Akorn and Dragon roll call

[Dam]

one dragon,

I am so impressed by this barbbie, i cooked high and slow, i am going to try very low (pulled pork) tomorrow.

being able to go so high is great, I cooked pizza in less than 2 minutes each and this afternoon, the grates and the grillgrates were frankly dirty/greasy after two weeks of heavy fatty/saucy cookings, I just cranked the heat far above 400*C ( maxed out at 375 but the temp is off by at least 50*C and the basket started to really smell (i have some proper ones (fiberglass) to install if needed ) and all is now perfectly cleaned, grease reduced to hashes.Awesome

[Michael_Dunn]

I've ordered a Dragon (be here this week), does that count?

never used one, so I've been searching around for info on how
best to use it and found a lot of conflicting info - reaching
target temp/amount of charcoal etc etc.

I was wondering if it would benefit all us new-to-kamado's
to have a 'sticky' about basic setup and usage (no recipes),
similar to the snake method thread where it's all posted in
one spot, and people can post their setups/variations/results.

One thing I can't find is about using the temp probe - in my weber
the lid sits loosely on the wire/lead, no problems, but it seems the
kamado lid is a tight fit (gaskets etc), so, is there a spot for the
wire/lead or is there enough 'give' in the gaskets to accomodate it.

Thanks

[mrtonya]

I got my Dragon home this morning, I hope to have it assembled tonight.

Having never used charcoal before, do I need a Looft lighter?

Any recommendations for a Kamodo cook book?

Can anyone recommend a charcoal supplier in the Canberra area?

Thanks.

[WarmBeer]

I got my Dragon home this morning, I hope to have it assembled tonight.

Having never used charcoal before, do I need a Looft lighter?

Any recommendations for a Kamodo cook book?

Can anyone recommend a charcoal supplier in the Canberra area?

Thanks.

I'm only learning myself (bought my Dragon just last week).

No, you don't _need_ a Looftlighter, but they are handy. Saying that, I found that lighting with the Looft means you can easily overshoot your target temperature, as it can be pretty efficient at starting charcoal. Have a search for the 'volcano' method, where you pile your coal into a big cone, with a tube down the centre (empty toilet paper roll, etc). Then pull out the tube, leaving a volcano. Drop half a fire-lighter down the centre, and light it, it will give you a nice, easy start.

For a Kamado cookbook, I highly recommend a place called http://www.aussiebbq.info/forum

Sorry, can't help with sourcing charcoal...

[Fents]

Akorn.

[mrtonya]

Thanks WarmBeer.
I'm thinking if I leave a cookbook about, I might get the better half interested.

[Gumb]

OK, so at this stage the tally is .....

DRAGONS 9, AKORNS 7

Good going all round. I think the difficulty with the Akorn is supply, not all Bunnies stores have any stock so you'd expect BBQs Galore to be in front, although there are more Bunnings stores than there are BBQs Galore stores. But it's not a competition, both are excellent cookers and superb value for money. I'm just so pleased that 16 more people that we know of have been able to take the next leap in to really good, cheap and easily controllable charcoal BBQ cooking.

[Gumb]

OK, we are a bit off topic and I'm happy for us to continue the dome temp discussion in a new thread. It will get lost in here if we keep going and the info could be good for future reference. This one is really just a roll call of owners.

Later Edit: Dome temp posts moved to a separate topic. Dome Temp Posts

[Ciapek]

Akorn, about 2 years old with plenty of Patina on it....lol.
Love it, used 3-4 times a week, mainly for pizza and bread.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[niko123456]

Akorn for me.

I'm a newbie but there is nothing at all difficult about putting a fire lighter on top of some charcoal and then closing the lid and waiting 20 minutes.

[Yamapro]

Wanted an Akorn but no Bunnies in SA seemed to have stock or even know them for months now so found the galore special on The Dragon and couldn't be happier

[AlexG]

New Dragon owner (and new forum member) here. I met Chris from UrbanGriller yesterday and picked up a couple of thermometers and helpful hints so am ready to go!

And I'll admit that during assembly I frustratingly also put the legs with the axle holes the wrong way around...


Cheers
Alex

[urbangriller]

Hey Alex...good to see you made it here!

Chris

[Gumb]

Guys, we keep getting dragged off the topic and there are a few posts I'd like to see in their own section regarding the use and experiences of these cookers, so I've moved some posts and started a new thread here:

Akorn and Dragon General Discussion

I think that will end up being a good future resource too.

Keep adding to this thread to register your BBQ on the forum list.

[stm]

Another new Dragon here - purchased from BBQs Galore on special.