Maybe I AM stupid

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JohnVee

JohnVee

SILVER Star
10 Year
Joined
Dec 16, 2011
Threads
376
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14,871
Location
NC & SC
If anybody has been paying attention, they might have gleaned from some of my other posts that I need to replace the oven in my house. It's gas. 30 years old. Stove top burners are fine but the oven part finally finished dying its slow death sometime over the last 4 months. Yes, that's right, I don't know when because that was the last time I used it. I cook on the grill or stove top for the most part. An occasional Crockpot meal, too. We don't bake cakes, rarely make bread, and not even the broiler got used very much.

I've also publicly stated my recent desire for a gas (convenience) grill to join the ranks on the deck simply for speed. I hate how they're all fairly disposable, though.

We're budgeting for a complete kitchen remodel in 3-4 years so I don't want to blow my load on a new range right now that might not fit into the plan when it happens.

It's just my wife and me but I somehow often end up with food for 6. My neighbors eat well at least once a week!

So this is where it gets weird...I'm thinking of doing the following:
1. Keep current range and continue to use functioning stove top.
2. Buy the large model Big Green Egg for the deck to take the place of an oven.
3. Buy the $99 Hamilton Beach toaster oven that Cook's Illustrated rated well.
4. Use the current nonfunctioning oven for storage.

Go ahead, let me have it.

--john
 
That would be what I'd do given you're going to do a complete kitchen remodel in 3-4 years...the stove you pick today is likely to be different for your remodel.

And either way I'd want a patio bbq of some kind...so no wasted $$ there.
 
If it wern't for holiday baking and the occational calabacitas or enchiladas, we could live without an oven. Heck, my daughter has even baked cookies in the Landman.:lol:

Green Egg is a great choice for another cooking option.
 
What my family has done in the past is scout the yard sales, roadsides and used appliance stores to find a similar model range to fix the one they had. Is there any reason you can't patch together the old oven to run for 3-4 more years on the cheap? What "broke"? Most ovens are stupid simple from that era...the guts are standard parts; the trim pieces are the hard parts to find IMHO. Or find a scratch n' dent stove you can use for a few years then sell on down the road to someone else.

Nick
 
zebrabeefj40 said:
What my family has done in the past is scout the yard sales, roadsides and used appliance stores to find a similar model range to fix the one they had. Is there any reason you can't patch together the old oven to run for 3-4 more years on the cheap? What "broke"? Most ovens are stupid simple from that era...the guts are standard parts; the trim pieces are the hard parts to find IMHO. Or find a scratch n' dent stove you can use for a few years then sell on down the road to someone else.

Nick
Click to expand...

I've not ruled out any of what you've said. It leaks carbon monoxide like a sieve. Takes over an hour to reach even 200 degrees. I have no idea how long or even if it'll reach a usable temperature. Knobs, handles and hardware are broken, cobbled together or approaching death. The door front is stained internally. No internal light. I'm leaning towards scratch/dent if I buy a new one but I hate the idea of settling on a model instead of getting one I've selected through research. I've been avoiding Craigslist thus far but will start keeping my eye on it.

Either way, I want a BGE. I guess I'm really just trying to rationalize getting what I want with what I really need based on how I'll use it without going broke. Oh, and my microwave just s*** the bed!:bang:

I'm actually surprised that it took this long for someone to make a common sense recommendation. ;p

It would be great if I can find a hellacious deal on a range that I like for about $1k. Then I could still get a BGE and keep it around my stated $2k budget, but I'd miss the challenge of living without the range!

--john
 
JohnVee said:
Going to kick some BGE tires tomorrow if I can squeeze it in. The wife hasn't tried to stop me.

--john
Click to expand...

Sounds like someone needs an excuse to buy a BGE:D

Let me know how the tire kicking goes, they have a showroom 5 minutes from me. My wallet is scared to go inside.
 
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Take a look at Kamado Joe too if you can...
 
IMG_1474.webpWell, I've started. First purchase arrived last Thursday.

WTF? I'll edit the picture orientation later.

EDIT: no, I won't.

IMG_1474.webp
 
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We had a convection/microwave for a few years (finally quit a month or two ago) and we used it for most all of our oven stuff. It did a roast chicken like you wouldn't believe with half the electricity or less.
 
