smoke? How does this grill compare to the "smokeless" varieties?
468823
There is some smoke, but not much at all. Hasn't set off my smoke alarm. It's built the same way as all the other "smokeless" grills where the heating element is in the grid and drippings don't drip down onto a heat source. The drip tray is deep and could be filled with water, but the instruction booklet says nothing about it and I've found no reason to do it. I'd be afraid it might cause more of a "steamed" flavor to the food. It seems to be far enough away from the grill top that what's in it doesn't dry out and smoke. After a little soak, it cleans up with absolutely no effort and looks brand new. I believe it's stainless steel. The other brands may recommend using water because the drip pan is closer to the heating element or made of a material that doesn't withstand heat or clean up as well. This grill may smoke a touch more than competing brands due to the higher temperature I think it acheives. I wouldn't have it any other way though. Food really does taste "grilled" and a bit smokey like it was cooked on a gas grill. The older design electric grills with the heat source under the grid are still sold, but no longer recommended or sold for indoor use due to much more smoke, flame and a much greater chance of fire. They won't clean up like this grill does either.
348508
I have the smoker attachment so I use the 8080. I don't know what the complaints are but I am on my second one now & the only reason that I'm on the second is because my dog ate the first. I live in the northwest and my cover sees a lot of weather but I've never had any problems with it. It is slightly faded but I've had it for 4 years now.
1961081
I rarely have to cut something to cook it in this smoker. As long as the meat isn't larger than the grill it is sitting on the smoke gets on everything. I've only smoked on it 5 times or every weekend I've owned it + 6 on Thanksgiving in the morning. I plan to smoke a turkey at 6:00 am. All has come out well so far from tenderloin, ribs, brisket, chicken and turkey legs. Tomorrow's Turkey will be good.
757855
I use propane also. There was a decent coating of soot built up after seasoning the cooker.One run with no oil and one with a good coating of high temperature cooking spray. This is normal for all the grills and smokers I have ever used.
716885
I don't think there is an advantage, and I think they are only without grill for the looks. I've had these for some months now and I haven't had a problem with dustiness. The only real issue with going sans grill is the possibility of like accidentally poking them and messing them up or something, but personal experience and reviews say that these things are tough and can handle themselves. Happy shopping!
1104607
I think that they are two different experiences. I love my Bradley and wouldn't trade it for a conventional smoker. The flavor is amazing and it's a great product to use.
1104606
Hey there! I still consider myself a beginner in this smoking arena, and still experimenting. But YES! The Bradley performs optimally. I haven't cooked salmon right yet, but on my tri-tip, brisket, and st louis spare ribs, the bark produced was MOUTH WATERING. If you are already an experienced smoker - and I am not - you will be able to produce great bark. I like the bisquette for the Bradley too. They do each burn for about 20-minutes as reported. Overall, a great experience. I will add I have the Weber Genesis propane grill. Weber makes an excellent product. So, it really boils down to personal preference, but the Bradley allows me to "set it and forget it" until it's time to eat! Hey there! I still consider myself a beginner in this smoking arena, and still experimenting. But YES! The Bradley performs optimally. I haven't cooked salmon right yet, but on my tri-tip, brisket, and st louis spare ribs, the bark produced was MOUTH WATERING. If you are already an experienced smoker - and I am not - you will be able to produce great bark. I like the bisquette for the Bradley too. They do each burn for about 20-minutes as reported. Overall, a great experience. I will add I have the Weber Genesis propane grill. Weber makes an excellent product. So, it really boils down to... » Read More Hey there! I still consider myself a beginner in this smoking arena, and still experimenting. But YES! The Bradley performs optimally. I haven't cooked salmon right yet, but on my tri-tip, brisket, and st louis spare ribs, the bark produced was MOUTH WATERING. If you are already an experienced smoker - and I am not - you will be able to produce great bark. I like the bisquette for the Bradley too. They do each burn for about 20-minutes as reported. Overall, a great experience. I will add I have the Weber Genesis propane grill. Weber makes an excellent product. So, it really boils down to personal preference, but the Bradley allows me to "set it and forget it" until it's time to eat! « Show Less
1178169
I just got done cooking on mine, I,absolutely love that grill. And I cook mostly on high, then hot dogs, sausage links, and chicken on low to medium. Trust me you will enjoy it
26982
Well, I thought about that too. The only thing I did was put in the new grates & flavorizers and heat it up to a pretty high temperature. You'll see some smoke for a few minutes and then I let it cool. After that no more smoking and I went ahead and started cooking. I typically spray a bit of that Pam for Grilling spray to make cleaning easier later. (Never clean the flavorizer bars though.)
