jdbower

I'm not sure about multiple layers as I've never tried it. I'd imagine it would work, but you may want to try a single layer to make sure you know when they're done. It wouldn't surprise me if a large quantity would need stirring or more time, although if you heat them indirect (which you're already mostly doing by cooking them in something) I'd imagine the stirring wouldn't be needed. Since the chestnuts really cook in their shell the container you use to cook them probably isn't all that important. You may find cast iron would do better indirect since it will transmit the heat a bit more, but you may also like that it could burn the bottoms of the shells a bit. Of course this may not even be an issue, I haven't tried on an open flame before. I created a new thread in the techniques section for you since it's a more appropriate location instead of hiding this little chestnut of information in a Happy Camper thread (pun, sadly, intended)

These are pretty easy. First, obtain some chestnuts. Around us there are huge bins of them in most grocery stores around this time of year. Then you'll need to puncture the shell of the chestnut so steam doesn't turn them into miniature hand grenades. They're pretty soft and I use just a regular knife, but you can also look into a small hooked chestnut knife or other specialty tools (you can probably find lots at a local kitchen store. You'll want to roast them at about 400F for around 20 minutes. I just put them on foil but a pizza stone would work as would a cast iron skillet or any specialty roaster. They'll become more tender when they're done. After that put them in an old, clean towel and use the towel to roll them around and break the skin. Let them rest in the towel for a few minutes so they can cool. Then peel, eat, and enjoy! I've only oven roasted them (so far!) so I'm not sure which type of wood would impart the best flavor but I'm sure you'll have fun experimenting.

If you can have a KK as a stocking stuffer you must have HUGE feet, I don't think I could even fit one under the tree! Glad you're enjoying your new KK, I'm sure you'll find it very useful for all sorts of Christmas goodies from hams to chestnuts and you may even find some cakes and cookies taste better with the very mild flavors Dennis' extruded lump imparts.

I got your back. It was shot at 1/8" at F5.6 and ISO200 with the 18-135mm Nikkor at max zoom. Looks like she used a slow-sync TTL metered flash and was about 1m away from the subject, probably because she used the Night Portrait VariProgram mode. She may have also been using the MB-D80 grip with alkaline batteries - she should try NiMH rechargeables, they'll give better battery life. She may have also used a tripod with a 10s delay, a good idea for long exposures. There's also a setting to introduce a delay between when the mirror lifts and the shutter fires, that's nearly as useful as a Mirror Lockup (but MLU is only available on the D200 and higher from that generation). All in all not bad, especially for a first try. The flash pop is probably why you can make out the unlit coals.

Congrats! I'll have to keep an eye out for your smoke plume next time I visit my relatives in Halifax, PA.

Those look tasty, and much quicker and easier than the thighs Suzanne Somers promised

Nicely lit! A set of U2PLT's grinders are pretty high on my list of things to acquire.

I modified this from the Heinz website, we had extra apples and these looked interesting. 1 lb ground beef 1 onion (chopped) ½ cup breadcrumbs 3 tbs tomato sauce 1 apple (grated) 8 sheets phyllo pastry 1/4 tsp pepper Set the KK to 400F Mix meat, onions, breadcrumbs, tomato sauce, and pepper into bowl. Grate the apple over the top and thoroughly mix. Divide into 8ths and wrap in phyllo pastry. Bake on a pizza stone at 400F for 10 minutes then reduce the temperature to 335F for 20-30 minutes. I'm guessing just setting the KK to ~335 for 30-40 minutes would also work, the O2 inrush when you add them should cause a bit of a temp spike. Sorry, these were cooked in a conventional oven - and an electric at that! These are great with a bit of Thai Sweet Chili Sauce drizzled over them. The sweetness of the sauce nicely complements the sweetness of the apples.

This is a thick, mildly spicy (except to Sanny!) sauce that's also pretty sweet. 3 tbs hot ground chili paste 2 tsp minced garlic ½ cup rice wine vinegar 2/3 cup water 2/3 cup sugar 1 tsp salt 4 tsp cornstarch 4 tbs chopped cilantro Combine everything except for cilantro into a small saucepan and bring to a boil while stirring. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring constantly Remove from heat and add cilantro. I've used red wine vinegar instead of rice vinegar and it also is pretty tasty. You can also adjust the chili paste to taste.

