BBQ upgrade: From BGE & WSM to ______

[WeberWho]

So there's no charcoal used in offsets? From what I've read, 'stick burners' produce a a very light smoke profile. Not true?

Charcoal in an offset will depend of the smoker and size. A traditional offset will use splits of wood.

Stick burners will create a clean and light smoke profile with the wood being ignited at high temperatures. At lower temperatures wood will smolder and create a heavier smoke profile.

 

[rm41400]

Don’t think of a stick burner as an upgrade. It’s more like a lifestyle change. I think it’s better at what it does , when I can afford the time but I do love my Mak and Primo... I get a ton of crazy positive comments from the Shirley cooks I do. I love the versatility of the Primo and Mak.

If you find a bargain on a stick or a stick burner that just makes you happy I think you’ll love it if you have available wood and the time to cook with it

 

[gtsum]

Different cookers excel at different things...I am a little different than most here in that I am not into a backyard full of grills, so I tend to have a couple cookers at a time and see how they work for me and go from there.

I had ceramic kamados for years and years and enjoyed them as they were low maintenance and produced good results (still have a few small ones in the shed). I have had several WSM's over the years and while they work fine, they were not for me. I prefer a kettle to a WSM as its far more versatile imo. Had a Stumps gravity feed for a few years and that really took my que to another level...can have light or heavy smoke profile....depending on how much wood you use...very easy to over smoke something though IMO...but they are hands off and rock steady on temps.

Did pellets for a few years and they are really hands off and produce great food...although with a lighter smoke profile...extremely versatile cookers and great for quick cooks.

Finally, the stick burners - have had a few of them and in my early years, I didnt practice good fire management..I would load up the firebox with wood and try and get an hour or 2 of unattended time on my cooks...the complete wrong thing to do and my que was heavy on smoke and not real good...now I run a small, hot fire and dont worry about temps..if the cooker runs at 300-325, that's where I cook...smoke profile can be as heavy or as light as you want it on a stick burner....depending on the wood you use and the kind of fire you run. IMO, a well run stick burner gives you the absolute best flavor and end result for most bbq meats....a lot more work, but worth it imo...I can also cook hot and fast and get better results than i could cooking low and slow with a pellet cooker or Gravity feed, etc. I do like some things better over a charcoal fire like others have mentioned however...so if a person had a kettle and an offset, you would be pretty much set for most anything IMO (along with a griddle)

Also, make sure you can get wood easily for a stickburner...I am on the east coast, so Oak and Hickory are everywhere here...stick burners are made to burn logs...not charcoal...then of course you need to stack it and store it, etc, etc....good stuff

 

[bob3]

"It would be ideal if the BBQ didn't require much maintenance during the cook, but for superior quality I'm willing to put in the time."

I'm surprised there hasn't been much talk on pellets. You currently have two relatively low maintenance smokers. An offset is a completely differently animal, i.e. the prom queen reference. I've asked myself a similar question to yours and an offset is more of a dream. I'd use it a few times a year at most, and that level of practice probably wouldn't lead to amazing BBQ.

Pellets are not only convenient, but they are fool proof. There is no fire management. Once you know what you're doing with temperature and time, you can put that SRF brisket on with confidence that the end product with be high quality.

I choose the highest level of BBQ convenience that delivers excellent results over the highest level of work that if done correctly delivers the best results. This is the tradeoff you need to think through.

 

[darita]

Funny...the small, hot fire of a stick burner sounds just like the small, hot fire in a good pellet cooker. Again, I've read a lot of comparisons of pellet burners to stick burners, in so far as flavor profile. Of course, every pellet controller is going to manage the fire differently, much like every person will manage their stick burner differently, thus the difference in pellet smokers.
I'd be hard pressed to decide between a GF or a stick burner, having never done either, but wanting to try both. I'd love to try anything that produces good BBQ.