Yoder YS1500 vs. Big Green Egg - ULTIMATE ribs showdown!

In this video I compare ribs smoked on the Yoder YS 1500 pellet smoker to ribs smoked on the Big Green Egg. We used pecan pellets in the Yoder YS1500 and a mix of Rockwood lump charcoal and pecan chunks in the Big Green Egg both at 225 degrees. These ribs were seasoned with Angelo's BBQ pork and Poultry rub and wrapped with Honey and butter at the 3 hour mark. This video is simply our opinion of the outcome of the products from these two smokers. Both produced great results!

[@Rbouch]

Great video comparison between the two....the difference may be in the rib itself....either way they looked amazing......great job and thank you!

[@Taintrock]

Appreciate the video! Ribs from each look great.

[@freshhands5054]

Thanks Rick! Let us know if there is something you want to see in the future!

[@pandstar]

Great video. I add a pellet maze type of device (similar to the A-Maze-N) to my pellet smoker cooks, and I get a very high percentage of the smoke flavor from stick burners. Definitely more than from pellets in the hopper alone. So, I get the best of both worlds; convenience and temp control, with the smoke flavor of stick burners.

[@TheScoobysnack08]

You should have tasted egg ribs when you pulled them out initially then tried Yoder ribs when they were done to be fair. Egg was running hotter and you knew that but continued to cook then to no surprise egg ribs were drier.

[@TheChrismsanchez1]

Thank you for the video! I do not own either smoker so the comparison is nice. It would have been helpful to see the thermometer readings on each at the start as as at the wrap & finish. I think you stated the temps were at 225° F but i saw the BGE sitting at approximately 260° when you took them off for wrapping. Great impartial comparison keep giving us your opinions on both in the future in addition to letting us know which seems to be your "go to" and why. Cheers!

[@LiquidLensPhotography]

Great video! In my experience, you can get the same juiciness with ribs on the egg if you spritz with apple juice everyt 30 minutes. That would be the win-win for me. I have an XL BGE which I love and also a Myron Mixon Vulcan V9 for competition or cooking for a larger group. I prefer the color and bark you get on the BGE and in less time time.

[@MrVasmikey]

Thx for the video. Great job. I own a 640 and feel it,doesn’t overpower with smoke but I could add more smoke if needed. Definitely juicy when it comes to cooking meats.

[@freshhands5054]

Thanks for the feedback vasmikey! The 640 is awesome! I want one of those as well...for some reason! We will definitely be doing more tests (on more grills if the wife allows ;) ). We really enjoy the meat off of the Yoder, because we don't care to be over-powered by smoke. That being said, I actually liked the leftovers from the BGE better than the Yoder for some odd reason! They just seemed to reheat better. Thanks for watching!!

[@GarysBBQSupplies]

Deeper smoke ring with the Yoder, lower temps with the Yoder, and more moisture in the finished product. Seems like the Yoder won to me.

[@jamesvitale2291]

Looks like a win win situation to me. I've never tried the big green egg myself but it appears to be a great investment. Great work as always Fresh Hands!

[@freshhands5054]

Thanks James! We have been really impressed with the egg so far! Keep watching for more videos featuring that cooker!

[@djmack1155]

This was an awesome video

[@freshhands5054]

Thanks Jesse!

[@BBQTutor]

I think you should try the experiment again using a pit controller such as the Flame Boss on the Egg. This will equalize the variation of temperature swings that can happen on the egg without one. Also, since the Yoder has a temp controller it will level the playing field. Based on the look of the ribs, it doesn’t appear the temps on the cookers were equal.

[@JK-ug7rm]

how about adding pellet tube for more smoke? Will it match or surpass the BGE smoke flavor?

[@mrfarenheit9159]

What's Malcolm Reed's opinion on this??

[@TacticalStrudel]

Looks to me the biggest difference is the egg ribs cooked faster and were more well done. You can see that with the greater bone exposure when you wrapped.

[@freshhands5054]

Love the name TacticalStrudel! I have found since this video that I am able to cook ribs in the Egg in about half the time, but I am still a big fan of the juiciness you get from the Yoder!

[@TacticalStrudel]

Half the time, really? Is that at about the same temp, confirmed using a digital probe at the grate? Are you using a heat deflector on the egg? That surprises me the time would be that different unless the temps or something else was significantly different. I had a large BGE for about 5 years (and still have a mini) and just ordered a YS640.

