KARUBECUE has landed

[sparky]

Sparky! What have you been up to?

Working my @ss off buddy.

[1Bigg_ER]

Some leftover beef short ribs. These were vacuum sealed and refrigerated. Warmed in 131 degrees hot tub time machine. Tastes like fresh off the smoker

[akruckus]

Can we get a porchetta recipe please!

[1Bigg_ER]

Can we get a porchetta recipe please!

Check out page 4-5 http://www.letstalkbbq.com/index.php?topic=12356.45
Roast at 225 instead of the Sous Vide.

[akruckus]

At what temp did you pull it off the KBBQ?

[1Bigg_ER]

At what temp did you pull it off the KBBQ?

185 degrees,

[ericpete]

MMMmmm, those are some nice lookin' short ribs.

Man I'm ready for some KBQ action!

EP

[dalefipp]

I appreciate this topic so much...Thank you 1Biggg_ER and all the others who have contributed information and result examples. I placed my order for a unit this week and I am sitting on pins and needles waiting for it to arrive.  I can't wait to fire it off and cook that first meal.

Dale

[1Bigg_ER]

I appreciate this topic so much...Thank you 1Biggg_ER and all the others who have contributed information and result examples. I placed my order for a unit this week and I am sitting on pins and needles waiting for it to arrive.  I can't wait to fire it off and cook that first meal.

Dale

You're in for some legendary QUE!!

[RG]

Ok, I read this thing from stem to stern and I am impressed but I need some truly honest, unbiased opinions here. Before I add another cooker to the fold (I just sold 2 in the name of getting skinny for moving next year), I need to know how this thing cooks compared to Kamados and Pellet Poopers. I have 3 Kegs (Kamados), a Traeger and a Smokin-It #3 Electric smoker. They all have their strengths and weaknesses. I had a PBC but it just wasn't for me. It's one thing to order a $300.00 cooker and it not be all that and a bag of chips but if I drop $1400.00 on a cooker, it better be badazz and just be out of this world. It needs to just blow the doors off of what I am cooking on now.

So, in short, does the KBQ cook THAT much better than Kamados and Pellet Grills? Night and Day difference?

Tough question I know, but I need to know how it compares.

Thanks!

[rwalters]

Ok, I read this thing from stem to stern and I am impressed but I need some truly honest, unbiased opinions here. Before I add another cooker to the fold (I just sold 2 in the name of getting skinny for moving next year), I need to know how this thing cooks compared to Kamados and Pellet Poopers. I have 3 Kegs (Kamados), a Traeger and a Smokin-It #3 Electric smoker. They all have their strengths and weaknesses. I had a PBC but it just wasn't for me. It's one thing to order a $300.00 cooker and it not be all that and a bag of chips but if I drop $1400.00 on a cooker, it better be badazz and just be out of this world. It needs to just blow the doors off of what I am cooking on now.

So, in short, does the KBQ cook THAT much better than Kamados and Pellet Grills? Night and Day difference?

Tough question I know, but I need to know how it compares.

Thanks!

Looking forward to the answer(s) to this question!!

[teesquare]

Ok, I read this thing from stem to stern and I am impressed but I need some truly honest, unbiased opinions here. Before I add another cooker to the fold (I just sold 2 in the name of getting skinny for moving next year), I need to know how this thing cooks compared to Kamados and Pellet Poopers. I have 3 Kegs (Kamados), a Traeger and a Smokin-It #3 Electric smoker. They all have their strengths and weaknesses. I had a PBC but it just wasn't for me. It's one thing to order a $300.00 cooker and it not be all that and a bag of chips but if I drop $1400.00 on a cooker, it better be badazz and just be out of this world. It needs to just blow the doors off of what I am cooking on now.

So, in short, does the KBQ cook THAT much better than Kamados and Pellet Grills? Night and Day difference?

Tough question I know, but I need to know how it compares.

Thanks!

I am going to add a philosophical "straight arrow" to this quest.....

We should ALL remember..."cooker"...is really the guy running whatever appliance he/she is cooking on. Some of us are more comfortable with one type/style...and others prefer something different.
And - I will use the example of Harry Soo. While many ( most) competitors were using technically complex cooking equipment, and large budgets to accomplish that Harry would roll up in a van ( kind of a beater of a van too  ) and unload some Weber GSMs and even a Weber Kettle.

And - he won the Royal Ok in Kansas City.....which is considered THE championship in KCBS. Because Harry knew his gear - but he also knew the real limitations...were only the ones he created by not managing/fully exploiting the tools he had and any self-doubts.

Now - I love the food that Biggs produces on his Karubeque. And I would consider ordering one myself ( if I had any body parts that I wished to risk, that could be carried in a woman's handbag... )

But...make no mistake - Biggs has turned out exceptional food on everything he cooks on - because he engages out of the box thinking about pairing the items on a plate that provide nutrition and color/texture/eye appeal and he takes great plated pictures.
Mostly tho he understands that the most powerful tool...is YOU...the REALL "cooker".

