“Downsize” to Kamado, or will I regret it?

STLBBQer

STLBBQer

is one Smokin' Farker
Joined
Jan 28, 2014
Messages
727
Reaction score
1,025
Points
0
Location
Apex, NC
Currently on my patio I have:

PK Grill
Pit Barrel Cooker
Weber Spirit II E-210
WSM 18”
Weber Kettle 26”
Blaz’n Grand Slam pellet grill

In an effort to downsize, and cut the units (my wife wants to add some more entertaining accessories God bless her), I’m considering selling all of them except for the Pellet Grill and gasser, and getting a Kamado.

To anyone who has experience, will I regret it? Can I get basically the same utility out of a 24” Kamado as the PBC, PK, 26” kettle, and WSM rolled into one? It’s much more about the space right now vs $$$$. Happy wife, happy life.

EDIT: To add, this is the is the first time in my life I’m facing mold problems in my cookers. I have a house with a north facing backyard now and tall pines. Oct-Mar my patio gets very little sun at all. With all these different cookers, I just can’t use them all often enough to prevent a lot of issues. I’ve now had to clean/burn out my PBC twice the last few months.
 
Last edited:
Will this new cooker be used primarily for grilling and the pellet cooker for smoking?
 
rwalters said:
Will this new cooker be used primarily for grilling and the pellet cooker for smoking?
Click to expand...

I would say that pork butts or brisket I’d still rather do in a Kamado if it’s up to the task. Birds and fish would be pellet.
 
Hard to give up such nice cookers.
But I’d say you would be happy.
Those new Kamado Joe’s are pretty sweet with the rotisserie.
 
STLBBQer said:
To anyone who has experience, will I regret it? Can I get basically the same utility out of a 24” Kamado as the PBC, PK, 26” kettle, and WSM rolled into one? It’s much more about the space right now vs $$$$. Happy wife, happy life.
Click to expand...

I think you could reasonably replace all those cookers with a kamado. You may have to sacrifice certain methods like the ability to hang things in the PBC when cooking on the kamado, but the net effect of being able to smoke something is still there. I've owned several different kamados and the Primo XL is my favorite, mainly due to its size and shape allowing for true two zone cooking. They are one of the pricier options though. It sounds like your expectations are correctly set in that you may sacrifice some nuances of multiple dedicated devices to gain space with a multifunction cooker.
 
STLBBQer said:
I would say that pork butts or brisket I’d still rather do in a Kamado if it’s up to the task. Birds and fish would be pellet.
Click to expand...


Well, I can tell you this about my experience. I was a big time Kamado enthusiast for years. Had 4 KJ’s in my backyard. Once I tasted pellet, then sticks I lost interest in kamados. To me, they produce a stale campfire like flavor profile. Just not enough air movement which IMO leads to a dirty taste. Didn’t realize that until trying other cookers. And I tried all the tips/tricks to clean up the flavor. Given the choice, I’d take your 26” kettle with a SnS any day over a kamado. Easier to grill on and the flavor profile much cleaner. And smoking is simple with the XL SnS.

I honestly think you’ll be very hard pressed to beat your pellet grill, gasser and 26 kettle. They make a dynamic team :)
 
I may be lost because I have never cooked on a Kamado, but what can it do that a WSM or a Kettle can't? I can smoke in my WSM. I can grill high temp in my WSM (won't be as close to the flame for a sear so that is one, but you have the gasser). The kettle can also do all these. If you just want a Kamado, I can totally understand that. So I think it may be more about preference. Can't you also do all these on the PK just maybe not as much real estate to use?
 
I’ve no clue what you’re final decision will be nor your process to get there. I will tell you it is refreshing to thin the herd and start over. Just send them gals to good homes.
Good luck
 
SweetHeatBBQnSC said:
I may be lost because I have never cooked on a Kamado, but what can it do that a WSM or a Kettle can't? I can smoke in my WSM. I can grill high temp in my WSM (won't be as close to the flame for a sear so that is one, but you have the gasser). The kettle can also do all these. If you just want a Kamado, I can totally understand that. So I think it may be more about preference. Can't you also do all these on the PK just maybe not as much real estate to use?
Click to expand...

Yes, I’m looking at the possibility of downsizing to a one-size-fits-most to free up space on our patio.
 
I’d say pellet, gas and 26”. Doesn’t get much better than that. Ok, maybe a Shirley too.
 
