Kamado cookers thread (green egg, kamado joe, primo etc)

[jammin]

Broke in the new thermometer tonight with a nice fire built with Mesquite. I'm addicted to steaks with a killer sear. Notice the Daisy is still on while pushing 1k*

 

[FATC1TY]

jammin,


What else are you doing to get the 1000* dome temps?

Just curious.. I've got a blower/eggcelarator on mine, or use a fan blowing on the grill sometimes to get it roaring..

I can get the temp up, but sometimes it's only around 800.. could be not enough charcoal.. I use around 1 chimney full most of the time in my large... maybe chimney and a handful.

 

[jammin]

^sounds like it's the size of the fire. If I don't put in a respectable amount of lump, I can't get the temps I want. Don't get me wrong, Ive leveled off at 750-800* when Ive been stingy with my fuel. I add more and wait for it to start burning clean prior throwing steaks on.

Ill snap a pick when I build my next fire.

Im tell'n ya, once you get a taste for steaks cooked at these raging high temps, there's no going back! I absolutely LOVE that crispy, charred texture on the outside of med-rare steak. Oh man that's good!


OH YEAH - one other thing. I have a "turbo" lower grate. It's not the factory "swiss cheese" looking one. It resembles the top grate but obviously smaller. Getting air to the fire is critical and I always stir the coals to knock all the loose ash away prior to building/lighting a new fire.

 

[Bensiff]

Im tell'n ya, once you get a taste for steaks cooked at these raging high temps, there's no going back! I absolutely LOVE that crispy, charred texture on the outside of med-rare steak. Oh man that's good!

What's the fun in that...how's about some good ol' flame licked cool on the inside, crispy on the outside

 

[jammin]

haha - yeah I know some folks who like em' that way. I usually cook ribeyes and I feel that the fat doesn't render how I like it until you get into the med-rare zone.

I'm also a big flat iron steak fan. I thin slice em' across the grain like you would a tri-trip (another fav of mine)

 

[FalconsBrew]

jammin,


What else are you doing to get the 1000* dome temps?

Just curious.. I've got a blower/eggcelarator on mine, or use a fan blowing on the grill sometimes to get it roaring..

I can get the temp up, but sometimes it's only around 800.. could be not enough charcoal.. I use around 1 chimney full most of the time in my large... maybe chimney and a handful.

Do you have your daisy wheel completely off? I also use like a hair dryer to really get that fire roaring.

 

[FATC1TY]

^sounds like it's the size of the fire. If I don't put in a respectable amount of lump, I can't get the temps I want. Don't get me wrong, Ive leveled off at 750-800* when Ive been stingy with my fuel. I add more and wait for it to start burning clean prior throwing steaks on.

Ill snap a pick when I build my next fire.

Im tell'n ya, once you get a taste for steaks cooked at these raging high temps, there's no going back! I absolutely LOVE that crispy, charred texture on the outside of med-rare steak. Oh man that's good!


OH YEAH - one other thing. I have a "turbo" lower grate. It's not the factory "swiss cheese" looking one. It resembles the top grate but obviously smaller. Getting air to the fire is critical and I always stir the coals to knock all the loose ash away prior to building/lighting a new fire.

Indeed, I think it's the fire, and what I suspected all along. I usually build up a nice big fire with some of that ashy as hell cowboy lump for pizzas. It burned hotter, IMO than wicked which I use for most everything else.

I'll have to look into the lower grate. I've got the big ol' cast iron grate for grilling steaks, and LOVE to get it up around 700-800 degrees, and toss the steaks on there. Get it seared up, and then I close off the vents.

 

[FATC1TY]

Do you have your daisy wheel completely off? I also use like a hair dryer to really get that fire roaring.

I keep the wheel off the top all the time when I'm lighting or getting temps to roar.

I think it's a matter of putting in more charcoal myself, and probably using the larger lumps of charcoal as well to keep the airflow at it's highest.

 

[Bensiff]

haha - yeah I know some folks who like em' that way. I usually cook ribeyes and I feel that the fat doesn't render how I like it until you get into the med-rare zone.

I'm also a big flat iron steak fan. I thin slice em' across the grain like you would a tri-trip (another fav of mine)

I prefer NY strip and do occasion to have them cool on the inside but normally go for rare/med rare. I love me some marinated flank but the prices have sky rocketed in recent years.

 

[Bensiff]

Indeed, I think it's the fire, and what I suspected all along. I usually build up a nice big fire with some of that ashy as hell cowboy lump for pizzas. It burned hotter, IMO than wicked which I use for most everything else.



I'll have to look into the lower grate. I've got the big ol' cast iron grate for grilling steaks, and LOVE to get it up around 700-800 degrees, and toss the steaks on there. Get it seared up, and then I close off the vents.

