mesquite in kamados

[wrgilb]

What's your thoughts on using mesquite lump in a kamado cooker. Do you find the smell stays in the cooker?

[DWCowles]

Sorry, I have never used mesquite lump in my Kamado Joe.

[Spinaker]

I would think you would be fine. Most of the flavor should be burned out of it during carbonization. That being said, there is more than likely, some un-carbonized pieces. These will still have some mesquite flavor. It might be stronger in flavor but I doubt it will be anything to shake a stick at. Give it a go and let us know what you think.

[Mosca]

No problem, everything always burns away.

[BloomHybrid]

I've used mesquite lump in the past with no lingering

[jgg85234]

Mesquite adds a strong flavor to meat when it is used for direct heat. It's great for steaks, but only if it's all the way down to glowing coals before you start the cook. Since we don't do that in a kamado, I don't normally use the mesquite for direct grilling.

Indirect in my KJ Classic, with the deflectors in place, the mesquite charcoal adds virtually no smoke to the meat. It takes wood chunks to actually end up with a smoky flavor. Since I get 40 lb bags of El Diablo Mesquite lump at Costco for $12.99, it's a very economical charcoal for low and slow cooking.

So, indirect heat is Mesquite. Direct heat I use the Kamado Joe Big Block lump. Actually, I most often do steaks in my Weber/SNS/DNG and I use Kingsford Blue Bag Standard charcoal (KBB). The reverse sear is better in the Weber/SNS than it is in the KJ.

Once the charcoal is cleaned out of the KJ, there's not much residual smell in the cooker.

El Diablo Mesquite lump is the first charcoal I found when I moved to Arizona in the mid 70s. I had a cheap charcoal cooker. By the second cook, the fire burned through the bottom of the cooker, and landed on concrete. That's when I bought my first Weber. It would still be here except it got pinned between a fence and a truck and ended up just a wee bit out of round. Closer to a square.

Best regards,
Jim