Wife gave me the ok to shop for a new grill...which is good because she's historically pretty bad at buying me gifts for the holidays. For the last 8 years, I've had a CharBroil Tru Infrared gas grill. I loved this grill. It let me do everyday cooking and the pan allowed me to smoke meats, keeping the temps low without the flareups. I was looking at these again and it appears they've changed the design away from using the pan. Now, they have terrible ignition and the knobs would break fairly easily. Otherwise, they cooked great and the replacement parts weren't much. But without that pan, it defeats the purpose for me since I can't smoke in it like I did previously. So, I'm in the market. More and more, I'm leaning towards a Traeger. From what I've been told, you can do the everyday cooking and the smoking. I'm looking a the 22 series size. Anyone have a good reason why I shouldn't go this route? I'm not interested in the Green Egg and I don't really want a traditional smoker because we like to grill 2-3 times a week. This seems like a good middle ground between a gas grill and traditional smoker. Anyone have one and/or a good reason why I should look elsewhere?
I bought my Traeger junior 3 years ago and it's the best grill i've ever owned. I'd say it's the most used cooking appliance I own. It's not just the smoking either because you can get it up to 450 so you can make a rotisserie chicken in a little over an hour. It's a game changer. I make pizzas, cookies in it. I highly recommend it.
See, that's where I'm confused. I keep seeing where 450 is good enough for searing. How do you do your steaks?
I have preheated the grill to 450 and seared steaks before but since i like my steaks cooked medium rare i need a but more control. I now reverse sear cooking the steaks to 125 internally on the Traeger at 250 degrees (takes about 45 mins) then quick sear on a skillet inside with butter for less than a minute. They come out perfect with light smoke edges.
I was in the same situation as you with a CharBroil Tru Infrared gas grill that fulfilled its useful life. I purchased a Traeger Grill from Costco a couple of weeks ago. So far we have made Chicken and burgers and they turned out very good. We have noticed so far that we don't get the same smoky taste that you would get on a charcoal grill. We probably need to try different pellets. Other than that, everything is good!
About 10 mins. I must add that weather does play a factor. I bought some fire bricks to help control the temp better in the winter time because it will burn a lot more chips to help keep temp in cold weather.
That's not bad at all. I figured it would be more like 30 min. Going to check it out today and make a decision. Thanks for the info...
More interested in what historically bad gifts your wife has given you? Terrible gifts or no gifts at all?
The one grill to rule them all: https://kalamazoogourmet.com/products/k1000hb-hybrid-fire-built-in-grill/
Im with Voodoo and say any variant of a Kamado grill is where its at. Also, I sear at 500-600 degrees with my grill- yall need a sous vide in your lives.
Looked at the Traeger tonight and passed. I guess I didn’t realize it requires an outlet somewhat near by. Our backyard set up would have to change dramatically or have a permanent extension cord in an area I’d rather not have an extension cord. And maybe it was the one they had at Home Depot, but it just didn’t feel all that well made. I thought the door would have more weight to it than it did. Not sure what I’m going to do now...
I couldnt imagine not having my green egg. I have been on a smoking kick lately and it works perfectly. Easily sears a steak. It still cooks like it did in 2012 and it lived outside in the elements for 3 years.
$99 barrel pit from the hardware store, seasoned. Build wood fire. Make bed of coals. Cook steak over coals. Eat steak. Also great for pork ribs/butts, chickens, and all other kinds of indirect cooking.
