Finally pulled the trigger - Rec Tec BFG

[Thomas The Tank]

So I finally ordered the BFG 2500 today. I was gonna wait for tax return but they were giving a RT-340 with the platinum package and I couldn’t pass it up. I currently have a mes 30 and have ~2yrs smoking experience under my belt. I started doing food for larger groups of people, mainly for church gatherings, and can only do so much with the mes. Now I can do a ton and maybe even some fundraisers for the youth or weekend orders. I’m beyond excited to get these and try them out! All my friends that smoke meat are dying to see what these things can do. Plus I’ll have the little one for when I don’t want to fire up the big boy.

Only one question. I do have the amnps tray, will that work in there if I want additional smoke for the first hour or two, or should I get a tube?

 

[ross77]

Nice! I have the RT 680 and occasionally use a tube. Not sure how well a tray would work.

 

[mike guy]

I can't speak for the BFG, it might be big enough that the dynamics are different, but in the rt700 the tray is hard to keep lit inside a smokey environment. Some have mentioned it's easier to use with dust. The tube stays lit inside a smokey environment. But it can, more often than not, get choked down and put what I consider undesirable smoke out. There is a thread in the sub-forum that people are having success grinding the pellets into a not quite dust consistency and burning that in the tube for TBS.

To be honest, I think if you burn a good quality pellet like lumberjack or bbq delight (or others) and use some techniques, such as spraying with cold water / liquid to get the smoke to stick, I find I don't really need a supplemental tube. I'm still playing around though, lots of people like it so YMMV. I'd suggest getting some cooks in and dialing in your main pellet choice before deciding to add supplemental smoke. Deal with one variable at a time, get a good result, and then start to iterate.

I do like the tray and tube for cold smoking, so at their price, they are definitely good to have in the back pocket.

 

[texomakid]

I bet the tray will work just fine.

 

[sandyut]

WOA nice. A BFG. Going gig that’s awesome!

 

[Johnny Ray]

You’ll love the BFG. It’s huge and cooks like a champ.
Engineered really well.

Johnny Ray

 

[Thomas The Tank]

WOA nice. A BFG. Going gig that’s awesome!

Yeah, ever send I started having large groups over I wanted a bigger smoker. Mes was ok, but once I start doing sides along with meat, it fills up pretty quick. Don’t think the 700 would be big enough...

 

[sandyut]

I can see that being the issue. I can fill my 700 pretty easy and I dont like the food all jammed up in there. Great buy with the extra 340. you gonna gift that or use it for smaller cooks?

 

[Thomas The Tank]

I can see that being the issue. I can fill my 700 pretty easy and I dont like the food all jammed up in there. Great buy with the extra 340. you gonna gift that or use it for smaller cooks?

Definitely gonna keep it and use it for smaller cooks!

 

[SmokinAl]

I have been hearing about those Rec tecs & everybody loves them.
Al

 

[kstone113]

Congrats on your purchase! That 340 coming for free is a sweet deal!

 

[Thomas The Tank]

Ok so I’ve been really busy to do any update, But I got my grills delivered on Friday, 1 week from the day I ordered. It was about 5:30pm and dark but that didn’t stop me from putting them together.

I did most of it myself and my wife helped when I needed two people. Got everything situated and went to bed.


First thing Saturday morning I did my initial burn in. Loved the WiFi capability and they both fired up with no issues using my phone.

Threw some ribs in the BFG about 1:30pm

Had them in LO setting for max smoke output for ~1hr and then I gradually raise the temp up to 230ish to keep there for a while. They were taking a little longer than I expected so I cranked the heat up. They
at 195 about 6:30 and they were great. Awesome smoke ring, with a great bite! Did want a tad more smoke flavor, but I didn’t use the LO setting as long as I had hoped due to time restrictions.

Will obviously have to learn the Rec Tec, but don’t think it will take long. I did get a 12” amaze-n-tube so I can always use that if I need to.

 

[Smokin' in AZ]

Nice job, gotta love those Rec Tecs....

John

 

[kstone113]

Congrats man! That was a heck of a deal Rec Tec offered.

 

[Thomas The Tank]

Only question I have for the food safety peeps, how long can I let the Rec Tec go on LO setting, which is 180, before there are any food safety issues. I know there are guidelines, and other factors involved, but is it ok/safe to leave it on LO setting for more than 4 hrs if I ever choose to do that.

 

[mike guy]

The rule is to get above 140 internal temp in 4 hours. This is especially true if you have done anything internal to the meat. Injecting it or even putting in your temp probe can introduce bacteria where it’s more important to follow the rule than otherwise.

Im not sure I’d do lo for more than four hours but if you want to, I would just make sure you haven’t injected the meat and leave the probes out until you are done with that phase. I use a sanitizer called Star San in my meat probes before they go in. It’s not necessary to go that far, I just have plenty of the product around from home brewing beer. If you are going to play with not hitting 140 in 4 hours I would recommend sanitizing things that touch the inside of the meat to be in the safe side.

 

[Thomas The Tank]

The rule is to get above 140 internal temp in 4 hours. This is especially true if you have done anything internal to the meat. Injecting it or even putting in your temp probe can introduce bacteria where it’s more important to follow the rule than otherwise.

Im not sure I’d do lo for more than four hours but if you want to, I would just make sure you haven’t injected the meat and leave the probes out until you are done with that phase. I use a sanitizer called Star San in my meat probes before they go in. It’s not necessary to go that far, I just have plenty of the product around from home brewing beer. If you are going to play with not hitting 140 in 4 hours I would recommend sanitizing things that touch the inside of the meat to be in the safe side.

Thanks to the input! I’m still new to the pellet smoker and I know that they can have a lack of smoke flavor. The LO setting on the Rec Tec allows for more smoke. I do have a tube though that I have not tried it yet, but I’m sure it will be all trial and error to find out what to do to produce the results I want.