tekobo Posted January 9, 2022 Report Share Posted January 9, 2022 The thing that I like least about barbecuing fatty meats is the nasty smoke that you get as the fat hits the hot coals. I complained about this to Dennis a while ago and he sent me a photo of a longways basket splitter that he had mocked up for someone in Singapore. Dennis’ logic was that the fat drips off rotisserie meats on the “down” side and, as the meat rotates away from the fire on the “up” side, you don’t get fat dripping into the fire and causing flare ups. I had to test that out so I tried it in my 23 and it seemed to work. It was easy in the 23 as the basket is round and so you either split it side to side or back to front. Not so in the 32 because the splitter that Dennis makes progressively splits the basket width ways, not long ways. So, I got a local guy to make something up for me which looks like this: It worked well in a chicken cook that I did in October. No/v little in the flare up department and great flavour. I was reminded of this when I saw @johnnymnemonic’s post where he had a heat shield between his chicken and the fire in his 42. This trick makes it possible to expose your food to the fire throughout the cook. I cannot comment on achieving greater crispiness as I tend to have wet marinades and sauces on my chicken. I also cannot yet comment on how well this works for something that is really fatty. I have a rolled porchetta to try sometime and will report back on how the fat dripping works and also whether I manage to get that elusive crispy skin. In the meantime I hope I have not pissed @DennisLinkletter off too much by posting this. I think he has a version of this divider in the making but I don’t know how soon/if he plans to offer it for sale. 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C6Bill Posted January 9, 2022 Report Share Posted January 9, 2022 I’d like something like that 😁 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grant Posted January 9, 2022 Report Share Posted January 9, 2022 I would have interest in one as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BOC Posted January 9, 2022 Report Share Posted January 9, 2022 Same. I create the same effect with foil currently, so having a more proper approach to it is of interest.Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnymnemonic Posted January 9, 2022 Report Share Posted January 9, 2022 I was reminded of this when I saw [mention=3336]johnnymnemonic[/mention]’s post where he had a heat shield between his chicken and the fire in his 42. I actually just had the basket splitter in. Fire on the right, chickens on the left. I could try using a full firebox (or fire on the chicken side) and use the heat deflectors. Also I only air dried my birds in the fridge for 5 or 6 hours. Could do that overnight next time. Also I did a consistent temp. 400 at dome. MEATER said about 325 at bird. I could go higher, or crank the fire after I hit a certain temp.Lots of variables to play with.Idk if I am personally interested in a longways basket splitter with the 42. Got enough stuff to store that I rarely use. If I hit success on this one day I will be sure to post it.Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnymnemonic Posted January 9, 2022 Report Share Posted January 9, 2022 One idea that popped into my head is something diagonal that you set on the ledge of the firebox on the front of the inside of the kk and has arms that make it lean against the back wall. It would have a little drip catcher at the bottom. Like a diagonal drip pan for lack of a better term. Basically a metal sheet that covers half the width or so over the firebox, with arms that lean against the back, and a triangular pocket at the bottom for drippings. Maybe that would not work because the drippings would be in a tray very close to the firebox. Maybe they would get too hot and burn up and cause the same bad scent issues. But anyway. Might be easy to try something like this with steel rods and foil.Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troble Posted January 9, 2022 Report Share Posted January 9, 2022 @tekobo that would be great to have something like that. I did my prime rib last night on the rotisserie and I had major flare ups towards the end and I had that exact thought of “I wish I could do my rotisserie on the 32 and keep the fire away from the spit” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony b Posted January 9, 2022 Report Share Posted January 9, 2022 As noted, the benefit of the 23" having the round basket so you can put the fire in the back, as Dennis noted on the upswing side of the rotation. Nice job with the longways basket splitter. Dennis is always looking for upgrades, so I'm sure that he's already working on this one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony b Posted January 9, 2022 Report Share Posted January 9, 2022 @johnnymnemonic - one of the "tricks" to crispy skin - baking powder. Rub it on the skin before you airdry it in the fridge (preferably overnight) with some salt and maybe a bit of cornstarch (makes kind of a paste to hold everything on). Changes the pH as well as drying it out. Lightly brush it off and apply your seasoning rub before cooking. 2 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poochie Posted January 9, 2022 Report Share Posted January 9, 2022 I'm wondering if a piece of expanded metal from Home Depot would work. It's basically thin grate material but a lot of people make fireboxes out of it. When I get my 32, I'm going to give it a try. Maybe double up on the expanded metal to keep fire contained. I think it's around $25 so it's a cheap project. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnymnemonic Posted January 9, 2022 Report Share Posted January 9, 2022 5 hours ago, tony b said: @johnnymnemonic - one of the "tricks" to crispy skin - baking powder. Rub it on the skin before you airdry it in the fridge (preferably overnight) with some salt and maybe a bit of cornstarch (makes kind of a paste to hold everything on). Changes the pH as well as drying it out. Lightly brush it off and apply your seasoning rub before cooking. great tip. I will definitely give this a try. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnymnemonic Posted January 9, 2022 Report Share Posted January 9, 2022 3 hours ago, Poochie said: I'm wondering if a piece of expanded metal from Home Depot would work. It's basically thin grate material but a lot of people make fireboxes out of it. When I get my 32, I'm going to give it a try. Maybe double up on the expanded metal to keep fire contained. I think it's around $25 so it's a cheap project. I lied earlier - maybe I would fool around with the longways splitter and this sounds like a good way to play around with it. Thanks @Poochie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tekobo Posted January 10, 2022 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2022 So, I dropped Dennis a note yesterday to apologise for stirring up interest in the event that he wasn't actually going to go with this accessory. He says he is but he hasn't yet sorted price or confirmed whether any have been produced for sale yet. In the meantime here is a photo of his version (rather more sophisticated than mine) for you to drool over. I am happy with mine because it was relatively cheap and I got it made locally but I remember messaging Dennis to say that it was a game changer for me when I used it. 5 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poochie Posted January 10, 2022 Report Share Posted January 10, 2022 Is that a 32" Tekobo? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C6Bill Posted January 10, 2022 Report Share Posted January 10, 2022 I am more than a little sure it is a 32. And I would place an order right now if those were available 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheesehead_Griller Posted January 10, 2022 Report Share Posted January 10, 2022 2 hours ago, tekobo said: So, I dropped Dennis a note yesterday to apologise for stirring up interest in the event that he wasn't actually going to go with this accessory. He says he is but he hasn't yet sorted price or confirmed whether any have been produced for sale yet. In the meantime here is a photo of his version (rather more sophisticated than mine) for you to drool over. I am happy with mine because it was relatively cheap and I got it made locally but I remember messaging Dennis to say that it was a game changer for me when I used it. I need one of these! Can you please share a few more pictures? I’m going to see if a friend of mine can fabricate it for me. Thanks in advance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tekobo Posted January 10, 2022 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2022 Yup, Dennis' photo with the stainless steel version looks like it was taken in a 32. These are a couple of photos of the one we had made out of mild steel. This was when it first arrived and we put it into the KK to try it for size. Nothing fancy but it does the job. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyrus Posted January 12, 2022 Report Share Posted January 12, 2022 On 1/10/2022 at 10:25 AM, tekobo said: These are a couple of photos of the one we had made out of mild steel You probably had to give the craftsman your basket for the fit if I'm correct. For some reason I thought the 32 always had this like the 23. A split zone as that opens so many doors! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tekobo Posted January 12, 2022 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2022 7 hours ago, Tyrus said: You probably had to give the craftsman your basket for the fit if I'm correct. For some reason I thought the 32 always had this like the 23. A split zone as that opens so many doors! He came by to measure up and then delivered the finished product. It fit first time, no problems. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tekobo Posted January 18, 2022 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2022 I tried out a boned and rolled suckling pig on Sunday evening. There was much less smoke than normal and I managed to get good, crackly skin. Definitely a good way to do rotisserie of fatty meats on a KK. The black marks on the outside of the meat came from the wet stuffing that leaked from the inside of the piggy roll. Part of an Indonesian style meal. \ Gratuitous shot of my current obsession - madeleines. 8 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
