I've had a large BGE for ~10 years that I've mostly used for smoking and roasting, which I've been happy with. I'm looking to add a 2-zone setup to improve grilling. I've looked at these options:
BGE accessories: conveggtor basket + split heat deflector + half grids (expensive and how true 2-zone is it?)
Slow n Sear Cooking System: comes recommended but seems heavy handed + I've never been happy with water in my BGE
Weber Kettle: use the BGE for indirect and the Kettle for direct/searing (this seems to be the recommendation on the BGE review - using an ancillary grill for direct heat) but now I'm running two cookers side-by-side
Large Big Green Egg, Weber Performer Deluxe, Weber Smokey Joe Silver, Fireboard Drive, 3 DigiQs, lots of Thermapens, and too much other stuff to mention.
I have an LBGE. At 18” diameter the cooking chamber isn’t wide enough to create a good separation, or at least the separation isn’t enough to justify the cost when other free methods are just as effective.
For steaks less than 1”, nothing beats the method in the BGE instruction book: 600°, 2 minutes one side, flip, 2 minutes the other side, flip, then shut all the vents and 2 minutes of dwell. Be careful when you open, or there will be a backflash! The difference between that and JKF for 6-8 minutes is minimal. Get a full load of coal, don’t skimp. The secret is distance to fire here.
For steaks 1.5”-2”, use time and distance instead of surface placement. Do 250° with the platesetter until the steak is at 110° or so. (Or 120°, or wherever you’re used to when working with steaks.) Then get out the insulated gloves, pull the platesetter, open both vents all the way and let ‘er rip! When it hits that 600°, steaks back on at the lower level, and either 2 minutes each side, or JKF for 2 minutes. Check the temp and decide if it needs a dwell. Things will be HOT, good gloves and long tongs are a must!
If not cooking outdoors, I am cooking on the stovetop with my 14" carbon steel wok, 12" CI skillet, or in the oven with my two Lodge CI pizza pans, or two dutch ovens. I've also got a nifty Lodge carbon steel grill pan that rocks for veggies outdoors.
The SNS setup, which gives you a way to fit a SNS insert into the grill.
Of those, I think two options are best - the split deflector or SNS system. Just dividing the firebox in half with fire bricks or a basket with divider still allows for rising heat to drift onto the indirect side. And of the two, I think the SNS option is the better, because it actually raises the charcoal fire into a basket right below the cooking grate. That ensures that all the rising heat goes straight up in that portion of the grate, and only recirculation from the dome is heating the other side of the cooking grate. Not to mention having the hot coals right below the cooking grate leads to an amazing sear station.
Of course, others are right - using one grill for direct and one for indirect is an option.
That said, I have the SNS Deluxe Kamado, so it has a built in grate level to support the SNS. While I often smoke indirect using the ceramic deflector, or grill direct with a fire in the bottom, and up to 3 levels of cooking grates, I find myself using the SNS basket when I want to cook something indirect, then give it a good sear at the end right over the coals. Or just grill and use less charcoal.
I second the Fire bricks for affordability, but truly I have never cooked in a green egg or kamado so i have no idea about heights, and clearances etc..
Option #3 for the win. I have no problem running two pieces of equipment side by side. But I have to say it does not happen very often. I’m usually either smoking, roasting or grilling.
I have been cooking on a large BGE since 2010. There have been many attempts to create a 2 zone fire by dividing the fire box, but you can accomplish essentially the same thing by moving the food farther away from the fire. The Ceramic Grill Store makes a Woo which can hold your deflector and raises the grill up to the felt line. You could use it with the deflector for steaks until you are ready to sear. The handles on the Woo make it easy to lift out of the egg. Take the grill off the Woo and set it over the fire. Let it rip to 550 and then sear your steak. You can also use the Woo without the diffuser to create distance (less heat) from the fire.
Thank you guys. I'm liking the PSWoo setup with the sliding grid and continuing to use the platesetter with it. Looks much more functional than the BGE racks. Splitting seems iffy after all and I lose too much room, most cooks are for the family/kids. A second grill is a close second, though I agree, I'd probably rarely run them side by side.
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