tony b

Got any pics of your handywork with all those toys in your shop?

Can't wait to see what you're up to these days. Glad to have you back and posting again!

Yep, happened a few upgrades ago. It was just too much hassle to re-link them all. Sorry to hear that you sold your brew stand. I'm surprised that you didn't try to upgrade it with a nice March pump so you wouldn't have to lift heavy kettles of wort.

Thanks for the tips, Tekobo. I'm hoping this recent stint of super hot/humid weather will stimulate a growth spurt. If not, I'll definitely give your tips a try - what do I have to lose at this late stage.

How long you been brewing? There are several of us on this Forum that are homebrewers.

@Jon B. - I just packaged up a box for ckreef. I'll take it to the Post Office on Monday. No way am I going near the place on a Friday afternoon - not unless I want to wait in line for an hour! You'll have to give me the dates of when you'll be here next year, so I can try (finally) for us to meet up! If next summer is anything like this one, it could be a juggle.

I am a big proponent of Powdered Brewers Wash (PBW) to soak/clean the grates, rotisserie gear, etc. Works great, cuts through greasy gunk easily, just rinse off with a wet sponge, towel, etc. Easy Peasy.

Browse the Forum and then ask questions of the members. And in the end, call Dennis!

@DennisLinkletter - just got my shipment of coffee charcoal. Inside the box was a card promoting your website - www.KomodoCharcoal.com. But when I tried to go there, I got an error message saying the page could not be reached. Any ideas on what's up?? @ckreef - I just took delivery on 10 boxes. Would be happy to share one for "the cause" of this experiment. PM me if you're interested.

WOW! That's killing me right now. My stomach is rumbling after seeing those pics!

I'm having a terrible year for tomatoes. Plants were stunted due to all the rain and cooler weather we had in May. Most of the plants are barely over 2 ft tall and only a couple have started producing fruits.

Thanks, all. I did save one piece for lunch today.

Very nice pies!

If you really want a very high temp sear on a steak, take your upper grate, flip it upside down and place it on top of the charcoal basket handles - that's the "sear grate" configuration. There's a substantial difference in temperatures between the sear grate and the dome thermometer of several hundred degrees! So you don't need to crank up the dome temperature much beyond 400F to get a good sear on the sear grate. Another tip, flip the steaks about every 15 seconds, turn 90 degrees after the first 2 passes if you want the "classic cross-hatched" grill marks without overcooking the steaks.

Very nice, MacKenzie. Last night's dinner was a Korean BBQ Chicken pizza. Slathered the chicken breasts with gochujang and seasonings and roasted indirect @ 350F, along with an ear of corn (direct). Ramped up the KK to 400F in the dome and heat soaked the pizza stone for an hour. Par-baked the crust. Then sauced with a mix of tomato paste, gochujang, and honey. On goes the chopped chicken, cut off corn, and mozz. Sprinkle of sesame seeds on the outer crust. Back on the stone until the cheese is nice and melty. Topped off with some kimchi and green onions. Another lovely night on the deck to eat outside.

Of course you would, Bruce - you always need another "trophy" in the collection.

MacKenzie, your photography skills are amazing!! Those are magazine quality pictures.

Wasn't shocked at all - both of those charcoals are amazing (IMHO), especially the Marabu. Wish you'd have tossed in their Brazilian Eucalyptus lump - that's been my fav so far from their Premium line.

Very nice!

Like someone commented - you trying to take over for The Naked Whiz??

Reverse sear is usually @ 325 - 350F for the roast (indirect), then I open up the vents to get a good sear (direct) on the lower grate.

Just barely off the seat, so long as I see wisps of smoke coming out. If it's closed too tightly, I'll get a stream of smoke coming out of the temperature probe plug or even around the vent door when the fan is running. Even with the lower flow Guru fan, I never run it with the damper wide open. It's usually less than 1/2 open.

True, but most of us have tossed it and don't use it at all. No risk of the thermometer falling out.

Definitely pics! I'm biased, but prefer the cradle (or standard rod/forks) over the OktoForks (just not a fan). I have a 23" which means that my charcoal basket is round, so I can orient the basket splitter in a front/back orientation, perpendicular to the roti shaft, so the chicken is rotating in/out of the fire zone. I'm in the 375F - 400F range on most chicken cooks to get a crispy skin.