hope this helps a little,[p]Joey[p]

Morro Bay Rich · July 2007

Kent,
Don't try to cool down to your desired temp ...... heat up to your desired temp.[p]When you get within 25 degrees of the temp you are looking for start closing down the vents and as you get closer, close them down some more until the Egg stablizes.

Mike in Abita · July 2007

Kent,
Can't comment on the LGE. [p]I only light my XL in two places with a MAPP Gas torch for a low and slow. The idea of allowing an EGG to reach 350 just to try to cool down to 200 seams odd to me. Why not try one starter near the front (air opening) of the Egg and then closing off vents closer to required temp. My setpoint for temp is 250 deg F.[p]BTW I have a butt on right now has been on since 9:00PM last night. My air vent is only open approx 1/8 to 3/16". Daisy wheel is approx 3/4 closed. I have seen temps as high as 265 and as low as 235. I don't have a gasket so this may explain the swing. I haven't had to adjust it much (maybe four times). Only made adjustments to the Daisey. Internal at 183 ten minutes ago. Just waiting on the magic 200.[p]Good Luck
Mike in Abita

The Naked Whiz · July 2007

Kent,
Here's a link to my web page on temperature control. Your main mistake is to heat the Egg up to 350 and then try to cool things off. As the ceramic heats up, it makes it harder and harder to cool the cooker off because you aren't only waiting for the air to cool, you are also waiting for the ceramic to cool. Also, for pork butts, 200 dome temperature is way too low. At that dome temp, the grid will be below 200 and you won't get the butt up to 190 or 200 degrees internal if the cooker itself isn't that hot. Shoot for 230-250 dome. Good luck![p]TNW
[ul][li]Temperature Control Hints and Tips[/ul]

Unknown · July 2007

The Naked Whiz,[p]Thanks for all your work and the link... here is what happened. (now no one laugh, even though it is a bit funny)[p]As in your link, trying to cool things down was a nightmare.[p]Trying to cool things down. Screen closed to about 1/8 inch daisy almost closed. Dome getting down to under 200. I didn't feel much hot/warm air coming out of the top and I thought I snuffed the fire out.[p]Out came one starter cube, lit and dropped into the fire. It snuffed out, so I 'fished' it out. Grabbed the propane torch and turned it on high and got two spots hot.[p]Everyone in the family running thinking I was going to blow up the torch, me, the bge, and the house.[p]Anyway, I got two hotspots going with the torch and I thought all would be well from then on. Grabbed some apple chips and tossed them on the lump. Lid open and 'dry chips' (because I was running out of time) began to smoke. Now I can't see a thing because of the smoke.[p]Got to get cooking, so grabbed the two sirloin pork roasts and one boston butt pork and got my temp probe into one of the roasts (middle one).[p]Temp went up then down and was staying down. Opened the lid not much glow, not much heat, no flame.[p]Running out of time.[p]Time for mouth to mouth on the flame. Still smoke from the chips which I guess was killing the fire. Blowing to get some fire going. [p]Thank goodness got some flame going under the meat. Looked good to me closed the dome. I did sort of a Microsoft thing... plug and pray.[p]Dome temp climbing, thinking it doesn't matter I have got to get the meat cooking.[p]200, 250 and closed the air flow (after opening all the way hoping to restart the fire again).[p]Meat temp starting to go up and dome going up. Non bge smokes I pulled the meat at 145 to 150 and let it rest to 155 to 165. [p]Thinking, got to get this meat done. Everything seemed to be ok, well sort of. No shade, hotter than heck decided to go into the house for a few minutes or so.[p]Sometime later I came out side, meat at 160 or 170.[p]Oh crap this is out of control, as far as thinking I had any chance of having eatable meat. From non bge smoking experience, I thought I ruined the meat.[p]Looking at the meat temp, even more oh crap, thoughts. Opened the dome cut a small deep core ot of the sirloin, looked dry and tasted, hum, ok - I guess. certainly nothing to brag about, or for that matter to take credit for.[p]I called the wife over and asked her to make an emergency run to the store for some chicken (I knew I could save the day on the bge with chicken). She returned did some quick seasoning. I pulled the pork wrapped in tinfoil and left it on the kitchen counter (hopping some stray dog would come over and eat it).[p]Got 15 chicken legs and 10 or 12 thighs on the gbe dome at 320 to 350. 15 minutes on each side and then the whole lot back into the kitchen. Hum, no luck pork still on the counter. Chicken looked great and tasted as good as it looked.[p]OK, what to do with the pork. I opened the tinfoil. Cut into the sirloin, after standing it didn’t look all that bad, the butt looked sort of good. I proceeded to cut the roasts up, still warm, looking sort of moist, I called everyone in, made up some excuses about the pork and put a few pieces on the plate, with potato and the quick save chicken. [p]When cleaning up, there was no meat of the chicken bones and all that chicken gone (not all that many people either). Pork butt I had to ration out and there was some sirloin left but not much.[p]For all the other people wondering if they should buy a Big Green Egg, the ending of this saga… The GBE saved the cook. As much as I messed this whole cookout up, the only thing that saved this was the BGE. Without question the cook did everything wrong. [p]The entire family loved both the chicken and pork (butt best).[p]In summary, the third BGE cookout was very good – despite the cook. By the way BGE hot dogs are great too. I ran out of pork so I only got a small sample of both cuts of pork. [p]Thank you to everyone that responded and shared their experience with the temperature question.[p]Sorry about the long post, however, that is the way it happened.[p]

