tony b

Nice job, Wilbur!! I'd take that smoke ring any day, son!

Just a word of caution. What Tinyfish says is true - for lower temperature cooks. If you crank the dome temperature up over 400F, the outside of the dome WILL get hot after it heat soaks (>30 minutes). I did tandoori chicken on Friday at a dome temperature of 550F. Trust me, the outside of the dome was damned hot!!

Did some tandoori chicken on Friday, but let the time slip up on me and I didn't have time to try to make Naan. There are a couple of good threads in the "Bread" section of the Forum. I was going to use the Cookina mat, but this sounds intriguing. But, like he said, if you don't have a good zip saw (and I don't), this can be a PITA.

How ironic - I am putting a chuck roast on the KK in about an hour! One of my favs, as it has all the beefy qualities that I like in brisket, but doesn't take nearly as long to smoke and I don't end up with a shit-ton of leftovers to freeze.

Gorgeous! That's what I'm talking about! Puree the bulbs in the processor (or blender) with just a bit of the oil to make a paste that looks like peanut butter. Put into a jar and keep in the fridge. Will keep for weeks (IF it lasts that long!) Bottle up the rest of that beautiful garlic oil and you've got something special in your pantry! Enjoy!!!

Great advice from Robert, It's super easy to hold temperature in a KK, but really hard to bring it back down, if you overshoot too far.

As the song goes, "I like big butts and I cannot lie!"

Welcome to the obsession! Trust me, after your first couple of cooks, you'll completely understand what I'm saying! The Forum is a wealth of great info, but don't be afraid to ask any and all questions. That's why the Forum exists - to share this great love of Kamado cooking!!! Don't forget to post pics of the grand unveiling and that all important virgin cook! Since you said that you weren't a fan of pork butt, I'd suggest a whole chicken (intact or spatchcocked, either way). You will be simply amazed at how great it comes out. I think they're the single cook that sets ceramic grills, in general, apart from the rest of the BBQ grill community - charcoal or gas. Have fun with your new toy. Don't be intimidated, just takes a bit of practice to get the hang of adjusting the upper and lower dampers to control the temperature. You'll be very surprised to learn how little they need to be open to reach most cooking temperatures. But, the nice thing about BBQing is that precise temperatures aren't critical to outstanding results. So, if you're off by 25F or so, in either direction, no worries. Biggest mistake rookies make is what I call "chasing the temperature," constantly tweaking the vents open and closed trying to hit an exact temperature. A lot of frustration over nothing. Relax, fire that baby up, have an adult beverage, and get ready for a great adventure!

Not tried onions before. Let me know how it works out, MacKenzie.

OMG, you're as anal retentive as I am - ROFLMAO!! I used to do big charity dinners and would set up timelines like that to keep everyone on track. It does work, even though it looks super nerdy! Hat's Off to a successful dinner!

HURRAY!!! Awesome news! Please post some pics of Tatay back home and his (her?) first cook!!

I get the 3# bags of whole garlic bulbs at CostCo. Great deal, even if I don't make it through the whole bag before they start drying out.

One of the nicer things about living in Iowa - It's good to live where the piggies are!!

My thougths exactly! Best part of summer is grilled fresh corn on the cob (and homegrown tomatoes!)

Good luck! Thanks for the compliment, but I learned that technique here on the forum from the pizza man, himself - ckreef (KUDOs)!

Awesome, MacKenzie. I always have a jar in my fridge. I typically go a bit darker than yours, for a bit more nutty flavor. I do mine in the pressure cooker - whole, peeled cloves in oil in canning jars. Generally do 4 jars at a time. Lasts me months AND you get great garlic oil as a side benefit! Plus, they make great Christmas presents for your foodie friends and family if you get nice jars!!

Yeah, what he said! I never wrap any meats on the grill, veggies - sometimes; meat, no! Tried the "Texas Crutch" early on in my Kamado days and didn't like it. But, each to his own taste, as they say.

Awesome! I saw on their website, they show that you can do this with a vertical style FoodSaver, which is the kind that I have. So, looks like I might be trying this soon. At least it's only bags, and not another new kitchen gadget!! Now, my only problem is freeing up some fridge space for a month!

Have you done this before? I am seriously curious about these bags. I would like to be able to dry age steaks in my fridge.

Thanks!

Thanks! Hears hoping that you up and about and grilling again real soon, Ken!

Standard ovens are SOOOOO overrated! I put the space to better use in my kitchen remodel. I have 2 pot rack drawers underneath my cooktop. Top one for the cast iron pans, the bigger bottom drawer is for my stock pots and lids. And now it's the home for the Anova, too. I have a big custom made pot rack in the corner for my "every day" pots and pans. It's good to have blacksmiths nearby! They also made my grilling table on the deck.

I have 8 different tomato plants going and every one has at least one tomato in some stage of development, except that they are all still green! One of my pepper plants (Shishito) has a pepper that's about ready (they are eaten green), but the others (ghost pepper and jalapeno) are just starting to flower.

Maybe a kevlar jockstrap - LOL!!

Nice job on the pizza and good luck on that brisket. Couple of pizza tips - for a thin crust, consider cooking one side of the crust without toppings (plain) to just get it browned. Then flip it over and put your toppings on the cooked side and return to the KK, uncooked side down. Second, put your pizza stone on the upper grate and make sure to heat soak your grill for at least an hour to get the dome nice and saturated. This really turns the KK into a pizza oven.