Bye bye Traeger

[finnman]

I may be called a blasphemer or a heretic, but I have given my Traeger away! By by, good riddance, bin voyage, yep all of it! I was tired of replacing hot rods and using electricity to cook and smoke.
So I did this! Bought an oval extra large Primo ceramic grill/smoker! I have not been happier! I got my buddy to order it for me through the company he works for, saved me $350 over retail! Then I found this table made of reclaimed barn wood on CL for....yes $100! So a little cutting, sanding, staining, then lifting, I have anew BBQ table! I have made chicken thighs, baby back ribs, steaks, burgers, all over mesquite lump charcoal or Kingsfords and it's been awesome! I have not even thought about the traeger!!

[trophyhunt]

Gave it away?  lucky guy has a great smoker now!

[Special T]

I think they are superior just take more babysitting. 2c

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[finnman]

I gave it to a guy at work that never could afford one. He was thrilled! He is loving it so far. I may end up buying a smaller one later for smoking fish, but that's it.

[piled-up]

I had the same primos ceramic for about ten years.. there awesome you won't regret going to real hardwood charcoal!!

[JDHasty]

I have an old Kamado and a New Brunfels Black Diamond - pre-takeover that has been heavily modified with chimney, heat dissipation plate & charcoal basket from Horizon Smokers and have had the fire box welded on.  Although my sister uses commercial Traegers in her wildly successful restaurant, I have always preferred charcoal.  Kingsford, w/fruitwood or alder or maple in the offset and lump charcoal straight up in the Kamado.  We keep a Webber in our RV and use Kingsford in it. 


W/my NBBD offset I can leave it for six hours and it runs about 225 once set. It is about shot, it will be Horizon when I replace it.     

[merkaba93]

I may be called a blasphemer or a heretic, but I have given my Traeger away! By by, good riddance, bin voyage, yep all of it! I was tired of replacing hot rods and using electricity to cook and smoke.
So I did this! Bought an oval extra large Primo ceramic grill/smoker! I have not been happier! I got my buddy to order it for me through the company he works for, saved me $350 over retail! Then I found this table made of reclaimed barn wood on CL for....yes $100! So a little cutting, sanding, staining, then lifting, I have anew BBQ table! I have made chicken thighs, baby back ribs, steaks, burgers, all over mesquite lump charcoal or Kingsfords and it's been awesome! I have not even thought about the traeger!!

Dude looks awesome!
Personally never been a huge fan of Traeger. Smokes just fine but never get get it hot enough for a good sear. Just my opinion. I'll stick to a separate smoker and a Weber grill.

[solomtnhunter]

Looks nice!.... I'm just now getting into smoking. Nothing as nice as yours or Traeger but 3wks ago picked up a used lil chief for $20.  Did a batch salmon that weekend and am now hooked on smoking.  Week later some guy down the road had a charbroil offset he was giving away, turns out he upgraded to a Traeger.  Got home, began unloading the charbroil from my truck when my neighbor came over to chat n checkout what was going on. He then mentions he had a big chief collecting dust in his shed i could have .  Went over to pick it up and as we're walking into his backyard i notice he had 2 Traeger's and a 55gal all smoking at the same time. 

[NRA4LIFE]

Try a chicken dish called Gai Yang Chicken on it.  Use thighs, bone in with the skin off (it just burns off anyway).  It marinates for 2 days, you can find recipes on the internet.  Cook very hot to get the right color on it. 

[finnman]

There is a place for a traeger, I had mine 6 years, so I knew it's capacity. But the way I cooked and what I cooked, I found myself using my Chargriller metal egg more often. I used lump charcoal or standard charcoal briquettes. Not the ones you can start with a match, the original ones, using a charcoal chimney. A traeger cannot do a steak, unless you like them rubbery and with a weird texture. I can't do great burgers, it can't char, and if you want good meat, it needs to be charred. It can do chicken, ribs and salmon.
I do like smoke but I prefer the taste of hardwood charcoal best. This Primo grill has been nothing short of awesome. It has the divider for indirect cooking, so I can still slow cook and smoke when needed. I have 3 racks of baby backs on right now! (Ps. Please dont call the clean air people...they might stay for dinner!) lol! 😂

[JDHasty]

Try a chicken dish called Gai Yang Chicken on it.  Use thighs, bone in with the skin off (it just burns off anyway).  It marinates for 2 days, you can find recipes on the internet.  Cook very hot to get the right color on it.

Oh yea baby 

THere is no better pit than a Kamado for chicken and especially thighs and this recipe is one we use a lot

[finnman]

Okay, sold, I am going to try it!

[Stalkin Prey]

I've never owned a traeger never will. You simply can't match or come close to the flavor of smoking/grilling over charcoal and wood


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[JDHasty]

I've never owned a traeger never will. You simply can't match or come close to the flavor of smoking/grilling over charcoal and wood


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That is my take on it. 

[cbond3318]

I've never owned a traeger never will. You simply can't match or come close to the flavor of smoking/grilling over charcoal and wood


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That is my take on it.

absolutely! Do I get jealous sometimes when I'm stuck tending the fire all day while others turn a switch and walk away? Sure. Does mine taste better for more reasons than one? Absolutely.

Yes, I am a Traeger (or the like) racist. 

