Leaderboard

I’d love to be able to tell you that I cooked it at 225 for 10 hours and then wrapped it in butcher paper (need to try that), but the sad truth is we had our usual crew over for Memorial Day and were feeling no pain by noon. I probably lit too much charcoal and the temp went right past 225 on its way to 350. Pig was done in a few hours, and despite my ineptitude, it came out really great. Skin was crispy and the meat was really moist - kudos to KK. My wife and her friend even ate the snout. She’s a big fan of cartilage. The rest of the day was a bit of a blur. I would highly recommend it. I’ve seen your posts and you are quite a cook, I’m sure you would nail it.

Turned out very tasty. Crispy, salty crust due to the higher temp at 410f. Inside was juicy. And carved up delish Gotta love lamb. Particularly when cooked under the influence! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Came home from a venture capital board meeting after a few brews and was instructed there was a lamb shoulder in the cold room that had to be cooked. I love this direction[emoji3] So...... lit the fire, then spiced the lamb with salt, mixed herbs, peppers. Easy to hand mix. Made up an alfoil tray Then once the KK was up to 180c- 360f, loaded the lamb in. After 30 minutes and the crust formed over direct heat, dropped the tray in. A couple more brews while everything comes to the desired internal. Also, another chunk of 120 year old eucalyptus wood for flavour Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Double delivery day!! Can’t wait to see the pics! If either of you are feeling adventurous, and enjoy bao buns, then this recipe from Steven Raichlen is absolutely amazing: https://barbecuebible.com/recipe/pork-belly-steamed-buns/ It’s one of our favourites. You can make the bao buns if you have time, or the store bought ones are great too. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I built a concrete table for my Solo Bonfire.

Frontline is my shipper as well cross country then hands it off to a local company. Good news is I just spoke with the local company and the 32 is in Richmond and will be ready for delivery tomorrow!!! Don't have a delivery window yet, have to call them in the am for that.

@StevenS thanks I appreciate that I’m a big fan of drunk cooking...keeps things interesting. Congrats on the KK

That's a shame. It looks good though so you still get all the style points.

I love everything about this post.

I can almost feel your excitement from here! It always brings back such good memories the delivery day, and getting it on a Friday is perfect as you’ve got the weekend to really get to know your BB. Make sure you’ve got plenty of lump and adult drinks to see you through Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Is yours scheduled for Fri also? I have a straight shot from my driveway around to back yard, all concrete rolling so I think I could almost do it myself. I have a buddy in waiting and my son so I’ll be ready with backup if needed. Can’t wait for that thing to get here!!!

Discussion in another thread got me thinking about Cuban. So last night was a Mojo porkchop, direct 325F with coffee wood chunks. A few spears of asparagus. Plated with my "drunken" black beans (cilantro, scallions, heavy garlic, lime juice, cumin, and rum) and served over yellow rice ( Badia Sazon Tropical - orange) A nice Rose on the side.

I am with you @AJR. I have never seen the point of soup and don't think I have ever eaten pumpkin soup. @Aussie Ora's posts are always good to see and challenge me because I am not mad on low n slow ribs either but his cooks always look soooo good.

Yeah, its been a while, let the new people carry the torch but I'm still a big fan of the KK. Talk to Dennis every once in a while, always great to talk to him, still has the same excitement and drive that he always has had. Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying Kooking.

@TonyCamp Great video and super results. Table looks great. Thanks for posting.

I have two, one of the very first ones coming out and then one of the newer versions. Both get used regularly and are in terrific condition. First one is over 10 years old. Best investment I ever made, can't even count how many awesome meals I have made and compliments I have gotten and I'm really not that good of a cook!

No!!! It’s in Baltimore now and needs to get to Richmond tomorrow for a Fri delivery. Crossing my fingers that happens and I have a long weekend to get to know my new oversized friend.

Thank you Troble! Our friends loved, loved, loved this method of cooking chicken. As did I. They called it a "posh kebab" and we ate every last bit of chicken on that rotisserie even though we had started with some octopus and followed the chicken with beef burgers. Yummy! I wasn't sure what you meant by "do not over marinade" but I had already marinaded the chicken using this recipe: https://www.feastingathome.com/grilled-chicken-shawarma-recipe/. The skinned and boned thighs were marinaded for about 18 hours before cooking. Here are the marinaded thighs, stacked onto the rotisserie just before cooking. While cooking there was a surprising amount of fat given off by the chicken. I put some water in the tray beneath the chicken to stop the smoking. Here we are at the slicing, crisping up/munching stage. Sooooo yummy.

