If you followed the other thread where I documented my first cook, you know I loaded the SNSK up in kamado mode for my first cook, running an 8# boston butt and 2 slabs of Saint Louis cut spare ribs. The cook started with lighting charcoal around 6:30am or so, and ended with me pulling pork at 11pm. Temperature during much of the cook was in the 225 to 260 range, although I pushed it hot at the end to get done.
So, here are lessons learned and thoughts.
1. Bark
I know I've had kamado owners tell me they have as much bark as on any other cooker out there. I've got an offset, and I've got a Weber Performer with a Slow 'N Sear, and this is my first cook with a kamado, period, although I've eaten food from other folks kamados. I feel that bark formation, and the intensity and thickness of that crunchy bark is not as good in kamado mode on this cooker as what I am used to from either the offset, or the kettle+SNS combo.
2. Smoke Ring
There was some smoke ring evident in the butt, but little to none in the slab of ribs we ate last night. Now, that may be due to the hickory chunks in the charcoal bed having been depleted by the time I added the ribs at noon, 5 hours into the cook. And, let's be honest - you can't really taste a smoke ring. This is just an observation. I usually have more on the kettle+SNS.
3. Smoke Flavor
I feel that the smoke flavor of both the pulled pork and the ribs was a little lighter than I am used to with the kettle+SNS, or the offset. Still smoky - just not as much. Maybe more than 3 wood chunks was needed in the charcoal bed.
4. Efficiency
I ran from 6:30am when I lit the fire, until midnight when I closed the wide open dampers, on a single load of fuel! That is VERY VERY convenient, and a reason to go with kamado mode for long overnight cooks. With the SNS on the kettle, I would have refueled at lease once. On my offset, I would have burned 40 pounds of charcoal and 10 pounds of wood chunks, and been adding fuel every hour.
5. Temperature Control
This is my biggest area to learn. The vent settings with a load of cold meat are different than on my dry runs to burn in the SNSK. I do see that opening the bottom vent wider than expected may be needed to increase temperatures, while leaving the top vent around a setting of 1.5 to 2. To get to 325, I had to open the bottom vent all the way, late in the cook. As everyone says - open the top, close the bottom to cool the cooker, close the top, open the bottom to increase the heat. Seems to work just like that anyway.
6. Overall Impressions and Take-aways
I really like the cooker, a lot! I think it will let me do some new, fun styles of cooking - after the initial few mandatory low and slow cooks, I want to try some Santa Maria style grilling, and some high temp pizza bakes! I think it will take time to fully work out the vent settings for different target temperatures - but right now, I see stability in the cooker that make me think I won't bother, at least for a while, with an adapter to use my PartyQ fan controller. I'll keep that for when the Performer gets used for overflow smoking.
My next thought is that I will probably like smoking results with the SNS better than I do kamado mode - I expect it to have the better bark and more smoke flavor and smoke ring that I am used to. I'll certainly be trying that mode of operation soon. But I also expect to use the kamado mode a good bit, if I need to fit more on the cooker, or do high temp indirect such as pizza. I think in kamado mode, I could fit 4 8# butts on there, versus two on my kettle with the SNS.
My final thought is that, being used to a much larger working area on my Performer, I will probably be doing a cart/table build for the SNS Kamado this coming summer. I need places to set hot stuff, without melting the screen on my Smoke like I did yesterday.
That's it for now. I've got to get back to doing Saturday stuff. Wanted to share my thoughts while I was sitting down!
So, here are lessons learned and thoughts.
1. Bark
I know I've had kamado owners tell me they have as much bark as on any other cooker out there. I've got an offset, and I've got a Weber Performer with a Slow 'N Sear, and this is my first cook with a kamado, period, although I've eaten food from other folks kamados. I feel that bark formation, and the intensity and thickness of that crunchy bark is not as good in kamado mode on this cooker as what I am used to from either the offset, or the kettle+SNS combo.
2. Smoke Ring
There was some smoke ring evident in the butt, but little to none in the slab of ribs we ate last night. Now, that may be due to the hickory chunks in the charcoal bed having been depleted by the time I added the ribs at noon, 5 hours into the cook. And, let's be honest - you can't really taste a smoke ring. This is just an observation. I usually have more on the kettle+SNS.
3. Smoke Flavor
I feel that the smoke flavor of both the pulled pork and the ribs was a little lighter than I am used to with the kettle+SNS, or the offset. Still smoky - just not as much. Maybe more than 3 wood chunks was needed in the charcoal bed.
4. Efficiency
I ran from 6:30am when I lit the fire, until midnight when I closed the wide open dampers, on a single load of fuel! That is VERY VERY convenient, and a reason to go with kamado mode for long overnight cooks. With the SNS on the kettle, I would have refueled at lease once. On my offset, I would have burned 40 pounds of charcoal and 10 pounds of wood chunks, and been adding fuel every hour.
5. Temperature Control
This is my biggest area to learn. The vent settings with a load of cold meat are different than on my dry runs to burn in the SNSK. I do see that opening the bottom vent wider than expected may be needed to increase temperatures, while leaving the top vent around a setting of 1.5 to 2. To get to 325, I had to open the bottom vent all the way, late in the cook. As everyone says - open the top, close the bottom to cool the cooker, close the top, open the bottom to increase the heat. Seems to work just like that anyway.
6. Overall Impressions and Take-aways
I really like the cooker, a lot! I think it will let me do some new, fun styles of cooking - after the initial few mandatory low and slow cooks, I want to try some Santa Maria style grilling, and some high temp pizza bakes! I think it will take time to fully work out the vent settings for different target temperatures - but right now, I see stability in the cooker that make me think I won't bother, at least for a while, with an adapter to use my PartyQ fan controller. I'll keep that for when the Performer gets used for overflow smoking.
My next thought is that I will probably like smoking results with the SNS better than I do kamado mode - I expect it to have the better bark and more smoke flavor and smoke ring that I am used to. I'll certainly be trying that mode of operation soon. But I also expect to use the kamado mode a good bit, if I need to fit more on the cooker, or do high temp indirect such as pizza. I think in kamado mode, I could fit 4 8# butts on there, versus two on my kettle with the SNS.
My final thought is that, being used to a much larger working area on my Performer, I will probably be doing a cart/table build for the SNS Kamado this coming summer. I need places to set hot stuff, without melting the screen on my Smoke like I did yesterday.
That's it for now. I've got to get back to doing Saturday stuff. Wanted to share my thoughts while I was sitting down!
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