Grill Recommendations

[ianpadron]

Best all around grill for the money right now is the Pit Boss Laredo 1000. WalMart exclusive for like $579 but more features than Traegers in the $1000 range.

I spent a full weekend researching everything there is on pellet/charcoal/gas grills, and kept coming back to the Laredo 1000 for its combo of size, WiFi, includes meat probes, temp control, ability to sear...etc.

Here are some of the hits so far:

 

[Mukman]

I’ve got a Green Egg and I love it. Great for low/slow, and can also get it as hot as the surface of the sun to sear steaks. I’ve smoked briskets for 10 hours on one charcoal load which surprised me.

 

[Aleforme]

I will say this, Pellet Grills/Smokers are great for smoking but I just feel they lack a bit with it comes to grilling. Yeah, they can do the job but not like a good gas grill or charcoal grill. Especially if you doing larger quantities. Pellet Grills tend to have a dedicated zone on the racks for grilling which is usually right over the burner pot. If you're just grilling for one or two people, they can work pretty well.

I use my Pitts & Spitts solely for smoking. The Weber and sometimes the charcoal grill does the grilling.

 

[ianpadron]

I will say this, Pellet Grills/Smokers are great for smoking but I just feel they lack a bit with it comes to grilling. Yeah, they can do the job but not like a good gas grill or charcoal grill. Especially if you doing larger quantities. Pellet Grills tend to have a dedicated zone on the racks for grilling which is usually right over the burner pot. If you're just grilling for one or two people, they can work pretty well.

I use my Pitts & Spitts solely for smoking. The Weber and sometimes the charcoal grill does the grilling.

I did a full pellet grill of 1/3 pound burgers the other day, turned out amazing and didn't even open the sear grate. Just cranked it to 500, nice grill lines and all. Juicier than on a gas grill.

Have yet to cook a steak yet, but imho a steak deserves to be cooked in a cast iron skillet anyway.

 

[Brute]

Kamado Joe…

 

[copperJon]

Pulled the trigger on a recteq rt-700 and will let you know my thoughts after a few trial runs. Heard from a few friends with friends that have recteq’s and can’t find a bad thing said about them.

 

[mooseknuckles]

Big Green Egg Owner here.

If you could have one grill to do it all what would it be? I've got room for one, to ideally handle everything from low & slow to general grilling. Anyone have any favorites, or dream machines that get their juices flowing?

K1000HT-EU FREESTANDING HYBRID FIRE GRILL

 

[Mossback]

I actually saw one of those in person at a clients house once. We were building a 385k landscape, so having a 20k grill wasnt unexpected.
It was well built, and turned out a nice burger.

 

[copperJon]

Preliminary report on the new recteq RT-700 that was delivered last week. Never have I received anything so meticulously packaged...custom foam inserts and cardboard. Made for a major cleanup project, but all was delivered in pristine condition.



Put it together, fired it up for burn-in at 400 degrees, then gave it a go with some small coho from the weekend. PID controller with wifi is amazing. My fears about lowest temp setting were unwarranted, as the fish turned out great with not a hint of albumin to be seen. I used a dish with cold water (didn't have ice available) and temps stayed between 170-180. I bet I can get it down further with ice, but perhaps not needed.


I'm thinking ribs are next.

 

[Aleforme]

Nice man! That salmon looks amazing.

Ribs should definitely be next!

 

[Smith]

In the market for a new do-all grill for the back patio. Propane, charcoal, pellet, whatever. I'm open any and all suggestions. If you could have one grill to do it all what would it be? I've got room for one, to ideally handle everything from low & slow to general grilling. Anyone have any favorites, or dream machines that get their juices flowing? I'm currently eyeing them fancy new Traeger's...

I have had all styles. I use the Weber kettle. There is nothing I cant cook well or smoke for that matter. And with lump charcoal (which I sometimes make myself) I can be cooking in 10 mins or so by using a chimney stater. Its simple, versatile and easy to use if you like fiddling with coals to get things just right.

