FYI, this is a 4 min reverse sear flipping every minute on SmokeFire @ 515 degrees. Show me that from another pooper. Also, to note, this was the least crusty steak. I ended up thawing the wrong package and cooking an extra steak. This was the least crusty pictured after eating the others.
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MAK 2 Star General
KBQ C-60
Weber Summit Charcoal Grillw/ Big Joetisserie, SnS LP, and VortexWeber Genesis II - S-345
Weber Traveler
Fireboard 2 Drive
Anova Precision Sous Vide
All the (pellet) grills I’ve loved before:
Traeger Junior Elite^
GMG DB
Traeger Texas Elite
Memphis Pro§
Traeger Pro 575
CampChef SmokePro STX (ugly grills need love too)
Weber SmokeFire EX4§
Traeger Select
CampChef Woodwind WiFi w/SearBox^
Weber SmokeFire EX4§
^ = Favorites
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Originally posted by glitchy View PostWell signs are pointing back to pellets, maybe there was enough in the auger and chute to disrupt the test yesterday as everything past the first hour was fine. Today I fired it up straight to 375 and was perfect. It convinced me enough that while running to get the wife cupcakes for her birthday today that I stopped at Lowe’s and picked up the second attachment since they were half price.
Strictly Weber pellets from day 1. Luckily I've been happy with their product, otherwise I'd be pretty disappointed that we're stuck only using theirs. Not really sure why there's seem to work fine and other's are causing problems. Loaded up on hickory at Lowes myself as well last week. That was the only type they had discounted at my store.
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zinfella I see your comment on the above post about steaks and pics. Reverse searing on the smokefire has become one of my favorite cooks on this thing. Here's a few that I just grabbed out of my phone after a quick search.
*Note that these are not all necessarily the same steaks, just fyi. Just some random pics I grabbed quickly from the vault*
**Edit - Also, the wife prefers closer to medium so sometimes they're not as red as most folks like. I try to keep them as close as I can to medium rare while also keeping her happy. I generally shoot for 135'ish with her liking closer to 140 internal. The tomahawks below were definitely rare (but I forgot to snag inside pics!) because I only took them up to 120'ish internal before searing. They were so thick that a few minutes of sear on both sides wasn't enough to make much of a dent in the internal temp. However, I was too afraid of overdoing them so I pulled them early.**
Last edited by BDCarp04; November 30, 2020, 10:56 AM.
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Originally posted by BDCarp04 View Postzinfella I see your comment on the above post about steaks and pics. Reverse searing on the smokefire has become one of my favorite cooks on this thing. Here's a few that I just grabbed out of my phone after a quick search.
*Note that these are not all necessarily the same steaks, just fyi. Just some random pics I grabbed quickly from the vault*
**Edit - Also, the wife prefers closer to medium so sometimes they're not as red as most folks like. I try to keep them as close as I can to medium rare while also keeping her happy. I generally shoot for 135'ish with her liking closer to 140 internal. The tomahawks below were definitely rare (but I forgot to snag inside pics!) because I only took them up to 120'ish internal before searing. They were so thick that a few minutes of sear on both sides wasn't enough to make much of a dent in the internal temp. However, I was too afraid of overdoing them so I pulled them early.**
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Club Member
- Jul 2019
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- Central IA
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MAK 2 Star General
KBQ C-60
Weber Summit Charcoal Grillw/ Big Joetisserie, SnS LP, and VortexWeber Genesis II - S-345
Weber Traveler
Fireboard 2 Drive
Anova Precision Sous Vide
All the (pellet) grills I’ve loved before:
Traeger Junior Elite^
GMG DB
Traeger Texas Elite
Memphis Pro§
Traeger Pro 575
CampChef SmokePro STX (ugly grills need love too)
Weber SmokeFire EX4§
Traeger Select
CampChef Woodwind WiFi w/SearBox^
Weber SmokeFire EX4§
^ = Favorites
§ = Love/Hate Relationships
zinfella The discussion about searing in the thread is generally in comparison to other pellet grills, not to charcoal. cast iron skillets, infrared burners, etc. I can fire up my WSCG and use the cold grate technique to create what you have shown.
Pellet grills are notoriously poor to mediocre at searing, so the main point with searing on a SmokeFire is to say "show us another pellet grill that can sear anywhere near as well without other tools to aid the process or reconfiguring the grill" (like the Memphis direct flame insert). There are two problems with the reconfiguring in that you are reconfiguring a HOT grill mid-cook when reverse searing and you usually go from 500 plus square inches of cooking space down to about 100 square inches or so that actually sear effectively directly over the fire pot.
