What was your best kettle accessory purchase?


 
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Bobby B

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With Father's Day around the corner I am looking to hit the wife up with some suggestions for a gift. I have been eyeing some Craycort grates recently due to how nice of a crust the CIG's put on my steak with the Q120. I use my performer the most, but I do use all of them on occassions. I have also been interested in the Pizza Oven, Weber or Cajun Bandit Rotisserie, a pizza stone , smokenator and so on. Can you guys and gals chime in on what you think gets the most use and is the best bang for your buck? Also, was any accessory you purchased not worth the money after you got it?
 
IMO, the smokenator is a waste of money.

The weber pizza oven seems way overpriced.

a rotisserie or a pizza stone (preferably a red sky pizza stone) would be my choice.
 
I use a slide a side on my OTG. More secure IMO than the lid hook. It's nice for grilling but creates a bit of an air leak that makes it harder to obtain lower temps. Also, I remove after cook to save charcoals and put on grill cover.

I'm thinking about a ribolator for my OTS. Problem is that it would cost me a little over $300 for the setup.
 
I have the CB and Weber rotisserie kits and I personally prefer the CB. It seals much better than the Weber.
Just my opinion.Also have the red sky pizza stone and love it.The ribolator is nice. I use that for a lot of things, not just ribs.
 
I would go with the ci grates. They last forever. I have had my ups and downs with them, but am really happy with them today. Just make sure you also get the lifter and at least one griddle insert.
 
Craycort grates hands down my favorite. I dont cook on wire. Slide-aside lid holder is great, The smokenator works very well for me, yes you can use bricks but on my 18 its very convenient space wise. Everybody has there own favs, these are mine.
 
Honestly, a couple of landscaping bricks. Has worked for several years and allowed offset grilling/smoking options you could only dream of otherwise.

There are posts here and elsewhere online about their volatility and potential to explode, but in 3 years I've been using them - with temps exceeding 600 degrees many times - I've had no issue whatsoever.

I'm kind of with Troy on the Smokenator in that it's unnecessary if you have a little ingenuity, but think it's a great invention and is worth its costs in the fact that it's opened up the grilling and smoking world to a new audience, and that's always welcome to me.

Of course a sheet of 18 or 20 gauge cold rolled or stainless steel (about ten bucks), a 90-degree bend, and a couple of holes will get you the same thing.
 
Why not use fire bricks and remove the possibility of a problem?

Most clay and or concrete ceramic products gain and lose moisture based on their environmental conditions (according to my brother who has a degree in engineering ceramics and made brick for 40 years). Your landscaping bricks might be fine forever, but, then again, they might explode. You can be sure it will happen when you least expect it and at the worst possible time.

JM2CW
 
Having seen concrete explode when it's heat it, I can only imagine what it would do to your grill if it happened. Hopefully with the lid closed.
 
Real clay bricks shouldn't explode, concrete on the other hand is a whole different story.


The best grill accessory I have is a headlamp for night cooks. Not joking either.
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+1 to what Joe Ray said.

Plus 3 years of very regular use with my present method and no issues. And it helps that the landscaping bricks are trivial to find, and only 78 cents each.

The reality is that while I've used the bricks successfully on many occasions at 500-600 degrees plus, I mostly use them in modified minion method, dumping 1/3 chimney of lit bricks across a half unlit for smoking chicken. Throw some apple wood on and it works like an absolute charm.

As a sidenote I picked up a whole box of Rutland firebricks from Ace hardware a few months ago. Used one once in the same method as the landscape bricks - no difference in results. Will save the others to use for resting a pizza stone when it comes time to do kettle pizza.
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good call on the headlamp. it's one of my favorites as well.

half of the year, it's dark at 5pm here. I grill year-round, so lighting is crucial.

the thermapen is also SUPER high on my 'must have' list.
 
Craycroft CI grates or a Thermopen.

Thermopens are on sale at their site right now, buy two or more for $80 each.
 
Weber 22.5" rotisserie... found it brand new for $29.88 on the top shelf of a Hi-School Pharmacy store in Washougal, WA in the late 1990's. I had the nerve to ask for an employee discount on it (our son worked at another Hi-School Pharmacy at the time)! No additional discount, but since the rotisserie went for about $109.00 at the time, I didn't care! Bought it on the spot, and still store it in the original box!
 
I am leaning towards the Craycort CI's but the Rotisserie won't leave my head either???? So many good suggestions by everyone.
 
Originally posted by Bobby B:
I am leaning towards the Craycort CI's but the Rotisserie won't leave my head either???? So many good suggestions by everyone.
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You might not get nearly as much use from a roti as you would a ci grate. I use my ci daily.
 
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