CeramicChef

bosceaux - beautifully done cook! Are we now going to have to start calling you Señor bosceaux? Geez, this could start to get really confusing ... a Mexican Cajun!

Wonderful cook, Tony! Kudos!

Rak, there you have it! How can you ever possibly think of denying your precious Aashni her own custom KK in the very colors she loves? Welcome aboard Komodo Kamado! You do know there is absolutely no known cure for the KK fever except buying a couple of them, right? You really want to see that precious Aashni break into that wonderful smile, right? Buy that little sprite her own 23"!

Charles - I do believe that you get more out of Prometheus than I've ever seen anyone get out of a kamado, irrespective of size. You never fail to impress! Kudos all over the place!

If this was a 32" with cobalt blue pebbles, it'd be on its way to OKC! Rob, I love that rehab is for quitters! I can't stop laughing and my date thinks I'm just a bit strange anyway.

Pale, I have the same cooker as you. The 32 is a Big Bad beast, hence it's name. Once you learn how to tame the beast, it's a wonderful cooker and very mild mannered. However, because of its mass, you have to stay ahead of your 32 all the time. If you overshoot on a 32, you're toast, literally. Also, you have a more complicated air control manifold at your disposal than most, so this can complicate matters, but rest assured your 32 wants you to be in charge. I always recommend that every new kamado owner take a weekend day and get to know their cooker. I generally recommend that you grab a case of your favorite beer, an ice chest, a bag of lump, Some great tunes, a good book, and get after it. I'm really OC, so I put my digital thermometer through a potato and put it on the main grate. This allows you an accurate reading of temps at grate level and this is what you're looking to determine. You're looking to determine the response curve of your 32 to changes in vents setting. You're also looking to determine vents setting for the most common cooking temps, i.e. 225, 250, 275, 300, 325, 350, 375, 400, 425, 450, and 450°. I'd also suggest that you forget aout the RHS dial at this point and exclusively use the LHS dial initially. Once you understand the response curve of your 32 you can get fancy and add in the RHS dial. Light a single spot in your lump pile. Once the fire is established, close the lid and from here on in, control your temps only with the vents. Open your bottom LHS dial completely and open the top hat vent about 2 turns. Take note of how your 32 responds temperature wise. I have found that my 32, TheBeast, responds to quicker to changes in vent setting than any kamado I've ever owned. I think this is because all airflow is directed through the lump pile unlike other kamados. I start shutting down my vents about 50-75° before my target temp, in this case 225°. Creep up on 225°. My vent settings for 225° are the bottom LHS cut down to less than 1/8th or less and the top hat something like 1/2 turn open. I also fine tune temps using my top hat vent as it is infinitely adjustable. Let your 32 settle in at each temp for a period of about 30 minutes. Use this time to pop the top and enjoy your 32. Make note of each vent setting on paper because these vent settings will note change (for the most part). After about 30 minutes, open your top hat vent about 1/8 of a turn or so. Leave the bottom vent alone. Within a specific temp range, i.e. 200-300° I control temps via the top hat vent. The same holds for 300-400° and 400°+. Take note of how temp rises with this change in the top hat vent setting. You're looking to hit 250° and my advice is to sneak up on it. As you know, if you overshoot, you're toast when it comes to getting temp back down. I've found that my 32 is quite responsive to changes in vent settings so like I said, sneak up on 250°. Again, let your 32 settle in at 250 for about 30 minutes. Pop the top and sit back, jam to some tunes, admire your 32, and enjoy life. Repeat the above for all the temperatures above. When you go from 275° to 300°, open the bottom vent some more (I find I like to calibrate using the notches cut in the LHS dial) and screw down on your top hat vent. I screw down the top vent completely so that I can keep track of the number of turns for each remp. Like I said, I like to control temps largely by using the top hat vent. This may seem like a lot of tedious work, but the dividends are enormous. Your control of the 32 insures impressive cooks. I've smoked cheeses during the winter in my 32. I've smoked jerky at about 175 and finished it in a dehydrator, I've done fish at about 190-200. Once you understand how your 32 responds to changes in vent settings, you can really get creative in a lot of areas. After you've spent the time to get your 32, open the vents wide, sear off some steaks, and enjoy a great meal! Oh, let's talk about the RHS dial on the air control manifold. I use the smaller holes to fine tune my temps. I only started doing this AFTER I had a really fine understanding of how TheBeast responded to changes in vent settings. Used in conjunction with the LHS, I've used the RHS to really zero in on temps. You can also use the RHS entirely by itself, but you've got to go through the exercise again for those numbers. As Dennis will tell you, the holes in the RHS dial are not necessarily cut to correlate with any specific temperature. I love how responsive TheBeast is to changes in vents settings. I hosently think that the KK is so efficient in its air flow, that you can largely control it across a very wide temperature range using only the top hat vent. The draft through the KK's lump pile is unlike anything I've ever seen before. This means the temperature change happens quicker than most people expect, especially if they have cooked on other kamados. Sorry to be so long winded, but the time put in doing the above yields huge dividends. KKs are a once in a lifetime purchase, so in the grand scheme of things, the time invested is really nothing. Besides, you've got a cooler full of beer, some great tunes, and a nice book to help you through the exercise! Enjoy!