I usually don't target quite the sear you pictured personally, but it could possibly be accomplished on a SmokeFire most easily with flipped grill grates or a cast iron pan or griddle. You could also put the grates in cold when you are ready to start cooking as well. However, you still will not get the same type of infrared energy you get over a bet of glowing coals, nor the convenience of a round grate for the cold grate method.
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Originally posted by glitchy View Postzinfella The discussion about searing in the thread is generally in comparison to other pellet grills, not to charcoal. cast iron skillets, infrared burners, etc. I can fire up my WSCG and use the cold grate technique to create what you have shown.
Pellet grills are notoriously poor to mediocre at searing, so the main point with searing on a SmokeFire is to say "show us another pellet grill that can sear anywhere near as well without other tools to aid the process or reconfiguring the grill" (like the Memphis direct flame insert). There are two problems with the reconfiguring in that you are reconfiguring a HOT grill mid-cook when reverse searing and you usually go from 500 plus square inches of cooking space down to about 100 square inches or so that actually sear effectively directly over the fire pot.
I usually don't target quite the sear you pictured personally, but it could possibly be accomplished on a SmokeFire most easily with flipped grill grates or a cast iron pan or griddle. You could also put the grates in cold when you are ready to start cooking as well. However, you still will not get the same type of infrared energy you get over a bet of glowing coals, nor the convenience of a round grate for the cold grate method.
"Do you have any pics of steaks from the SF with more crust, a stronger sear, hopefully at med rare, or even raraer?".
I t was then that BDCarp04 responded with his own sear pics. So, I replied back to him with a pic showing the sear that we are looking for. I realize that degree of sear is not for everyone, but it is for many.
I don't use Grill Grates, don't use the cold grate method, or do any reverse searing. I simply start and finish over high heat. I thought that since the SF can produce 700Ëš +, I could work right in the flames, turning often, to get the sear I want and keep the inside at 130Ëš. But, you're saying that isn't realistic with a SF, so, between that and my inability to do the maintenance on one, I'm glad that I didn't buy one. Enjoy yours.
Last edited by zinfella; December 1, 2020, 03:27 PM.
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Different grills often require different techniques. Pellet grills just don't cook the same ways as a super intense infrared fire. In general they are better smokers than they are grills, the SmokeFire just does a lot better job at grilling than most, if not all others. Also, IMO grills better than a lot of gassers until you start spending $1000.
All of the replies I've made have been to do my best to help you decide if it's the right fit for you. Pellet grills aren't right for everyone.
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Also, have you looked or thought about the Masterbuilt Gravity Series? I know they might not prove to be the most reliable, but many people are pretty happy with the results, they get a little hotter than the SmokeFire and you might be able to sear better near the firebox. I think most of the quality issues are safety switches that might not be that difficult to replace.
Anyway, if you're still looking for an easier cooker, I hope you find the right one.
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I also thought of one more thing to share, pellet grills and I'm guessing the Masterbuilt as well, are really the definition of "if you're looking, you ain't cooking". They cook with convection so don't really cook well with the lid open, so you can't really flip every 15-30 seconds. Every minute is pushing it even and you have to be fast or by time you've done a couple flips the grill is down to 300 degrees. You can cook all hot and fast, just going to get more banding, but also more crust.
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No sweat on the comments, it's all good. I was relying on Max's SF review where he showed a front center temp of 718Ëš and 685Ëš on the right side, when cranked all the way up.
My good buddy Dave has a Masterbuilt 560. and it foes to 700Ëš. He did rib eyes Sunday, grilled to 110Ëš, turn the MB 560 to 700Ëš. then did a reverse sear at 1 minute per side. He's a reverse sear lover, I'm not.
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The highest set temp is 600, and it might shoot a little over that, but I think with the firmware updates they've made it doesn't overshoot as often or by as much as it did initially. I'm pretty sure I could not get what you pictured above on my SmokeFire with only 20-25 degrees of reverse searing room to play with. That definitely appears to be a more intense flame to work with than the SmokeFire.
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I had not thought about FW updates changing grill temps, and that could spell disaster for anyone counting on the high temps that Max got.
You have been helpful since I enlisted here in the Grillers Army, and now I know that pellet grills are not the right path for me.
Thanks for your help.
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I can also be into that style of high heat, fast and hard to get where you're going. Especially this time of year when I'm getting home from work and it's already dark out and I don't have a lot of free time (or daylight) to play around. It makes for a delicious steak too!
