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**jfmorris** · May 30, 2019, 07:28 AM

I don't own one, but one thing they can do better than a kettle or smoker is fall over and shatter into a million little pieces of ceramic... There are multiple stories of that on the AR forums, and as I tend to move my grills around the yard a good bit, a kamado is probably not for me, due to the risk of ruining that big investment.

Several of our more active members here in The Pit have had that happen to them. I would die, and my wife would kill me if I broke a $1000 grill into pieces...

**JCBBQ** · May 30, 2019, 07:33 AM

I live in the north east. I cook in any weather w my Primo. It is impervious to the cold. It doesn’t cook differently once the ceramic is heat soaked. I cook 12 months a year. That is probably the biggest difference. Also once you get a feel for it you’ll be able to lock in a temp and keep it there for 6-8hrs. Sort of set it and forget it. Probably round kamados even longer...so I’ve heard. It’s VERY versatile - great pizzas, breads, and by far the hottest searing station I’ve seen. You can probably manage without one given the gear you’ve already got though...

**THE Humble Texan** · May 30, 2019, 07:50 AM

Do you want a pickup, 4 door sedan or a convertible? They will all get you where you are going?
You have 3 different grills and you use each of them differently. Your food comes out like you like it or one or all of them would be gone. Over the years I have probably had 10 different grills and I now have 3. I like what I do on each of them. I can cook the same thing on all three, just have to do it a little different on each one.
I don't own an egg but when you use the word "need" I wonder if some grillers are like the people that stand in line for days just to be able to get the next new phone. The egg looks bright and shinny in the store and I am curious about the insulation they have. I have also observed the few oddities or problems egg owners have had over the years but they love their egg.
Do you need one? Most likely NO. Do you want one? Only you can answer that question.

**Oak Smoke** · May 30, 2019, 08:06 AM

Because of the low air flow needed in a Kamado they retain the moisture in your food. You will be amazed at how long a Kamado will go on one loading of charcoal, some have reported well over 24 hours. As @ JCBBQ said they are incredibly versatile. I have a Smobot on my KJ. I can monitor my food temp and pit temp or change the pit temp from 30 miles away. I was in a Lowes a few weeks ago, they had a Kamado joe classic with all the accessories for 749 dollars. There are several good Kamado brands on the market and many are very brand loyal. Yes you can break them, but I haven't in the almost three years I've had it. This from a guy who is not allowed anywhere near the wife's China and crystal. A year after getting my Kamado I gave my wsm to my son and my stick burner to my brother in law. They were both good cookers, but the kamado is just easier to use.

**Troutman** · May 30, 2019, 08:26 AM

I kind of like Adrenaline Dave's new rig. It's kind of a hybrid between both the kettle/SNS world and that of a kamado. Real estate is a little smaller than I'd like but I'd give that a look see if you're seriously considering one.

And don't worry, we have counseling and intervention sessions available for your particular addiction !!!

**Rod** · May 30, 2019, 08:40 AM

Isn't one of the drawbacks to a ceramic cooker is that if you over shoot your target temp, it takes forever to come back down?

**JakeT** · May 30, 2019, 08:42 AM

I had a kamado for a bit and ended up giving it to a friend because I, like you, already had a weber kettle, smoker and a gas grill. The ease and lack of worry of the weber kettle (being cheaper and less breakable) caused me to use that more often. A dedicated smoker works better than the kamado for smoking.

**Ground Chuck** · May 30, 2019, 08:55 AM

I have an Akorn, which is a kamado style similar to an Egg, but instead made of steel or some type of metal. I will say, although it is the cheap relative to those ceramic cookers, I've really enjoyed cooking on it. Plus, one time I dropped it trying to move it by myself and put a dent in the front. If I had the real mccoy, it would be out on my curb. Luckily a buddy, who is a lot more mechanically inclined than I am came over and took it apart, hammered out the dent, and put it back together. Almost as good as new. I've had the the thing for 5 years or so. I keep in my garage and have no issues with rust so far. I plan to keep her as long as she'll have me!

