Any Big Green Egg owners here? I'm considering buying one.

[SavageRunner]

It's time for a grill. My roommate moved out and we were using his grill. I'm thinking about a big green egg. I am not a real experienced cook but willing to learn. I've read they can be tricky to learn to use. What are your thoughts and experience with one. Thanks.

 

[Planetölogy]

We bought a Vision Kamado ceramic grill from Costco two years ago. It's fantastic. Not a BGE so we call it the avocado. Grew tired of the flare-ups on the old propane unit. We've done kabobs and pizza on it as well as traditional grilling fare. Not as fast as propane and that's a plus. Temperature is controlled via vents. Get a charcoal chimney to go with it.

 

[BrianSD_42]

I'd prefer a gas Weber but I know these are not comparable products

 

[NateMob]

I have Large one that I use extensively, literally every meal that comes off of it is great. They can be tricky to learn at first but the internet is a huge help as there is a massive following of the BGE. Anytime I am looking for cook times and temperatures I go straight to google and/or youtube and I've never been let down.

 

[SavageRunner]

We bought a Vision Kamado ceramic grill from Costco two years ago. It's fantastic. Not a BGE so we call it the avocado. Grew tired of the flare-ups on the old propane unit. We've done kabobs and pizza on it as well as traditional grilling fare. Not as fast as propane and that's a plus. Temperature is controlled via vents. Get a charcoal chimney to go with it.

What is this charcoal chimney thing? I think I might go on a big green egg hunt this weekend. The lump coal you use in the grill, Is it reusable or have to buy new charcoal every cooking session? Thanks for everyone's info

 

[Planetölogy]

The charcoal chimney is a cylindrical container used to start the briquettes without lighter fluid. You may have some charcoal left that you can burn again but you'll need to use some new each time.

 

[BettysNephew]

I have an XLBGE and a MedBGE. Love them both. I recently cooked 47 lb. of pulled pork on the XL at one time. The Medium is more suited for 2-4 folks depending on what you are cooking. Pizza is fabulous from the Egg. If you are buying new which I suggest as there is no warranty on used while new is lifetime, we can discuss accessories as some of the BGE stuff is great but there are other suppliers that have certain better designed accessories. The Eggs are a bit pricy but worth it in my opinion because of the versatility and customer service.

NEVER EVER use lighter fluid on the charcoal for the Egg!!!

If you are near Atlanta check out Rosswell (SP) Hardware for the Egg. They have repeatedly been mentioned as a go to place on the Big Green Egg - EGGhead Forum - The Ultimate Cooking Experience...... which is a very good site for things BGE.

There is a learning curve but the main thing to remember is more air=hotter, less air=cooler. It is also important to cook to temperature not time.

 

[wadle5]

Dad has one and thoroughly enjoys it. But I guess you could say I do more, because I get all the food from it. Awesome thing once you learn how it works.

 

[SavageRunner]

I have an XLBGE and a MedBGE. Love them both. I recently cooked 47 lb. of pulled pork on the XL at one time. The Medium is more suited for 2-4 folks depending on what you are cooking. Pizza is fabulous from the Egg. If you are buying new which I suggest as there is no warranty on used while new is lifetime, we can discuss accessories as some of the BGE stuff is great but there are other suppliers that have certain better designed accessories. The Eggs are a bit pricy but worth it in my opinion because of the versatility and customer service.

NEVER EVER use lighter fluid on the charcoal for the Egg!!!

If you are near Atlanta check out Rosswell (SP) Hardware for the Egg. They have repeatedly been mentioned as a go to place on the Big Green Egg - EGGhead Forum - The Ultimate Cooking Experience...... which is a very good site for things BGE.

There is a learning curve but the main thing to remember is more air=hotter, less air=cooler. It is also important to cook to temperature not time.

Wow,that looks delicious. I called Roswell Hardware and they have a great price on them. I will be purchasing one tomorrow. It comes with Nest(I'll only use temporarily) grill gripper, ash tool, and charcoal. Can't wait to try it out.

 

[Ol'Blue]

I have the XL Egg. It is amazing and worth every penny. I will also tell you this too. NEVER USE LIGHTER FLUID IN THEM!!!!!! That is a major NO NO! The Lump coal is great. It dose take some getting use to but once you cook on it a few time it is easy after that! The steaks. The burgers are so good the pizza's are amazing too. You will love it!

I did over 35lbs of meat for a party one night. It was pulled pork!

Blue

 

[BettysNephew]

I would suggest NOT buying the plate setter/Eggvector for indirect cooks. If it's included in the package maybe, but there are better ways of doing this. Instead go to the Ceramic Grill Store site and check out the Adjustable Rig/Woo2 setups. They are a fair bit more money but you can cook truly HUGE amounts of meat and it also has indirect capability plus close to the coal cooking. I could have easily put 2 more pork butts on which would have put me at 60+ lb. on the pictured cook above. You are going to have to trust me on this but it gets rid of many haphazard ways of doing multiple level and raised grid cooks and makes your life easier when the time comes for such cooks. The BGE pizza stones are excellent pieces, but their flip up raised grid thing sucks. If you want one, let me know and I will send you this P.O.S. that is flimsy and pretty much useless for any amount of weight. Be sure to check out that Egghead website for more info than you can imagine about the Egg and cooking on it.

