tekobo

I am sure your Akorn has served you well...but the difference is clear!

Cool. Long list of ingredients but all/alternatives are easily sourced. Will be trying that soon myself. In the meantime mother and aunties in Lagos are busy sourcing different spices and versions for her to bring over when she visits. Should be good fun!

So very beautiful.

My box of goodies from @tony b arrived in super quick time. Here is the bottle Tony's home made Aji pepper hot sauce and sachet of his own suya blend along with some extra peanut butter powder to so I can try his recipe myself. Next, I did something totally inauthentic. The men who traditionally cook on suya stands in Nigeria are from the north and are generally Muslim. Therefore pork is off the menu. But I had some very good cubed pork leg and that is what I cooked. The three on the left hand skewers are covered in Tony's rub and the ones on the right are sporting the Nigerian Ikoyi Club rub. More colour in Tony's rub. Obligatory on the fire shot Set up for The Husband to blind taste Plated with some yummy ratatouille (more on that later). The verdict? Tony's nailed it! The Husband declared Tony's more interesting, with the same start note as the Nigerian suya but a more "fruity" middle note. I say Tony's is slightly more gingery. The reality is that after a few bites (and a fair bit of wine) we genuinely couldn't taste the difference. Well done Tony. I could take it a little hotter and might amp up the chilli but it is not all about heat and the taste is v good. Now waiting for you to reveal your secret recipe so that I don't have to rely on supplies from Lagos. P.S. the aji pepper sauce is good too. I had an improbable combination of the hot sauce with my homemade version of @ckreef's blueberry sauce, my home made potato chips (fries to you), a couple of small pork chops and salad for breakfast today. Full on yummy.

AND you have a mega advantage, being in Australia. Tuesday will arrive 9 hours earlier for you than if you were still in the UK. Hurrah!

Phew! My brother in Texas had said he would ship my XR-50 to me last Friday. Luckily he was his usual slow self and I was able to order this corn stripping tool just in time. Hopefully he will get around to sending both on to me by the end of this week. Don't you just love the KK shopping channel?

Loving the idea of doing "little" cooks on the Konro. Looks good.

Ha ha. I was with you until you put toad in the hole in a burger bun! Really? Great idea, making toad in the hole on a KK. Must try it sometime soon...

Thanks again @tony b. Will do a taste test and report back on the suya pepper and the hot sauce.

This sauce was an instant hit here! And so easy to make. All jarred and waiting for their debut. I am thinking a nice piece of grilled pork...

Tee hee. That would have been some trick! @MacKenzie I use the cast iron Lodge muffin pan. It is just great (or grate, following @Steve M's line of thought!). When I take the meat off for our main meal, I put the muffin pan on so that it gets nice and hot while we eat. When I am ready, I whip up the batter in a jug, put a bit of clarified butter in each hole, spread it about and pour the batter in. Fruit gets dropped in quickly and then I leave in KK for about 15-25 mins. Puffy and delicious. Everyone eats up really hot and fast. Some choose to adulterate with cream or ice cream. I don't. Always fun.

Clafoutis cooked on the KK is turning out to be the hit of the summer. I use this really simple recipe https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/basic-clafoutis-51208430 and everyone, young and old, loves it. Getting them a little burnt and crusty on the outside makes them taste really good. Rhubarb clafoutis Seedless grape clafoutis

Tacking onto this thread because I received my care package from @tony b this morning. The Husband came in with a parcel and said "It's from Cedar Rapids". So exciting! I finished my chores and then sat down to open it and fell about laughing when I pulled this out: Maggi cubes! They smell and look just like they did from my childhood. I haven't used them in years for "fear" of MSG but I also know that my Nigerian stews haven't tasted the same since. Will give them a go when I next cook up a stew, thank you. Thanks also for the hot sauce, peanut butter powder and suya pepper @tony b. I will try out the suya pepper at the earliest opportunity and report back.

What a theme! Looks great, well done.

That's why this is fun. Other people might enjoy your food but striving to do it mo' better is what makes all these tweaks and tricks so much fun to try out. Good luck!

Well? How did it go??

P.S. I like how you numbered your skewers @tony b. Looks like a full-on professional tasting. Never had suya with corn but timing may mean that your spice arrival will coincide with my corn ripening here. Fingers crossed!

You had me at "my nose was running". Get me some of that No 2 Batch. Please. OK, Pretty Please.

Hmm. I like the idea of getting a good crunch on the outside and a soft inside using a Konro. As for the fondue and raclette jokes - I know @Pequod's wife is wise to all of that. I am just looking forward to him trying to explain how he is going to cook the goat on his, sorry her, Konro.

You're too kind. We completely highjacked your thread @Scott.W. Sorry! I hope you do end up with a KK. As others have said, a chat with Dennis will help with exploring what is best for you.

My question to @Pequod was really about wanting to understand the definition of "true" two zone cooking. In practice, that is pretty irrelevant and I think I have learned something useful from this thread - thanks @Scott.W for starting it off Dennis' illustration showed the difference between indirect and direct cooking. Pequod's description of how he uses his 23" reflected mine i.e. cook on indirect side on the main grate and then switch down to the lower or sear grate for the direct cook. He also talked about increasing the temp when he came to do the sear. I generally just keep the same med-high temp through out. Now I think I am going to try something different. Use the lower grate throughout. Cook on indirect side at medium temp and then crank up the heat and move the meat to the direct side. No hassle and, for the level of accuracy/finesse that I need, I think it should work.

What amazes me is that people fall for those scams. Greed gets the better of them I guess...

Welcome @Scott.W. I was a complete novice at kamodo cooking when my KKs arrived last December. I was able to set them to work within hours of arrival. They are super easy to use and they just get easier over time. So nothing at all to worry about if you are already accustomed to this style of cooking. As for size, anything smaller than a 21" has limitations. I have found having two KKs is the best solution for me. It means you can cook at different temps and different modes at the same time. And many people end up with two or even more once they get into KKs. In my case it was a no brainer because they had to be shipped to the UK with all the attendant customs clearance costs so doing it once made the most sense. I got a 21" and a 23" in the end. @Pequod is a strong advocate of the 32" and I am guessing he is right in that you will be hard pushed to find something you couldn't fit onto a 32". However, I am not sure about this "true two zone grilling" thing. @Pequod, what does that mean? I have my 23" set up for two zone grilling and it works for most things for me, including cooking whole fish.

Gosh, I am soooo jealous @MacKenzie! The konro grill looks great as does the food. Was it a different way of cooking? How would you say that it complements/contrasts with KK cooking?

That'll be great Dennis. Might that mean that you will also be able to ship to the UK and other countries or just the USA?