**Thunder77** · May 30, 2019, 08:57 AM

The answer to the question "do I need one?" is very subjective. But I always have gone by the formula.
How many grills does a pitmaster need? N+1. With N being the number of grills you already have.

Seriously, though, I agree with JCBBQ . Kamados provide excellent temperature control in all weathers. Once you learn your kamado, it's pretty much set and forget. I have an Akorn, and I have done many overnight pork butts while I was sleeping.

Where the kamado really shines for me is baking. I love to make bread, pizza, and all kinds of baked goodies. In the warmer months, I bake outside in the kamado to keep from heating up my house. I rarely baked in the summer months before owning a kamado, so that alone was worth the price of the Akorn to me. I love to make pizza as well, and most indoor ovens don't really get hot enough for making pizza. Those temperatures are easily achievable in a kamado.

I also use it a lot for chicken, and spatchcocked turkey. My turkey is regularly requested for family gatherings, and always gets rave reviews.

In the end, it depends on what you want to do with the grill. You could always do as I did, and find an Akorn on sale, and make a smaller investment. That way you can see if you like kamado cooking, and not break the bank. I decided I really like kamados, so I bought a Primo Junior recently.

I hope that helps.

**LA Pork Butt** · May 30, 2019, 09:01 AM

I own a large BGE, and what motivated me to buy one was the fact that I owned an original crockery Kamado from Japan. It made the best chicken, but because it was crockery I could only cook at low temperatures. It finally wore out. After five years of debating I pulled the trigger. I believe it can match any cooker in doing low and slow though roasting, but it’s more challenging when it comes to high temperature grilling and is not as convenient as a SlowNSear when doing a reverse sear. It can hold temps more steady than you kitchen oven. With my controller it will fluctuate fewer than 10 degrees either side of the target temp hold steady through most of the cook. Even without a controller it is set it and forget it for a low and slow overnight cook. It really shines in overnight cooks in extreme cold temperatures and in low fuel consumption. I once cooked 40# of Boston Butt for 22 hours on one load of charcoal. I am not sure there is another cooker that can match that with one small load of charcoal. While I know some folks have broken theirs, I have not broken my original Kamado which I had for 30 years and my BGE which I have owned for almost 10 years.

Do you need one, probably not if you can do everything you want on your current cookers. But, If you have a bad case of MCS and it fills some gaps in versatility and convenience then the answer is probably yes. My theory on MCS is that we just want the experience of cooking on a different cooker.

Have fun deciding.

**Spinaker** · May 30, 2019, 09:14 AM

I shy away from telling anyone what smoker makes the "best food" because it is all way too subjective. In my PERSONAL opinion, nothing makes BBQ better than a stick burner, burning real logs. That being said, I use my kamados more than any of my other rigs on my patio. And the reason is, simple......they take very little tending. I can smoke for 24+ hours straight on a single load of lump and very little interference. You can get controllers for them that will allow them to run rock solid for hours and hours. With a little bit more tending, you can do this manually as well. In my personal experience, nothing runs smoother than my kamaods. Not my PBCs (which I still use and love!) or my kettles when I had them. I can cook anything from brisket to fish to pizza to bread,

The other thing is they will last you forever. They never rust out and all the top brands are guaranteed for life. There is a risk of them cracking, no doubt, but I have never come close to having a problem there. Many are still covered in the event of something like that.

I currently own three kamaods, but I only use two of them regularly. I love them both and I plan to own them for the rest of my life. I got rid of my Kettles as I like running the thick ceramic much more than the thin metal kettle.

**Attjack** · May 30, 2019, 09:18 AM

My Kamado is my best cooker.

**Attjack** · May 30, 2019, 09:34 AM

A picture is worth 1000 words.

**JeffJ** · May 30, 2019, 09:39 AM

I don't own a kamado and won't any time soon. That's not a knock on kamados. I simply let MCS get the better of me and ended up moving my Weber 22 Performer to my parents' place 'Up North' in order to free up space on my patio for a COS. I agree with Spinaker cooking with wood produces a flavor that simply cannot be matched by a different source of fuel.

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Question for owners of grill, smoker, AND Kamado

Question for owners of grill, smoker, AND Kamado

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