Hey all, First post! After many years of looking, I finally pulled the trigger and got the Bronze 32 BB delivered to San Diego today. Pictures attached. Everything about the delivery was first class, and the ramp provided was great. It took about an hour from crate being dropped off to get the 32 into it's spot in the backyard (daisy chained two 4x8' plywood). Rolled super easily on the plywood. Can't thank you enough for building a truly world class product Dennis! Best, Bryan

For the last two years Mrs skreef has wanted me to pull the old rust bucket of a fire pit out of the bone yard. It was such a rust bucket I just couldn't do it. Then @Syzygies posted a link to the Solo Stove website. I poked around that website and found the Solo Stove Bonfire fire pit. After reading numerous reviews and watching many videos I knew this would be just perfect for Mrs skreef. It would allow us to have a nice looking fire pit in the BBQ garden. Ordered Thursday night. It arrived on Monday. It came with a nice, heavy duty carry bag. From the pictures I've seen it appears they have upgraded the coal plate. It is a slight dome shape with extra ridges to help prevent it from warping. Here it is in the BBQ garden. Also looking at the box it appears they now include the small lower stand. That allows air under the unit so you don't burn/scorch whatever it's sitting on. Super easy to light. A fire starter, a little kindling and a few bigger logs. Fire it up and within 20 minutes or so it's off to the races. Once going good it really is basically smoke-free. Here is a short video showing the secondary burn effect. Although a little pricey it's a well built SS unit with a lifetime warranty. Everything they say about it is true. It pumps out the heat. The only con I could see - if you're sitting around the fire, your legs from your shins down won't get any heat. It's a small con for having a smoke-free fire. I highly recommend it and both me and Mrs skreef feel it was one of our better accessories to the BBQ garden.

My wife and I just moved to Florida from NJ, leaving behind a BB32. I loved the grill and made some really delicious foods on it, including a suckling pig, but I must admit that I never really mastered the art of low and slow. I’m hoping to correct that. Just ordered a 23 Ultimate in black pebble and I can’t wait for it to get here. I ended up with the 23 instead of the 32 because it fits into my general push towards downsizing, and also because I never really needed all the grill space (other than the pig). Hoping I didn’t choose wrong. Here is a picture of my former blue beast (smoking in the background) and the pig. Have to say that I love this forum - you folks are awesome!

My bonfire arrived 2 weeks ago. 😊. I am so glad I didn’t get the Yukon. I didn’t expect the Bonfire to be as big as it is despite reviewing the dimensions. You really do need to see it in person to appreciate the size.

My Bonfire is being shipped today or tomorrow. [emoji23]

Everyone one is afraid to buy the Yukon now.[emoji23][emoji1787]

@TonyCamp, really good. I am a civil engineer and I love concrete. Beautiful job. @Jon B., I just re-read your posts about the Yukon. You have been very influential around these parts. One of my friends was going to get a Bonfire and then fell in love with the Yukon. I used your arguments to persuade him against. He has since bought a Bonfire and so have three of his friends once they'd seen his photos on Instagram. I think you should get a cut from the Solo folk!

I've had cow corn and it is so far from the real deal it isn't funny. Once is enough.

Another month or so until Iowa sweet corn..................Hang in there Tony!!!

Sometimes, every once in a while, things don't turn out exactly how you wanted them to. Last night's dinner was one of those times. Had been looking forward to grilling out some corn. On it went at 325F, direct with apple wood, alongside some garlicy chicken breasts. Plated with some leftover yellow rice and coated the corn in chili lime mayo w/parm (Mexi street corn), First bite into the corn was a total letdown! This was some of the worst corn that I've ever had - hard/tough, starchy and no discernable flavor other than the spicy mayo spread. This was more like feed corn that you give to livestock. I had even soaked it in salted water all afternoon (my usual technique for grilling.) I have another ear in the fridge, but not even going to bother - straight to the trash bin!

Yes Steve, great response. Can’t wait for your next cook. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Damn you’re on the inside lane right now. Not sure if I’ll be joining you for a burn in this weekend or not. Hope it works out and we can trade stories.

