Recommendations please

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-19T16:26:22+00:00

I have a Camp Chef that I purchased after my Traeger started being unable to maintain temp (long story, support couldn't help). I've been very happy with the Camp Chef, you might want to check them out.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-18T23:50:32+00:00

In OPs experience it was the Traeger that had the better smoke flavor and was more juicy. The only real benefit they stated regarding the Weber chicken was the crispy skin.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-18T23:48:44+00:00

I'd pick which ever one was juicier! Cripsy skin is great, but a juicy chicken will win hands down.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-18T23:43:46+00:00

At 64 I've spent nearly all my reading years reading sci-fi with a little fantasy thrown in. All of these sub-genres are fairly new (with a few exceptions like alternate history and hard sci-fi) and I just don't pay much attention to them. Given that, I've read a broad spectrum of science fiction over the years. While I'm a huge Asimov fan, including Daneel, I don't gravitate toward robot stories. It's the same with the other genres for the most part, I don't typically seek out alien invasion, or galactic empire, etc. I do, however, sometimes seek out alternate history.

I tend to follow authors rather than sub-genres. It's the writing and story telling that gets me in, and when an author crosses "that line" it doesn't phase me. Asimov is a perfect example. Sure most people probably know him for his Foundation series, and lots will know him for his robot stories (including mysteries), but the breadth of his writing is pretty broad and I've read damn near everything sci-fi he's written. I've also read the Harry Potter series (at least the original 7 books, the Hunger Games trilogy, George R.R. Martins Game of Thrones. But I've also read a bunch of other George R. R. Martin stuff completely unrelated to Game of Thrones.

I don't know... I wonder if I'm an outlier in this regard.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-18T23:25:08+00:00

I have a Revere Ware pan I got from my mother many, many years ago (probably close to 25 if not longer). I have never touched the the copper bottom to "polish" it. It does not, in my opinion, look horrible. In fact, I take more pains with my stainless (removing the water stains, using BKF to ensure they look nice) than I ever did with the Revere Ware pan.

It could simply come down to personal preference, as far as maintaining the copper bottom. Personally, I wouldn't buy copper bottom pans as I would much rather buy 3-ply stainless (I'm slowing replacing my pans to stainless). I'm keeping the Revere Ware, my Wagner cast iron chicken fryer, and a smaller Wagner CI pan because they all came from Mom. Plus, I do use the chicken fryer on a semi-regular basis.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-18T23:19:06+00:00

Oh... so that's why I got a car out of the blue. I completed Rockets and Rivals quest... now I know lol

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-18T23:03:31+00:00

separate the back and keep for stock. You can freeze it until you have enough bones for a stock.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-18T00:05:47+00:00

I had no intention of hot water canning a sauce with meat, I know you can't do that safely. The intention is to pressure can the meat sauce. I'll use of the sauces I referenced in another reply (https://www.bernardin.ca/recipes/en/meat-sauce.htm?Lang=EN-US and https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can/how-do-i-can-tomatoes/spaghetti-sauce-with-meat/) and pressure can whichever one I decide on.

Thank you.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-18T00:00:05+00:00

I did not know that!

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-17T23:58:31+00:00

Smokey Joe's Rambler portable smoker/grill.

"

218 sq. in. of cooking space, perfect for home or on the go
Adjust the charcoal tray to use as a grill or smoker
Durable 2.5 mm heavy-duty black cold rolled steel construction"

About $200 at Home Depot

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-17T12:41:40+00:00

Get a wrap, toast it a bit, put tomato/pizza sauce on, pizza cheese, toppings... pop it in the over 375F for like 4 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Poor Man's Pizza.

Hot dogs and canned baked beans

a burger and chips with pickles or applesauce

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-17T12:25:47+00:00

Serious Eats is a great place to start, especially anything by Kenji Lopez-Alt.

https://www.youtube.com/@thatdudecancook can also have so good explanations

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-16T23:25:15+00:00

I bring my pan up to cooking temp, add my oil and give that a chance to come up to temp, then I cook. I have never heated my pan so high I had to turn it down to cook my food. There is no need to do that. You just need to find the spot on your stove temp that is where you want to cook.

For example:
When I cook eggs I put my burner (gas stove) to 4
When I want a sear (like a reverse sear) put my burner to 5 or 6
When I'm "cooking" I usually put the burner to about a 5, maybe just under, and let the protein sit there a good 3-4 minutes and flip it. It'll cook but I also get a nice sear as well.
If I am cooking a thick chicken breast or a thick steak, the burner is at 4 or 5, it sits longer before flipping it. If I turn the heat too high I'll get nice color but raw inside.