Unknown · July 2007

(I submitted this one, but it doesn’t seem to be showing up – hopefully this won’t be a duplicate follow up post).[p]Mike in Abita,[p]I posted the 'rest/result of this saga' in the response above.[p]My main goal for buying the bge is to do low and slow.[p]Thank you for the help and the settings. I thought this much closure on the air would kill out the fire.[p]When the cooker cools down in the morning I am going to do a 'dry run' (no meat), I am going to test and see if I can get my egg to keep a constant temp in the low 200's.[p]The reason for low 200's when I am watching the rib’s and pulled pork contests, when the camera's are showing the different stoves the winners are using, their thermometers always seem to be between 200 and 210 degrees.[p]I am wondering why you do not have a gasket????[p]On my second cook (Saturday afternoon, my upper and lower gasket stuck together). I called my dealer on the phone, he brought out a new gasket on his way out of town. I cleaned the old gaskets off, which was a real chore and replaced them. I finished that project at 2:30 am Sunday morning.[p]Again, thank you for your help.[p]

Unknown · July 2007

Morro Bay Rich,[p]Thank you very much. I will try again tomorrow, I learned the hard way how difficult it is to try and cook and cool down that much of a temp. change.[p]Kent

Unknown · July 2007

Joey,[p]Thank you for your help. I left a long result of todays cook on the first response.[p]Hoever, I am going to try your suggestions tomorrow when the egg is again cool.[p]On the propane & water cooks I have done, I set the cabinet to 210, as that is the lowest I can get, and cook to meat temp to 145, for pork, then pull at as you say 145, then pull and let the meat rest.[p]This was my 3rd cook with my egg. Even as bad as I messed this cook up the meat was better tasting than the best propaine & water cooks I have done.[p]I fully expect to sell or other wise dispose of my 4 propane & water cookers.[p]I was just about to buy one of those sideways 55 gal drum cookers, with the firebox outside of the drum.[p]I am sure glad someone told me about the BGE. One of the bigest reasons of buying the egg was this forum.[p]Again thank you, [p]Kent

stike · July 2007

kent,[p]if you think that meal turned out great, just wait until you get a handle on things! there's so much in there that needs fixing![p]welcome aboard. my first suggestion (and i have a few) would be to R E L A X.[p]don't let the thing run you.

Unknown · July 2007

stike,[p]Thanks much...[p]Today 4th burn is going to be a test to do a constant somewhat low burn. 250 and get it to hold that temp for 5 or 6 hours. No meat during this test, I am 'porked out'. [p]That should be dinner time and then I will go to 350 and dome and do some brats for dinner.

Controling heat on large egg

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