Trompo King on sale for Cinco de Mayo

[tony b]

Cleaned up nicely - and without PBW - LOL!! 

[tekobo]

On 5/12/2021 at 9:22 PM, Syzygies said:

I'm considering returning their TK Grate, shown in my first picture. Most aftermarket grates are likely to work better, such as the closer mesh, wider grate shown in my second picture. Their grate was clearly sourced as one could also do separately. Had they designed the grate specifically for the Trompo King, it's highly unlikely that they would have been dumb enough to specify an odd number of grates, making it impossible to center. For general use their grate is not wide enough, or closely spaced enough, to do its job.

I was puzzled by this comment when you first posted it @Syzygies  Why does one need a grate at all in the TrompoKing pan?

 

On 5/15/2021 at 9:52 PM, Syzygies said:

Were I starting over (and I always start over), I'd just buy the Trompo King Four Spike System, and the Skewer Hack Removable Vertical Rack

I am curious about this and keen to see what happens if you do try this.  I have not yet run out of height on the short spike on my cheat Trompo King and am not sure if I will ever need the four spike system but when has that ever stopped any of us trying something new???  

[Syzygies]

4 hours ago, tekobo said:

Why does one need a grate at all in the TrompoKing pan?

Did I say one needs a grate? One doesn't need a grate!

(I've come to my senses.)

[Syzygies]

This advice is optimized for tandoori cooking, which is a reason by itself to buy a KK.

The Skewer Hack vertical rack recommended by tony b arrived, and it is a true 0.25" so the Trompo King Four Spike System fits like they were designed to go together.

To be clear, I am most excited about this rig for cooking tandoori in the KK. I can see a whole chicken working on the center spike other ways such as Jamaican jerk. We're likely to try Al Pastor a few times, though we love Carnitas. At the moment, cooking tandoori is something I want to do every chance I can. As various of us have discovered, Ranjit Rai's Tandoor- The Great Indian Barbecue is the definitive tandoor cookbook, written for an Indian audience rather than dumbing down for a western electric oven. It is expensive but worth it, particularly if one has an obsession with whole spices. I will soon start a thread dedicated to this book.

The paella pan shown is 38cm, which is 15" rim to rim. The Trompo King drip pan is only 13" wide. Without other heat shielding such as the KK double bottom drip pan, that's not wide enough to protect the outsides of a cook from burning. I believe that the Trompo King Four Spike System was designed after the fact.

Carbon steel paella pans are less expensive than enamel or stainless steel. If money doesn't matter, buy stainless. If one sees grace in saving money, buy carbon steel and accept that in this application the drip pan is going to develop character. One can find many 38cm paella pans on Amazon. I give an alternate source.

Trompo King - Four Spike System - Smokeware

Amazon.com - Skewer Hack Removable Vertical Rack for Home Cooking Tacos Al Pastor, Shawarma, Kebab, Brazilian Churrasco, Doner, Gyros - All Stainless Steel Durable - Easy to Use for the Oven, Barbecue Grill or BBQ - Garden & Outdoor

15" Carbon Steel Paella Pan (38 cm) | La Paella

Tandoor- The Great Indian Barbecue- Rai, Ranjit

[tekobo]

I have been watching and wondering with this thread.  Why is @Syzygies so excited about a weird prongy attachment to the Trompo King?  Can't he just cook tandoori on his KK grates like everyone else?  There must be a reason....

I looked around the KK forum and found lots of fun stuff about clay pots that you could put into your KK, to slap naan on the outside and cook your skewers on the inside.  Hmm.  Interesting so far.  By coincidence I received a £15 off code from Aktar at Home.  I applied that to one of the tandoori BBQ boxes for delivery mid June.  Enough time to find a solution to this tandoori cooking conundrum.

This post from @_Ed_ had a reassuringly simple solution - skewers direct into the belly of the KK.

I wandered off to find good quality long skewers and found this UK tandoor site and their interesting prongy solutions.  Seems like @S is onto something with the prongs. https://tandoor-adventures.uk/collections/accessories-for-tandoor-and-bbq?page=1

And then a random search for tandoori skewers came up with this interesting contraption: https://www.souschef.co.uk/products/thuros-t1-stainless-steel-bbq-skewer-attachment?variant=31473519362106&currency=GBP&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&gclid=Cj0KCQjw7pKFBhDUARIsAFUoMDaZWjmoclweHuL8ClyFDf2LnXY6wSNBhOY-RoyfUJ0oXlCIZDZHf6oaAug2EALw_wcB

Could work well, close to the fire in a KK.  All good fun.  Opinions on all of the above and other stuff welcome!