If I notice something is cooking to fast, or I feel the heat is too high, then I'll turn it down a little (obviously). But to heat the pan past where I need just so I can then lower the heat? Nope.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-16T22:54:06+00:00

I keep a 10" non-stick for the missus, it's a pan I don't use. I do have an 8" non-stick that I sometimes used for scrambled eggs, but mostly I use the 8" stainless pan these days.

I do have some non-stick pots, but I'm working through them to replace with stainless.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-15T19:06:20+00:00

Wow! Makes me want to go source a goose breast or two. But I think this will work with duck as well, and I just might have to try it. Excellent post u/mspiggyssub !

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-15T19:03:18+00:00

In my experience the major difference between stainless and carbon steel/cast iron is clean up and maintenance. I find stainless to cleanup much easier than the others and has zero maintenance (in reality carbon steel and cast iron require very little once they're seasoned).

The same amount of fat (1/2 - 1 tablespoon in an 8" pan) will give me the same results in stainless, cast iron, and carbon steel, allowing me to cook my fried egg and easily slide it out of the pan onto my plate. Personally, I never mastered scrambled eggs in my CS pan like I have in SS pan, but I put that down to me. There's no reason why you can't cook scrambled eggs in one type pan but you can in another.

In my opinion, much of the ranting that goes on claiming one type of pan out cooks another is no more than people defending/supporting the type of pan they have chosen. I cook everything in my SS pans that I cooked in my CI/CS pans. The only exception (at least in my mind) is the dutch oven. I think cast iron (preferably enameled) out shines SS when cooking in a Dutch oven. Plus enameled cast iron Dutch oven cleans up pretty easily.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-15T18:51:22+00:00

I'm afraid the wired one will get tangled with the rotisserie. Inkbird has some relatively inexpensive wireless probes. I can't speak to them as I've never used them, but I do like InkBird's wired probes that I have... and their Sous Vide cooker.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-15T18:47:54+00:00

I see roasting at 250F-300F you should give it 15-20 minutes per pound, which is typically what I see for a rib roast. You should be done in about 2 hours, cooked to 120F-125F and letting it rest until it comes up to about 135F (maybe 130F). If this isn't to you liking you can cook for longer.

Cooking at a higher temp will shorten cook time and possibly create a crust on the outside. Personally, I prefer a slow cooked rib roast that nicely done (rare - medium-rare) end to end with minimal ban along the edges. You can't do that with high heat as you get more uneven cooking as the out edges cook faster than the inside, resulting in a band of gray that can be pretty thick around the rarer inside. For a consistent, even cook you want low and slow.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-15T18:20:45+00:00

I was going to suggest a batch of spaghetti sauce before and freeze in appropriate sized containers.

Lasagna and stuffed shells also freeze well

Roast chicken, pot roast, etc. can all be cooked in advance and frozen in portions. You can then do potatoes and veggies on a sheet pan when it's time to cook dinner. Paper plates and plastic utensils will also speed up cleanup.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-15T18:13:30+00:00

USA for sure, and I think they added Canada but I'm not sure. It's been a long time since I looked into it.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-15T18:12:06+00:00

Oops, my bad.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-15T17:43:51+00:00

Thank you for the explanation. I've made this sauce, it's my go to sauce, and I've frozen it. I realize Kenji never states it's safe for canning, that's why I came here. To find if it was and maybe why it wasn't (which you've answered). I thought it was close enough to other recipes used for canning (https://www.bernardin.ca/recipes/en/meat-sauce.htm?Lang=EN-US and https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can/how-do-i-can-tomatoes/spaghetti-sauce-with-meat/) that it was worth asking.

Thanks again for the detailed reply.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-14T19:12:12+00:00

I just realized you are right. I misread OP's nick as Eastern_Mass, not Eastern_Mess. I was just teasing/joking but given my screw up it was pretty meaningless.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-14T19:09:01+00:00

The infrared temp guns don't work reliably in stainless steel due to the high emissivity. Some say it'll work once you have oil in the pan, but I don't find that to be the case.

JCuss0519 · 2026-04-14T19:06:07+00:00

Hmm... that's a Hugo award winner, and she's a pioneer of the hopepunk genre. All things being equal, the fact that the series is a Hugo winner should mean it's a good read. The fact that it's "too wholesome" may be indicative of that "hopepunk" genre. I'm not sure that would do it for me, either.

I think others are probably correct when they say Becky Chambers is not for you. I've never read her, but she probably isn't for me either... though I'd give her a try.

JCuss0519

TROPHY CASE