Wow thanks for this and what a great idea. I am going to give this a whirl in both my kamado joe classic and my weber summit charcoal. I like that the VOC's burn out of the smoke, making nice blue smoke almost right away.
CeramicChef : Does one need to fill the iron pot all the way with wood for this, or can this also be done with just a few wood chunks? If only a few wood chunks are used, will they last as long as they need to for good smoke flavour? Also, would the 2 quart size be too large for KJ classic?
kingdarb - you can use as much or as little wood as you wish. Everything depends on the flavor profile that pleases your family and your guests. It also depends on the wood you're using; a single piece of mesquite may give you what you want whereas a pot full of alder may not give what you want.
kingdarb - as to the 2 qt. on a classic, I really can't say. I think the 2 qt. model just might be too bog to really nestle down into the firebox. I think I'd do best leaving that in your hands to decide. Look at both the 1 and 2 qt varieties, measure your firebox and decide.
LSG Adjustable Grill/Smoker, MAK Pellet Grill, Large BGE with Several Attachments from the Ceramic Grill Store, Weber Gasser, Cast Iron Pans & Griddle, Grill Grates, Mostly Thermoworks Thermometers, Anova SV Stick, BBQ Guru Controller and Fan
Thank you all for the great posts. Last fall CeramicChef posted about the cast iron pot with the holes. My kids got me a 1 quart for my BD in Feb. It works great in my Lg BGE. Very useful information. Have a good 4th!
CeramicChef Thanks for the great idea. I gave it a try using a 1 quart pot and was a bit disappointed in the results. I still couldn't get the real smoky flavor that I wanted on the brisket. The wood isn't burning down to the level I expected. I'm using Fogo charcoal and had the pot completely surrounded during the cook. Any ideas? I'm thinking of not throwing in the pellets next time to give a little breathing room to the wood. The brisket was still good!
Paul Morrison - in looking at your pics, I can tell you that it seems that you're not getting that pot deep enough into the active fire. The wood and pellets should be coal black and look just like charcoal. Most of what I see in your pics is that the wood and pellets never got into contact with much heat at all. Very little smoke was produced from that pot. I get my pot down in the fire. If you're not seeing smoke coming out of your top vent within 10 minutes, something is wrong and you need to check.
CeramicChef I totally agree with your analysis. Old habits are hard to break and I still threw a few pieces of wood in with the charcoal. So it was hard to tell if it was burning or not. Looks like I'll need to try it again next weekend!
Paul Morrison - okay, I found a picture of what your pot should look like at the end of your cook. Notice the difference in color between yours pot and mine at the end of the cook. See what I'm talking about? The wood in my pot was completely consumed and only charcoal is left. Yours is quite light in color and didn't get enough heat.
Cookers:
SnS Kettle with SnS Deluxe, SS & Cast iron pans, elevated grate.
Grilla OG with upper shelf and pizza stone.
Weber Genesis SA-E-330 LP INDIGO with SS Grates, Weber Crafted frame kit, baking stone, griddle (2/3), all from Ace Hardware.
Everything Else:
SnS #3 I was their first customer.
Sous Vide equipment.
Instant read and leave-in thermometers.
Grill Grates.
Kingsford Blue Bag, Weber lighter cubes, Weber charcoal chimneys.
BBQr's Delight Hickory & Apple flavor pellets, propane torch, 12" smoke tube.
Grilla apple & hickory pellets, Royal Oak charcoal pellets.
Rubs with salt: Meat Church, Meathead's.
Rubs without salt: SnS Grills Rocky's Rub and Not Just for Beef.
Rubs home-mixed: None at this time.
Spices: Lots of 'em.
fuzzydaddy ... You're going to love that cast iron smoke pot. I used mine for the first time tonight and I'm telling you... It's a major game changer.👌
Love it! Now would someone clue in this amateur about drilling holes in the bottom of a cast iron pot. That can't be the easiest thing to do without special equipment, right?
You might want to hit the bottom of the pot in 3 spots with a punch where you intend to drill your holes. Your bit won't tend to walk using this method.
CeramicChef I totally missed this post! Thanks for sending to me!
Question: You say to drill 3 holes which are 1/8" diameter. But, I see in your pictures, you have quite a few more holes drilled into the bottom. So, what's up with that? I'm definitely going to have to give this a try!
The first cook using my 1 quart cast iron smoke pot... Using Hickory & Cherry wood chunks. I only drilled 2 - 1/8" holes in the bottom because there is a small opening on the top edge of my CI pot, 3 outlets for the smoke. I'm smoking 3 large USDA Prime grade Chuck short ribs that I dry brind for 2 days in the fridge. I put some olive oil on them and put BBBR on 2 of them and MMD on the other one. I'm smoking them in my large BGE at 225° without a water pan. I'm using my DigiQ Dx2 because Scary Mary and I are going to ride our electric bikes over to Manhattan Beach today and meet some friends for lunch. Scary Mary and I have formed our own Biker Gang. We go by the name "EBG", that's stands for the Electric Bike Gang.😆 Here's the cook...
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Last edited by Breadhead; July 23, 2016, 01:18 PM.
Breadhead! I can't wait to get your take on your smoke pot. Those are some fine-looking ribs! You do know you can seal up the smoke pot by scrunching up some file and running it around the lip of the pot and lid. Seals up nicely.
CeramicChef ... I rolled that around in my mind for a while. My thought was that small vent in the top edge was probably ok and that's why I decided to just drill 2 holes in the bottom. I'm hoping it will give me the same distribution of smoke as 3 holes in the bottom would. The Short Ribs will be done soon and then I will know.🤔
The smoke pot did its job nicely it appears. The proof is in the tasting, which will come in about 2 hours. I cooked at 240° instead of at 225° and it only took 4.5 hours. I wrapped the Short Ribs in foil and put them in a small cambro. I'll serve them in 2 hours so I'll post the final report then.
The wood chunks didn't burn down as much as I thought they would but it's still smoking after I removed it from the lump pile, just to look at it. You can see where it was resting on the lump pile during the cook. It's sure making the neighborhood smell nice.😆
CeramicChef ... Final report on your Cast Iron smoke pot idea.
Brilliant!!! I'm NEVER going to smoke another piece of protein on my cooker without it!!!
That method is a MAJOR game changer, MAJOR I tell you.😳 A profound improvement over guessing where to place your wood chunks to MAYBE get proper smoke distribution.
Tell your friend that devised this method he greatly improved the smoking process in a Kamado cooker!
He should be nominated for the Kamado cookers Hall of Fame.👍
Breadhead - I'm so glad that you like @Syzygies (that's his handle over at the KK Forum) invention! I'll relay your sentiments. I remember the first time I used it. BOOM! As you say, it's a game changer for certain.
Hey CeramicChef - I finally ran another "pot" of chips this weekend. The good news is everything burnt down to charcoal and ash as expected. The bad news is it was cranking out white smoke for about 15 minutes before it started to settle down. I placed the small 3 drill holes in the bottom and the top has a relatively good fit, but it certainly isn't tight. Any ideas? Thanks in advance.
hogdog6 ... Welcome to the Pit. I've been a BGE guy for 5 years. The smoke pot idea was recently introduced on AR and became a huge game changer for us Kamado guys. I'm glad you found it helpful too.
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