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Brand new HastyBake 357 Pro

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    Brand new HastyBake 357 Pro

    Hi I just received and put together a hasty bake 357 pro. Wondering about seasoning it like my other cookers.
    I'm sure I need to wipe it down and light it up to burn off the factory residue but should I wipe season it with cooking oil / fat etc?
    Just cook a couple of fatties? Hope this is in the right category...

    #2
    Going through the same process. Being stainless, i don't think you need to season as you would more rust-susceptible materials, but thus far temperature control has been a doozy. There's a guy on the FB group with a 357 who seems to have his temperatures locked in and the inside of his was almost all black with residue. I doubt you can get that with a coating of pam, so i think the your fattie idea is the right one.

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      #3
      Thanks for the response. You know I just might do both. I never thought to use pam. On my WSM's it was just a couple of big honker fatties. Something cheap that I didn't care about.

      (But hey if they turn out I'll eat 'em!)

      BTW Did you wipe out and burn off all the factory crap first? It's such a big cooker and it's winter. Feelin' kind of lazy in the cold...

      Comment


        #4
        10 years ago, when I got my Gourmet, I wiped the interior with a light coat of vegetable oil (canola, I think), loaded the firebox with about 1 full weber chimney of lump charcoal and burned it until it was gone. I kept the firebox high up and distributed the lump evenly and let the cooker run like that until all the charcoal was burnt out.

        After I did that, I started cooked normally on it. At the beginning, I had a lot of temp control issues. I solved those through sealing the firebox door. I don't think you should have to do that on the 357

        Comment


          #5
          Thank you!!! Yes the seal on the 357 looks pretty tight. Gonna do it this weekend. I'll let you know how it went

          Comment


          • ecowper
            ecowper commented
            Editing a comment
            Looking forward to hearing about your 357 adventures

          #6
          Congrats on the new cooker. I enjoy my Gourmet 257 alot. Have only had one wild ride/kabuki dance temp wise since I picked it up.

          Comment


            #7
            Hah! Thanks!!!
            Any advice would be appreciated.

            Comment


            • Smoldering Flea
              Smoldering Flea commented
              Editing a comment
              as you season it up, be aware that [at least mine] leaks some of the seasoning juice from the corners onto the ground. May want to look into a mat if that will be an issue for you.

            #8
            Most everyone on the FB HB group recommends spraying down the insides of the grill as well as the grates even though it's stainless. I think it takes getting the insides pretty gunked up before the 357 will get a lot more air tight and temps will be easier to control.

            Since they added the gaskets and the piece of metal at the bottom of the door, I think it's helped a lot on fire control.

            I can't wait to hear your thoughts on this grill once you use it for awhile. I want one but the price and a few other things has held me back from buying one. I forgot to say congratulations on your new grill.

            Comment


              #9
              Thank you. You are right about the price. My wife surprised me with it for my B-Day way back in August. It was compensation for having to miss the Meat Up in Memphis due to COVID.

              Experienced a major hiccup with this thing. Couldn't use it and almost gave up on it.

              To tell you the truth we never would have bought it had we known all the trouble we would have. At any rate we seem to be good to go. I'll keep you posted.

              Comment


              • Smoldering Flea
                Smoldering Flea commented
                Editing a comment
                Can I ask what the major hiccup was? (New user myself.)

              • 70monte
                70monte commented
                Editing a comment
                I would like to know too since this is a grill that I'm still interested in and was thinking of getting some time in the future.

              #10
              You refer to "all the trouble". Could you elaborate on that, please?

              Comment


                #11
                It's a long story and I don't have an axe to grind. Just want to get started cooking.

                Comment


                  #12
                  Hi all

                  I'm happy to report that I had a great first cook today on my 357 Pro. The other day I lit a nice hot fire to burn out any factory garbage. The temp got up to about 375 with just a 1/2 load of lump charcoal. It held that temp for 2 hours and I decided to take advantage of our tropical Chicago weather to eat outdoors at our local Mexican restaurant. 2 hours later it was at 280. Pretty impressive.

                  Today I sprayed the sides and grates with pam, put in the same amount of charcoal as before, filled the water pan and covered the other side with a heat deflector. Over the water pan I placed two big bacon wrapped fatties. The temp was pretty stable: 250-275. 90 mins later over the heat deflector I added rack of St. Louis Ribs. I was able to control the temp well just with the side vents and added a bit of charcoal or wood as needed.
                  Pretty happy with the results.

                  Next up searing some steaks.

                  Comment


                  • ecowper
                    ecowper commented
                    Editing a comment
                    That’s pretty solid for the first couple times you are running it.

                  • Smoldering Flea
                    Smoldering Flea commented
                    Editing a comment
                    When you say a half load. Do you mean charcoal pan was half full? Or a quarter full? And how open were the vents on your second. Cook? Thanks

                  #13
                  Sounds awesome. Any pics of the finished product?

                  Comment


                    #14
                    I just gotta say that it took me about a year with my 256 to get that solid perry green ..... three things I think this makes clear

                    First, the internet is amazing. Ten years ago it was pretty impossible to find this kind of info on how to set up and run a Hasty-Bake. I was working off Amazing Ribs and Hasty Bake websites and nothing else. Today, there’s hundreds of folks in communities like this one (and many others) who will help you figure it out.

                    Second, you might be better at this than me cause that was amazing for just the first couple days.

                    Third, the 357 may be a better cooking machine than the 256 .... Love to know that’s true.

                    Comment


                    • 70monte
                      70monte commented
                      Editing a comment
                      The 357 should be a better cooking machine since IMO it has a better vent system and that they put a flange at the bottom of the side door so it can't draft in a bunch of extra air plus using gaskets around the side door and lid. All of the reviews that I've read said that it's more fuel efficient than the regular HB models and easier to control temps.

                    #15
                    Hi Sorry for the lag time on all the kind responses , questions.

                    Regarding the load of charcoal: I used the lump charcoal as recommended by the manufacturer and just placed it in the front half of the pan - it was pretty full.
                    I had the vents wide open until it lit and then I monitored the temp with a thermoworks dot placed right at the level of the meat. Adjusted the vents as the temp rose . Added water to the pan as needed.

                    Regarding "I might be better at this than you" it was probably beginners luck... and closely following everything. I tend to get lazy / smug and then I end up with a piece of garbage on subsequent cooks.

                    My last cook was a couple ribeyes. No water pan. Direct heat with grill grates and I decided to just dump in a load of briquets moving the crank up and down just to see what would happen. The heat zoomed up so I lowered the tray. Hard to stabilize. Grill grates are neat but like everything it takes practice to get it right and I was a bit impatient.

                    The steaks were kind of MEH but more of a function of the quality of the meat. Sitting in the freezer too long and I bought 'em on sale. But it was good practice...

                    Next I made about 20 ABTs on a sheet pan. Used a combination of briquets and lump charcoal. Again I had temps that were too high with direct heat. Even with the vents closed. That seems to be the control issue for me.

                    The nice thing though was being able to move them to the upper tray. They turned out nice.

                    Lastly, you are right on about the internet community. So many good ways to learn through sharing. And yes this cooker is very fuel efficient.

                    I do wish Hastybake would publish at least an e book of basic recipes pertaining to the 357 to help us all trouble shoot.

                    Thanks again for all the support/ encouragement . Time to start planning my Super Bowl menu. (Hah! I almost spelled it Super Bowel. (A Freudian slip I guess being a BEAR fan)

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