I thought mine was on a truck cross country but turns out it was train. Got held up in Penn due to congested railway so that’s how mine slipped from Wed to Fri. Slipping by weeks is another story, not sure what happened there. Fri is still not confirmed for me though, I’m hoping they got it off the train and on a truck to Richmond for tomorrow or Fri won’t happen I’m afraid.

Yep, between 1000 and 1400. 😊

Congratulations Ben! I can't wait to see photos! Do you have help scheduled to move it to its final resting place? I hired movers for my BB. I'm going to enlist help from a couple of friends and neighbors to move the 23. Do you have your route planned? I couldn't bring the first delivery through the house, but I plan to on Friday. I've been prepping by clearing space in the garage for the coal, etc.

@tekobo I also thought the longer you marinate the better and that’s why I originally pushed out my first schawarma marinade and then I subsequently found out the chicken would be mushy, so I had to throw it out and when I went to rebuy there was only bone in thighs....this why I used a combination of bone in thighs and breasts on my first attempt

Interesting, I didn't know that. I knew that one should only marinade fish for about an hour but other than that I thought that the longer you marinade any meat, the better it will be. I guess it depends on how much citrus or papaya you are using. Will investigate further. I could remember where the pointer was on the dial but not the numbers and certainly not in Farenheit. I went out to look at the thermometer and I reckon I was at about 570F when I started and, having dialled it back, I finished the cook at about 400F. Cooked through and very moist.

Be careful with Papaya and Mango as well. They have enzymes that can turn proteins into mush if left to marinate too long. They typically recommend only a couple of hours for most cuts. A very stubborn one maybe longer, but never over 4 hours.

@tekobo that’s look great! Nice work! All I meant by do not overmarinate was I read a lot about citrus particularly lemon and lime breaking down the chicken meat and it becoming stringy if you marinate it too long. what temp did you cook it at?

Those pixs are making my mouth water. Delicious

No cooking with the top open, the issue is it can ruin your gasket with that high heat flowing over it. When the lid is down the gasket is protected from the high heat.

I have done several prime ribs on the KK (non-rotisserie) using a reverse sear using a method similar to those described by Mcjudsten and tony b. Dry rub the roast (usually 6 - 7 pounds, boneless) and refrigerate overnight. Smoke (I use cherry and apple, either chunks or the cold/hot smoker) on the main grate at 200° - 225° F until internal temp reaches 112° (about 3 hours), then pull and open KK vent to achieve 500°. Sear all 6 sides on lowest sear grate, about 1 1/2 minutes per side. Internal temp will be about 120° - 124° depending on how how much searing is done. Pull roast, wrap with foil and towel, and let rest in a cooler until desired serving temperature is achieved, 30 - 45 minutes. Very straightforward and delicious. Here are a couple pics of the last one:

Update - KK has shipped. That's the good news. The bad news is it won't get here until the 26th, at the earliest. And in the meantime, I can't stop drooling over the amazing food in the Everyday Misc Cooking Photos. Stupid question, is it ever ok to cook with the top open? Any issue with doing so?

Hey there Paul. Great to hear that someone else uses these cuts for burgers. What proportion of each do you use and how much fat do you cut out? I left most of the fat from the short ribs and brisket in and kept the chuck as lean as possible. It becomes a two person job when you make a burger this way - one to stuff the meat in at the top and the other to catch and lay out the strands on the clingfilm. So....this morning I decided to have a burger for breakfast. I bought slider size brioche buns and blue cheese slices from my local supermarket. I was a bit apprehensive when I sliced a couple of burgers off the roll. They looked more like a pork sausage than anything else. Sorry, no photos, I was too busy being worried/disgusted at that stage. Fried in a pan with no added fat, heated the buns, added fresh shallots on the bottom and melted cheese and hot sauce on top and ate them. Wow. I think it was worth the effort so far. Soft and juicy burger. None of the resistance you might normally get when you come to tug your mouthful of burger away from the rest of the burger but still a good chew in the mouth i.e. not pappy and soft. I now realise that this isn't Heston's perfect burger. It's my burger to play with. I think the brioche slider that I chose is a bit sweet for me and also I want to find out how the burgers taste when cooked over charcoal. I do like the slider size. You can eat a good, thick burger without all the extra stodge/carb from a bigger burger bun. I might also go for more chuck ground with the 8mm plate next time, to get a little more chew. Lots to try but I would definitely recommend these cuts of meat and this method of grinding and assembling your patty.