IME the wicked good is great for low and slow but cracks and pops like no tomorrow at high heat...at least the weekend warrior blend which is all we see around here. I actually really like te BGE stuff for my high temp cooks.

I too need to look at the grate as my original is getting cracked to the point it might fail on me mid cook sometime. I'm also thinking about picking up one of those stainless chimneys as I don't have a cover over my cool area.

 

[jammin]

Ive been through about 10-12 40lb bags of Lazzari Mesquite lately. I can get it at Cash n Carry for just over $15 so it's really hard to beat. Performs well across the board and seems to have a good range of chunk size. I get picky about what chunks I throw for high temp cooks and focus on getting a clean burning fire for long cooks.

 

[Bensiff]

Ive been through about 10-12 40lb bags of Lazzari Mesquite lately. I can get it at Cash n Carry for just over $15 so it's really hard to beat. Performs well across the board and seems to have a good range of chunk size. I get picky about what chunks I throw for high temp cooks and focus on getting a clean burning fire for long cooks.

Damn update keeps crashing on my iPhone. Anyway, I will have to go to a cash and carry and see if they have that around my parts, heck of a deal. Does it leave a mesquite flavor though? I generally avoid smoking with mesquite, even in red meat as it's pretty potent.

 

[jammin]

^i totally agree, the mesquite is very potent. I really have to be careful about building a clean burning fire.

 

[jammin]

in an ideal world, i'd burn apple, cherry or peach. Then I'd "season" with Hickory

 

[FATC1TY]

IME the wicked good is great for low and slow but cracks and pops like no tomorrow at high heat...at least the weekend warrior blend which is all we see around here. I actually really like te BGE stuff for my high temp cooks.

I too need to look at the grate as my original is getting cracked to the point it might fail on me mid cook sometime. I'm also thinking about picking up one of those stainless chimneys as I don't have a cover over my cool area.

I hear ya on the wicked. It does crackle when it's being lit, but I haven't had a problem with it doing it any other time. It damn good for the low and slow cooks. Last forever, little to no ash and man it has a good smell and flavor.

I just bought me 4 bags of it today.. $100 bucks worth of stuff you'll set fire to. Love it.

 

[FATC1TY]

in an ideal world, i'd burn apple, cherry or peach. Then I'd "season" with Hickory

Agreed.. Although I'm not wild about peach. I can get a boat load of peach around my parts and rarely use it much.

I'm pretty dang partial to hickory and apple mixed..

Now.. if I had a huge ol' smoker that I could burn huge logs in.. then seasoned post oak would my choice with a couple mesquite logs in there.

 

[jammin]

^yum!!

 

[Rhumbline]

I have a question. I've considered buying one of these, I see that there are several sizes.

Since I'm usually just cooking for one, I can't see the sense in buying the biggest. I'd like to be able to do pizzas, pork butt etc.

Aside from the obvious difference in size, are there any substantial differences in the smaller ones? Will the small ones get as hot as the biggest?

I don't want to buy more than I'll ever need, but if I'm going to spend the cash I want to get something that will meet my needs.

 

[jammin]

^ill say this, a nice rack of spares pushes the limits of my large egg. Other than that, I can handle almost any brisket or pork butt.

 

[FATC1TY]

I'm with jammin..

If I don't cut it down, a hearty cut of spares will fill the grate up.

However, with a v rack, or a raised rack in there, I can double or triple it. Or worse case, I'll split the rack in half and get much more in there.

Butts, brisket, roasts, whole turkeys, 2-3 chickens, and pizzas.. I can fit it all just fine. It's just me and wife, and 2 infants. They'll be big ol' boys soon, and it'll still be able to keep us going just fine. I have a raised rack, and I can get a ton of wings on the grill too..

I wouldn't get the XL, IMO. If I had to get another egg, I'd actually get a small or a medium myself, to supplement the large.. Will probably do so in a couple of years. Would be great for simple burgers and chicken breasts in the summer, but the large does it fine and doesn't eat a bunch of charcoal.

That said- if your just cooking for one or two, and won't do a bunch of huge chunks of meat, then the medium could fit your bill, but I see the large as the best investment honestly.. I'll be straight with ya too.. once you figure it out, you'll have more friends over to eat, so the space is indeed needed.

 

[Bensiff]

I can't say from experience, but what I gathered the extra large egg is not as good, good for grill space but not good for low and slow. I have been really happy with my large over the last 8 or so years. I am really considering getting an auber temp control though as I'm lazy and wouldn't mind a little automation. I've done 20+ pound turkeys, full briskest, sizable pork butts, plenty of ribs with a rib rack, and pizzas...although I prefer my oven for pizza.

