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Help in Deciding to Egg or Not to Egg

Kat
Kat Posts: 46
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
Ok gang, I realize everybody here is going to say how much you love your egg, and from our first hearing of them and researching online it sounds terrific.

THEN! As we've taken a few days to read a lot more on the forum here we're really wondering if it really is what we are looking for.

We read about safety issues, gasket problems, funny tastes to some of the food, grease dropping on baked things - keeping temperatures steady - and then of course we see gorgeous photos of food prepared on eggs and would love to whole heartedly get on the band wagon with the rest.

But this is a big investment not only in the egg itself but we'll have to build an outdoor area for one and we want to be convinced it is what we want to do before going to the cost and the labor.

I want to do a lot of baking outdoors, breads and pizzas in particular. Do such things pick up the smoke/grease/charcoal tastes/smells from grilling other things? Does anybody have an egg dedicated to just baking?

We cannot go to an eggfest, much as we'd like to, but we live in a remote area and there is none near us.

Any input from experienced eggers will be most appreciated :)

Comments

  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
    if you are burning clean, you won't have any off flavors from previous cooks.

    don't cook a chicken and then bake bread. hahaha

    fresh lump, a clean burn, and you'll be fine.

    don't know what "safety issues" you cam across. much safer than a tank of propane, frankly.

    funny tastes are a cook's error, not the egg's.

    and if you want steady temps, a ceramic is the only way to go. remember, an electric oven does not stay at 350. it cycles up and down turning the element fully on then full off, attempting to hold an avergae temp of 350. but when you peg the BGE to 350, it stays there til it runs out of fuel. and it won't run out of fuel (unless you cook things longer than 30-40 hours).

    one thing that confuses me is why you believe you need to build an outdoor area for one... it doesn't care where you put it, and it will work in any temp, any weather, unprotected
    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
  • Ripnem
    Ripnem Posts: 5,511
    1,ooo's of crazed Eggheads here. That should tell ya somethin. People do have Eggs strickly for baking. You only go around once, so go nuts and get one. Learn how to use it and then get another for baking. :) Prep your yard and just do it. I feel screwed that I didn't know about them until last year.
  • Weekend Warrior
    Weekend Warrior Posts: 1,702
    Hi Kat. 99.5% of us are extraordinarily happy with our purchases of BGE's. There are a small few who just don't have the small amount of time to invest in learning the nuances of cooking with lump charcoal and air-flow controlled temperatures. If you are willing to invest the smallest amount of time that it takes to become a true Egghead, you will find that cooking on the Egg will be a life-altering experience, like it has been for some 9000+ forum members. Take a leap of faith and purhase an EGG. There are over 9000 of us now to lead you in the right direction and help you along the way. ;) Mark
  • c tredwell
    c tredwell Posts: 575
    No dumb questions here.... Everyone on this forum has egg-sperienced some hardships on the egg (gaskets, weird smoke tastes, blah, blah) but thats the learning curve! ;) The pro's way out weigh the con's. I agree, eggs are egg-spensive, and I only recomend them to people who are serious about their outdoor cooking ( i grill 3-6 times a week!) But to your baking questions: everytime you re-fire your egg and bring it up to temp, last cook goes away. No grease, fishy smells from the smoked salmon, smoking chips and chunks usually burn up. So if you are wanting to grill, smoke, and bake on one unit.... welcome to the club! You won't be dissappointed!! ;)

    ctredwell
    go dawgs
  • Kat
    Kat Posts: 46
    We would build an outdoor place for it because the only location we have on our covered wooden back porch is just too near the house.

    We are planning on making an area on a pad a few feet from the porch.

    After reading all the great comments, it looks like we'll go with two mediums and dedicate one to meats and the other to baking - hey it is a lot cheaper than buying a pizza oven!

    You all have been most helpful, thanks!
  • Funny taste are usually caused from someone not knowing to warm of the grill first as with any charcoal cooker you don't just light and cook. You have to wait until the coals are ready and the "bad smoke" clears. If you do not wait your food will have a bad flavor.

    Gaskets can be an issue if you let them be. Unfortunately they don't come with the best gaskets already but BGE does offer an upgrade of Nomex gasket that is a higher performance gasket. I look at gaskets as routine maintenance like changing oil in your car. Sooner or later they will fail but will some last more than 5 years. Depends on wow well you take care of them. BGE did have a bad run of gaskets with bad adhesive but I think that has run its course. Inexperienced eggers seem to try to go thermonuclear temps for no apparent reason and they do burn up the gaskets. The felt gaskets cannot take 700+ degrees for long without the felt gaskets melting the Nomex does not have that problem but they too can be burnt up if they are not taken care of.

    The BGE is as safe as any other grill Gas or Charcoal. I have lost more hair with my gasser than I think I ever will with my Egg. Being careful and knowing how to open the Egg at higher temps, This is where a little common sense comes in and complacency can bite you in the butt.

    The Egg has no problems keeping a steady temp. There is a slight learning curve depending on your grilling experience but the Egg can maintain a rock steady temp.

    Some members do have EGGS dedicated for baking, personal preference nothing to do with the Egg. I use mine for everything at this point. If I do a greasy cook I will let it do a high temp burn to let it clean itself and I have had no problems.
    I have never had any grease drip on my food but some items I am cooking will drip and the drip pan takes care of that.
    What part of the country are you in?
  • Grandpas Grub
    Grandpas Grub Posts: 14,226
    When you are reading about the concerns, questions, complaints, take a look at the number of posts the poster has.

