Preheating grill for long smoke

[Smoked Dog]

Other than extending the cook time, is there any other downside to NOT preheating the smoker before putting the meat on? Reason I ask is because it's easier to position large cuts of meat and insert temp probes on a cold grill rather than a hot one.

 

[mooncusser2k]

Some of the smoke you get at startup isn't the cleanest. Don't know how much it would affect the overall taste at the end but I prefer to avoid it. There's also something to be said about getting the whole unit up to temp - warming all the metal helps it recover when you open the lid.

Personally I don't find it too hot to place meat and probes. A lot of the heat leaves when you open the lid. Be careful about touching metal and you'll be fine. Opening the hole for the probes calls for using something to protect fingers, though.

There's also the option of placing probes before taking meat to the grill. And I'll use a pan and/or rack for some cooks. Which makes transport, placement, removal, and cleanup that much easier.

Experiment with things and find what works for you.

 

[TexasManInCajunLand]

There is way too much overthinking going on in these forums. You'll be perfectly fine throwing it on without preheating. I do it all the time and I'm still alive and kicking.

IT'S GRILLING PEOPLE! NOT ROCKET SURGERY!

Oh, and are you ready for LSU?? Cheers brutha!


GEAUX TIGERS!!

 

[WooPigFoodie]

You’re not searing. No preheating necessary. Just get yer smoke on.

 

[Jonathan Buffett]

There is way too much overthinking going on in these forums. You'll be perfectly fine throwing it on without preheating. I do it all the time and I'm still alive and kicking.

IT'S GRILLING PEOPLE! NOT ROCKET SURGERY!

Oh, and are you ready for LSU?? Cheers brutha!


GEAUX TIGERS!!

fully agree. I put throw items on a cold grill all the time.

 

[Buckeye1]

Way too much over thinking, not enough cooking.

 

[Bullporky]

With the controller in the RecTeq, I don't see a need to preheat the smoker. I could make the argument that on other smokers without the PID that it was important to preheat as you are verifying your heat and smoke prior to introducing a cold chunk of meat. You wanted to ensure that the heat and smoke applied to the meat was indeed the temp you wanted. Otherwise, you fight the battle of spiking or dropping temps. RecTeq (and other brands) that use PID virtually eliminated it as the computer does the work we used to do to get and maintain temp.

Grab a bourbon, sit back, and enjoy the "RecTeq Lifestyle" - enjoying great smoking/grilling without sweating the little things. You have a heck of a device there, enjoy your new found time and let it do the thinking

 

[Bytor]

I never preheat. I turn it on, go get what I'm going to cook and toss it on. I figure it's exposed to more smoke that way. It's not an oven afterall. Besides, my 340 gets to 225-250in a matter of minutes.

 

[bfletcher]

I'm a preheater and I'm not a rocket scientist. I preheat every outdoor cooker that I use, probably because owners manuals recommend doing so. And some smokers and fuel choice startup differently than others. I prefer to keep the thick, white smoke that can occur on startup off my food. Whether or not it impacts flavor I cannot speak since I've never tried it the other way, which speaks to the point of adopting the method that is your personal preference.

This may be overthinking, underthinking, or something in between.

 

[Gonefishin]

I preheat just cause I always have, mostly for grate cleaning and heating the grate for searing. Would be nice to do it without preheat though, I get a face full of smoke every time I preheat, which is not the case on my other grills. Think I'll try it on tomorrows ribs but I'll need to preclean the grate.

 

[Greg Jones]

I preheat to get clean smoke.

 

[Gonefishin]

If I understand it correctly, bad/dirty smoke is from shouldering wood, does a pellet grill ever produce dirty smoke?

 

[bfletcher]

I have a Traeger smoker that looks like this on startup (this is a random pic from the web)

 

[Greg Jones]

I have a Traeger smoker that looks like this on startup (this is a random pic from the web)

My Bullseye is especially bad about this as well, as I can see it on my deck outside my kitchen. I have to close my windows and the sliding glass door until it gets hot.

 

[DarkStar11]

I've never put any thought into it, but I guess I always preheat my RT. Like I do every other grill. I turn it on, go finish prep, and then put the food on. My RT cooks are always between 225 and 325, so it doesn't take very long to reach temp.

 

[Gonefishin]

Just tried my 340 out as I need to clean it anyway. No smoke till the 2:00 mark, then by 3:00 there is pretty much no smoke, which is how it stayed up to 225, the set temp. Watched it for a while, it periodically makes smoke, then doesn't for a bit. If I open the lid for a minute the smoke starts pumping. Heavier smoke must be when it is working to keep up the temp. I suspect there will be more smoke when it's cold, it is almost 80 out now.

I never saw what I consider dirty smoke.
Top photo i the 2:00 mark
Middle is the 3:00 mark
Bottom is at 225

 

[ThatGuy]

Oh, and are you ready for LSU?? Cheers brutha!


GEAUX TIGERS!!

Solid Gold, right there.

 

[Bgs41]

I pre heat, don’t really have an opinion on this either way, but would like to congratulate u on ur big win! I bet starkvegas was hopping Saturday night.

 

[Smoked Dog]

Yep, I think we were ready

Thanks to everyone for the feedback. Sort of what I expected; some preheat and some don't. I never preheated the electric smoker that I'd been using for 15+ years and those cooks turned out OK.

As for Starkvegas, I'm not really sure if it was hopping Saturday night. After a long day of meat-smoking, bourbon-drinking, football-watching, and chuck-roast eating, I was ready for bed