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Also, just to add - I think when I say I've come to love reverse searing on the SF, for me it's that extra layer of smokiness I can now add to my steaks by letting them come up low and slow on an actual smoker and then being able to blast them. Without having to choose between a grill or a smoker or having to fire up two different systems. Totally understand if that's not your thing.
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One of the reasons that my buddy Dave is into reverse searing, via sous Vide, or using the grill to get up to 110Ëš, is that he likes to enjoy a martini during that time. There's room for all of us, each with their own tastes, here un the Griller's Army.
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Hey glitchy , I re-read this thread again (I've read it many times now...).
Since you are now using the wet smoke kit/foil pans underneath the grill grates for LnS cooks, have you noticed any differences in taste/smoke profile or cook times compared to not using anything before? My sense is no, especially if you are just using them as drip versus versus water pans, which would extend the cook time a lot.
I was watching Baby Back Maniac and Harry Soo this morning, and Baby Back Maniac in particular seems pretty set on the "stock or nothing" mindset, which is why he returned it, and Soo's cleaning process for the SmokeFire looked pretty painful.
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I haven't noticed anything in difference in taste, but my palate isn't as refined as many others, though I definitely notice when it's drastically less. I also usually use a fireboard probe close to the meat and set me temp based upon that. Often with drip pans, especially with 2 in the EX4, I notice that the temp over the pans is usually around 25 degrees off at low temps, I just bump the controller up 25 degrees to compensate. I also try to only use one pan if what I'm cooking fits over it.
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I've done 12 cooks on the EX4 so far. The only problem I've had was the next to the last cook I did was some chicken at 350, for some reason after 1/2 hour the temp jumped to 450 and was really spitting out pellets. I shut it done and then restarted and it ran fine. Here's some pics of last nights cook. Beef back ribs, using APL's recipe cooking a total of 3 hours @ 325. I know the the pics don't look very appetizing, but they tasted really good. I think I'll try doing them at 300 next time, so they don't get so over cooked.Last edited by wrgilb; December 6, 2020, 06:32 PM.
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glitchy thanks for this thread - I’m no where near purchasing a Pellet smoker/grill but you sharing your experience has been helpful and entertaining.
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Club Member
- Jul 2019
- 2108
- Central IA
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MAK 2 Star General
KBQ C-60
Weber Summit Charcoal Grillw/ Big Joetisserie, SnS LP, and VortexWeber Genesis II - S-345
Weber Traveler
Fireboard 2 Drive
Anova Precision Sous Vide
All the (pellet) grills I’ve loved before:
Traeger Junior Elite^
GMG DB
Traeger Texas Elite
Memphis Pro§
Traeger Pro 575
CampChef SmokePro STX (ugly grills need love too)
Weber SmokeFire EX4§
Traeger Select
CampChef Woodwind WiFi w/SearBox^
Weber SmokeFire EX4§
^ = Favorites
§ = Love/Hate Relationships
Ok, so I have a new SmokeFire annoyance. Weber has been continuing to update their mobile app and it looks better and is more intuitive to use (which is a good thing). So, today I'm smoking a Mexi-chuck and decided that I'd just use the Weber probes instead of getting out the Fireboard and play with the updated app a bit. Got everything going. set my target temp, checked on it every hour or two, bumped the temp up 25 degrees after foiling, everything going well.
Then, I was thinking it's about time for this thing to be hitting temp, look at my phone, no missed alerts, unlock my phone open the Weber Connect App and BOOM the alerts fire. REALLY, you only send alerts when you are unlocked and app open? What a joke. Luckily I only overshot by 2 degrees and it's chuck roast, so I turn down the grill some and leave it on for an hour after hitting 205 anyway so glad I verified this odd behavior with this cook. I've been suspecting it for a while but I have been using the Fireboard for monitoring, so the only alert I would get from the Weber app is when the grill reaches the set point.
I'm glad I have the Fireboard, but it's pretty disappointing that when a fancy system is already on board the cooker you cannot use or rely on it. I mean really, who is going to leave their phone screen on all day long with the Weber app active all day? I get push alerts all day and night for every stinking other app I seem to have on my phone and they are all in the background (if even running at all).
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One of my sons has had a similar experience with his Davy Crockett, he uses an Android phone, and I don't know if he ever
resolved the issue. I.also don't know if the iPhone performs differently, but it wouldn't surprise me. It's just BS that Weber has not yet got a handle on their IT issues.
I know you really like your SF, so I hope it all gets fixed soon.Last edited by zinfella; January 11, 2021, 06:48 PM.
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