Grilling Notes (Hybrid) - NY Strips on a Friday Night! (Trailblazer & Bullseye Workout) - 20 Nov 2020

Sscottfitz

Well-known member
Messages
117
Location
Hot Springs Village, Arkansas
Grill(s) owned
  1. Trailblazer
  2. Bullseye
We are now 2 x recteq grill owners. Some of you are going to laugh, others will simply say “what an idiot” - both reactions are certainly warranted, but hear my logic. 1) Trailblazer sets in front of the house (under a grill gazebo), but it is covered from the rain during a grill session - it sets in the garage next to the boat the rest of the time - anyway, so when we get rain I grill there; New Bullseye is out on the patio under the Pergola (not covered) but a MUCH better view but not fun grilling in the rain, and we DO get rain in Arkansas from time to time. Figured it was MUCH cheaper to get a 2nd recteq smoker/grill than pay a contractor to modify my house with a new roof over the back patio…..Hillbilly Logic! Guilty! Now back to my Grilling Notes…..

  • Grill Locations: Hot Springs Village, AR.; 34 37 60.0N 92 54 55.4W - another late afternoon late Fall Friday afternoon into night….(easy to do this time of year….)
  • Weather at time of Grill: Mid/Late November, after almost 2 weeks of perfect sunny weather, today was overcast and a little higher humidity - even had a couple of light “ misting events” today....Temp ~61F, Humidity ~93%
  • Total Event Time: ~1 hr. 32 Min Includes strip rub, grill preps (plural) & plating
  • Grill Plates: Trailblazer - No; Bullseye - Yes (It is really cool that the Trailblazer Grill Plates fit nicely on the Bullseye)
  • Pellets Used: Rec Tec Ultimate Blend

  • Meat & Meat Prep
    • Meat: 2 x ~11 oz. Butcher Cut (1” thick) Fresh NY Strip Steaks (Weldon’t Meat Market, Hot Springs, Ark),
    • Total Meat Prep Time: ~4 min, Rec Tec Heffer Dust, Olive Oil sprayed on meat as a binder
    • Meat on:
      • Trailblazer at 16:57 CST, probes say starting temp for Strips is ~62F, smoke the strips for ~30 min with a target temp of ~100F - actual time to target was ~35 min
      • Bullseye 17:38 CST, no probes, using temp stick, roughly 2.5 min per side on the ridged side of the grill grates. Targeted 145F, but think we overshot it just a tad, Deb said they were medium.

  • Sides:
    • Spinach Salad, w/Rasberries & Vinaigrette dressing
    • 1/2 Baked Tater w/butter & chunks of blue cheese

Misc Grill Observations - all times are CST
  • Total Grill Time: 40 Min (Trailblazer) 24 Min (Bullseye)
    • Grill Start to Trailblazer Target Temp LOW F: ~66F to 180F (~16:50 CST) ~5 min.
    • Grill Start to Bullseye Target Temp 500F: ~64 to 500F ~ (17:18 CST) ~18 min.

General Comments:
  • Griller’s support tool of choice: Robert Strong Pinot Noir not saying EXACTLY how many bottles were in involved but the number is greater that 1……”there’s a hole in the bottle”…..(Kelsea Ballerina)
  • David Chaney is a recteq customer service HERO! My initial burn in with the Bullseye did NOT start well, for some reason the ignitor wasn’t igniting……3 rings to customer service, Dave walked me thru troubleshooting, fire box removal, ignitor resetting (it was pushed to far back in the tube), and a few other steps - not to bore you with the details, but long story short, when we were done, the Bullseye was operational! We do not live in a perfect world, Dave helped me overcome one of those imperfections….
  • This was our first attempt at a what I guess was a “reverse sear”, maybe not the best steak I’ve EVER had, but easily in the top 5, we’re gonna do this again with both some filets and some ribeyes……AFTER Thanksgiving. Millie, one of our greyhounds, agreed with my assessment!
  • For Turkey Day, we are smoking Turkey Breasts & my “famous” (mostly in my mind) Whiskey Maple Injected & Double Smoked Ham….
 

Attachments

  • Packaged NY Strips from Weldons 20201120.jpeg
    Packaged NY Strips from Weldons 20201120.jpeg
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  • Rubbed NY Strips 20201120.jpeg
    Rubbed NY Strips 20201120.jpeg
    1.5 MB · Views: 83
  • Putting Strips on the RT-340 20201120.jpeg
    Putting Strips on the RT-340 20201120.jpeg
    3 MB · Views: 98
  • Smoked NY Strips on the Trailblazer 20201120.jpeg
    Smoked NY Strips on the Trailblazer 20201120.jpeg
    1.6 MB · Views: 102
  • Bringing the Bullseye up to Temp 20201120.jpeg
    Bringing the Bullseye up to Temp 20201120.jpeg
    3.8 MB · Views: 98
  • Searing the NY Strips 20201120.jpeg
    Searing the NY Strips 20201120.jpeg
    3.1 MB · Views: 100
  • Plated NY Strips Long View 20201120.jpeg
    Plated NY Strips Long View 20201120.jpeg
    2 MB · Views: 87
  • Closeup Plated NY Strip 20201120.jpeg
    Closeup Plated NY Strip 20201120.jpeg
    3.4 MB · Views: 87
  • Millie Approved 20201120.jpeg
    Millie Approved 20201120.jpeg
    959.1 KB · Views: 85
Another great report @Sscottfitz
One thing you may check on the bullseye is grate temp. It seems to run much higher than the computer readout tells you. I slowed my anger rate down to 30 and offset the rtd probe offset to +20. It is closer but still a little high and does not hold temp as tight as the Trailblazer. That being said the two grills compliment each other very well. One of my favorites on the Bullseye are chicken legs and thighs 😎
 
Another great report @Sscottfitz
One thing you may check on the bullseye is grate temp. It seems to run much higher than the computer readout tells you. I slowed my anger rate down to 30 and offset the rtd probe offset to +20. It is closer but still a little high and does not hold temp as tight as the Trailblazer. That being said the two grills compliment each other very well. One of my favorites on the Bullseye are chicken legs and thighs 😎
Thanks Buckeye1, and I agree with everything you said - everything about this grill screams "hotter". We've actually ordered a 22" cast iron circular grill grate, so once I get that in place, I'll get a better feel for the temp characteristics. Appreciate the feedback and data points and I agree the two grills will be complimentary vice in competition. THAT SAID, my BGE is none too happy right now.....<grin>
 

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