How many lbs of beans can fit in a 17 qrt roaster

1 cup of dry pinto beans plus 2 cups of broth or other liquid = 6 cups of cooked beans.
1 Quart = 4 cups so, a 17 Quart cooker would hold 68 cups of cooked beans (including liquid), to the brim.
11 cups dried beans = 66 cups cooked. I recommend:
10 cups dry beans + 20 cups liquid = 60 cups cooked beans

I agree with the fact that it is hard to find best espresso beans in the grocery store. If you are going to buy from the grocery shop find out if they stock any regional coffee roasters. Local coffee roasters will tend to be fresher and come with the added bonus of supporting the local economic climate.

Soak beans overnight in cold water, drain and rinse, place in roaster (adding a ham bone is a good seasoner), add salt (about 3/4 Tablespoon), cover with water, turn roaster on to 350 degrees, add hot liquid or ham juice when beans are going dry and stir. Don't check too often, because it will release heat and slow cooking time down. Takes 5 hours to fully cook. (Note: bean pkg has quick soak method which works in place of the overnigt soak)

I cook 140 lbs of beans every year at church for a ham & bean dinner. I soak them overnight in 4 large rubbermaid containers (about 35 lbs in each covered all the way to the top with cold water). In the morning I drain the water, rinse beans and divide between about 14 cookers (several of them are the 22 qt roasters). You can put beans in to about 1 1/2 to 2" of the top rim. Put a ham bone in (I pre-cook about 12 10 lb bone-in hams two to a roaster sitting in about 1" water several days before, chop the meat, save the juice and the bones) and a cupped palm full of salt (3/4 to 1 T ?) and cover with water. Cook on about 350 degrees. When they start going dry add the leftover ham drippings that were saved (I usually have it heating in a crockpot nearby so that it doesn't slow the cooking of the beans down).

This machine doesn't like oily, sticky beans. Most coffee beans purchased at a grocery store (even Starbucks or Peets - etc.) are roasted pretty dark with an oily sheen. Also most coffee beans from the store are very old - no matter how fresh they pretend to be. For example, at Safeway you will see a sign over the Peets coffee that says "roasted fresh, delivered daily" - that makes you think the beans are only a day or two old. But in reality they only remove the beans that are over 3 months old. The only way to get truely fresh roasted beans (unless you roast them yourself) is to find a roaster where you can buy beans that were roasted right there (many coffee shops pretend to be roasters but, in fact, they only buy more beans when they run out).

I have great luck buying beans directly from a roaster who will ship to me the same day they are roasted. RedBird Coffee has a delicious Espresso blend, the price is great and the beans are roasted just a little less dark so they are not oily and sticky. My Titanium works great with these beans. RedBird ships out the same day he roasts and you have your coffee about 2 days later. Very fresh.

In the meantime, you can lift the lid to the bean hopper and stir the beans with a popsicle stick or a chopstick and then they will grind for one or two coffees before you have to stir them again.

When choosing a coffee - don't buy Italian or French or Vienna roast - those dark roasts are oily and sticky. Ask for a Full City or Full City Plus roast - this is just slightly less dark than a Vienna Roast and shouldn't be oily looking. But freshness is still the key - any coffee beans that are several weeks past roasting day will start to become sticky and oily on the outside.

This is where I buy and I'll never go back to buying coffee at grocery store
http://www.redbirdcoffee.com/

I need more information to solve this.

If you mean the grinder just spins but doesn't seem to be grinding anything - and then after 30 seconds or so it tells you the bean hopper is empty - then the problem is sticky, oily beans that aren't sliding down into the grinder.

You want to buy freshly roasted (roasted less than a week ago) beans. Coffee beans from the supermarket are old, stale and sticky with rancid oil. Even Starbucks and Peets - although the sign says "roasted daily" if you read the fine print, the beans in the store are rotated out 90 days after roasting. The oils turn rancid and get sticky after a couple of weeks so you really need to get beans from a local roaster or order them from a roaster who ships them fresh.

I have been using RedBird espresso blend and these beans work perfectly with this machine. They also are the best tasting of any espresso blend I've ever tried. The price is reasonable (cheap even) and the roast date is written on the bag. I get my beans 2 days after they were roasted.

http://redbirdcoffee.com/redbirdespresso.html

In the meantime, until you get some coffee beans that are not oily, you can stir the beans in the hopper. Use a wooden coffee stirring stick or a chopstick and just lift the hopper lid and stir the beans so they slide down into the grinder. You will probably have to do this before each coffee and maybe even 2-3 times just to get one coffee.

Once you get some fresh roasted beans that don't have that oily shine to them you will be grinding without any problems.

This turkey is bigger than recommended for this roaster, so first, check the fit- you need about an inch all around including the top to get good cooking. Any place it touches the sides it will tend to overcook.

The Rival manual suggested 375 for pre basted or 350 for fresh 9-14 minutes per pound. In my experience this is too hot. I use 325 for 4 to 4 3/4 hours at 325 for an 18 pound turkey; a 21 pounder takes about 35-45 minutes more. The USDA now uses 165 as the end point temp (down quite a bit from a few years ago), but if you stuff, that has to be in the middle of the stuffing, and the turkey will overcook somewhat while it gets there. All experts agree that turkeys cook better and safer if unstuffed, so considering that you will have to make an extra pan of stuffing to have it for everyone, you would be well advised to cook your turkey unstuffed and use some of the drippings to flavor the pan of stuffing while the turkey rests.

I am currently selling a triple buffet server by GE. It is new and in the box and says 'fits most 17 and 18 qt ovens. I bought it to use when I borrowed a roaster oven, but ended up never using it. It has 3 compartments, enamel on steel. It would take at least $11.00 to send and I would like $15.00 for the insert. If interested, answer this.

Cut back on the quantity of beans. My Bravi roasts much darker with 200 grams of beans than it does with 220.