    Many people will come here to resolve problems and or vent frustrations. We want that as a forum - we want to help as we want to help you.

    If everyone posted how good a given cook was this would flood the board.

    The gasket problem is a unique problem that, thankfully, is coming to somewhat of an end. There was a run of gaskets that had bad adhesive. The only resolve was to replace the gasket. It is pretty traumatic for new or recently new owners.

    Odors or poor taste of food from lump including grease is mostly due from cooking too quick. The lump has to get past the initial lighting of the lump. The white smoke needs to burn off to a clear or a light blue color.

    Grease, if not burned out from a previous cook or if not gathered in a drip pan from a current cook will possibly put a taste in your cook. Again, burn off the grease or catch the drippings. Sometimes I really enjoy the grease from chicken falling on the lump, great outdoor flavor.

    Baking - there are some fantastic bakers using the egg here on the forum. The reports are great and no off taste. Just ask help/information on baking in a new post and I am sure some of the 'greats' will jump in and help. I have only cooked a Friendship Bread and it turned out fantastic, no wood type taste. I am not an accomplished baker on the egg though.

    Keeping steady temperatures - the egg is ROCK SOLID and one of the very best devices to hold a steady temperature. One has to learn to stabilize the egg and then not play with the vents.

    As far as building an cooking area, actually, that is nice but not necessary. My eggs are exposed to all weather, snow, rain, sun - -23° to 118° and I cook year around. The cold only bothers the person cooking.

    If you have more questions make sure you ask.

    GG
  • Grandpas Grub
    Grandpas Grub Posts: 14,226
    Get a large, use it then decide if you want to get a second and what size.

    There are two of use here, the large is great and extremely versatile. We also have a medium, small and mini.

    GG
  • mint-tulip
    mint-tulip Posts: 171
    Go back and read old posts of people with the exact same concerns as you. Then find that same person several posts later. You will find in almost every case they were more than pleased with their purchase.

    I am one of those people. Two years ago this week I got my first BGE and I had all the same concerns. Now 2 years later I have 3 BGE's and cook on them all the time. Oh and we too have added a cooking area, a table for the Large & tables for the small & mini.

    So far as living in a remote location and not getting to an Eggfest...we had people from California & Canada at the Florida Eggfest...Eggtoberfest in Atlanta will have people from Mexico, Canada & Europe...so exactly how remote are you???? :lol: :silly:
  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
    the number of posts that a member has is no indication of their seriousness. i should know!
    :laugh:
    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
  • Pharmeggist
    Pharmeggist Posts: 1,191
    Well if this helps....

    My Dad has a Medium BGE
    My Brother has Medium BGE
    My Sister has a Large BGE
    I have a Large, Small & Mini BGE
    My neigbor Tim bought a large BGE last summer after I gave him food I prepared on my Eggs
    My other neighbor Carl is going to get a Large BGE in a few weeks after he has had samples off my egg too
    I don't make any money selling eggs... I just like the food it makes and my friends neigbors and family just LOVE EGGED FOOD :woohoo:

    The only regrets you will have is why you waited so long to get one :silly: SERIOUSLY
  • Pharmeggist
    Pharmeggist Posts: 1,191
    About 3 years ago My wife couldn't understand why I would want to get a BGE when I had a practically new gas grill....

    a few years later click on my name to see a picture and you will see she is an egghead too :)


    The gas grill is history NO REGRETS B)
  • Little Chef
    Little Chef Posts: 4,725
    :woohoo: :laugh: :laugh: :silly: Too funny! Great pic! ;)
  • Grillin Guy
    Grillin Guy Posts: 302
    IMHO I'd get a large instead of two mediums. I own a large, small and mini and don't have a medium but my cousin just bought one. My large seems to be a lot more versatile then her medium and my small comes up to heat a lot faster then her medium.
  • Kat
    Kat Posts: 46
    Mint-tulip, we're in the northern Rocky Mountains. We have far more cougars and bears than people in our area.

    Due to health problems I can't travel very far and attending an eggfest just isn't possible.

    I thank everyone for their input!
  • Eggscriber
    Eggscriber Posts: 276
    Hey, my buddy Woodbutcher turned me into an egg addict in a few quick meals. Now I have two large BGE's. I agree with everything that was said here. I would recommend getting one large as well in hope of getting two. The larges have more capacity and a wide range of accessories. I also agree that you don't have to go crazy building an outdoor cooking area for safety. The eggs themselves do not give off that much radiant heat. My eggs are on my wooden deck. As an aside, I did melt my vinyl siding a few years ago however with my gas grill when I had it too close to the house when burning off the last cook! I would recommend keeping your new egg close to a patio door, where you can get to it easily and watch the thermometer through the window while it heats up or cooks. Once you have the hang of it, put it where you like. Having an overhang, or roof over you head is a great luxury. That'll be my next project.
  • Lambchops
    Lambchops Posts: 166
    Kat, I have just made bread on my Egg with no off taste from previous cooks. I have grilled everything from briskets to shrimp.I didn't have to do a clean burn just lump and no wood.
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