Kamado ceramic grill options.

I’ve had an egg for 10 years. All things considered I’d go kamodo joe if I needed to replace today.

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I think they are all similar in cooking ability. I have a Primo that is in the higher price point, but I think the oval design with a fire box divider is a superior design to the egg shape.

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+1

With that said, if you want a round kamado, the KJ is in a class of its own.

I went with the Kamado Joe Big Joe (II) based on recomendations from this board. I am very happy with my choice.

Team Primo 4 Lyfe

The big 3 are all great. Komodo Joe has the best lid hinge design, but costs more since pretty much all of the accessories are in the base package. Primo has the oval shape with is nice for offset cooks, but the BGE XL and KJ equivalent are big enough to put charcoal on one side so just as good in my opinion. Primo hinges are also poorly designed from an assist standpoint and the lids are heavy on the big ones. I happened to get a great deal on a BGE XL, but would have bought any of the XL variants if they had come up. I wouldn’t consider any of the smaller sizes.

I have a vision from sams. I did change all the gaskets to the bge brand and that did make a pretty good difference. I have no complaints. One thing to make sure of is you are going to do any smoking get a ceramic deflector plate.

I have a Louisiana Grills kamado that I picked up at Costco for something like $499 (usually shows $100 more online).
It's unassembled and needs 2 guys to put it into the stand, but it's not difficult other than the dimensions making it basically impossible for one guy to drop it into its cradle alone. If you're putting it into a built-in, you may get away with it.

FIL has a BGE at home and out at the camp, so I've cooked on it quite a bit. The cap for airflow control is much nicer on a BGE, but it's a pit and not a piece of furniture, and it works fine. I don't get too many flare ups on long low-and-slow cooks, and it holds a temperature for quite a while without adjustment.
When I got it, I tested (without actual food) how long it would take to burn a full charcoal load. I had it left on ~220F and 24h later still had ~20% of the coals left. When i opened the vents, I could still flare it up for pizza temps.

Mine is ~22" cooking surface. They don't make other sizes that I'm aware of. The grill sits a little on the high side of the fire box, and a large brisket, I think around 18lbs off the shelf, took up every bit of space inside making it difficult to close the lid. The extra 2" on a BGE and sort of milder pitch on the roof may have made it easier. I should probably just measure these things and not worry about actually trimming meat in the future though, more realistically.


Cooking and sealing, I really give them a tie.



Accessories? You want a BGE. I haven't looked for a cast iron grill to fit mine, but FIL swears I need it. I'm plenty happy with the stainless one that it came with.

Shelves on the side of mine are a well-made, thick plastic. They're neither wonderful not bad. I would probably prefer bamboo on the nicer pits, but these are solid enough and haven't tried to melt even after putting the fire poker on them. This is really the other thing that looks nicer on a BGE that probably functions a bit better.



But for about 1/2 the price, I can deal with functional rather than exceptional cap vents and shelves.


Oddly enough, there's no link on the Costco site right now (they move products to unfindable once they are not available online) but am pretty sure I've seen it in the last month in store. Here's the Home Depot version which actually has stainless (appearing) stand and cap with bamboo shelves. It is a bit more expensive than the one I own (which is a navy blue ceramic) LINK



Also worth mentioning:
Icon Grills. You'll pay ~BGE price, but it's a company that makes fairly comparable accessories. I haven't used one, but I've seen them. Some of them have fairly girly colors and look a bit flashy for my liking, but the "control" box is something I think I would like. They have an insert for a fire starter which I think would make a big difference (lighting 8-10" flat on the bottom vs a column would be nicer than mine), but if you use a "blow-dryer" type starter it wouldn't be that advantageous. But it also allows for a propane insert which could be a cool feature. Never used it or seen it used in person, but it seems pretty useful if you would ever use it.

Grilla Kong

i went with this and love it. holds temp great, looks great, stand and casters and awesome

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the difference for me was the insane amount of extras that you can get with a BGE.

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just curious what can you not get with the KJ vs the BGE?