And yes - "sold" the 32, but had to do so in a rush, so I gave it away for a song. Thankfully, the new owner is very happy, so while my bank account took yet another hit, the karma is through the roof, so I've got that going for me...

I bought my KK back in May 2006 I believe, so it's bang around ten years old. It's been sitting in the same spot, out in the crappy miserable Seattle weather the whole time; taking a beating year after year. Rain, snow, hail, moss, even the occasional tree-hugger... She's cooked many Thanksgiving and Christmas Turkeys and Hams, countless smokes, sears and oodles of pizza. It just dawned on me that something must be seriously wrong. My tiles are still intact, the damper spins open and closes perfectly, the lid hinge is still meticulously balanced. In fact it looks like and functions like I bought it yesterday. I'm so confused. Shouldn't it have died a horrible MK death by now and look like a sad naked mole rat? Cheers to @DennisLinkletter for making one of best purchases I've ever made!

Hi, I logged on to the forum after years away, our 23" is nearly ten years old. Still looks great, a few bangs from moving house 3 times, I have replaced the lid spring and had a new basket but we are by the coast so no surprise there. I am finding the ceramic doesn't hold the heat like it use to. I can ramp it up to 550 degrees but struggle to hold it much above 400 and the lid is now too hot to leave my hand on, compared with until recently it was only ever warm. I am not sure if the ceramic liner composition changes over time and it loses some of its insulating properties. I am mainly low and slow or chargrilling so not losing any sleep :) Regards Guy

@ckreef Was in Michigan last weekend and was able to take a few pictures of the fire grate on the bigger Yukon fire pit. The outer circumference/edge of the fire grate is 12" below the upper rim of the fire pit. The center of the fire grate is 7 1/2" below the upper rim of the fire pit. The fire grate has a 4 1/2" bow from edge to center. The directions for all the fire pits say to keep the fire wood below the rim of the pit for proper secondary burning (the cool feature of this fire pit). With dome shape, the bigger pieces of wood stick above the rim and disrupt the secondary burn. It really limits the amount of wood that you can stack into the fire pit.........taking away a lot of the benefits of the larger unit. In my opinion..................for the price difference.................is not worth buying the larger Yukon fire pit. Hope this helps!!

Grilling has never been this easy. I may make it through my pallet of KK coffee lump. The tortilla masa is from Comiteco Rojo landrace Oaxacan corn. Like I said, I'm usually juggling six other cooking tasks. It's a minute to set the Solo Stove fire, then six enjoyable minutes as a reward for the work in between, to gently grill steaks.

I too thought it was a good improvement. It's just slightly dome shape and the ridges looks like they'll help with any possible warping. All in all Mrs skreef is really happy with this purchase I made for her. I wonder what her reaction would be if I bought her a 42" KK for valentines day - LOL

My freight company has been Road Runner for both deliveries. The first delivery of the 32” was perfect. The tracking updated in real time, they delivered almost immediately once it made it to Albuquerque. This delivery of the 23... Not so much. The tracking stated it was in El Paso for 3 days when it wasn’t. It was in ABQ for a day and I had to call them to be notified of that fact and schedule an appt. My delivery estimate was the 16th, and the CS rep told me that was the estimated arrival in El Paso... Why would I care when the truck was getting to El Paso? This is NO reflection on KK in any way, I definitely want to make that clear. I’m an instant gratification person, so waiting is pretty difficult. It’s made more difficult when you’ve been drooling over a KK for years. The wait was MUCH EASIER with Cronos in the back yard. It would have been terrible if the first delivery was disorganized like this. Is it weird I almost feel equally excited about trying Coffee Char? 😊 Edit: Logistics isn’t easy... Almost anything can cause delays. I try to keep that perspective. A lot of moving parts moving goods from overseas and across the country. That doesn’t make patience come easier, I’m afraid.

You guys are killing me. Checked the delivery date for my 23 this afternoon - originally slated for the 22nd, then pushed to the 26th, now they are saying July 1st. What the heck, did the truck break down and they decided to complete the trip via camel?!? Did I mention that I’m not a patient man? Happy to hear yours are coming soon. I intend to live vicariously through you for a while...