Memphis Pro User manual

VG0970_C5_SN_01501_ACTIVE 9/29/2011
ǯǡǡǡǦ

VG0970_C5_SN_01501_ACTIVE 9/29/2011
CongratulationsonyourpurchaseoftheMemphisWoodFireGrill.Withpropercareandmaintenance,your
grillwillgiveyouyearsoftroubleͲfreeoperation.Pleasereviewthefollowinginformationcarefullyforuseful
tipsandinformationthatwillhelpyouutilizeyourgrill’sextensivefeaturesandbenefits.
KeepinmindthatyourMemphisWoodFiredGrillissomuchmorethanagrill.It’sa3ͲinͲ1outdoorcooking
centerthatprovidestheconvenience,woodͲfireflavorsandversatilityofthreeappliances:hightemperature
grill,low‘n’slowsmoker,highͲperformanceconvectionoven.
Fueldbycertified100%naturalwoodpellets,theMemphishasadigitalIntelligentTemperatureControl(ITC)
thatautomaticallymaintainsyourdesiredtemperaturesfrom180to650degrees,justlikeyouindooroven.
Theresultisasimple"setitandforgetit"waytocook,bake,roast,searorlowandslowsmoke;justsetthe
desiredtemperature,sitbackandenjoy.
Weallhaveourfavoriterecipesandcookingtricks.Wesuggestyouexperimentwithyournewgrilltodiscover
justhowmanywaysitaddstoyouroutdoorcookingexperience.Withalittletimeandeffortyou'llamazeyour
friendsandfamilywithyourimpressiveculinaryskills.Likemanyothers,you'llfindthatyourMemphisWood
FiredGrillwillbecomeyourcookingapplianceofchoiceforbarbecuing,smoking,andasecondaryovensource
forholidaysorsocialgatherings.
Pleasecompletethebelowinformationforquickandeasyreferenceforyourrecords.Additionally,complete
theonlineWarrantyRegistrationusingthebelowinformationtovalidatetheWarranty.Attheendofthis
Owner’sManualisaprintedcopyoftheWarrantyRegistrationifyouchoosetomailinyourform.Yourmodel
andserialnumberarelocatedonthestickerunderthehopperlid.
Model_________________________________________________
ModelNumber:VG________________
SerialNumber:(last4Ͳ5digits)____________________
DateofPurchase_________________________________________
PurchasedFrom_______________________________________________________________
HearthlandProducts,LLC.
9111GrandAveSouth
Bloomington,MN55420
888Ͳ883Ͳ2260
http://www.memphisgrills.com

VG0970_C5_SN_01501_ACTIVE 9/29/2011
Contents
GeneralWarning:ReadallSafetyInformationPriortoOperatingGrill…………………………..1
HowYourMemphisWoodFiredGrillWorks…………………………………………………………………...2
ReadPriortoLighting!…………………………………………………………………………………………………….3
IntelligentTemperatureControlͲOverview……………………………………………………………………4
UsingYourMemphisWoodFiredGrill……………………………………………………………………………5
OperatingInstructions…………………………………………………………………………………………………….6
InformationAboutBBQCookingPellets………………………………………………………………………….9
PeriodicGrillMaintenance……………………………………………………………………………………………..10
RecommendedGrillingAccessories………………………………………………………………………………..12
FoodHandlingandSafety……………………………………………………………………………………………….13
GrillingTimesandTemperatures…………………………………………………………………………………….14
SmokingGuidelines………………………………………………………………………………………………………..16
SmokingSuggestions…………………………………………………………………………………………………..….17
LimitedWarranty…………………………………………………………………………………………………20
WarrantyRegistrationForm……………………………………………………………………………………..23Troubleshooting…………………………………..………………………………………………………………………...18MemphisITCMeatProbe……………………………………………………………………………………………….8

