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Hello, my name is Will and I am a French chef living in Oakland, California. Today I received my new 32" BB completing my collection of kamado grill. I can't wait to start cooking on this beast 😉

Hi there @KidCactus I usually only have the top vent just cracked open to maintain 110C. 1/8th on my 23 would be too much to achieve maintain that temp. I do have the bottom vent open on one of the larger right hand holes, with the left hand bottom vent closed. Do get there I start with all vents wide open, hit about 80C and then wind back to the settings above. I always start with a full charcoal basket at the start of each cook. In fact, that is part of my routine once the KK has cooled down: sweep out if I have done a few cooks, top up the charcoal basket, open up the top and bottom vents and cover up with Sunbrella cover.

I’ve had my 23” Ultimate for a couple months now and have had some really successful cooks, most recently these tri-tips smoked at 225-250 dome temp until rare then reverse seered on bottom rack at 500 dome temp for a couple minutes on each side. The roasts turned out more medium than medium rare but they were still incredibly tender and juicy (pics below)! I also made a home made Chimmichurri sauce to accompany the meat. Questions: 1) I can’t seem to get temps to stay at 225 or below. I was reaching 245 to 250 with a tiny crack open in the bottom vent and the top dampener opened about an 8th of a turn. Any tips on how to maintain 225 or even lower? 2) Are there any drawbacks to having a full charcoal basket at the start of each cook? I’ve noticed a lot of you aim to have only the charcoal you need for a cook. C8D1FA3C-32D9-4607-AAAD-FC8DDB632478.mov IMG_5478.MOV

I did and here it is. Baked Beans from Tanya Add to 1 pound of softened yellow eyed beans: 1 medium onion 1/4C crumbled bacon ¼ C +2T maple syrup 1/3C +2.6T brown sugar 3T molasses 3T ketchup 3t dry mustard 1t salt 1t pepper Soak or parboil beans (around 60 mins or so) until they are soft. It there is too much liquid in the pot use a ladle to scoop some off but save it in case you need it later. Do not rinse the beans! You just need enough liquid to just cover the beans. Add all the above ingredients and bake at 350F for 2 hours or so, if you need more liquid use what you ladled off earlier. You can also use a lower temp. and a longer time. Depend upon how you like them.

Steven Raichlen’s caveman reverse seared choice grade NY Strip W/pepper medley (I added some Serrano’s for heat). Washed down with some Yuengling Lager and Heady Topper IPA. I can not wait to get my Komodo Kamado 21”! [emoji482] Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Flank steak pinwheel with garlic cheddar, spinach, prosciutto & feta. Cooked half basket, slid over to opposite side with a cherry balsamic sauce to set. Home fries on the new outside wok and burner from Bass Pro. These tatoes are dedicated to Tekebo's search for the perfect tata. Soaked in a salt brine and cooked in olive oil till done. Finished with a little Maldon flake then bombed with Heinz. Crisp out soft inside. Fresh veggies yum

I backed them in Kickstarter. I have the MEATER+. You won't have any issues with using them in your KK. Many folks here have them. Only way to actively monitor temps during a rotisserie cook, which is why I backed them when they were in development.

Mad and cool are two parts of the same elephant. Just a matter of perspective.

I've been meaning to come back to this post Tony. The point of posting the story and the picture of all those truffles was to illustrate the opposite. Well, not quite. It was indeed a lovely gift. The point is that, in season, truffles are abundant and accessible to many more people than would even dream of buying them elsewhere in the world. Black truffles are relatively cheap in season and our friends had the equivalent of a chilli cook off, but with truffles.

Kid cactus you have nailed that tri tip. As Tyrus said, check everything is sealed, and do you have the lid closed to the second bump? Top flue 1/8th and the bottom can still be 5- 10mm open. Less than that and my fire goes out. Fill your basket with each cook. No advantage to a smaller basket of charcoal, and it’s a pain if you run out mid cook. Tyrus the colour on the outside of that steak is very pretty. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Well dang. I just conversed with Nathan freakin' Mhyrvold. https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/753221-large-scale-mosaic-stitching-software-whats-your-favorite/?p=10885526

So pleased that you are getting a cover @jeffshoaf. Our Argentinian barbecue was not as well made as the grill that you are getting and when we spent £600 on it 11 years ago we thought that was a fortune to spend on a bbq. Sadly the lack of a cover did for it and I wouldn't have wanted you to go through the sheer frustration of having a piece of kit that isn't worth keeping after too few years. I am planning on all the stuff that I buy now outlasting me.

Forrest, you wouldn't be hoping to cash in on that would you? just a little. Where you going to store all that, well look no further...Dennis has some pretty nice teak and SS cabinets.

You jest. Getting hold of the best truffles in season and at the right price involves going into the back of shops or standing at a particular place at a particular time, waiting for your "drop". I write down the price per gram each time and the further you get from the person who dug it up themselves, the higher the price got. Unsurprisingly. The best deal was this bag of free black truffles that a friend passed on to us when he and others had had a full day of truffle related cooks and could not finish the haul that they had somehow wangled from somewhere. Truffles. The real deal.