[RG]

Ok, I read this thing from stem to stern and I am impressed but I need some truly honest, unbiased opinions here. Before I add another cooker to the fold (I just sold 2 in the name of getting skinny for moving next year), I need to know how this thing cooks compared to Kamados and Pellet Poopers. I have 3 Kegs (Kamados), a Traeger and a Smokin-It #3 Electric smoker. They all have their strengths and weaknesses. I had a PBC but it just wasn't for me. It's one thing to order a $300.00 cooker and it not be all that and a bag of chips but if I drop $1400.00 on a cooker, it better be badazz and just be out of this world. It needs to just blow the doors off of what I am cooking on now.

So, in short, does the KBQ cook THAT much better than Kamados and Pellet Grills? Night and Day difference?

Tough question I know, but I need to know how it compares.

Thanks!

I am going to add a philosophical "straight arrow" to this quest.....

We should ALL remember..."cooker"...is really the guy running whatever appliance he/she is cooking on. Some of us are more comfortable with one type/style...and others prefer something different.
And - I will use the example of Harry Soo. While many ( most) competitors were using technically complex cooking equipment, and large budgets to accomplish that Harry would roll up in a van ( kind of a beater of a van too  ) and unload some Weber GSMs and even a Weber Kettle.

And - he won the Royal Ok in Kansas City.....which is considered THE championship in KCBS. Because Harry knew his gear - but he also knew the real limitations...were only the ones he created by not managing/fully exploiting the tools he had and any self-doubts.

Now - I love the food that Biggs produces on his Karubeque. And I would consider ordering one myself ( if I had any body parts that I wished to risk, that could be carried in a woman's handbag... )

But...make no mistake - Biggs has turned out exceptional food on everything he cooks on - because he engages out of the box thinking about pairing the items on a plate that provide nutrition and color/texture/eye appeal and he takes great plated pictures.
Mostly tho he understands that the most powerful tool...is YOU...the REALL "cooker".

Tee, I appreciate your take on this and I certainly understand your point and I DO agree to an extent so let me rephrase the question. With all things being equal, whether the cooker (person) being either green or adept at cooking on all his/her devices, how does the KBQ compare to the others? That's the answer I am after.

The person is THE most important part of the equation no doubt but look at it this way. If you put me in a 1973 Ford Pinto and ask me to turn out the fastest lap I can on Road Atlanta, I'll do my best to eek out a good time but if you were to give me a 2016 Shelby GT350R, I am pretty sure I could could do MUCH better. Same driver, same ability, same technique, different results.

For $1400.00 I am expecting the GT350R, not the Pinto

One last thing of note, with a decent camera and plating, you can make anything look good. I can make magazine worthy pictures but it doesn't always mean that it's chef quality food. Just being honest. I'm not saying that Bigg's food falls in that category, just so we're clear, lol. If I were to go on looks alone, I would've already ordered a KBQ, I just need more info before pulling the trigger.

[Sandman]

It does cook great BUT be ready to feed it every 20 mins.

[ericpete]

Ok, I read this thing from stem to stern and I am impressed but I need some truly honest, unbiased opinions here. Before I add another cooker to the fold (I just sold 2 in the name of getting skinny for moving next year), I need to know how this thing cooks compared to Kamados and Pellet Poopers. I have 3 Kegs (Kamados), a Traeger and a Smokin-It #3 Electric smoker. They all have their strengths and weaknesses. I had a PBC but it just wasn't for me. It's one thing to order a $300.00 cooker and it not be all that and a bag of chips but if I drop $1400.00 on a cooker, it better be badazz and just be out of this world. It needs to just blow the doors off of what I am cooking on now.

So, in short, does the KBQ cook THAT much better than Kamados and Pellet Grills? Night and Day difference?

Tough question I know, but I need to know how it compares.

Thanks!

I don't want to hijack this thread, (the very thread that actually convinced me to buy the KBQ)
but I do want to respond, so here goes...

As a new KBQ owner with a few cooks under my belt I have to say that I really like this machine.
I was somewhat skeptical that this stainless box with a fire on top could really pull it off - but I was intrigued about it's ability
to enable the cook to control both the level and quality of smoke.  I was also in the market for a cooker with more capacity
than my large BGE, and I wanted a stick burner for the flavor and I had decided that I was either going to build my own
horizontal offset or buy one.  I just had to make some more room on the back porch...  until I started reading about the KBQ.

http://s1243.photobucket.com/user/ericpete/library/KBQ

I wasn't able to get my temp probes through the little holes in the corners, so I don't have a good temperature profile of the
interior yet.  I have a couple of probes on order that should fit and will give me a better idea of where the hot spots are.

Oh, and yes - the food tastes very good.  I would say that it has a noticeably different flavor profile as compared to cooking on a BGE, but is is better?  Well, hard to say just yet.
I haven't eaten anything from a pellet cooker, so I can't compare to that.
My wife and son (who is not a big BBQ fan) have really liked what we have cooked so far (chicken wings and a small brisket flat).

Operational Guidelines / User Notes

• It is an open fire - gotta keep an eye on it
• It needs AC power for fans
• It needs to be fed 2 - 3 times per hour
• You need to poke the coals occasionally to knock ashes down
• Like any stick burner, you need a quality wood supply
• It is easy to clean
• It accepts standard steam tray width trays / racks / foil drip pans
• 100% stainless / and heavy gauge where it needs to be
• It gets hot on all surfaces
• It cooks like a convection oven
• In case of rain - it will need some type of shelter
• Enough wind can/will blow ash/small embers out of the firebox

I'll be glad to answer any other specific questions you might have. 

Eric