[KFhunter]

I may be called a blasphemer or a heretic, but I have given my Traeger away! By by, good riddance, bin voyage, yep all of it! I was tired of replacing hot rods and using electricity to cook and smoke.
So I did this! Bought an oval extra large Primo ceramic grill/smoker! I have not been happier! I got my buddy to order it for me through the company he works for, saved me $350 over retail! Then I found this table made of reclaimed barn wood on CL for....yes $100! So a little cutting, sanding, staining, then lifting, I have anew BBQ table! I have made chicken thighs, baby back ribs, steaks, burgers, all over mesquite lump charcoal or Kingsfords and it's been awesome! I have not even thought about the traeger!!

Dude looks awesome!
Personally never been a huge fan of Traeger. Smokes just fine but never get get it hot enough for a good sear. Just my opinion. I'll stick to a separate smoker and a Weber grill.

This is what I'm going to do.  A purpose built smoker and a ceramic grill.  My Treager is on it's last leg, I've had it for a long time (10 years?)  I don't regret buying it and enjoyed the heck out of it, but I've outgrown it. 

[PlateauNDN]

I've never owned a traeger never will. You simply can't match or come close to the flavor of smoking/grilling over charcoal and wood


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That is my take on it.

absolutely! Do I get jealous sometimes when I'm stuck tending the fire all day while others turn a switch and walk away? Sure. Does mine taste better for more reasons than one? Absolutely.

Yes, I am a Traeger (or the like) racist. 

  I feel the same way sometimes, but then I forget all about it when people say my cookin' is the best they had. Hell, most the time I smoke I have to eat right at my grill cuz by the time I'm done and everyone's dished out there's hardly anything left.

Can't beat good Ole wood and charcoal flavor. It's time well spent and worth every sweaty smelly minute.

[Ddouble]

Love my ceramic cooker. Don't use kingsford in it though. Just starting the smoke house build now for my cold smoking endeavors. Some say I have a problem... 2 Big Green Eggs, 1 x Caja China Roasting box, 1 x little chief, Weber and now the smoke house.

[Curly]

I love my Kamado Grill and I love my Traeger.  They both can be used to make good food.   I prefer the Traeger for all day, lower temp cooking.  The Kamado is great for higher temp cooking.  Sometimes I will sear some meat on the Kamado and then switch it over to the Traeger.

[JDHasty]

Love my ceramic cooker. Don't use kingsford in it though. Just starting the smoke house build now for my cold smoking endeavors. Some say I have a problem... 2 Big Green Eggs, 1 x Caja China Roasting box, 1 x little chief, Weber and now the smoke house.

I don't either.  Lump charcoal in the ceramic, Kingsford in the offset. 

I have had more people cock their head sideways and look dumbfounded when they find out I use Kingsford in the offset, but that is exactly what I use. 

Sometimes I will throw some wood in the offset, if I want a little more smoke flavor, but usually it is just straight-up Kingsford.   

[finnman]

Can't beat good Ole wood and charcoal flavor. It's time well spent and worth every sweaty smelly minute.

Haha! Because of the smoke I usually end up having to shower to get the smokey sweaty stink off. This has actually improved my love life! 😜 Who knew this would be a side effect of buying a smoker! 😂

[Ddouble]

Can't beat good Ole wood and charcoal flavor. It's time well spent and worth every sweaty smelly minute.

Haha! Because of the smoke I usually end up having to shower to get the smokey sweaty stink off. This has actually improved my love life! 😜 Who knew this would be a side effect of buying a smoker! 😂

My wife loves it when I come in smelling of the BBQ says it's better than any cologne.

[KFhunter]

Can't beat good Ole wood and charcoal flavor. It's time well spent and worth every sweaty smelly minute.

Haha! Because of the smoke I usually end up having to shower to get the smokey sweaty stink off. This has actually improved my love life! 😜 Who knew this would be a side effect of buying a smoker! 😂

My wife loves it when I come in smelling of the BBQ says it's better than any cologne.

Ain't that the truth!

When wife and I were still dating or perhaps engaged, she waitressed in an Italian food restaurant, then we went to college together and she started working in a nursing home. Man, what a contrast. 

Nothing will tamp down a love life like coming home smelling like urine and formaldehyde, and it won't wash off that easy   

[TheHunt]

A friend has an egg.  In fact, he has three.  He is an amazing cook.  There is a Facebook site for people who have eggs.  You should look it up. 

[Stein]

I don't have a Traeger, but two Thanksgivings ago I had a prime rib cooked on one and I would certainly eat another one given the chance.

I have cooked on charcoal (lump), electric, propane and hardwood and they all make a pretty dang good product if the cook knows what he is doing.  My main cooker now is an electric smoker and the convenience of set and forget it is whey I bought it.  I looked at the BGE and clones, but they were just too much dinero.

From my experience, cooking it right is more important than what equipment you are using unless you have a propane grill.

[theleo]

Haha! Because of the smoke I usually end up having to shower to get the smokey sweaty stink off. This has actually improved my love life! 😜 Who knew this would be a side effect of buying a smoker! 😂

I have a cheepo Wal-Mart grill that does both charcoal and propane. I hardly ever use the propane side but the charcoal side gets used a lot with some wood in the mix for the smoky flavor. My daughter 7 year old daughter once asked, dad why do you smell so good every time you come back inside from checking the grill? I hose off before I crawl into bed with the wife but the kids love the smoky smell.

[finnman]

Oh, best smell around!
I have a whole chicken and 2 halves on the grill right now, a mix of charcoal and briquet with some half seasoned cherry chunks added for smoke. 270-280 degrees and 2 hours, it is looking good!

As good a traeger is, it can't do a steak. That is an immediate deduction of points in my scale. I have done 4 choice rib roasts....ya all just incredible! Hard to beat that on a Traeger.