bosco

You know something... I have tried some very high end brands of lump over the years and some crummy stuff.  

I just burned off a bag of Argentinian hardwood that's suppose to be the best and I hated it.  

Getting KK lump in Canada is very expensive so not really an option.  

I still really want to try the fogo lump that CC uses eventually. 

But I must say the RO red from the US is awesome.  I really love it.  I am a huge fan and have been burning it for the past few years.  Yes you get the odd rock but it burns great, gets to temp fast and smells awesome 

with all that said mewantkj from the guru alerted me to the sale and I was flying into Buffalo from Vegas today.  I stopped in and picked up 20 bags.  I now have 40 bags stocked in the garage.  

Ken I will give your lump a go soon.  I just need to find a way to get it to my PO box cheap

Mine did but I think he has both an 8" and the 8" with reducer 

You will need the round basket for what you are getting at.  Or you will need to bank your lump to the back in the 22 without a splitter.  

You need the 23" for what you are looking to do with the splitter 

^^yup agree 100%^^

Looks like you got it all buddy!!

the lower grate included would tilt the purchase to the 23" for me personally.  

Steaks drip pans etc down there worth it 

for me I was a griller more than a smoker but I liked the idea of being able to do it all.  The Kamado is the Swiss Army knife of BBQ.  More so, the KK is the Ferrari of the Kamado world.

Ypu probably turn out great meals on your current model, however, you will find the quality will be twice as good with a KK.  The cooker actually plays an important role in the food quality.  

Mug you live in a colder climate area Dennis recommends a cover to protect the grout jacket.  Plus it is nice to keep clean and out of the elements.  Dennis makes a great heavy weighted cover out of sunbrella material that lasts.  

Mad for loving it, it is super easy with the wheels.  

 You are going to get a bunch of spare tiles and they are easy to replace if needed.  I don't think you will have any issues with cracks.  

Just do it you won't regret this purchase.  In fact you will likely cook more now 

It comes with deflectors.  A piece of aluminum foil is pennies and easy clean up.  Forget how a traditional ceramic works.  

I know Tinyfish has done many low and slow with no deflector stone just a drip pan.  

The short answer is... The KK just works better

A heat soak for me is for low and slow and say I am baking ie. pizza or bread.  The longer you let it soak, the more stable and convection like it becomes.

As for chicken, I do my chicken at 375 on the main grate.  I basically let it get to temp in about 10-15 min then cook those suckers!

Last... Dennis recommended this and several others have stated it in the past as well.

with a KK you really do not need a deflector stone in place when doing low and slow.  The reality is that the fire to main grate distance is far greater than that of a standard ceramic.  With that said, many have use foil over top of the lower grate as a deflector and cooked low and slow with the meat on the main grate.  How cool is that?

I do have a double bottom steel drip pan that I have not yet used, but I may just foil wrap that (to keep clean) and bypass the lower grate, foil or deflector

I only leave the main grate in.   

If I low and slow I will also add the lower grate to hold a drip or I use the stainless double drop pan.  

I have been talking to Dennis and thinking about adding lower grate with foil for low and slow and a piece of foil. No more deflector if it works 

heat soaking... All Kamado's benefit from a nice heat soak.  It helps maintain temps during cooks and provides a more even heat distribution 

awesome!  Welcome to the forum

Great job buddy.  That was one heck of a cook 

I microwaved them, turning them every five min 

I saw this floating around the internet and adapted it to my shepherds pie recipe.  This turned out really great.  My wife hates shepherds pie so I am the only one that eats it.  These will be easy to freeze and defrost when I want, rather than a large pie

I agree with tony the 23" is still my favourite look.  That is the brand's flagship. 

As for hiring anyone for the 21" I'll take care of it for you give me two weeks and it will be up to date.  Save your cash for something good!

Tony that looks great.  Where did you go to grab that? It may be worth the drive.  How much are we talking per steak??

I have neglected to post over the past few weeks as my boys are keeping me terribly busy with rep hockey tryouts.  My one son made AA last night as he refuses to play AAA anymore and the younger guy has tryouts starting Monday (Im the trainer/manager so not worried about this one shhhh).

Anyways, Ed.....

That KK you ordered looks wonderful.  The tile colour is rich and looks beautiful.  I have always lusted over Tony's and this one is now on my fav list as well.  I was the first to get the new stainless side tables so I have convinced myself that Dennis did it just for me LOL.

I am going to walk you through my BBQ journey a bit here....

Coles notes: 

• started with a WSM (hated it) realized quickly that I am a griller with the odd time I enjoy smoking foods.  Didn't need a dedicated smoker
• purchased a Weber Kettle 22.5" One Touch Gold as my wife refused to let me buy a Kamado due to price.  Cooked on this for a year and absolutely loved it.  Fell in love with BBQ
• Began researching and wanted the BGE more than life itself.  Then stumbled onto the www.kamadoguru.com and learned a ton and ended up with a KJ Big Joe
• Loved it, couldn't believe the food quality.  Moisture, ease of use, temp control (especially during winter) set it and forget it for the most part.
• Bought a second, then a third.  All matching black  OCD a bit as some know and didnt want mixed up cookers
• Then KJ changed their colour discontinuing black so I bought all three sizes in red and gave the black ones away to my best friend.  One of the greatest things I have ever done.  He is so happy and uses them daily

Most here know that I was a die hard KJ brand guy.  I had many debates and arguments with anyone that tried to tell me that KJ was inferior.  All this time, replacing 5 cracked fire boxes, gaskets needed to be changed.  Continual band and lid adjustments, rusted out grates, rusting sections on the nest..... I didn't care because the warranty is truly amazing and they take care of their customers. 

