I bought and used the 3-in-1 Big Easy for the first time last week 11-18-11. I will do a review for two meals I tried to cook. First was a 5-rib Prime Rib Roast. The thermostat provided with unit was way off and by time 130 came only a small part of this 7lb roast was medium rare…rest was well done, with an end darn near crispy. Then I tried a 22 lb turkey which is upper limit for my unit. I tried to get cooking time from various internet sources as company provided none with unit. One was the char-broil community forums.
While it says the cooking time is nearly the same as deep fat frying, I can assure you this is way off. I have fried multiple turkeys in my day and I can assure everyone the deep fat drying is quicker by hours. I attribute this to fact hot grease gets inside the bird, whereas when using the Big Easy oven there is no air circulation inside the bird so the most dense meat (thigh) is last to heat, and from mostly the outside only. I used 10 minutes per lb, dried the bird & raised to room temperature before starting. I do not know how the base unit is, but my unit has a temperature dial running from high-to-low. Who knows where it should be set because there is no easy way to measure the temp inside the oven chamber. You have to buy another higher temp thermometer to stick through the top grate to judge chamber temperature, but you must remove it each time you want to look at the meat thermometer in the bird. Tried to use my Maverick which broadcasts chamber and internal temp, but there is no way to get the line inside without crimping it with the lid or grill grate, or threading it through the grate which is not wise if you want to keep the unit in working order. Otherwise one would have to drill a hole in the lid to pass the probes, and be careful those probe lines don’t get placed over the vent holes in the chamber or they will burn the probe line cover off. I think the engineers need to rethink this temp problem or otherwise, why have a temperature knob? I tried to maintain 350 degrees in the chamber at all times for lack of guidance from the manufacturer. When I pulled the bird out it was still raw in the leg joints which I had to cut off and put in house oven, and then return the rest back to the unit to get the leg sockets cooked. Needless to say the meal was delayed quite a long time. Parts of the top of the breast was as dry as a rope when I cut the legs off, and dryer after reinserting to get it fully cooked. But the core of the breast was moist like a deep fried bird.
It is not like I am stupid or don’t know what I am doing. I have butchered for a living and know my meats. I have a Weber charcoal grill, a larger Brinkman gas grill, a smaller Kenmore gas grill, a Mr Smoker, a turkey fry/wok unit, and a rolling open fire pit and know how to use them all. I prefer the open wood pit for grilling but can’t use it during burn bans here in Texas. My next choice is the Mr. Smoker to grill in, using smaller wood and charcoal mix and setting the fire low in the bottom. My next choice is obviously one of the gas grills, and the choice when guests are over as they produce no smoke. I use the wok for stir fry and light deep frying, or turn to the deep fry bucket when doing large items. Deep frying is my least favorite primarily due to the grease mess and cleanup. If anyone compares the Big Easy as “greaseless frying”, they are correct in that the meat can be as crispy and tasty as deep frying. But there should be no comparison by the company or users that the time is nearly as deep fat frying. It isn’t! It is comparable to an oven. The Big Easy 3 in 1 is just an outdoor oven that lacks ability to know internal temperature and that is a poor design flaw for the unit. Another flaw is the wood chip holder. I had to pry mine out of the slot twice during the cooking process.
The bigger bird may be the issue with the leg sockets not getting cooked thoroughly. Thats a lot of meat to get through. 10 minutes per lb is the suggested guideline. I have not heard anyone else suggesting it cooks as fast as a deep fat fryer which is 3 – 3.5 minutes per lb. However, the overall time from setup to cool down may be about the same, since a deep fryer typically takes longer to set up and cool off. Regardless always be sure to use a meat thermometer and cook to 165F. I have suggested using a wireless model to keep the heat in the unit.
Tried a 13lb turkey. The Big Easy says about 16lbs is as big as you want to get, so I am not sure if the other person who had issues just put too large a bird in? Anyway, my wife, who cooks a tremendous amount also did a traditional bird in the oven with the baking bags. I injected about half a beer which ended up being certain overkill, and just a basic salt and pepper rub with salt rubbed in the cavity. Long story short, the end result was fantastic. The con’s is that the bird wasn’t as well done on the bottom as it was on the top, however it was completely done. The pro’s is that I have never had such a juicy turkey. The taste was extremely good, and the skin was very crisp. I didn’t have the heart to tell my wife mine was better …I would recommend this to anyone, but I wouldn’t do a turkey over 16lbs by any stretch. As for the time, it was right on. 10 minutes per lb. They don’t advertise that the cooking time is shorter because it is not. They do say that the total time including prep and cleanup is better. I would say it is even in that regard. As for the safety side, I have two kids and two dogs. I am very happy with this product, and actually trying a beef roast right now We shall see how it goes…
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November 28th, 2011 at 3:49 pm
I bought and used the 3-in-1 Big Easy for the first time last week 11-18-11. I will do a review for two meals I tried to cook. First was a 5-rib Prime Rib Roast. The thermostat provided with unit was way off and by time 130 came only a small part of this 7lb roast was medium rare…rest was well done, with an end darn near crispy. Then I tried a 22 lb turkey which is upper limit for my unit. I tried to get cooking time from various internet sources as company provided none with unit. One was the char-broil community forums.