[@ronf-ingmyers8449]

Here is why and I have both just as Fresh hands does, the YS1500 is not accurate temp wise.......In fact they are Terrible. You set the temp at 225 degree's and I guarantee you its more like 150 degree's, where the Ceramic cooker if you get it to 225 its actually 225. I have had my Ys1500 for about 2 yrs now, it has been back to Yoder for calibration and its still not right, Probably the biggest waste of $ I have done to date for my Outdoor smoking area. It will be gone soon and replaced with a Old Hickory CT, I have had 2 Pellet Smokers now and I will not own another. Now with that being said I do NOT use my Ceramic Cooker for Ribs, that is done on my Lonestar Vertical Smoker, But again...........this is the big difference, the Yoder YS480, Yoder 640 are more accurate from what I have heard but my YS1500 should have been designed and built with 2 Burn Pots and 2 Hoppers and had better convection fans to even out the temps in the smoker.................They are terrible.

[@LiquidLensPhotography]

I think the difference in cook time and color/bark is due to the difference is cooker type and material. Both are using convection cooking but with the Big Green Egg, you also have the ceramic material holding the heat and then also radiating back down on the meat at the same time during the cook.

[@camilleriap2]

Great video!! Just a question, I have a 1500 as well and I was curious if your lid thermometers match your controller temp or is there a difference?

[@freshhands5054]

Hey! camilleriap2! Thanks for the kind words! NOPE! Never! You can't go by those (at least on mine). In my experience, the lid temps are always considerably lower than the controller temp. It appears that the controller temp is closer to actual. I have placed 2 of the grate temp thermometers from my FireBoard directly on the grill and am generally within about 5 degrees of the controller temp setting throughout the cook. That's why I basically set it and trust the controller at this point. I might theorize that since that some of that variability is due to the location of the lid thermos and the fact that the air is really being pushed across the smoker by the fan? (just a theory)That being said, I would bet that many people have far different experiences than mine. Have you seen the same thing occurring?

[@camilleriap2]

Fresh Hands Thank you for responding so quickly Alex. My name is Adam by the way. Yes I have experienced anywhere from 15 to 50 degrees off from the controller. Oddly enough I found it to be from a few variables. I do not buy into the debate of which pellet is better or worse. Mesquite, oak etc is mesquite or oak. I have used pellets from lumberjack from bbq delight and smoke ring, All are good. I was at Costco and they had the traeger gourmet blend so I thought I would give them a shot. The temperature difference between the door thermometers was the closest it had ever been. I prepared a load of jerky that day encompassing the bottom racks, it was the first time I pulled everything off at the same time. The difference I noticed between the brand of pellets was their consistency in size. The traeger pellets were all between 1/4 to 3/8 inch in length, fairly small. The others varied in length some being almost an inch long. I agree with your theory and have one of my own. First off I am curious if the door thermometers are pulling the temperature off the lid as the probes do not come into the cooker very far. If you look at the thermometer there is a scribe about halfway up which indicates the start of the active part of those thermometers to the point. Mine start flush with the inside of the door. I am going to check it this weekend with an infrared thermometer. Secondly on the pellets. There is only so much gap between the blades of the Auger, I believe that using the longer pellets vs the shorter ones limits the amount fed into the fire grate. I also have done the probe test with similar results to yours. I believe those traeger pellets to work with better results in my particular smoker. One of the other things I noticed was that the fire grate needs to be vacuumed each time. I found that the ash blocks the holes and limits the air flow coming in therefore ending with a difference in temperature from left to right. I appreciate your time Alex and for getting back to me. Those thermometers bothered me for almost a year thinking it was just mine. There is not a lot of information about the 1500 and was delighted to find your channel.

[@packrodgers855]

The Egg was cooking at higher temp

[@1250GSX]

Exactly what happened. The egg ribs were done before they were wrapped.

[@flywheel7545]

Your right, I imagine the green egg thermometer needs calibrated if it was reading 225

[@hemogoblin164]

I'd say the biggest difference is how much more room you have in the 1500

[@MrFrame1979]

Hemo Goblin it’s also 3-4x the price. Lol

[@Curiouswanderer91]

Great video.....off subject but I think if you practiced on it you could have a could sick Owen Wilson voice impression...

[@dennismoore7935]

Sounds like the Egg tastes better

[@TOMVUTHEPIMP]

Both suck. Nobody cooks at 225 anymore. In order to get the egg to cook at 225 its going to have to smoulder the charcoal which makes it taste nasty as hell. You dont know what you are doing or talking about.

[@HVACRTECH-83]

@Face Diaper No, you don’t know what YOU are talking about. To say no one cooks at 225 anymore is about the stupidest comment I’ve heard. I’m not going to even bother going into further explanation on the matter cause you’re not worth helping out. To tell someone they don’t know what they’re doing or talking about was totally out of line. Especially since clearly it’s you that doesn’t know what they’re talking about.

[@TOMVUTHEPIMP]

@@HVACRTECH-83 Nobody cooks at 225 beside people who dont know what they're doing.