I continually heard the likes of 5698k, CC, Wilburpan go on and on about how great the KK was.  In fact I got mad and always went at them telling them that they were full of it.  Then ckreef joined in..... followed by Tinyfish.  I still thought these people were crazy for spending the money and the kk couldn't be worth the extra.

Turning point:

Wilburpan wrote a post about the KK being like an expensive chefs knife.  A standard knife will do the job, but a high end knife will do it better so to speak.  So this raised the debate about the cooker vs. the cook.  I thought this guy was sniffing glue on weekends (later learned just huffing the chemicals from the high heat burn in lol).

Then I started thinking about it..... When I upgraded from a kettle to a KJ, I was blown away by the food difference.  I was suddenly created way better quality food and that was a result of cooking on a better Kamado.

Then, 5698k (Robert) started messaging me, telling me to join the dark side.  I began looking at the kk site once and a while, then more often, eventually every single day multiple times.  I fell in love with the design which initially I thought they were strange looking.  But the more I looked at them, the more I realized their quality.  I joined the KK forum at this time and began reading every post that I could.

I searched everywhere for a complaint or negative report with respect to the kk.... I couldn't find one.  How is this possible?

Everyone said call Dennis, Call Dennis.... who is this oracle that everyone speaks with.  So I said what the heck and gave him a shout.  This man is the nicest man I have ever spoken with.  His no pressure sales was unbelievable.  He was a pleasure to speak with and I was so impressed with his knowledge and more importantly his passion for his product. 

Ordered harvest gold pebble, which by the way produces the best food. I think I may be the longest shipping experience in the KK history.  We missed every port, broken boats, delayed shipments, custom inspections.... the list goes on.

I still hadn't set my eyes or hands on a KK up to this point.  So I really didn't know what to expect.  

Fast forward to December 2015.  I get a call that my grills had arrived and were ready for delivery.  I drove out to the warehouse to arrange and pay for delivery.  They let me into the warehouse to check out the products before shipping.  I saw the famous KK crates the second I walked into the warehouse.  I could see small parts of the kk through the wood slats.  I can honestly say that I was blown away with them the moment I laid eyes on them.  They were way bigger than I had expected and the 32" was huge from what I am use to with the KJ.

I got them home and set them up, and I was so impressed with the way that they looked.  My wife immediately said sell the gasser, and its time to rethink 5 kamado's

my buddy next door is now holding onto a trio of KJs.  Once I started cooking on the KK, I realized that Wilburpan wasn't totally crazy.  Suddenly my cooks are producing the best cooks that I have ever done.  Nothing changed with respect to my cooking or prep, so why suddenly does everything taste better??  It was the subtle differences that tipped the scale in favour of the kk.  I can honestly say now that after owning a KK, I do not believe that there is anything better out there.  

I can't for the life of me burn food or screw meals up.  The temp control is better than anything that I have ever used.  The temp stability is wonderful, and the minimal air flow creates an amazing moisture zone in the KK.  

Giving away the KJs was bitter sweet as I was a die hard.  But once you get going on the KK you will honestly never ever use the BGE again. I am happy to hear that it is going to a good home or else it would have made a gorgeous planter for you.

Not such a coles note post after all, but your journey is so similar to mine and I know how the ending of this story will be.  Get ready for the 32" next because it will happen... sooner than you think too!

Congrats on the purchase Ed

amazing congrats and welcome to the KK family.  Can't wait to see some photos of it at your mountain home

now I want pizza... but they are calling for rain today

1 hour ago, Stile88 said:

Very interesting 

 

What is cold smoking on a grill btw

cold smoking salmon, sausage, cheese etc.  smoking without generating heat that would cook the food or for cheese melt it.  It is a great technique for adding smoke flavour to something

I owned 6 kamado joe grills prior to switching to the KK.  I never viewed one in person but based on the positive reputation and the fact that everyone seemed to rave about them, I knew that they had to be top notch.  I spoke with Dennis on the phone and I was hooked.

I now own 2 KKs a 23" and a 32" and have to say that taking delivery took my breath away.  These things are everything that they are chalked up to be and more.  I have been known to cook a good meal or two with my kamado's, but since upgrading to the KK my cooking has gone to the next level.  They just work better all around.

You will not regret this purchase even if you can't find one local to view.  You will be very impressed with the build quality

What a great weekend up here in the North.  We had 60 to 70 degree weather all weekend.  I cooked wings on the 23" on Friday for the boys, fresh ground chuck burgers yesterday and today I did sausages.  

I woke up today and did a deep cleaning on my setup.  I used a putty scraper to clean up the edges and used my new shop vac for the first time.  It worked perfect.  I then degreased the tile and stainless on the unit.  

I also noted that the weight of the accessories inside of my cabinet have caused a slight bowing in the bottom, affecting the doors.  I cut some wood as a wedge and placed it under the cabinet and everything is level and square again.

I heated them both up and ran a load of lump.  I let them go around 400 and then cleaned the grills well.  They look spotless and brand new.

Happy spring cleaning to all of my kk friends

that looks incredible.... do you realize how lucky you got here?

this is a really good forum to learn from.  I also like the kamadoguru.com

It would be nice to see more KK members over there representing as well!!

incredible gift!!

Is this your first kamado?  You stumbled into the high end of BBQ my friend

this looks great.  The grill shot will be going on the KK instagram later today