John,

The most challenging aspect for me of moving from gas fueled BBQ to a charcoal fired egg style BBQ has been the relationship between air in, air out and the amount of the open/restricted horizontal plane the charcoal occupies in the basket. If the charcoal is piled in the middle of the charcoal basket with space around then the air that enters the bottom vent takes the path of least resistance...which in this example is around the very coals that need air to burn effectively. Once I understood this I could arrange the coals in such a fashion to force air up through the pile of charcoal instead of around it. It was amazing, in oven temp, the difference!

The problem didn't really manifest itself until I needed oven temps above about 450*F. And the problem drove me nuts, until I figured out this relationship, when I needed to get the oven to 700-800*F for my Neapolitan pizza bakes. If the charcoal wasn't arranged properly the temp would typically stall out in the 350-400*F regardless how much coal I had...other than filling the basket with too much charcoal.

I've now got a sear basket which is essentially a steel plate that blocks off 1/2 of the charcoal basket. This forces, essentially, the same amount of air on to the other 1/2 of the grid that holds the charcoal. This effectively allows 2X as much air to flow over the coals compared to a full size charcoal basket.

Anyway...you might already be familiar with this. If not then be prepared.

Dan
 
:clap:

Are you going to stay with the table from CL?

There are some pretty nice custom tables and plans on the interwebs.
 
sterling said:
:clap:

Are you going to stay with the table from CL?

There are some pretty nice custom tables and plans on the interwebs.
Click to expand...

The plan is to build one but this will get me through for a while. I've got some deck maintenance to do first. Been checking out plans online for ideas.

--john
 
[insert choir of angels singing]...Eeeeeeeeehhhhhgggggggggggggg!!!!!

I finally picked up a Large BGE today as I was passing a dealer on a work call. Got it built after dark, so no pics. A cut up chicken done over a plate setter turned out great.

--john
 
Apart of a trip up to see Cruiserdrew last weekend I stopped by Corti Brothers in Sacramento to see what they could tempt me with from their butcher counter. A 6.5lb prime(!) grade chuck roast and an 8lb bone in boston butt pork roast ended up in my cart :)

Using mesquite lump and decent size red oak chunks that I pre-charred along with 8-9 hours worked magic on the chuck roast. This one I kept the egg at 225* until the roast reached 165...then I opened up the dampers with a corresponding temp of 300* or so until the roast reached 205* and then let it sit for a couple hour rest.

Right after the chuck came off I added some coconut shell lump and pre-charred pecan that carried the pork roast to 14-1/2 hours of 225* thermal love for the butt.

Both meats are the basis for some lunch engine-heated burritos for an upcoming off-road foray several of us are embarking on.

The ease of long and slow cooking, John, should impress you...as it has me!
 
Spress,
Yes, ease is what I'm looking forward to. I got to know my old Aussie grill pretty well, but had to constantly monitor and adjust which got laborious on 6+hr cooks. Even worse was doing it in the shoulder seasons when the outside air temp could vary by 30-degrees over the cook time.

I'm home today and might just have to run out and get a chuck roast after reading your post. Ya know, purely because the first few EGG cooks should be under 350!

--john
 
Per a recommendation I got...and maybe we already covered this...but the Benzomatic JT850 20k BTU weed burner made lighting any fuel in the egg a must-have for me: http://www.amazon.com/Bernzomatic-19425-JT850-Self-Igniting-Outdoor/dp/B00008ZA0F?tag=ihco-20

I still use my chimney to char smoking wood chunks (light this up with the ^ Benzomatic)...to get rid of the nasty white smoke crap before you get to the good part of the wood chunks before going in to the egg.

And, again from forum reading, I think I'm going to get one of these to better manage smoking wood in the egg for long and slow sessions: http://www.amazon.com/MSR-321109-Stowaway-Pot-1-1-Liter/dp/B000FBSZGU?tag=ihco-20

Drill small holes in the lid...stuff with either raw smoking wood of choice and allow the nasty white smoke to burn off before putting the meat in...or put pre-charred chunks in the pot. The drilled lid side goes down in to the lump coals...so you get much slower smolder of the smoking chunks/chips.
 
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