For my everyday lump I use FOGO. It has large pieces, but nothing quite that big. FOGO has just the size distribution I'm looking for ... about 50% large, 40% medium, and the rest small and dust. It's dense, burn hot, and, like a Tootsie Roll, it lasts a long time. Syzygies, you keep lauding that Lazzari briquette and I think you're going to force me to try some boxes.

Bingo! That's my problem with making my own lump. Yeah, I know, you always find timemformthose things that are important to you. Between FOGO and the KK Extruded Coconut Char, my lump problem is pretty much solved.

Congrats, Gnomatic! Banks ... Can't live with 'em and you can't live without 'em, right? I'd second what was said above ... go with what first caught your eye. That said, Dennis just posted a recent thread with pics of all the KKs that are to hit the shore. For me, that's like putting a bottle of really fine bourbon in front of me and telling mei can't have any! Every single KK I've seen is beautiful, absolutely beautiful! You'll love your new KK. I hope you know we expect to see pics of the uncrating and first cook, right? We couldn't be happier for you! Again, congrats and welcome (back) aboard!

Dennis, I hate you, I truly do! Damn you, now I'm lusting for a 23" Ultimate in cobalt blue! And it's all your damned fault. Hey, you don't have that cobalt blue in a pebble finish, do you!?

I do LOVE chicken shawarma! And that recipe sounds delicious ... droolicious in fact! Thanks for sharing, bosceaux. Another winner winner chicken dinner!

Poochie - touch 'em all and take a bow! You knocked that one out of the park! Kudos on a wonderful cook.

Bosceaux - OUTSTANDING CHOICE! That's almost the same very color as Beauty! sitting on my patio. You're really going to love how that looks sitting on the patio. Congratulations! And you do know that Romulis killed Remus, right? Let's have no fratricide on your patio!

Amen!

Bombay Saffire!

That's why I like cats so much. I exist for their benefit and they never let me forget it! I think I'm taking on their personalities. The longer I'm around this planet the less I care about much of anything!

That's nothing but 24 Karat beautiful! Wonderful presentation, beautiful pics, and I'm betting it was some kind of delicious! Kudos!

I was about to suggest the very same thing. Makes life much easier! If you ever change hosting services, it's my understanding that the pictures embedded in the post are lost.

bosceaux - you are really wise to get that spare basket, especially if you plan on getting some Coconut Charcoal. I exclusively use Coconut char on my low-n-slow cooks. That's where it really shines. Having that extra basket certainly comes in handy. One basket for Coco Char and one for regular lump which i use for high temp cooks. You'll also find the basket splitter very useful when doing smaller cooks. I particularly like the way it blocks off airflow and redirects it thru the lump. It's really great for week nite high temp sears.

I've done as many as 8 racks on TheBeast and had some much more room it wasn't funny. I sent a couple of uncut racks home with folks that evening. Being the honest man he is, Dennis talked me out of the rib rack. Now I understand why! Irrespective of size, I'm always amazed at how much food these KKs can cook at one fell swoop. Simply amazing.

Absolutely KILLER cook! That's beef stew done right. Kudos!

ckreef - BINGO! I'm doing Yakatori for my next party! Syzygies, thanks for the pointer to the book. Charles, that's one beautiful cook! Kudos to you! Thanks again for the next party idea! This is gonna be great.

MacKenzie - WOWZERS! Pizzas, sammies, breakfast, ... That looks like 24 karat droolicious! Kudos and more to you!

PJ - that's one gorgeous little 19" Hi-Cap! I love those beautiful blue and gold tiles. And I love how you and your husband coordinated the shoes and the new KK. Those shoe laces go so well with your new KK! I'm looking forward to seeing your cooks. You're about to have the time of your life! Major congrats on a stunningly beautiful new KK!

I'm here in Oklahoma City, OK. Right in the smack dab middle of the USA. It gets HOT and humid here during half the year. My drink of choice during those hot summertime months is gin and soda with a splash of Roses lime. Quick and easy to make and wonderfully refreshing. Around ChezChef we call it Electric Limeade. And then there is nothing better than a wonderfully dry martini.