While it says the cooking time is nearly the same as deep fat frying, I can assure you this is way off. I have fried multiple turkeys in my day and I can assure everyone the deep fat drying is quicker by hours. I attribute this to fact hot grease gets inside the bird, whereas when using the Big Easy oven there is no air circulation inside the bird so the most dense meat (thigh) is last to heat, and from mostly the outside only. I used 10 minutes per lb, dried the bird & raised to room temperature before starting. I do not know how the base unit is, but my unit has a temperature dial running from high-to-low. Who knows where it should be set because there is no easy way to measure the temp inside the oven chamber. You have to buy another higher temp thermometer to stick through the top grate to judge chamber temperature, but you must remove it each time you want to look at the meat thermometer in the bird. Tried to use my Maverick which broadcasts chamber and internal temp, but there is no way to get the line inside without crimping it with the lid or grill grate, or threading it through the grate which is not wise if you want to keep the unit in working order. Otherwise one would have to drill a hole in the lid to pass the probes, and be careful those probe lines don’t get placed over the vent holes in the chamber or they will burn the probe line cover off. I think the engineers need to rethink this temp problem or otherwise, why have a temperature knob? I tried to maintain 350 degrees in the chamber at all times for lack of guidance from the manufacturer. When I pulled the bird out it was still raw in the leg joints which I had to cut off and put in house oven, and then return the rest back to the unit to get the leg sockets cooked. Needless to say the meal was delayed quite a long time. Parts of the top of the breast was as dry as a rope when I cut the legs off, and dryer after reinserting to get it fully cooked. But the core of the breast was moist like a deep fried bird.
It is not like I am stupid or don’t know what I am doing. I have butchered for a living and know my meats. I have a Weber charcoal grill, a larger Brinkman gas grill, a smaller Kenmore gas grill, a Mr Smoker, a turkey fry/wok unit, and a rolling open fire pit and know how to use them all. I prefer the open wood pit for grilling but can’t use it during burn bans here in Texas. My next choice is the Mr. Smoker to grill in, using smaller wood and charcoal mix and setting the fire low in the bottom. My next choice is obviously one of the gas grills, and the choice when guests are over as they produce no smoke. I use the wok for stir fry and light deep frying, or turn to the deep fry bucket when doing large items. Deep frying is my least favorite primarily due to the grease mess and cleanup. If anyone compares the Big Easy as “greaseless frying”, they are correct in that the meat can be as crispy and tasty as deep frying. But there should be no comparison by the company or users that the time is nearly as deep fat frying. It isn’t! It is comparable to an oven. The Big Easy 3 in 1 is just an outdoor oven that lacks ability to know internal temperature and that is a poor design flaw for the unit. Another flaw is the wood chip holder. I had to pry mine out of the slot twice during the cooking process.
November 28th, 2011 at 8:27 pm
The bigger bird may be the issue with the leg sockets not getting cooked thoroughly. Thats a lot of meat to get through. 10 minutes per lb is the suggested guideline. I have not heard anyone else suggesting it cooks as fast as a deep fat fryer which is 3 – 3.5 minutes per lb. However, the overall time from setup to cool down may be about the same, since a deep fryer typically takes longer to set up and cool off. Regardless always be sure to use a meat thermometer and cook to 165F. I have suggested using a wireless model to keep the heat in the unit.
December 3rd, 2011 at 3:24 pm
Tried a 13lb turkey. The Big Easy says about 16lbs is as big as you want to get, so I am not sure if the other person who had issues just put too large a bird in? Anyway, my wife, who cooks a tremendous amount also did a traditional bird in the oven with the baking bags. I injected about half a beer which ended up being certain overkill, and just a basic salt and pepper rub with salt rubbed in the cavity. Long story short, the end result was fantastic. The con’s is that the bird wasn’t as well done on the bottom as it was on the top, however it was completely done. The pro’s is that I have never had such a juicy turkey. The taste was extremely good, and the skin was very crisp. I didn’t have the heart to tell my wife mine was better
…I would recommend this to anyone, but I wouldn’t do a turkey over 16lbs by any stretch. As for the time, it was right on. 10 minutes per lb. They don’t advertise that the cooking time is shorter because it is not. They do say that the total time including prep and cleanup is better. I would say it is even in that regard. As for the safety side, I have two kids and two dogs. I am very happy with this product, and actually trying a beef roast right now 
We shall see how it goes…
December 4th, 2011 at 9:50 pm
Thanks Aaron for the feedback. This is more typical of the results I have heard about. Enjoy your beef roast!!