Temp plummets when meat goes on...?

[GOMRDS]

I'll frame this by saying this is my first grill with a dome thermometer.

I pour the coals, then put on the lid to preheat the grates, and the temp spikes to 475 or so. But when I put on the meat the temp plummets to 350, and won't budge. Is the raw meat cooling off the internal temp that much?

[landgraftj]

Gomrds, most likely due to the cold meat going on the grill. Mine does this every time and the temp drop varies. I find that if I leave the meat on the counter at room temp for 15-30 minutes the temp drop isn't as great. Not a big deal, you learn to compensate for the drop with more cooks.

[Idahawk]

 Cold meat will drop the temp , whenever possible I let it come up to room temp first .

[1buckie]

 Depends on what you're doing, I would guess.....batch of heavily oiled lamb chops, the temp might go up for a time.....



15+ lbs. brisket, yes it will drop from the cold meat mass going on.................



I try to just plan the drop a little ahead & start off a bit high to account for what will happen........if it's a large piece like pork butt, then you're in for the long haul & it's not going to be an exact timing thing anyway......I've tried to get two identical setups & they still have come out 1&1/2 hrs apart........the meat dictates the rules.....................
 A thing to do in the way of gaining experience with these things is try to allow enough time to not get nervous & just watch & observe what happens.......make an adjustment, notice what happens, make another, if needed, watch what happens......it will get to be second nature much sooner than you think......it's a Weber!!!!!!

[Troy]

i wouldn't over think it.

if your fuel source is putting out enough heat to maintain empty temp of 250, a temp drop in the pit isn't because of the fuel or burn rate.
it's simply affecting the temp by absorbing all the heat.

if you're grilling, chances are there's not enough thermal mass of whatever you're grilling to have this effect (unless you're throwing on a couple cold tri tips)
The temp loss you're seeing is likely just from opening the lid and letting all the heat out.

[MINIgrillin]

The dome therm is lying to you anyway.

[pbe gummi bear]

I'll frame this by saying this is my first grill with a dome thermometer.

I pour the coals, then put on the lid to preheat the grates, and the temp spikes to 475 or so. But when I put on the meat the temp plummets to 350, and won't budge. Is the raw meat cooling off the internal temp that much?

If you put your meat between the charcoal and thermometer you are removing radiant heat that was previously on the thermometer- causing the temp reading to fall more than just strictly taking the grill internal air reading. The cold meat and water content also have an effect, but as others mentioned don't worry about it too much.

[GOMRDS]

Thanks for the insights, everyone. It's just another thing to get used to in the transition from the Char-Q to the 22.