Category Archives: Great Deals

Free Food Safety Webinar from ThermoWorks

ThermoWorks is holding a free food safety webinar on Mar 3. Head on over to their home page and look for this banner to reserve your spot.

Register at ThermoWorks

Price, promotions and availability can change quickly. Check the product page for current price, description and availability.

Smoke X2™ Long-Range Remote BBQ Thermometer – Save 25%

Smoke X2™ Long-Range Remote BBQ Alarm Thermometer

Smoke X2™ Long-Range Remote BBQ Alarm Thermometer

From the product description, check product page for current description, price and availability:

Extended Range: Up to 6,562 feet away
The longest range and transmission strength available for an alarm thermometer. Guaranteed to keep you connected to your cook from anywhere in your home or yard.

2 or 4 Probe Channels: Compatible with any Pro-Series® probe
Track up to three different cooks at once plus your pit temp. Our commercial-grade Pro-Series Probes come with overbraid and reinforced transitions.

Dashboard-Style Display: Shows Min/Max & High/Low
View all channels and temperature data at once. No fumbling with buttons or switching between channels.

Compatible with Billows
Smoke X includes control circuitry for Billows BBQ Temperature Control Fan (sold separately). Use Billows to control the air flow in your smoker.

Splash-proof sealed design for outdoor use, rated to IP66
Stays in place with sturdy base and strong magnets on back
Backlit dashboard-style display to track temps, alarms, Min/Max
Designed in Utah by ThermoWorks
Smoke X is a BBQ Alarm thermometer with ThermoWorks quality and performance. Built with all-new RF wireless technology, Smoke X gives you up to 6,562 feet (1.24-mile) line-of-sight transmission distance to included Smoke X Receiver, and max signal strength to penetrate walls so you’ll always be connected anywhere in your home or yard.

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Smoke X uses commercial-grade Pro-Series probes, designed by ThermoWorks with state-of-the-art materials, built to outlast and outperform all cheaply made houseware probes. With a large, dashboard-like display, track all four channels simultaneously with high/low alarms, max/min, and adjustable volume levels. Smoke X has magnets on the back for mounting or use the convenient flip-out stand. Use Smoke X up to 330-hours on a pair of AA batteries, or plug into AC power (adapter sold separately) via USB-C for uninterrupted use. Smoke X includes control circuitry for Billows BBQ Temperature Control Fan (sold separately) so you can control your smoker temperatures over an entire cook. 9 out of 10 BBQ teams use ThermoWorks devices for winning BBQ. Use what the pros use to get award-winning results. Up your game with Smoke X from ThermoWorks, the #1 trusted name in BBQ.

Smoke X is designed to track temperatures over an extended period of time with moderate-heat cooking methods such as smoking, oven-roasting, deep-frying, homebrewing, and Sous Vide and can be used while grilling. Smoke X is not meant to be used in place of a digital instant-read thermometer, such as a Thermapen ONE or a ThermoPop, or used with broiling.

Two or Four Channels
Smoke X4 comes with three Pro-Series High Temp Cooking Probes. Smoke X2 comes with one Pro-Series High Temp Cooking Probe. Both models include one Pro-Series High Temp Air Probe for monitoring your pit temperature.

Pro-Series Probes
Smoke X works with all of our Pro-Series probes. ThermoWorks’ Pro-Series Probes are the best in the business for accuracy, durability, and heat resistance. Get the confidence that comes with ThermoWorks probes and meters.

Easily Identify Each Probe
Smoke X comes with 8 High Temp Silicone Color Bands that roll onto each end of each probe, so you can see at a glance which input matches with which probe.

Water Resistant
Molded-in seals for splash-proof protection rated to IP66, safe for outdoor use. NO additional waterproof bags or cases needed.

 

ThermoWorks is discounting this by 25% as part of a short sale. No coupon code required, check product page for current availability.

Smoke X2™ Long-Range Remote BBQ Alarm Thermometer

Check sale or product page for current availability & pricing

Compatible With: Billows™ BBQ Temperature Control Fan Kit

Price, promotions and availability can change quickly. Check the product page for current price, description and availability.