 

[Syzygies]

54 minutes ago, tekobo said:

Opinions on all of the above and other stuff welcome!

Those are interesting links. And having settled on a solution never stops me from trying alternatives.

One of our favorite aspects of tandoor cooking is basting with ghee. (Another signature use is twice-cooked potatoes; sous vide chunks from a cold start at 185 F = 85 C for nearly two hours, chill and air dry, then fry aggressively till well browned in the amount of ghee one wants to eat. Salt. We actually ordered a white Dutch oven for our Vermicular Musui Kamado as a visual aid to making ghee; I'll bring the original Dutch oven to my New York apartment for a second setup.)

Our tandoori requirements are

• being able to leave the food in a fixed position which will cook evenly without one side burning
• getting serious "taste of the fire" not tainted by fats burning in the fire
• being able to baste easily on all sides with ghee, without having to move the food
• being able to remove the cook for careful Thermapen temperature testing, then return it to the fire if needed.

Five vertical skewers well protected by an easily removed heat deflector / drip pan of sufficient diameter seems to me to be the ideal solution. The engineer in me is synthesizing and testing by experiment what I've learned from others on this forum. I'd be eager to try a better solution but it absolutely has to pass my set of requirements.

[tekobo]

19 minutes ago, Syzygies said:

One of our favorite aspects of tandoor cooking is basting with ghee.

Funny you should say that.  We used clarified butter for all our "butter" frying needs, including in our air fryer.  The Husband is usually in charge of making it and he buys a stack of butter from our local catering supplier.  Last time he went, he decided to save himself effort and bought some pre made ghee instead.  I was a little snooty at first but I have to admit that I cannot tell the difference when compared to the clarified butter he used to make.  Good tip re using ghee to baste grilling food.  My decision to make the pilgrimage to the restaurant Ynyshir, in Wales, was based almost entirely on seeing chef Gareth soaking his skewers in liquid butter before grilling.  What could be better?

19 minutes ago, Syzygies said:

Those are interesting links.

Yes they are and I have taken one for Team UK and have ordered some stuff to try.  

Edited May 19, 2021 by tekobo

[tony b]

If you're looking for a cheap paella pan, these folks got you covered. Lots of sizes to choose from.

Paelleras & Pans: CUBANFOODMARKET.COM

 

[MacKenzie]

On 5/19/2021 at 5:39 AM, Syzygies said:

 

We actually ordered a white Dutch oven for our Vermicular Musui Kamado as a visual aid to making ghee; I'll bring the original Dutch oven to my New York apartment for a second setup.)

 

Speaking of the Vermicular, Have you seen the new their new light weight cast iron frying pans? It is very light, is enamel coasted and has a glass lid that fit exactly as it should. I am enjoying it as much as the Vermicular Musui Kamado.

https://www.vermicular.us/shop/frying-pan

 

[tekobo]

So, new piece of kit arrived last week.  It meets my requirements and fits in the 23 and 32.  Testing against @Syzygies's criteria:

• being able to leave the food in a fixed position which will cook evenly without one side burning - one side will burn if you don't have a heat shield and/or don't turn the skewers over.  I do like the way the skewers are held in position so that you have control over the position of your food.
• getting serious "taste of the fire" not tainted by fats burning in the fire - not tainted if you put a heat shield underneath. I might not use a heat shield, particularly for leaner proteins, and am looking forward to getting a good taste/kiss of fire. 
• being able to baste easily on all sides with ghee, without having to move the food - nope, you need to turn
• being able to remove the cook for careful Thermapen temperature testing, then return it to the fire if needed. -  yup, it is relatively lightweight and so should be easy to move when loaded with meat.  

Real life trial to follow when I receive my Tandoori BBQ pack from Aktar at Home.

In the 23

Low down in the 32 if you want to get close to the fire. 

[tony b]

Looking forward to seeing it in action.