My oven is convenient to the fridge, sink, and utensils.
My oven is conveniently protected from rain, wind, and wild animals. (Yes, I’ve had a fox try to steal steaks off the grill.)
It is a modern oven, and pretty well insulated
There’s a big ole exhaust fan immediately over it, that sucks the warm air outside, before it mingles with the rest of the air.
I do use the oven less in the summer. We are getting to the end of pie season, for instance. (I baked a pie most weekends over the winter.) But if I want to cook something in hot air, it’s a heck of a lot more convenient than the grill. And it has excellent temperature control. Maybe high-end grills do, too. My Weber kettle certainly doesn’t.
I definitely want to cook more of my smokes-up-the-house meals outside this summer.
I have a whole chicken process (Alton-Brown’s recipe), which uses high heat and smokes up the house, leading to opening windows and letting in more heat.
Heck, I could probably do two chickens on the Weber. Not sure where to put the baking stones to even out the heat, or whether to bother with them.
So, how do you control the temp in your outdoor oven?
I roast chickens starting at a high temp, and then turn it down to finish. And the vent fan is blowing full force for that one. But i can’t imagine doing it outdoors.
My Weber has a thermometer on the hood that shows the temperature inside the hood. I am assuming that temperature is accurate, though placing a cold chicken into the heated area would certainly lower the temperature overall for some time. Also, whenever I open the hood, there goes that heat.
My range fan is not as effective as yours. I could look into it, but it’s embedded in the microwave that is above the oven/stove.
Anywho, I adjust the burners so that the thermometer shows the temperature. I could also use an iGrill probe for the air temp.
I usually find that high gas on 1 burner (the left one out of 4 on my Genesis) can usually comfortably hold 350* according to the lid thermometer. I put food on the right and rotate once, halfway through cooking. Or I can do 50% gas on far left and far right and put the food in the middle. I can put the food dish on a pizza stone that helps to act as a heat sink. The key is to avoid opening the lid. Trust the process and let the lid contain the heat.
Hmm. Yeah, my charcoal grill has a thermometer, but no real way to adjust the temp. And 350 isn’t hot enough, I want to start the chicken at at least 425F. And if I can’t see and smell the pie or cake, I won’t know when it’s done. But I guess if I had a larger gas grill with more temperature control, I could use it as a casual oven.
To me, it’s more like running the washing machine with the dehumidifier on. Yeah, the dehumidifier will have to work harder. But I want clean laundry or cooked food anyway.
I seem to recall Alton Brown altering a charcoal grill so that it had a fan attached to a thermostat. If the “oven” was too low, up the air coming in to get the coals burning hotter. If it’s too hot, open a vent to let heat out.
I don’t remember what he was trying to cook though… and that seems like a lot of work.
There are a few different brands out there like that Pitmaster IQ that use a fan and a thermometer to control grill/smoker temp. I have thought about getting one of those gadgets but have not.
You can control the temp in a charcoal grill, with practice. You control it with air flow. The more air entering, the more combustion, the more heat. By closing the air ports, whatever ports you charcoal grill has, you choke off the combustion and lower the temps. It’s not instant, and it takes practice, and you have to account for factors like the outdoor temperature and windiness, but it is possible.
The controller referenced above works on that principal. Adding airflow for higher temps and lowering airflow for lower temps.
A Weber Smokey Mountain is not too different than a kettle. It just has a big water pan between the lit charcoal and the food to act as a heat sink.
I have a WSM and you are right that with practice you can control the temp pretty well between 200-425. For temps under 300 using the water pan as a heat sink helps a lot with temperature control. If I’m running much hotter than 300 I often go with an empty pan. For temps 350 and higher I run it with no pan in there. I’m doing some tri-tip this weekend, and I like to cook that at 350-375 so I won’t use the pan. Getting some heat from the coals but at a distance adds a nice crust, and you can sear at the end over the coals if you want it crustier.
For those using lid thermometers built into their grills, I find them inaccurate. The WSM has a dome thermometer but it’s temp reading is pretty off compared to what I find with a thermometer near the grill surface.
Specifically, my “recipe” for roast chicken is to put the bird on one side, and cook at 425 - 450 for about 15 minutes. Then flip to the other side and cook for an additional 15 minutes. Then flip the bird to its back and reduce the heat and cook in a medium or low oven until it’s done. Then turn off the heat, and take it out or vent to oven a bit to cool it off, and let it rest for 30-60 minutes.
(I vary the “finish it” temp based on when I want the bird to be done. If I’m running late, I might keep it as high as 350, and if I’m running early, I might keep it as low as 250.)
I wouldn’t mind finding a way to do this outdoors in nice weather. But I suspect it’s more work than would be worth it.
Spatchcocking requires a larger pan than i usually use. Not sure i want to sacrifice one of my nice cookie sheets for roasting meat. And it’s so easy to roast a whole bird.
I did it once. But once you are cutting up the bird, why not go all the way and cut it into quarters or serving pieces?
(I’m also a Luddite and prefer unbrined birds. Brining makes it salty, and leads to rubbery skin.)