VG0970_C5_SN_01501_ACTIVE 9/29/2011 1
xForoutdooruseonly.Donotuseinanyenclosedarea.
xKeepgrill30”(76cm)ormorefromanycombustiblesurface.
xTopreventgreasefires,cleanyourgrillonaregularbasis.Thisincludestheflavorizerand
greasetray.Shouldagreasefireoccur,turnoffthe
grill,removefood(useyourjudgment),andleave
thehoodcloseduntilthefireisout.DONOTunplug
thegrillunlessabsolutelynecessary;fanswill
continuetorununtilthefireisextinguished.When
cookingexceptionallygreasyfoods,putafoilpan
belowthefoodtocatchthegrease.
xDonotputanythingflammableinthestorageareaunder
thegrill.
xDonotleavesealedcontainersoffoodonornearthegrill.
xAlwaysoperatethegrillwiththegrillhoodintheclosed
position.
xKeepthegrill’srearventilationslotsclearofobstructions.
xIt’srecommendedthatyouregularlycheckyourMemphisGrillforburnpotobstructionsto
makesureproperairflowismaintained.SeePeriodicGrillMaintenanceinthismanualfor
correctprocedures.
xAccessiblepartsofthegrillareveryhot.Keepyoungchildrenawaywhileinuse.
xExercisereasonablecarewhenoperatingyourgrill.Whenchildrenarepresent,adult
supervisionisrecommended.
xDonotuselavarocksorcharcoalinyourgrill.
xToavoidthechanceofseriousburns,neverleanoveranopengrillorplacehandsorfingers
onthefrontedgeofthecookingbox.
xThegrillshouldbepluggedintoaGFCI(GroundͲFaultCircuitInterrupt)outlet.
xWhennotinuseorinthecoolͲdowncyclethegrillshouldbeunplugged.
xUseheatͲresistantbarbequemittsorgloveswhenoperatingthisunit.
xDonotmoveorcleanyourMemphisWoodFiredGrillwhileoperatingorwhilethegrillishot.
Makesurethefireiscompletelyout,andthatthegrilliscompletelycooledbefore
transportingorcleaningthegrill.xIfthepowercordbecomesdamaged,donotoperatethegrill.xGrillshouldbeoperatedONLYOUTDOORS.xDonotuseaerosols,liquidsordampͲmaterialsonornearthegrillwhileitishot.xDonotcovertheentiretyofthecookingsurfacewhengrillishot.Leaveatleast2inchesof
clearancefromthesidesandbackofthegrillbody.xAnymodifications(holes,screws,sheetmetalchanges)tothegrillwillvoidwarranty.GeneralWarning:ReadallSafetyInformationPriorto
OperatingGrill
WARNING!
WARNING!

VG0970_C5_SN_01501_ACTIVE 9/29/2011 2

YourMemphisWoodFireGrillrepresentsanewwayofoutdoorcooking.Itisatruehighqualityconvectionoven
thatalsohasgrillingandsmokingcapability.ItcombinesmanyuniquefeatureswithtimeͲprovenpelletͲburning
technology.Togethertheygiveyoucontrolled,quick,savoryandrepeatablecookingresults.Theperfectcooking
experiencestartswithfillingyourhopperwithallͲnatural,100%certifiedhardwoodBBQpellets.Werecommend
“NaturesWay”flavoredBBQpellets.
SimplypushingtheONButtonwillfullyigniteyourgrill.Thegrillwillreachyourdesiredtemperaturewithin
minutesofignition.TheITCconvectionsystemandautomaticaugerfeedsthewoodpelletsfromthehopperinto
theburnpot,wheretheyareignitedusingsuperͲheatedair.TheIntelligentTemperatureControlallowsyoutoset
thecookingmethodanddesiredtemperature,andwilladjustforambientconditions.Convection/circulationfan(s)
providecombustionairtotheburnpotandprovidesconvectivecookingairbydistributingtheheatevenly
throughoutthecookingarea.Thenaturalsmokeflavorproducedbytheburningpellets,thevaporproducedbythe
juicesdrippingontheFlavorizer,andtheaircirculatingthroughoutthecookingarea,combinetogiveyouthe
uniqueflavorthatcanonlybeachievedusingaMemphisWoodFiredConvectionGrill.Avideoexplainingthis
procedureisavailableonourwebsiteorYouTube.
GrillFeaturesxEasytouseIntelligentTemperatureControl(ITC)capableofsmoking,barbecue,grilling,baking
andsearingtemperatures.
xMemphisITCMeatProbefunctionalityforhandsͲoff,precisiongrilling*
xExtraͲlargecapacityhopper.
xHeavyͲdutystainlesssteelconstruction.
xCookingareaisdualͲwallandovengasketsealedformaximumheatretention**.
xAttractivecraftsmanshipandhighqualityperformance.
xLowCFMFancausespelletstoburnandproducetrueconvectionovencooking. AutoStartbutton
&electricignitereliminatetheneedformatches&lighterfluids.
xSmokingModegivesyouthatsavoryflavorondemandandisprogrammablefrom180°Ͳ295°F***.
xCookingModeallowsforgrilltemperaturesupto500°F(Select),600°F(Advantage),and650°F(Pro).
xFlavorizerreducesthechanceofflareͲupsandassistsinevenheatdistribution.
xStainlesssteelburnpotdesignedforhighperformanceandlongevity.
x427squareinchmaincookingareathatcanbeincreasedto970(dependingonmodel)square
incheswiththeoptionalgrates.
xTotalcookingvolumeofnearly4,000cubicinchesforlargeroastsandturkeys.
xGreasedrawerswithdisposablelinersmakefornofusscleaning.
xLarge,lockingcastersthatswivelandlockforeasymaneuverability.
xTwostainlesssteelsideshelves(optionalonMemphisSelect)offeradurableeasytocleansurface.
xSteelcookinggridsforyearsofreliableservice.
xMadeintheUSA.
* Meat probe is standard with Pro and Built-In, optional on other models
**Gasket seal only on Pro model
*** 180°minimum set point available on Memphis Pro and Built-In only.HowYourMemphisWoodFiredGrillWorks:
HowYourMemphisWoodFiredGrillWorks:

VG0970_C5_SN_01501_ACTIVE 9/29/2011 3
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InitialBurnOff
Beforecookingforthefirsttime,werecommendthatyou“burnoff”thegrilltoriditofany
foreignmatterusedinthemanufacturingprocess.PriortoburnͲoff,completelyremovethe
plasticfilmonallstainlesssteelsurfaces.Failuretodosowillcausethefilmtomelttothe
metal,anditwillbeextremelydifficulttoremove.Removethecookinggratesandwashwitha
mildsoapordetergent.Replacethegrates,lightandoperatethegrillat450F(incookmode)
withthehooddownfor20minutes.AfterburnͲoff,turnthegrillOFF.
LightingyourGrill
ItisrecommendedpracticetogothroughthePeriodicGrillMaintenance(pg.10)procedures
frequently.Thiswillensureproperignitionofthepelletsandispartofthenormalmaintenance
procedure.Lightperinstructionsfoundindetailinthismanual.Ifthegrillfailstolight,itis
mostlikelyduetoadirtyorpluggedburnpotand/oraburnpotobstructionblockingthe
igniterairpassages.(refertoUsingYourMemphisWoodFiredGrillonpage5forcleaning
instructions.)
HoodPosition
Alwayscookwiththehoodclosed.Cookingwiththehoodclosedkeepsthetemperatureeven,
cookingthefoodfasterwhileusinglessfuel.Aclosedhoodalsohelpstocreateasmokier
flavor.Ifthehoodisleftopenforanextendedperiodoftime,itwillcausetheITCtoincrease
thefuelfeedrateinanefforttoincreasethegrilltemperature.Thiscouldresultinan
overloadedburnpot.
Insteadoffrequent,visualchecksofyourfood,theuseofanMemphisITCMeatProbeis
recommended.Thistoolcanberoutedthroughthe5/16”holeinthesideoftheMemphis
SelectorAdvantage,orunderthehoodgasketontheProorBuiltͲIntopreventdamagetothe
wires.See“MemphisITCMeatProbe”onpage8forfurtherinstructionsontheuseofameat
probe.ReadPriortoLighting
ReadPriortoLighting

VG0970_C5_SN_01501_ACTIVE 9/29/2011 4
IntelligentTemperatureControlIntelligentTemperatureControlͲͲOverviewOverview
ControlI/O,ON/
OFFTouchPad
ThispressureͲ
sensitivetouchpad
isusedtoturnthe
grillonandoff.
PelletPrimeTouchPad
PressingthiswillfeedmorewoodpelͲ
letstotheburnpot. Thiscanbeused
toaddmorefueljustbeforeopening
thegrillhoodtohelpwithquickerheat
recovery,ortoprimetheaugerduring
thegrill’sfirststartup