 

[Aleforme]

I have had all styles. I use the Weber kettle. There is nothing I cant cook well or smoke for that matter. And with lump charcoal (which I sometimes make myself) I can be cooking in 10 mins or so by using a chimney stater. Its simple, versatile and easy to use if you like fiddling with coals to get things just right.

The chimney starter was a game changer for me when I finally started using one. So much easier to get everything going.

 

[clarkman]

I have had all styles. I use the Weber kettle. There is nothing I cant cook well or smoke for that matter. And with lump charcoal (which I sometimes make myself) I can be cooking in 10 mins or so by using a chimney stater. Its simple, versatile and easy to use if you like fiddling with coals to get things just right.

I still use my nearly 20 year old kettle from time to time. I love my Traeger for a lot of things, but I also still like doing a ton of things on the old Weber. I'll probably replace it with another one in the near future.

 

[SpeyrodGB]

Have been considering a Weber kettle for sometime. They seem very versatile. I have a Smokey joe, however it des not work well for larger items.

 

[iveofione]

The Weber Performer 22'' kettle is about as good as it gets for charcoal grilling. It has onboard propane ignition for the coals with push button start, onboard storage for more than a full bag of briquetts, a sizable table surface for staging tools and food, a large ash receptacle and is very stable to roll around with good sized wheels.

Weber has addressed all of the complaints about the old 3 wheeled kettles and solved them in one slick and functional package. A large number of aftermarket accessories are available to make a good grill even better. Among them, a rotisserie feature, cast iron grates, pizza oven, Slow n' Sear smoker, charcoal baskets, griddle plates, a grate designed to hold a wok and the list goes on.

 

[jaredoconnor]

I recently bought a 2 burner Char Broil propane barbecue. My home doesn't have an outdoor gas outlet and HOA won't let me install one, so I tried to get the most efficient barbecue that would still meet our needs. Apparently Char Broil is Weber quality, without the brand name and price. Having owned a couple of Weber barbecues in the past, I would say that is accurate. I managed to get the barbecue, a tank, rotisserie kit and various utensils, for less than the equivalent Weber barbecue alone. So far, I'm very happy with my purchase.

 

[Stonedfish]

My Char Broil experience wasn't the same. This was awhile back, but I'm not sure why they'd put non stainless steel screws and nuts in a stainless BBQ.
The thing looked like a rusty ship after awhile. I returned it and bought a Weber and have had none of the same issues with it.
SF

 

[jaredoconnor]

My Char Broil experience wasn't the same. This was awhile back, but I'm not sure why they'd put non stainless steel screws and nuts in a stainless BBQ.
The thing looked like a rusty ship after awhile. I returned it and bought a Weber and have had none of the same issues with it.
SF

That is good to know. I will keep an eye on it.

 

[Phish Whisperer]

Really, there isn't a grill that does everything well. That's why I have a large wood fired offset BBQ for brisket, pulled pork, ribs, etc. A Santa Maria grill for steaks, tri-tip, ribs. A pellet grill for low maintenance cooking with some added flavor (actually it does ribs pretty well). A Genesis II gas grill with sear zone for veggies, burgers, steaks. A tall gas smoker for fish, pepperoni, ribs. A Big Chief smoker mostly for fish, oysters, razor clams. My secret weapon is a simple smoke tube used with pure hickory pellets. It can do true cold smoking in any of my closed cookers. It can turn a pellet grill into a decent smoker. Two hours of smoke tube cold smoke then finish at the pellet grill's lowest smoke setting to lightly cook and dry. Wait, what was your question??

 

[Josh]

A pellet grill for low maintenance cooking with some added flavor (actually it does ribs pretty well)

Talk a little more about this. I've heard that you just don't get the smoke flavor with the pellet grills. But I also base that mostly on internet reading, not on much real world experience.