 

[BettysNephew]

Oh yes, keep the first couple of cooks at 350°F or so to allow the ceramic to get conditioned. I don't know why but it is a good idea according to most. Also since you are so close if it's not too late, get tickets to the Eggtoberfest at Stone Mountain to see many of the possibilities of what the Egg can do. Free tastings. I have never been but hopefully next year.

 

[cashmoney]

If you haven't noticed, the BGE has a cult following.

 

[BettysNephew]

Cult? ME? Never. Now where did I leave that glass of green Kool Aid?

 

[meRockboost]

I got a traeger and I like it.

 

[SavageRunner]

Well, I took the plunge and bought it. Bought it Saturday afternoon and assembled it that night. Didn't get a chance to test it out yet. Hopefully I will Wednesday or Thursday. I can't wait. The old lady asked me what it cost. I said you don't want to know and left it at that. Maybe once she taste the burgers off of it she won't care, ha. Since it will last a lifetime and it's a quality product it's no biggie. Thanks for all the advice. Hopefully the first cook goes well.

 

[ret42]

Let us know how you like it.

Upon seeing this thread, you got me curious. I've been in the market for a grill since we bought our house this summer, but didn't know exactly what I wanted. I liked the idea of a gas grill for the convenience, but that's about it. Charcoal seems a lot more diverse in it's uses, but I didn't really know where to start. I saw this and started resarching, liked what everyone had to say about them, as well as other similar grills (Kamado Joe's, Vision, etc.)

I ended up picking up a Chargriller Akorn Kamado from Lowe's last night for a fraction of the price of a Big Green Egg. Now before you murder me [MENTION=116008]BettysNephew[/MENTION], I know it's not the same quality, or going to last nearly as long, but my thoughts were if I like this style of grill enough, then I can upgrade to the real deal in a few years or however long it takes this one to die. Last thing I would want is to spend that much money on a grill, find out it's not for me, then be stuck with an ugly lawn ornament.

Last night I ended up making burgers, and maple bacon wrapped chicken. I'm no grill master by any means, but they turned out pretty fantastic if I do say so myself. :hungry:

 

[Jernik]

I've read about people doing low n slow smokes with those BGE's. They do have a pretty loyal following, but from what I've seen/read about them they're good pits.

Just gonna throw this out because I've received some good tips/info there - smokingmeatforums. Seems like a pretty good bunch of people there, and some good Q!

 

[cashmoney]

Definitely a good forum to read. I used it a bunch when I was building my UDS and afterwards to learn how to cook on it. Bunch of good folks on there.

 

[BettysNephew]

Let us know how you like it.

Upon seeing this thread, you got me curious. I've been in the market for a grill since we bought our house this summer, but didn't know exactly what I wanted. I liked the idea of a gas grill for the convenience, but that's about it. Charcoal seems a lot more diverse in it's uses, but I didn't really know where to start. I saw this and started resarching, liked what everyone had to say about them, as well as other similar grills (Kamado Joe's, Vision, etc.)

I ended up picking up a Chargriller Akorn Kamado from Lowe's last night for a fraction of the price of a Big Green Egg. Now before you murder me [MENTION=116008]BettysNephew[/MENTION], I know it's not the same quality, or going to last nearly as long, but my thoughts were if I like this style of grill enough, then I can upgrade to the real deal in a few years or however long it takes this one to die. Last thing I would want is to spend that much money on a grill, find out it's not for me, then be stuck with an ugly lawn ornament.

Last night I ended up making burgers, and maple bacon wrapped chicken. I'm no grill master by any means, but they turned out pretty fantastic if I do say so myself. :hungry:

[MENTION=126018]ret42[/MENTION] No bad vibes here at all, most of the folks with BGEs also started out with other grills and chose to convert later, as did I. Those other grills work also. Truthfully sometime in the future I will likely buy a smaller Weber gasser for the quick one or two burger cooks. When I purchased my first BGE there were not any dealers in my area that carried anything similar, so the Egg it was. Vision did not exist to the best of my knowledge and the Kamado and Primo lines were not available here. There is a place for gassers, stick burners, Weber kettles (I still own one) and all the rest. Some will do certain types of cooking a bit better than my Egg, but the BGE is the most versatile I have seen for doing many different types of cooks due to its' construction and wide variety of aftermarket accessories available. I am very glad you joined the kamado grill club and again do not be afraid to peruse the Eggheadforum.com as you will find much good info there. Just be aware there are a few of the old timers on board that josh each other pretty good and don't try to blatantly sell anything as a promotional product there as you will get the flaming of your life. One of the fellows put some tee shirts up for sale that had his business logo on them two years ago and he still gets ribbed about it to this day. It is a great group with a lot of knowledge. I am BettysNephew there also.