TemperatureSetTouchPad
Bypressingeithertheupordown
arrows,thesettemperaturecanbe
movedin5degreeincrements.
DisplayTouchPad
Pressingthiswilltogglethe
displaybetweentheset
temperatureandthe
actualcurrenttemperature
ofthemeatprobe,orthe
grillitself. 
ProbeDisplayPad
Pressingthiswilltogglebetween
thesettingsforthemeatprobeand
thoseforthegrillitself
LEDDisplay
Thiswilldisplaythe
temperatureofthe
grill,aswellasany
otherpertinent
information.
AbouttheITC:
TheITCperformssimilarlytothecontrolonyourkitchenoven.TheITCautomatically
compensatesfordifferentambientconditions,providingyearͲroundgrillingandmore
accuratetemperaturecontrol.Settingthecontrolissimpleandintuitive,andoffersthe
userapreciseandhighlyͲcustomizablegrillingexperience.
IndicatorLights
TheseLED’sindicatewhichmodecooking
thegrillisin,aswellaswhetheryouare
settingthetemperatureorviewingthe
currenttemperature.Theselightswill
alsoblinkwhentheigniterisactive,or
thegrillisincoolͲdown.
MeatProbePort
Pluggingtheoptional
probeintothisport
willallowtheuserto
accessthemeat
probefunctionalityof
theITC.

VG0970_C5_SN_01501_ACTIVE 9/29/2011 5

Priortostartingyourcookingcenter,inspecttheburnareainsidethegrill.It'sarecommendedpracticetogo
throughthisprocedureatinitialstartupandaftereveryfewusestoensurepeakperformance.Actual
necessaryfrequencyvariesdependingonusageandfueltype.
1. Openthehoodandremovethecookinggrates.
2. Removetheflavorizer.Theflavorizerhelpsdistributeheat,containsflyash,andkeepstheflamefrom
makingdirectcontactwithcookinggrids.
3. Ifnecessary,checktheburnpotarea,removeanyforeignitemstoensurethattheairholesintheburnpot
areclear.Thiswillallowaquickerandmoreefficientignition.Takeprecautionsnottodamagetheigniter
wiringconnectionsorpulltheigniteroutoftheignitertube.
4. ReͲinstalltheflavorizer.
5. Reinstallthecookinggrates.
6. Openthepellethopperlid,foundatthefrontofyourgrillontheSelectandAdvantage,oratthebackofthe
Pro.Checkforanyforeignobjects
7. FillyourhopperwithNature’sWaycookingpellets.Closethehopperlid.Note:hopperdoesnotneedtobe
absolutelyfullforeveryuse.
8. PlugyourMemphisWoodFiredConvectionGrillintothenearest110VoltACoutlet*.(Note:UseaGFI
Outlet.WestronglyrecommendthatifyourhomedoesnothaveaGFIoutletthatyouinstallone,orusea
highqualityoutdoorsurgeprotector.
9. Whenyouarefinishedusingyourgrill,andthegrillhasgonethroughitscoolͲdown,unplugit.Itisalso
recommendedthatthegrillbecoveredwhennotinuse.

*230VoltforEuropean
**Note:YourGrillwillfunctionbestifoperatedonalevelsurface.**
UsingYourMemphisWoodFiredGrill
UsingYourMemphisWoodFiredGrill

VG0970_C5_SN_01501_ACTIVE 9/29/2011 6
AutomaticStartUp
1.ToStart
PresstheOn/Offtouchpad.Theshutdownmodewillbegin;aLEDlightwillblinktoindicatestartup
mode.Thestartupmodeistimedtolast30minutesoruntiltheappliancereachesatemperatureabove
170°F.Afteritreachesthis“Warm”state,theblinkingLEDlightwillbecomesolid.
2.SettheTEMPDISPLAYArrowstothedesiredtemperature(Setlightwillilluminate)Ifthegrillissettoa
temperaturelessthan300°itwillruninSmokeMode.Ifsetto300°oraboveitwillruninCookMode.The
meatprobecanbesetfrom130°to250°.Formoreinformationontheuseofthemeatprobe,consultpage8.
3.SetTEMPDISPLAYtoActual.(Actuallightwillilluminate)Temperaturenowdisplayedwillbeactualtemperatureinthecookingarea.Note:Actualtemperaturewillfluctuateupordown.Thisisnormalandrepresentsthenormalfluctuationofanyoven.
Note:
1:Ifhopperwasjustfilled;holdPelletPrimebuttoninuntilyouhearpelletsfallingontotheburnpotand
release.ThenrestartthegrillbypressingtheI/Obutton.ThiswillallowthegrillrunitscompletestartͲ
upsequence.
2:YourGrillwillsmokeforafewminuteswhilethepelletsarelightingandcomingtofullburn.
3:Ifthefiredoesnotstartwithin30minutes,thegrillwillthenautomaticallyshutoff.Ifthishappens,
someunburnedpelletswillhavebuiltupintheburnpot.Beforerestartingthefire,cleantheexcess
pelletsoutoftheburnpotandrepeattheabovesteps. OperatingInstructions:MemphisWoodFiredGrillOperatingInstructions:MemphisWoodFiredGrill
FahrenheitVS.Celsius:
ConvertingYourGrill’sTemperatureUnitsYourMemphisgrilliscapableofworkinginbothMetricandEnglish
units.ToswitchbetweenFahrenheitandCelsiusontheITC,simply
pressandholetheUPandDOWNarrowkeysatthesametimewhile
thegrillison.

