site banner
PaperclipPerfector  2d ago (text post)   1735 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for July 27, 2025

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

2
Top Bottom Old Controversial Comments
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

Considering taking the grill-pill: Does anyone here have any experience or recommendations on pellet smokers? I've had some success in the past smoking meat on a basic kettle grill with charcoal, but it's a bit of a pain to setup and baby sit all day. I'm thinking it'd be interesting to get something a bit more turn-key to make it easier to do more frequently, and pellet smokers (Traeger, et al) seem frequently recommended these days for both traditional low-and-slow barbecue and occasionally for other outdoor cooking (pizzas? burgers?). Are they actually as good as advertised? There are tons of models at different price ranges, but which features (and sizes) are actually useful?

Man achieved barbecue perfection with the invention of the Weber Kettle in 1952. If it ain't broke, don't fix it

One of my coworkers got one of them and was pretty happy with it for low-and-slow -- while there's still some setup, he was able to set up ribs or a side of brisket and just leave the cooker for 4+ hours. And at least by my (admittedly low) standards, the output was fantastic and impressively tender even with some lower-grade cuts, if a bit subtle on the smoke side.

More marginal for anything that needs a lot of heat. Burgers were cooked enough to be safe, but I've gotten better sears on a 110v electric. He let my try a kabob recipe and had similar problems. Either never tried anything doughy, hasn't mentioned it. So probably can't replace a normal grill entirely.

Big complaints he's mentioned so far were maintenance being a little obnoxious, especially if not cleaned out properly, and the dependence on outside electric. Losing shore power while he was away from the cooker definitely lost half a day of cooking and would have ruined the food if he hadn't gotten a notification. Not sure how much the maintenance issue is standard, his model, or his tendency to leave pellets loaded for some of the most humid months.

I'll have to flag him down to see if I can get the exact model; he mentioned that pellet capacity varies a lot, and that he went for one of the bigger ones specifically to because of that.

tried anything doughy

I'd never considered that you could smoke bread. This is going in my culinary bucket list next to pickled cheese.

Wait until you get to the endgame: pickled sausages. Pure lard, vinegar, and salt, absolutely nothing redeeming and absolutely delicious. Bonus points if they come out firecracker red.

I got a 199 electric smoker

I love it

One day I will upgrade it when I own a home but I use it two times a week for all kinds of meats and fish

I add wood chips every 45 minutes

Comes out awesome

What is this place?

This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.

The weekly Culture War threads host the most controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy; if in doubt, post!

Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts. You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.


Why are you called The Motte?

A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently, it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey", originally identified by philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."

On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.


New post guidelines

If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it. A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).

Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.

If in doubt, please post it!


Rules


Recommended Posts And Communities

Recommended Realtime Chats