As for ordering, it's usually pretty pricey to get just a few boxes so most people try to share a pallet in the Charcoal Order Sharing Forum. I notice that there's an old thread from a Seattle sharing attempt, if you team up with Amphoran you may be able to save a bit. If you just want a few boxes and don't want to bother with a share just email Dennis and he'll get a quote out to you. He can also probably throw in some accessories to save on shipping. Emails are the best since that's how Dennis organizes his order information.

Hmmm.... You used to have a bird. Then you got a KK. Now you don't have a bird. The bird said "eek! eek!" I think I'm beginning to see why

I'm not sure about that, we've got a "soon-to-be" owner, I guess it's up to Roy to decide if he wants to allow "wannabe" owners

I think this is a great idea, I've moved it to the See a KK forum and made it a sticky so it's easier to find. Note that you don't have to open your home to people wanting to see a KK to put your dot on the map. Thanks!

Worst case I'm sure there's some level of cleaning and protection you and use to keep it shiny. When I first saw you had been waxing some tiles it had me thinking, my black car gets too hot in the sun for me to put my hand on it, I don't think the outside of a KK would get much hotter. Perhaps some of the same stuff they use to clean and protect chrome on a car would help keep the luster.

Too much bling for someone with a monkey pimp as an avatar? That's hard to believe! To be honest I'm not one for metallic objects either (I've pried a lot of chrome off my car), but the dark bronze isn't bad compared to, say, metallic gold tiles with rhinestone highlights I would also be curious to see how it looks in the sun, and how it looks a few years from now. I'm not sure if having the metal protected to hold the luster would be better or if it would be more interesting to have it fade to a nice patina.

Firemonkey (already exhibiting some poor taste in color selections) doesn't like the new tile color, but I betcha we can make a metallic bronze KK produce toast like this!

That is a different problem. I had thought about that with DJ's grill, but the best I could come up with was trying to get a very stiff clip thin enough not to disturb the gasketing too much (or just lay another gasket over top). But that still seemed a little cheesy, risky, and difficult. Other options were to have a ring around the entire lip (but I think there were issues with the rotisserie ports) or to dress a small child in an asbestos suit to hold it in place. Turns out you need to provide an oxygen supply for that last option, live and learn (why do you think I had to move?)

I wonder if one could devise a clamp that would firmly attach it to the main grill. I'm thinking a small, flat bit of stainless (perhaps with appropriately-spaced indents) that can rotate to fit through the grill and then tightens with a wing nut. I just don't know how long it would last in the heat - but if it's just a bolt and wing nut that needs to be replaced periodically that should be a small price to pay.

Getting a bit worried that someone posting about beefing up their gas-only BTUs goes missing for a bit? You know this group way too well - I'm guessing we average maybe 9 fingers and half an eyebrow each if we're lucky!

Very nice indeed! If the price is right I'd be interested. How about the stability? It looks like it relies mostly on the lip to stay up which seems like it would help a lot, but think there would be any issues of knocking it over during a cook? If it seems a little wobbly another solution is to have the legs extend beyond the front, kind of like this: I don't think it should add too much to the complexity - just a little more material and maybe a 45 or 60 degree bend instead of a 90.

Re: Fastest and definitely most fun way to light your charco I've been to the parts of Asia you frequent, a cheap-o hair dryer over there and you can probably just wrap the cord around some unlit coals and it'll be a blazing inferno in minutes!

Oh well, I just got an order cancellation from them because they were indefinitely backordered. Luckily Amazon has them for a less-than-amazin' (but still not awful) price.

It's like a graduating kindergarden class! Can't wait to see their big brothers in production as well.

I'm not sure about the 3/8" BB model on a 3/8" grill but the smaller model on the Weber grill worked well enough to knock drippings off the underside (usually I make two passes angled to the left and two passes angled to the right). The GrillFloss looks much more efficient at getting underneath and I've ordered one myself so I can compare.

It's also a neat effect to have the sun reflecting off the KK tiles onto your very nice KK Kompanion