what do ya'll think of ceramic grills/smokers and meadow creeks pig roasters?

[sparky]

i see alot of ppl cooking on eggs, domes, primos and meadow creeks.  never cooked on one or tasted food off of one.  do any of ya'll have them?  how do they cook?  easy on fuel?  can you go 14 hours on one burn?  my wife says i can have one more smoker then thats it.  i am using a mak 2 star, hasty bake gourmet (want to trade it for a legecy), UDS and a weber kettle.  i love them all but i was thinking about both of these smokers for my last one.  the primo XL and the MC pig roaster 42 were catching my eye.   ty for the input ppl.   

[teesquare]

LA has a  Char-Griller(?) version of the " green egg" style.... And I think he has a ceramic one too...He will be able to give you some good input.
And Nepas ( Rick) owned a Meadow Creek for some time - and can give you some feedback on those.

[Wing Commander]

I recommend a Primo XL because you can cook on direct and indirect heat at the same time and there's quite a lot of space.

All ceramic cookers are very economical in usage of charcoal and go way longer than 14 hours on one burn. One of the most important pros for ceramic cookers is that the meat stays juicy even when cooked very long time (brisket without foiling for 24 hours on 225F for example). They also run very long without any adjusting. Almost as convenient as your pellet cookers!

You can get it very fast from low to very high temperatures. But from high to low it takes really long time Only pellet cookers are faster, though in both directions! You can reach those high temperatures that are perfect for steaks or pizza.

And one more thing: In caution for your eyebrows open the lid SLOWLY!

[mikecorn.1]

I don't have one but my brother has the Grill Dome brand. I've eaten many things off it. It is great. Holds temp like a champ on overnight cooks. You would think that he was controlling it with something. It will cook low and slow and get crazy hot. He got in on Craig's list for $700. I've been eyeing the one from Academy but don't know if it's a good buy. 


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[TwoPockets]

I don't have one but my brother has the Grill Dome brand. I've eaten many things off it. It is great. Holds temp like a champ on overnight cooks. You would think that he was controlling it with something. It will cook low and slow and get crazy hot. He got in on Craig's list for $700. I've been eyeing the one from Academy but don't know if it's a good buy. 


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Mike, I have sold dozens of those Kamado grills at Academy. The first year we got them they were green but we were forced to change the color to brown. The feedback I am getting is very good on them. For $499 you get a Kamado the size that retails for $999 just for the grill alone from the big brand name and the Academy one has the best grill stand I have seen on any of them. The only complaint we have had was a guy who cranked all the vents wide open and got it to over 800 degrees then compained that he could not get it down to a lower temp quick enough. It is a very basic Kamado and Academy doesn't sell accesories for them but the accesories that fit the other egg grills will work on them.

There is a learning curve associated with any of the ceramic Kamado grills.

[LostArrow]

I have an inexpensive metal Kamodo cooker a Chargriller.
The design is similar between all of them & cooking on one should be similar to cooking on any of them.
They basically are insulated vertical smokers, that also function well as a high temp grill.
Think of a weber WSM & a weber Kettle together & insulated!
Very good smoker, a burn without adding fuel at least 15 hours. Good for " Set & Forget " smoking.
Very good grill , the only thing it's easier to do a smoke then sear cook on a Horizonal cooker.
I love mine at $300, but if I was going to spent $1000 on one I'd buy a 22 in WSM & a Weber Preformer with a craycraft cast iron grate.

[Keymaster]

I wouldn't trade my Primo Oval XL for anything. There is a learning curve but once you master it its awesome. There is a lot of ash clean up each time or atleast every other time. you can recycle the lump coal that was not burned on previous cooks. If you touch the exterior it is hot but wont burn you like a steel Q. Its a oven, smoker, BBQ and Grill. Ive cooked Pizza,ribs, bread, cinnamon rolls, poke butts, cheekin, Steak, Bwisket, Lobster, roast, feesh and much much more Its a beast you wont want to drag this Q to a cook off. To cook indirect you kind of need the D-plates or get the divider so you can just build a fire on one side. theres another $150 for those accessories, and a cover is another $100 :'( but those can come later. You could easily roast a small pig in a Primo, I have seen pictures of people doing it. What ever you decide I'm sure there are pro's and cons. Good luck Sparky

[smokeasaurus]

From the rigs you got Sparky, you are pretty good shape and should be able to cook anything ya want....but....there is always room for one more pit!!!

Ya got the kettle, ya got the drum, ya got the HastyBake..all charcoal burners which I am all about!! Ya got the Mak. The Meadow Creek wont do ya anything much different from whatcha got now ya need something different!!!

Go with a ceramic cooker!!!! It will be a solid and quite different addition to your arsenal!!!  Just my 2 cents............

[mikecorn.1]

I don't have one but my brother has the Grill Dome brand. I've eaten many things off it. It is great. Holds temp like a champ on overnight cooks. You would think that he was controlling it with something. It will cook low and slow and get crazy hot. He got in on Craig's list for $700. I've been eyeing the one from Academy but don't know if it's a good buy. 


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Mike, I have sold dozens of those Kamado grills at Academy. The first year we got them they were green but we were forced to change the color to brown. The feedback I am getting is very good on them. For $499 you get a Kamado the size that retails for $999 just for the grill alone from the big brand name and the Academy one has the best grill stand I have seen on any of them. The only complaint we have had was a guy who cranked all the vents wide open and got it to over 800 degrees then compained that he could not get it down to a lower temp quick enough. It is a very basic Kamado and Academy doesn't sell accesories for them but the accesories that fit the other egg grills will work on them.

There is a learning curve associated with any of the ceramic Kamado grills.

Might ave to bite soon on one. Ever since my brother got his I've been itching for one.


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[teesquare]

I am with Mike and Smoke on this one Sparky.....I think you will have a lot of fun with the ceramic - because it is a "more different" choice than the Meadow Creek......Your Hasty Bake may be more similar in it's cooking to the Meadow Creek

[smokeasaurus]

Now I am thinking that it wouldn't hurt to look at a Cookshack or Smokin-Tex............

[Old Dave]

Mr. Sparky1,

Why on earth would you want to trade your HB Gourmet for the HB Legacy??

If you can't make a trade, you can purchase the Legacy lid and put it on your Gourmet.