16Adams said:
I’ve no clue what you’re final decision will be nor your process to get there. I will tell you it is refreshing to thin the herd and start over. Just send them gals to good homes.
Good luck
Click to expand...


100% agree... KISS :)
 
I really enjoyed cooking on my two Kamados, a Vision and Small BGE! And then the novelty wore off, and gradually, I used them less and less and wound up selling them both. Looking back, I was fascinated my the idea of cooking on a ceramic cooker, not to mention that they just look downright cool and I enjoyed tinkering with them. But the coolness factor wore off as they began to reveal their limitations over time.

While it's true you can do just about anything on a Kamado, not everything will turn out equally well. Air circulation is an issue and they simply don't perform as smokers as well as other cookers. Cooking a respectable pizza is certainly possible, but the amount of effort in my opinion is not worth it when you can do a better job using a quality pizza stone in a good hot kitchen oven. Since I do a quite a bit of indirect grilling, (reverse searing), they also fall short there as well. The list goes on for me as it relates to Kamados.

If I were being sent off to a desert island with no possibility of return, with the caveat I could only have ONE cooker and one only, it would certainly be a Weber Kettle, either a 22 inch or 26 inch.
 
Moose said:
I really enjoyed cooking on my two Kamados, a Vision and Small BGE! And then the novelty wore off, and gradually, I used them less and less and wound up selling them both. Looking back, I was fascinated my the idea of cooking on a ceramic cooker, not to mention that they just look downright cool and I enjoyed tinkering with them. But the coolness factor wore off as they began to reveal their limitations over time.

While it's true you can do just about anything on a Kamado, not everything will turn out equally well. Air circulation is an issue and they simply don't perform as smokers as well as other cookers. Cooking a respectable pizza is certainly possible, but the amount of effort in my opinion is not worth it when you can do a better job using a quality pizza stone in a good hot kitchen oven. Since I do a quite a bit of indirect grilling, (reverse searing), they also fall short there as well. The list goes on for me as it relates to Kamados.

If I were being sent off to a desert island with no possibility of return, with the caveat I could only have ONE cooker and one only, it would certainly be a Weber Kettle, either a 22 inch or 26 inch.
Click to expand...

Well that basically nails it for me 100%. Cooked on a BGE several times over the holidays at a relatives home back in MO. Was really hooked on the cool factor and how hefty that lid felt. Liked the way it operated and the relative imperviousness to wind and cold. Been thinking ever since if it’s the “magic bullet” I could use to consolidate. It seems likely I would be missing everything I gave up.
 
STLBBQer said:
Well that basically nails it for me 100%. Cooked on a BGE several times over the holidays at a relatives home back in MO. Was really hooked on the cool factor and how hefty that lid felt. Liked the way it operated and the relative imperviousness to wind and cold. Been thinking ever since if it’s the “magic bullet” I could use to consolidate. It seems likely I would be missing everything I gave up.
Click to expand...

See what I mean about the "cool" factor? :mrgreen:

They do hold temps like no other cooker, I will give them that. But like I said, it wore off after a while. I gradually gravitated towards other cookers that did a better job, and produced a better tasting product.

Even still, I don't regret for a moment having them. I got to learn how to use them, what their strengths and weaknesses were, and that was well worth the price of admission.
 
My first "major" purchase was a kamado on clearance at Sam's. I had good times cooking on that rascal, but eventually more cookers were purchased and the kamado fell out of the rotation. I did find that it was actually better than the kettle when it came to vortex wings. I haven't sold it, but if I were pressed it would be the first cooker to go.
 
I have a pellet cooker and Primo XL kamado and honestly, I don't need anything else. Everything is covered.
 
I don’t buy expensive cars. I don’t chase women. I don’t golf. So cookers, beer, home audio/video, and fishing equipment are my vices. :razz:
 
I LOVE my kamado smoker - but I DO run out of space on it sometimes. I have the double stacker rack for doing burgers / chicken etc... My recommendation would be, buy a kamado first, then, decide to keep all the grills, because... why not.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

W
New to The PK
Replies
16
Views
529
WeberWho
W
F
Honest Feedback, Charcoal cooker vs Offset
2
Replies
27
Views
2K
Lynn Dollar
Lynn Dollar
B
Recteq size
2
Replies
24
Views
1K
SweetHeatBBQnSC
SweetHeatBBQnSC
lastmajordude
Just the way it is
Replies
15
Views
879
Charny
C
T
Buying a new smoker/grill. Which one?
Replies
1
Views
669
bschoen
B
Back
Top