VG0970_C5_SN_01501_ACTIVE 9/29/2011 7
5.Tooperate:OncetheMemphisGrillhasstarted,operateasfollows;
UPreͲHeat:UThisisthebeginningstageofcookingorsmokinginwhichthefuelisignited,andthegrillis
broughttothesettemperatureasquicklyaspossible.Youmaynoticeinthisstagethat,initially,the
augerwillfeedfuelalmostconstantly.Thisistoprimetheburnpotsothatitisabletomaintain
significantheat.Whenthisstageisconcluded,theITCwillmaintainselectedcooking/smoking
temperature,regardlessofambientweatherconditions.Thedurationofthisstagewillvarysomewhat
duetodifferingambientconditions,set
temperatures,andgrillmodels.Inmost
cases,thegrillwillbeinthepreͲheatstage
for15to25minutes.
UCookingMode:UTemperaturewillbe
automaticallymaintainedatyour
temperaturesetpoint.Youmaynoticesome
fluctuationupanddownduringthistime.
Thisisanormalpartofanyoven/appliance
operation.Thegrillwillautomaticallyswitch
tothismodewhenthegrillsettempis300°F
orhigher.
USmokeMode:USmokingisavariationon
grillingandisoneoftheuniqueadvantagesofyourMemphisWoodFiredGrill.Thetemperatureyou
choosewilllargelydependonwhatisbeingsmoked(seeAppendixBͲC)andyourpersonalpreferences.
Thegrillwillautomaticallyswitchtothismodewhenthegrillsettemperatureis295°Forlower.
Combustionairflowisvariedinthesmokemode.Youmayhearthefan“bellow”,repeatedlyturningon
andoff.Thisisnormaloperation.OperatingInstructions:MemphisWoodFiredGrillOperatingInstructions:MemphisWoodFiredGrill
SmokeTIP:
Tovarysmokeflavorintensity,experimentwiththe
amountoftimeyouusethesmokemodeandthemix
offlavoredpelletsyouusealongwiththeallpurpose
pellets.Thisismoreimportantifyouusestronger
flavoredpelletssuchasMesquite.Switchingtosmoke
modesoonafterputtingyourfoodonthegrillallows
thesmoketopenetratethemeatsbeforetheyhave
achancetosearclosed.Thesmokemodeworksbest
whenalongercookingtimeisrequired,suchaslarge
cutsofmeat,fish,orpoultry.Experimentwiththe
lengthoftimeyouleaveforsmokingbeforecooking
thoroughly.Trydifferentcombinationsofbothmodes.
AboutTheITC
TheMemphisITCisasophisticatedcontrollerthatmonitorsyourgrillandadjusts
varioussystemstomaintainyourdesiredcookingtemperature.Atemperature
probecontinuallymonitorsthecookingchamberandcommunicatesthisdatatothe
ITC.Basedonthisdata,theITCmakesappropriateadjustmentstothecombustion
system.TheITCsystem,logicandtemperatureaccuracyhasbeenvalidatedwith
manyhoursoftestingtoensurethehighestperformance.Foroptimalperformance,
cookwiththehoodclosedandkeeptheprobecleanandunobstructed.Allowthe
ITCadequatetimetoadjusttoanychangesinsettemperatures.