Garvinque Posted January 11, 2017 Report Share Posted January 11, 2017 I know I don't yet have a KK, I would like to see an accessory for cooking Chinese food in a KK! I have read where some people not here that don't think it's safe to wok cook in a Kamado, but I have posted a video at Kamado Guru of a gentleman who was rocking one in a KJ. So I would love for Dennis to come up with a spider or something similar that would make cooking Chinese food on a KK fun. I will post here the video which I posted there. Garvin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckreef Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 Is it doable? - yes. Is a kamado a good heat source for a wok? - definitely NOT. Is CI the proper metal for a wok? - definitely NOT. The idea behind wok cooking is to be able to very quickly heat up or cool down the wok depending on what part of the cook you are doing. A kamado is a very stable heat source with no easy way to quickly (within seconds) turn it up or down. Kamados as a wok heat source totally goes against the wok cooking concept. On top of that you would burn through a large amount of lump for what's going to be a less than 5 minute cook. (wok dishes are a huge amount of prep work followed by a couple minutes of cooking) CI heats up slow and cools down even slower, a really bad metal for a wok. Carbon steel followed by SS would be a preferable metal for a wok. (KJ really screwed the pooch on this) (no disrespect @Poochie - LOL) I'm sure there are plenty of KJ wok owners that would disagree with me but that's because they don't own a proper heat source or wok. There are outdoor propane wok burners that run around 65,000 BTU's. Couple that with a proper wok and you have almost immediate heat control. (yes I own one of these) I hope Dennis never goes down this road unless he builds a purpose built wok cooker. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Pearson Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 Charles you are a virtual treasury of information Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussie Ora Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 I've done heaps of wok cooks on my classic using the x rack and a ci wok. The trick is to be prepared have everything ready to go .whilst a kamado is in no way the perfect wok cooker it's a fun alternative . But I don't see it being fun on a 23 KK would mean I would have to use the lower grate and it's hot down there lol .would a 19 be better I don't know what's the distance from the main grate Outback Kamado Bar and Grill 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussie Ora Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 Is it doable? - yes. Is a kamado a good heat source for a wok? - definitely NOT. Is CI the proper metal for a wok? - definitely NOT. The idea behind wok cooking is to be able to very quickly heat up or cool down the wok depending on what part of the cook you are doing. A kamado is a very stable heat source with no easy way to quickly (within seconds) turn it up or down. Kamados as a wok heat source totally goes against the wok cooking concept. On top of that you would burn through a large amount of lump for what's going to be a less than 5 minute cook. (wok dishes are a huge amount of prep work followed by a couple minutes of cooking) CI heats up slow and cools down even slower, a really bad metal for a wok. Carbon steel followed by SS would be a preferable metal for a wok. (KJ really screwed the pooch on this) (no disrespect @Poochie - LOL) I'm sure there are plenty of KJ wok owners that would disagree with me but that's because they don't own a proper heat source or wok. There are outdoor propane wok burners that run around 65,000 BTU's. Couple that with a proper wok and you have almost immediate heat control. (yes I own one of these) I hope Dennis never goes down this road unless he builds a purpose built wok cooker. You forgot about the gas port at the back didn't you Outback Kamado Bar and Grill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bosco Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 Good point Aussie. Ckreef would the GE port not be a good source for her control? but that brings up a good point about having to cook down low in th bowl. That would be a real pain in the ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckreef Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 1 hour ago, bosco said: Good point Aussie. Ckreef would the GE port not be a good source for her control? but that brings up a good point about having to cook down low in th bowl. That would be a real pain in the ... The gas port would probably work if you stuck a big enough burner in it. With that said I don't remember anyone ever using that port and my 19" doesn't have it. The other issue with wok cooks are the hot fast cooking tends to splatter grease. Not a lot but enough that I wouldn't want it in the KK. When my grilling area was in the backyard I use to use my wok all the time. Now that it's on the porch don't want the grease splatter on the porch. Kamados do most cooks fairly well and if I could only have one outdoor cooking method - KK all the way. But there are some cooking scenarios where there are better methods than a kamado. Wok cooking and satay/Yakatori cooking are two good examples. And CI is one of the worst metals you can use for a wok. When you pull it off the heat source it needs to cool down immediately and you just won't get that with CI. But still it's doable with CI, there's just much better options out there. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cschaaf Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 I got the KJ CI wok as a gift and I like it. It's not the best material for a wok and it's not really traditional wok cooking, but it's still a lot of fun and puts out good results. You can almost think of it as a griddle with high sides so the little diced bits don't end up in the fire. The KJ wok has a flat bottom, so you don't really need the xrack. If I'm using it in the KJ, I use the xrack. On the KK, I just set it on the lower grate. Like @Aussie Orasaid, that's not really the easiest thing to do on the 23". Both @ckreefand @Aussie Oraare right - any wok cooking requires a ton of prep and organization. CI wok cooking on a komado requires even more planning and shuffling. I'll often cook an ingredient, say the protein, then pull that out and save off to the side while I load in the next ingredient - since there aren't cooler sections in the wok. No need for KK to go the wok route - the advantages of a KK for other cooks, namely the distance from the fire, are in direct opposition to wok usage. An xrack that fit in the top position might help a bit - that would get the bottom of the wok closer to the fire and leave the top of it at a descent level, but it's still not ideal. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garvinque Posted January 12, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 (edited) You ladies and gentlemen's have the experience with the KK, just thought it would be fun to be able wok cook without any specialized equipment. My brain keeps going back to the Chinese didn't have gas as a fuel way back and managed to make something work maybe not a Kamando but something with an open flame. Don't kill me but how about a metal tube that covers the area where your charcoal basket would sit and allows the charcoal basket to be raised up the second grate level Also the Wok Shop makes a super thin cast iron wok about the same thickness as their carbon steel versions. Edited January 12, 2017 by Garvinque Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Pearson Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 You definitely do not want to raise the charcoal basket above the flyer box that's a no no 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Pearson Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 That's supposed to be fire box lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckreef Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 Yes @Bruce Pearson is correct. The firebox should not be raised and used in any type of upper configuration. @Garvinque we're just having a debate on the merits of using a kamado or specifically a KK as a heat source for a wok. No big deal. My outdoor propane wok burner along with an 18" SS wok was only $89 so money is not really a factor in the initial purchase. I also added in the CI debate. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Pearson Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 You might also want to check out the Disc it. They custom build them for you if you'd like any pictures I have one 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garvinque Posted January 12, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 (edited) 46 minutes ago, ckreef said: Yes @Bruce Pearson is correct. The firebox should not be raised and used in any type of upper configuration. @Garvinque we're just having a debate on the merits of using a kamado or specifically a KK as a heat source for a wok. No big deal. My outdoor propane wok burner along with an 18" SS wok was only $89 so money is not really a factor in the initial purchase. I also added in the CI debate. No your right about the merits of using a KK for wok cooking, just thinking outside the box. In reality I have a way to wok outside but when I saw that video that's where most of this thought came from. I put in the CI from Wok Shop because I once had a lodge cast iron wok and found it to be too heavy and give it away to a friend. Found the Wok Shop online and got me an carbon steel and that ci wok, I will try and post a side by side picture tonight. My dad always told me son you think to much-lol Charles I trust your opinion and that is one of the reasons I want to spend the money on a KK. Funny how we never seen each other in person but I can form an opinion on you based on your thought out posts both here and the guru so for me no worries! Garvin P.S. How is a SS wok, my thoughts would have been to avoid SS for high heat cooking? Edited January 12, 2017 by Garvinque Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckreef Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 56 minutes ago, Garvinque said: P.S. How is a SS wok, my thoughts would have been to avoid SS for high heat cooking? It's thin enough to heat up and cool down quickly. But It doesn't season like a carbon steel pan will. One day I'll buy the right carbon steel wok. Also my SS doesn't have a long handle only a loop on each side. Makes you have to wear proper gloves to use it. My next wok will have a decent handle. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garvinque Posted January 12, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 19 minutes ago, ckreef said: It's thin enough to heat up and cool down quickly. But It doesn't season like a carbon steel pan will. One day I'll buy the right carbon steel wok. Also my SS doesn't have a long handle only a loop on each side. Makes you have to wear proper gloves to use it. My next wok will have a decent handle. You should check out Wok Shop they have very good prices and their woks go from 12 to 22 inches in size and a ton of add-ons! As you can see from the photo above the ci wok has the same handles you describe about yours. I love the carbon steel over the ci wok it has a long handle, but the ci wok was only 15 bucks. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FotonDrv Posted January 22, 2017 Report Share Posted January 22, 2017 On 1/12/2017 at 11:33 AM, Garvinque said: You should check out Wok Shop they have very good prices and their woks go from 12 to 22 inches in size and a ton of add-ons! As you can see from the photo above the ci wok has the same handles you describe about yours. I love the carbon steel over the ci wok it has a long handle, but the ci wok was only 15 bucks. So how is this working? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garvinque Posted January 22, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2017 1 hour ago, FotonDrv said: So how is this working? Here is some beef lo-mein with the carbon steel wok: Garvin 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacKenzie Posted January 22, 2017 Report Share Posted January 22, 2017 Yummy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garvinque Posted January 22, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2017 26 minutes ago, MacKenzie said: Yummy. The dark soy sauce is key to this recipe adds a mushroom flavor to the dish, and soon as I mixed the ingredients it smelled like I was in the Chinese restaurant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