853583
Well, it is not smokeless until the starter substance burns away; then it is. Pleasant odor, too. My only complaints are: 1. price, and 2. too many LARGE chunks that are really messy to break down into (for us) manageable size.
735557
I use the grill almost every day if not twice a day. It's one of the few grills without teflon which I've heard can cause cancer. I like the fact that the fat drips below without getting back on the food. I can't digest any type of oil or fat so it's essential for me to have this type of grill if I'm to cook something. I'm very happy with the grill. It took me long enough to find it, and I'm glad that Amazon had it.
1104605
Hey there! I still consider myself a beginner in this smoking arena, and still experimenting. But YES! The Bradley performs optimally. I haven't cooked salmon right yet, but on my tri-tip, brisket, and st louis spare ribs, the bark produced was MOUTH WATERING. If you are already an experienced smoker - and I am not - you will be able to produce great bark. I like the bisquette for the Bradley too. They do each burn for about 20-minutes as reported. Overall, a great experience. I will add I have the Weber Genesis propane grill. Weber makes an excellent product. So, it really boils down to personal preference, but the Bradley allows me to "set it and forget it" until it's time to eat!
1956926
We got our PK Grill for a lot of reasons - they have a very good reputation, my husband and myself both grew up with our families cooking on them, they have a lot of cooking area for the size, and are very well made. We both prefer charcoal grills, but if you don't, then make sure you allow the coals to burn down as much as possible, this cuts down on a strong charcoal flavor, and you can get small wood chips (hickory, mesquite, apple wood, cherry wood, pecan, etc) which will also cut back on charcoal flavor. As far as the grill goes, we couldn't recommend a better one!!
1580239
I would say it does not grill as well as charcoal or gas. My RT is a little slow getting up to 500 degrees to grill I added the grill grates and it does grill better with them in place. Some remove the drip pan while grilling and it does heat up very quickly with it removed and they say it works well I have not tried it myself. Over all I am very happy with the REC TEC grill I have not used my charcoal grill since I got it last April .I use the RT for smoking , baking pizza or breads, side dishes etc makes great beef Jerky and with the grill grates installed it does grill well .Cold weather will slow it down a bit so I use a welding blanket to cover it while cooking in very cold weather as I don't have a grilling season !
853579
That's why I stopped using the BGE coal. Smoke is much less. You get a little flavor but not as bad. Which is good for me because I use assorted flavor chips when I want that extra kick. And Fogo gets hot!
1044624
Yes, as a smoker, this style of smoker does produce smoke. It's necessary to flavor the meat. However, it produces considerably less smoke than the traditional offset smokers or even grills because the smoke is used only as flavor, not as a heat source, and doesn't require the steady stream of hot smoke to cook the meat. Further because of it's very "tight" design - with a very small chimney (only maybe an inch hole) - the smoke dwells on the meat much longer. This style of smoker uses ridiculously small amounts of wood - like literally a single chunk or two per smoke. When using my traditional smoker, you could smell it a block away. With this style smoker, I smell it from maybe a few feet away only. It actually is very well suited for use in proximity too neighbors when you're trying to be thoughtful. Of course, my neighbors always loved the smell of hickory because that meant before too long there would be a knock on their door with an offer of ribs :) Hope this helps future readers !
969263
Thus far I've found that the 14.5" model uses less charcoal (less volume) cook time remains the same. Something very important that I've learned - Wrap your wood chunks (2-3) in foil and cut several vent slits in the top to alot smoke to escape. Using this technique prevents the wood from catching on fire (increases the temperature which is a bad thing) and your chunks/smoke last much longer.