DennisLinkletter

32 minutes ago, synfinatic said:

Thanks for all the advice everyone.  So sounds like:

1. I have one of the new model BBQ Guru's on order... gonna be another month or so before it shows up it sounds like.  Probably make this easier, but it seems like cheating
2. Sounds like I was using the wrong hold for the probes?  I see two silicone plugs in the front just below the lid, but I was using the larger hole with a metal screw plug which is much lower- near the blower port.  The 6 extra silicone plugs I received won't fit that larger hole.  I'll try running the probes through those holes next time.  Anyone know what the larger screw port is for?
3. Sounds like I need to use the top vent more to control air flow than the bottom and need to open up the bottom a lot more.

Thanks for the advice everyone!

2 that's the port for the hot/cold smoke generator.. the polder probes are the ones above with the food-grade silicone plugs..
3  for really low temps.. I always toss a big chunk of wood on the coals that will make thick nasty smoke.. I use this a a visual indication of airflow leaving the damper top.. if you can see any smoke leaving.. you have charcoal burning. Just leave it. You won't get any read on your thermometers until the body is heat soaked which at these temps might take a while. As long as air is escaping up top, regardless how little, you will keep charcoal burning. Low temps use hardly any airflow.

BTW you never need to wait to grey over natural charcoal that does not have any added starter chemicals.. only the quick start junk for the beach.

1 hour ago, Pequod said:

I don't really get crispy skin from the rotisserie either. Too many juices swirling around the bird. Best skin for me is spatched on the upper grate close to the dome.

That's how I always cook them too.. but my buddy Scott wanted to see the roti in action..

There's something magic about meat spinning and over a fire that gets people worked up!

Yes the grout looks smooth to our eyes but actually has tiny pores, so the deposits are in the bottom of these tiny holes.. rub all you want, you can't clean them.. bust to use the acrylic material as black paint.. Less is more!

Have not spun anything for a while so I dropped in these two birdies.. Got the color I wanted by bringing it up to 400ºf for a bit but did not render out all the fat in the skin.. thinking I might need to poke little holes in the skin to let the oil out. Was hoping for some thin crunchy skin but it just was not..       But was crazy moist and tasty. Used coffee wood for smoke, it really comes thru with chicken. I need to learn how to cut up a chicken correctly to properly photograph the meat.. 

That's a BIG Tri Tip!

Spoke with Kevin in product development at Thermoworks, he was very helpful and told me they are currently developing some adapters. 
One way or another, we'll get ya an adapter to be able to use their fan in the Guru faceplate on on your KK.

On 8/27/2019 at 4:06 AM, Alohapiggy said:

I finally got a reply back from Thermoworks after showing them pics of the KK fan port.  This is the response I got. 

 

“I would recommend pulling the vent assembly out, remove the wooden handle then use one of the 3 vent holes and taping the other two.  Without knowing what's behind the vent that is the best option”

 

So I’m guessing Thermoworks isn’t making an adapter to adapt billows to the KK.   

Argh.. Tape just doesn't work..  

Called them today and Kevin from the development team at Thermoworks will be calling me tomorrow with ideas to make these work in the Guru port.. 

This is my junior year High School ID

1978 and 18 years old in Bali on the last leg of a seven month Endless Summer adventure, alone with a backpack and board.

This one is at SDSU two years later.. Ahh where did the hair go?

A box of Grass-Fed Australian Picanha arrived today.  
Never cooked it before, can hardly wait. 

On 4/11/2020 at 11:16 PM, Ticket2ride04 said:

When using aluminum foil, do you cover the lower grate or the little piece that covers the charcoal basket? 

You only need the foil to be large enough to block the  infrared radiation coming directly off the coals from hitting your meat.
 

19 hours ago, BARDSLJR said:

No, that's good insight. It somehow also explains why I am not getting as much smoke flavor as I think I ought to for cooks like the babyback ribs. Less air coming through means less turbulence passing over the surface the meat, ergo, less penetration of the smoke. Hmmmm....maybe I will start experimenting with the type of wood or the blends of woods that I might be using. Typically, I am doing pork ribs, so I use a fruitwood, mostly apple. Sometimes cherry, sometimes both. Maybe I will start moving more towards oak and pecan, which are both, to my taste, heavier smoke tasting. Maybe hickory?

Actually with less airflow, the smoke has more retention time and more opportunity to condense on your meat. For more smoke flavor, I would suggest putting your ribs into the grill as cold as possible.. even throw them in a box freezer for 20 minutes before throwing them on the grill. This will increase the volume of smoke/condensation.. I'd also use the foil pouch, a drilled cast iron pot or my cold smoker to clean up the smoke too.. 

And this company has good products. https://www.realmilkpaint.com

Remember that oil finishes are "in the wood" not on the wood finishes.  You wipe them on and let as much soak in as possible the wipe clean.. you can repeat but only if more is absorbed, it's not supposed to sit on top of the wood like varnish or polyurethane.  

Two 40' Containers of Charcoal Scheduled!!!

I have a container of CocoChar loaded last week, had to send it from a different port in Java to get around the freight issues but it looks like it worked..

A 40' container of Coffee Lump will load on the 7th..
20' of 22 lb boxes and 20' of 44 lb polypropylene bags..

We tap the bottom of the top swinging latch with a block of wood with a little weight.. just a little smack tweaks it back into alignment.
Start gently and then tap harder until you get the results you want..

Very cool chimney.. that being said, unless you are grilling at high temps, most people light too much charcoal using them for low and slow.

I'm pretty sure screen up only sucks more ash and gets clogged up more quickly. 
There can't be any difference in the vacuum created by the air pump up or down.
I believe you when you say the smoke was better but I'm guessing that it's because the inside of the pipe was partially closed from ash sticking to the sticky gunk that forms from the smoke..
BTW the long T tool for removing the rear hinge cover is great for cleaning out the smoker's feed tube..

14 minutes ago, Adventureman82 said:

another cold smoker question:

Would an electric heating element with wood pellets work in the cold smoker attachment and still have the same great blue smoke effect?  I am mulling over how exactly it would work.  Any thoughts or comments are appreciated.

You want the wood to smolder and burn off it's gas slowly without it turning to vapor.. if it gets too hot, gas will turn to vapor and give you that grey acrid, bitter smoke.

19 hours ago, tony b said:

If you want to be inspired, search the Forum for Dennis' prototype grates - pretty awesome designs. Unfortunately, they were cost-prohibitive for him to develop as a commercial product. We were all seriously bummed! 😥

To make a channel around the outside of one side to catch grease etc and have the other side shot penned cost me much more than the ones already on Amazon.. If I can't do it better than what's out there then why?
Modernist Cuisine has nice ones
https://shop.bakingsteel.com/products/modernist-cuisine-special-edition

I made a locomotive's worth of white smoke once cooking a duck. It's fat missed the drip pan and made more smoke than I have ever seen coming out of a Kamado.. It was like I was smoking the back yard for mosquitoes.  The burning smoke gave the duck an acrid taste too.. Could not eat the skin.. the meat was fatty but pretty good.

Four Wagyu Tri Tips, reverse-seared and smoked with cherry and coffee wood.
Best beef you can put in your mouth.
Grilled on my 42" Serious Big Bad of course!

I have a wanna be customer asking me, " Is the 32" BB  large enough to smoke 3- 15 lb turkeys?"     Anybody have any idea here?
 Turkeys went thru the roof here years ago and I have no idea.  

Please have the lid open when tightening the spring bolt. Check every two turns. You want it to open completely but not fly up so aggressively it bounces back off the top. 

I made this up last year, and forgot about it..
Whatcha think, worth building/selling?