Traeger, Big Green Egg, ol' standard Weber, or somethin else?

I'm not a drinker so I just can't get into the BBQ/smoking thing. Been cooking on the same Jenn-Air for approaching 3 decades at this point.
 
Congrats on becoming a dad!

Gas weber makes cooking burgers SO EASY! No clean up at all.

I hated charcoal such a pain in the ass.

No input on smokers and pellet grills n shit cause Im usually cooking for one or two and I dont figure its worth the time needed. If I were cooking for 5 meat lovers then Id consider it.
 
Love my Traeger. I also gave a gas grill for quick small items, but when it comes to making a pork butt, brisket, or even some great bacon, the Traeger is much better.
 
rwdfun said:
You don’t have a grill!? I’m surprised you admitted that. How can you call yourself a man and not have at a bare minimum a small gas camping grill?;)
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I did debate with myself posting this or not lol. And I suppose I do have a little mini-grill that I bring along in the race rig. Overall I figured it'd be worse to enter fatherhood without a proper grill than it would be to admit my failings amongst my brothers.

23103a said:
I just picked up a Traeger Pro 22 yesterday. They're on sale right now, normally $500 but they're selling for $390. Most of the other models are on sale too..
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Yep, Memorial Day run-up sales were what I was thinking lol
 
I went with one of the ceramic egg style grills. They hold heat well and require a minimum of fussing to keep a consistent temperature.
The pellet grills are great. They are easier 99% of the time but it is harder to get a good sear on a steak. But as a new dad the ease of operation would be a huge selling point.
 
Disregard below. Looks like you need something this week. Didn’t read thread just saw asking options in title.

Just get the alfresco 42”. Don’t get the sear zone! Buy the solid fuel box and you’ll have a big gas grill on one side and a solid fuel on the other. I (had) one at my old house and will be getting another as soon as I put a new built in my new house.

I had the sear zone in my old one and it was a waste of space, and reduced down the size of regular cooking if I left the solid fuel in. So to do it all over again, I’ll get the 42” standard and then drop the solid fuel in one side and have plenty of space.

https://grillio.com/alfresco-42-inch-built-in-gas-grill-with-rotisserie
 
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Love my Traegers. I have a full size one at home and a portable Ranger for camping. User friendly and consistent results, whether smoking or cranking them up for grilling.
 
moved into a new house a few years ago that has an outdoor cooking area. Set up with a nice Bull grill and Bull stainless griddle. I have had my DGE for a few years prior and moved that in. I use the BGE and the griddle pretty evenly with a slight nod to the griddle for fried rice, smash burgers, bacon, scattered/smothered/covered. I have used my grill probably 3-4 times in the past 3 years (and probably two were using the rotisserie function for stuff I couldn't fit on the egg).

The kicker with the egg is to have the right accessories. First up is a better way to get the coals started. I use the Looft lighter. I can have my medium egg up to temps (325-350) in probably 8-10 minutes max. I have the original and it works fine. I think you can get 2 for $100. Buy one for a friend or have a spare.

www.looft.com

Second up is a way to measure and control temps. I have a ThermoWorks Signals. One channel for air temp in the egg, the other three you can use for whatever you are cooking. Most of the time I just use the air temp. Then you HAVE to add in the Bellows fan system. Plugs into the Signals (or Smoke if you are on a budget) and has a fan to control the temperature inside the egg. Wifi connected and an alarm to too high or too low and you can change temps away from the grill. So if you started the cook at 8am, and are at a kids game at noon and notice the temp going down you can kick in the fan a bit more to raise it back up. Smoke 2 channel is around $165, Signals 4 channel is around $240 and the bellows is around $75. They go on sale often (buy direct from the website, sign up for alerts) so you can get it for quite a bit less.

https://www.thermoworks.com/shop/by-activity/bbq-grilling/

with both of these things (a way to get th fire hit quickly and control temps) you will enjoy the BGE a lot more.
 
crashman said:
I went with one of the ceramic egg style grills. They hold heat well and require a minimum of fussing to keep a consistent temperature.
The pellet grills are great. They are easier 99% of the time but it is harder to get a good sear on a steak. But as a new dad the ease of operation would be a huge selling point.
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This pellet grill solves that https://www.recteq.com/products/rt-b380-wood-pellet-grill, sears really well, especially with a cast iron grate. You can smoke or grill on it.
 
zamboiv said:
Disregard below. Looks like you need something this week. Didn’t read thread just saw asking options in title.

Just get the alfresco 42”. Don’t get the sear zone! Buy the solid fuel box and you’ll have a big gas grill on one side and a solid fuel on the other. I (had) one at my old house and will be getting another as soon as I put a new built in my new house.

I had the sear zone in my old one and it was a waste of space, and reduced down the size of regular cooking if I left the solid fuel in. So to do it all over again, I’ll get the 42” standard and then drop the solid fuel in one side and have plenty of space.

https://grillio.com/alfresco-42-inch-built-in-gas-grill-with-rotisserie
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Hahaha, when I buy a $2-3M home, then I’ll think about an $8k grill, but until then, keep your bougie grill to yourself! :crackup:
 
Monsterdood said:
Hahaha, when I buy a $2-3M home, then I’ll think about an $8k grill, but until then, keep your bougie grill to yourself! :crackup:
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I’m working with a Weber gas and my Weber smoky mountain from 2012. I’d upload a photo of my old setup with the alfresco but I can never get the photos to be small enough I’m illiterate with this damn phone.

you still in ct doing the aerospace engineering stuff? Hope alls well with you and the family.
 
Consider adding a griddle to your arsenal, as well. It’s been a game changer, for me. Traeger gets the nod, because it’s more resistant to wind. But, the 2nd ranked Weber 36” I bought was half the money. These are the only two brands with big enough grease traps to fry copious amounts of bacon, which I eat a lot of.
 
I've had my large Green Egg for 10 years. Use it at least 4 times a week. Lifetime warranty. Smoker and grill. Holds constant temp for hours. Relightable charcoal. Lifetime warranty. Check F/B marketplace. People get rid of practically new ones with accessories for a song when they move because they don't want to move the heavy suckers. Just make sure.you get the original receipt for the warranty. Pool table syndrome. I have replaced the gaskets once ($35) and broke the firebox. I dropped it on my deck while cleaning.it. Went to the local Ace Hardware (not where I bought it) and he handed me a new one. I even told him it was my fault! I wouldn't recommend anything bigger or smaller than a large. The massive ones take too long to heat up, burn more charcoal, and have 'hot spots^. If you need more cooking space get 2 larges. You can also cook at different temps.
 
zamboiv said:
I’m working with a Weber gas and my Weber smoky mountain from 2012. I’d upload a photo of my old setup with the alfresco but I can never get the photos to be small enough I’m illiterate with this damn phone.

you still in ct doing the aerospace engineering stuff? Hope alls well with you and the family.
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Hey, yeah, still in CT for now, but currently practicing the pretirement thing, but looking for my next gig. I might be moving back west possibly to AZ but not for sure just yet. And I’m still working with my Weber Genesis gas grill I got 18 years ago. Weber stainless steel grills last….
 
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