Denny Wheeler wrote:
> IIRC, Traegers can go quite high, using either the middle or high
> setting on the 3-way switch.
> From Traeger's site:
> SETTING TEMP AUGER TIMING PELLET CONSUMPTION
> High 425 - 450 F Always On 2 lbs/hr
> Medium 300 - 325 F On 2 Min, Off 2 1 lb/hr
> Smoke 180 - 220 F On 1 Min, Off 3 1/2 lb/hr

Yeah, but that's not even close to what the grate temp is on a gas grill
using direct heat right above the fire. Or on a Weber, for that matter. All
Traeger's use indirect heat. There's a solid chunk of U-shaped steel right
above the firebox to deflect the heat. And above that is a long, sloped
chunk of steel nearly as long and wide as the grill itself, to further keep
the heat away from the grates. The heat that does get there mostly gets
there around those two pieces of steel, reflecting off the insides of the
cooker. Yes, there's *some* heat right in the middle of the cooker that's
radiating off the firebox through those two pieces of steel, but it's barely
enough to make light grill marks.

Tonight I did a few Omaha Steak hamburger patties. That's about the only
meat I haven't done so far on it. I had to fire up the Traeger for a solid
15-20 minutes to get it above 400 degrees F. The patties were partially
frozen, but it still took 20 minutes to get them up to 160 degrees internal.
That's 40 minutes to get a hamburger! On my gas grill, warmup time would be
5 minutes and cook time would be less than 10.

So, yes, color me a Traeger owner who is not as enamoured of his Traeger as
many other Traeger afficianados are. Don't get me wrong - I have had
excellent slow-smoked barbecue off the Traeger. And chicken and fish are
great - very flavorful, moist and just smoky enough to be interesting. And
never burned! But as a grill for steaks and burgers, it just doesn't get hot
enough.

So, while I cook on the Traeger more than any other of my six pieces of
outdoor equipment, I think I'll be reverting to the actual grills for
burgers and steaks.


--
EZ
Traeger BBQ075 "Texas"
CharGriller Smokin Pro
Great Outdoors Smoky Mountain Wide Body
CharmGlow 3-burner All-Stainless Gas Grill
Weber Kettle One-Touch Silver 22-1/2"
Weber Kettle Smoky Joe Silver 14-1/2"