 

[jammin]

^agreed about pizza in the oven. contrarily, I've always felt pizza was a weak point for egg. Too much heat from the bottom causing the crust to cook faster than the toppings/cheese.



Here's a fun one of the fire taking off tonight

 

[jammin]

The resulting Flat Iron Steak.. mmm dat crust

 

[Rhumbline]

Thanks for your input everyone. I'm leaning towards the medium, unless the price difference between it and the large makes it a good idea to consider.

 

[Bensiff]

Thanks for your input everyone. I'm leaning towards the medium, unless the price difference between it and the large makes it a good idea to consider.

I'm not sure of the price difference...when I got my large egg it cost $650 shipped. I have been cooking on it for years for my wife and I and would not be happy with a smaller version. Not only is the cooking area smaller, so is the fire box. If you have ideas of doing a nice big pork shoulder on a 20 hour cook, well, you will run out of fuel. This isn't like a side loader where it is easy to add extra wood/charcoal, you want to have all the fuel you need for the cook, not have to pull the food off, grate, and plate setter to add more mid cook.

 

[Bensiff]

^agreed about pizza in the oven. contrarily, I've always felt pizza was a weak point for egg. Too much heat from the bottom causing the crust to cook faster than the toppings/cheese.

I have tried to use my plate setter and then put the pizza stone on the grate, still not an even cook. I also tried placing the pizza stone on top of the plate setter with a small air gap thinking the distance between plate setter and grate was enough to get too much heat through, so even with only a 1/2" gap between the two, it still got too hot and cooked unevenly. I have also tried cooking around them in the 400's and in the 800+ range, every time its the same, like you said, crust cooks too fast.

 

[FATC1TY]

Thanks for your input everyone. I'm leaning towards the medium, unless the price difference between it and the large makes it a good idea to consider.

Not sure of the price difference myself.. But I'd probably say the best bang for the buck, would be the large, IMO.

But they make different sizes for everyones needs for a reason! If it's less than $150-200 I'd honestly jump to the large.

 

[FATC1TY]

I have tried to use my plate setter and then put the pizza stone on the grate, still not an even cook. I also tried placing the pizza stone on top of the plate setter with a small air gap thinking the distance between plate setter and grate was enough to get too much heat through, so even with only a 1/2" gap between the two, it still got too hot and cooked unevenly. I have also tried cooking around them in the 400's and in the 800+ range, every time its the same, like you said, crust cooks too fast.

I put the grate on the fire ring, put the platesetter legs down on top of the grate, and put the pizza stone on top of the platesetter. Crank the temp up to 600-700 and off to the races. Keeps the goods up in the dome where the heat gets trapped and cooks the pizza, but doesn't get it close to the bottom to burn.

I also preheat my stone in the oven, or let the grill burn hot for 20 min or so before I even put anything on the stone. It could also be that your crust has a bunch of sugar in it.. it'll burn easy that way.

I normally have plenty of time to put the dough on the stone, and give it 1-2 minutes while I grab my toppings. I build it on the grill as fast as I can, shut the grill, put the cast iron daisy wheel on top and let it go.

My crusts are nice and thin, crispy, but not burned, and the toppings are all melted, cooked through and damn good.

 

[Bensiff]

I put the grate on the fire ring, put the platesetter legs down on top of the grate, and put the pizza stone on top of the platesetter. Crank the temp up to 600-700 and off to the races. Keeps the goods up in the dome where the heat gets trapped and cooks the pizza, but doesn't get it close to the bottom to burn.

I also preheat my stone in the oven, or let the grill burn hot for 20 min or so before I even put anything on the stone. It could also be that your crust has a bunch of sugar in it.. it'll burn easy that way.

I normally have plenty of time to put the dough on the stone, and give it 1-2 minutes while I grab my toppings. I build it on the grill as fast as I can, shut the grill, put the cast iron daisy wheel on top and let it go.

My crusts are nice and thin, crispy, but not burned, and the toppings are all melted, cooked through and damn good.

I keep dough simple, no sugar, no oil...just flour, salt, water, and yeast...just like beer, the yeast is what makes it sing. I can get a perfect pizza in the oven, just not on the egg. I believe I have tried to put the platesetter on top of the grate; but, not positive. Never hurts to give it a go.

 

[Rhumbline]

Not sure of the price difference myself.. But I'd probably say the best bang for the buck, would be the large, IMO.

But they make different sizes for everyones needs for a reason! If it's less than $150-200 I'd honestly jump to the large.

I think you guys have sold me on the large. I'll have to check prices locally, there goes the tax return!

Thanks again all