OK, had been reading about this latest trend in foodie world - crispy hot sauce from China. It's loaded with fried garlic and onions, to add texture to what otherwise would just be a Mala sauce (chiles & Szechuan peppercorns in oil). I actually ended up trying this one, which is made in the US, as it was getting equally good reviews on Amazon to the "standard" Chinese version. The jar arrived yesterday, so of course I had to try it out on dinner! It went on sauteed green beans and mushrooms. Plated with a nice lemon pepper honey mustard pork chop. Pork chop on the main grate, direct, 350F. Lemon pepper rub to start and then sauced with the lemon pepper honey mustard sauce. OK, now I see what all the foodie buzz is about - this stuff is good! Glad that I only went 3 stars hot and not the 4 star version (which has ghost peppers in it!) Nice heat, love the crunchy texture it added. Will be experimenting more with it. I hear that it's great in scrambled eggs?

Hi all!...... I recently lucked into a 2012 Autumn Nebula 23”. Many thanks to those who posted advice and pictures on how to safely transport one without the crate. The only hiccup was not paying attention to the brake light until the pedal started going all the way to the floor. A little brake fluid and problem solved, well almost, but I did make it home without any damage. The previous owner took great care and it looks amazing. The grates have some issues and I’ll post pictures when I get a chance for some advice on how to clean and repair. I’m replacing my 20 year old K7 that has served us well, but it is nothing like the KK. I’ll find a good home for it. My wife has an idea for a new location for the KK since it’s so beautiful. As soon as it’s ready I’ll be firing it up. Thanks again for all the informative posts and great pictures!

Well I dropped some serious coin today (for me at least). If you are a young grasshopper like myself it is good to compartmentalize your funds when you got it. I set most of the cost aside for my 21” KK with a gift card to use once my KK is ready for the 2 month boat ride. So stoked for this cooker! [emoji4] Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

@KidCactus - @tekobo is correct; 1/8 turn is too open for 225F. Just barely off the seat so you just see smoke exiting the top vent should put you in the 225F range. I don't always start out a cook with a full basket - generally out of pure laziness. I gauge how much is in there and what type of cook am I doing - temperature & time, and add charcoal as needed. If I'm doing a butt or a brisket, I'll seriously load up the basket then.

Put me in coach, I'm ready to play!

Nice job, perfecto./// Check for air leaks and make sure you have a good seal around the doors, flush. Does it shut down without all the coal disappearing?

@Pequod, I have thought this since joining the forum and not a better chance than now. But this used to be my favorite chicago style when I lived there. The cheese ring on the cast iron effect is something I’ve since replicated many times. https://m.yelp.com/biz/pequods-pizzeria-chicago Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hmmm. So it seems Nathan Mhyrvold of Modernist Cuisine fame, and inspirer of the baking steel, is also an astrophotographer. I discovered this by perusing one my astronomy forums on mosaic processing. See subject post: https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/753221-large-scale-mosaic-stitching-software-whats-your-favorite/?p=10843001 Obvious conclusion: to be truly cool one needs to be both a food nerd and an astrophotographer.

Here's a pic of the tarp I found along the roadside, I used a piece of rope and tied a bungy to each end to tighten around the waist. It doesn't look bad, but it keeps the rain and weather at bay. Maybe you know someone with an old canvas tent you could re:purpose. Incidentally, I came across Covers&all by reaching out at BBQ equipment store in Santa Maria Ca. They provided this link to them because they make custom covers for their Santa Maria grills, however each grill is of a different size and anything they had in stock was too small for my needs. What I know of the matierial is that you could find it at a marine supply, uncoated as mine but treated in a process to make them waterproof. If your buying a cover keep in mind the difference between water repellent and water proof is that the latter is permanent long lasting application while the other is temporary of lesser quality. If you purchase the coated substrate fabric covers, you will find them stiffer with less drapability than the a treated fabric. Whatever route you take you'll find they all do the job pretty well

For the uninitiated, see above for @Pequod's post about the Chicago Thin. I can just taste that fennel sausage now. One to make very very soon.

Amazing review, since I am getting a 32 now I can put everything in the order and not worry about the shipping cost so for sure I’ll be getting the baking stone along with a few other accessories. Now I’m just excited the wait is going to be hard Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

A multi kamado home. My sort of place. Welcome @Will

Welcome, Will. Just wait until you see what you can do with the 32.

Welcome Will. That’s quite a collection you have there. What’s your favourite cook up? I’m looking forward to seeing what a French chef can do in a KK. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Pssst, hey man, wanna buy some white truffles - good shit, man, grew them myself!

One of life's great pleasures is to eat in Italy when a particular ingredient is in season. When white truffles are in they are (relatively) cheap and are used generously on eggs, steak, pasta, anything and everything. Don't judge truffles by the overpriced stuff we get in our shops. Getting truffles direct from the man who went out with his dog to find and dig them up the day before feels like a drug deal and gives you the same high. Note: I am not advocating drug taking but I do advocate that you don't pass on truffles if you get to eat them close to source.

Hey all! Just been catching up on the thread, there’s some insanely good cooks been happening! There isn’t a single thing that I don’t want to try Cooked a couple of pizzas tonight, it was a really quick dough, so results as expected, but they didn’t look too bad. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk