Grill sizes and kamados


 
Kristof Jozsa

Kristof Jozsa

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Talking about high heat grilling only in this case - I tend to suffer with being short on cooking area on my 18" kettle over indirect fire when cooking for over 4+ people. I was thinking about buying a 22" but then tasted some boneless chicken legs today which was prepared on a BGE and was so amazed that I played around with the thought of switching to a kamado.

I looked around then and got really surprised to find out that about all the large kamado models are just 18" and also single layered.. so they have the same cooking area as my trusty kettle?! Maybe the problem is with me afterall and not with my kettle size? For how many people can you cook on a 18" usually?
 
You'll never go wrong with a 22" - The basic black OTS is roughly a C-note, available everywhere, can cook almost anything and will last you for decades.
 
Have you considered adding a 1/2 grate to your kettle? The ceramics and kamado style cookers are just another form of grill. If you do the same recipe on a kettle or kamado style, a blind taste test most wont be able to tell which cooker those boneless legs were prepared on. My ceramic is my least used grill.
Kristof Jozsa said:
Talking about high heat grilling only in this case - I tend to suffer with being short on cooking area on my 18" kettle over indirect fire when cooking for over 4+ people. I was thinking about buying a 22" but then tasted some boneless chicken legs today which was prepared on a BGE and was so amazed that I played around with the thought of switching to a kamado.

I looked around then and got really surprised to find out that about all the large kamado models are just 18" and also single layered.. so they have the same cooking area as my trusty kettle?! Maybe the problem is with me afterall and not with my kettle size? For how many people can you cook on a 18" usually?
Click to expand...
 
How do you install a half grate?
I think Kristof needs to increase overall space and the BGE was just an option being cobpnsidered. Am I right Kristof?
 
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Timothy F. Lewis said:
How do you install a half grate?
I think Kristof needs to increase overall space and the BGE was just an option being cobpnsidered. Am I right Kristof?
Click to expand...


Easiest way is to get a full 18" grate and use an angle grinder to cut in half (across the support rod). Then attach 4 carriage bolts with nuts and washers to make legs and feet so the grate will sit on top of the main cooking grate.


Here's an extreme example of a guy using a few elevated grates on a 26'er.


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Dave, I think That guy NEEDS a ranch!
Thanks Dave but, managing the "tri level chessboard" looks like a real headache to me. If I'm in need of that much extrs space, I use a second grate with the rotisserie ring (fitted with "rack studs") and put the gourmet system on top with a standard hinged grate below, you can work through the hole and still add coal to side baskets as needed.
Kristof, you still need the 22, all the accessories are more easily obtainable like the set up I have put together. I will use that for the cook this weekend, sausages and baked beans can live together easily and I can do the tots on the same set up, maybe. Otherwise I will just use both grills (22 and 18)
 
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I would have preferred this talk going into the direction to how to better use a 18" :) The elevated grills look horror to me, I just imagine myself trying to organize stuff within seconds (to avoid losing heat) on all the layers parallel.

Btw, do you guys often use two grills in the same time? Eg. one for the meat and one for side dishes? I plan to cook a nice piece of salmon (around a pound), two small cuts of spare ribs for the kids and trying some black iron potatoes besides for the first time and again I see it quite a logistics challenge. Think I'll start with the potatoes as my black iron takes over half of my grill then quickly fix the meat and finish with the salmon? Or how do you handle such cases?
 
I can appreciate your situation, and I apologize for so swiftly pointing you toward needing a 22, that was a different thread. I agree the logistical ballet needed to make the multi level set up in that picture scares me to death.
I use two grills a lot, since I made the table in my avatar, I do a lot of indirect cooking. I will use the 22 for proteins and the 18 for sides, cast iron squashed baby potatoes, vegetables and so on.
This weekend I will more or less reverse that, I will do sausages and burgers on the 18 and the beans, peppers and bacon wrapped tater tots will ride the 22, the bean pan will need the extra space. I will admit I have done entire feasts in the 22 at the cottage but, the space is at a premium.
 
Yes cooking a whole meal for a family of 4 on a 18 inches is a challenge but it is doable. As my signature notes: I have a Large BGE and Jumbo Joe both of which are 18 inches. Planning your meals and timing is of up most importance. For example, cooking steak ,veggies, salmon and garlic bread all at the same time is not practical given the space consideration. With the below pic i smoked some meatballs and grilled some squash. As you can see I had plenty of room for more veggies.



As mentioned previously, I gave up on my Weber 18inch OTS(it was a nice grill and made the best steaks) and traded up to a performer. The extra grill space makes a huge difference. Check out this pic. Now I have chicken, meatloaf and spagetti squash and could squeeze in a few more things if I was creative.



As for the BGE, they cook totally different from the Kettle and are very expensive. You'll need to spend extra cash to get the accessories to do indirect and two zone cooking. Of course Kamado Joe comes with everything you need out of the box and has a rotisserie option. Having said that the Weber 22inch is awesome especially at the price point.

Hope my rambling helps!

-D
 
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