35% Off MasterClass… Take Aaron Franklin’s Texas Brisket Course!

aaron franklin brisket masterclassAaron Franklin Teaches Texas BBQ, MasterClass

For a short time, MasterClass is discounting select plans by 35%. This opens up many MasterClass classes to you. One of those is Aaron Franklin’s course on making Texas BBQ.

35% Off MasterClass < full details & availability

Aaron Franklin Teaches Texas BBQ, MasterClass

Check sale or product page for current availability & pricing

Price, promotions and availability can change quickly. Check the product page for current price, description and availability

The Case for Better Coffee – how to make a better cup

French Press Starter KitPictured: French Press Starter Kit – via La Colombe

A good number of years ago, I had the pleasure of watching Alton Brown’s Good Eats on the subject of coffee.  It explained many things and helped me understand why I was struggling to produce something that I would call a good cup of coffee.  Since I have had the pleasure of traveling to Central America many times and have furthered my love and appreciation of a good cup of coffee.  I’ve gone from drip to french press to pour-overs to roasting my own green coffee beans to making espresso in my home that rivals or often time exceeds the brew that’s coming out of many coffee shops at a fraction of the price.  Here are some tips to take your cup to the next level no matter where you are in the spectrum.

  1. For the pre-ground drip coffee maker crowd – Use the right amount of coffee.  Generally speaking, you’re looking for 2 tablespoons per 6 ounces of water.  If you like your coffee weaker than that… dandy.  Make it using 2 tablespoons for 6 ounces and dilute it to taste with hot water.  Using too little coffee draws unwanted and bitter compounds from the coffee.  Use the right amount of coffee.
  2. Start with good water.  If your water is overly hard or otherwise unpleasant pick up a filter or consider using bottled water.
  3. Grind your own.  The biggest bang for the buck improvement in my opinion is grinding your own beans.  Green coffee beans have a shelf life of years, in fact some think that green coffee beans get better as they age.  Roasted coffee beans have an optimal shelf life of 2 weeks or under.  Ground coffee has a shelf life of… minutes.  Ground coffee has a lot more surface area (compared with whole unground coffee) to interact with oxygen and stale/oxidize.  Also fresh beans release CO2.  That CO2 helps to drive important oils and flavors out during the brewing process.  Ground coffee left to sit, releases all its CO2.  Leaving no CO2 left to help drive the flavor extraction process.  All pre-ground coffee is stale. Amazon Best Sellers in Coffee Grinders
  4. Get the grind right.  Each brewing method calls for a specific grind size.  That grind corresponds with the speed of the method and helps extract the right flavors and compounds.  Choose the right setting for your equipment.
  5. Get fresh beans.  Look for a busy coffee roaster that includes roast dates on the bag.  Busy means beans aren’t sitting around too long.  In my opinion… I suggest running away from bins of coffee beans.  These are open the air and are most likely stail.  Who knows how long they’ve been sitting there.  Run from the bins!
  6. Skip the drip coffee maker.  Most drip coffee makers do not get hot enough for optimal brewing.  A pour over brewer is generally inexpensive and gives you control over your water at a reasonable price.  You can be certain your water is hot enough by heating it yourself in a tea kettle.  In my opinion a freshly ground pour-over coffee is an economical way to get a great cup of coffee that outclasses most drip machines.
  7. If you want to make the jump to espresso… plan on saving up.  A quality setup is pricey.  Expect to spend $400+ for just the grinder.  I started with a cheap espresso maker (real cheap) and had terrible results, I moved on to a Rancilio Silvia and a Rocky Grinder and have since moved on to a Rocket Espresso Appartemento.  A great cup of coffee can be made relatively inexpensively with fresh beans that have been recently ground using a method that allows you to heat up the water to the right temperature – french press, pour-over, chemex and more.  Inexpensive and quality espresso setup are mutually exclusive terms in my opinion.

If you’re happy with your cup of Joe, that’s what counts.  If you’re not and looking to improve consider some of these ideas.

toppost:coffee

Great Deals on Gear Trails!

This is a list of Great Deals that have recently been featured on Gear Trails.  Prices, promotions and shipping charges can change quickly, so check each product page for up to the minute price and availability.  Got something to add to the list?  Submit a Tip

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