I started with a Bubba Keg that I purchased over 10 years ago that morphed into a new (mostly) Broil King Keg as I replaced a bunch of parts through warranty a few years back. I haven't done a ton of BBQ over the last several years other than the odd rack of ribs, pork butt or steak sear, but have started to get an itch to do some more serious cooks and try to improve my results.
Been watching some youtube and watched Franklin's masterclass and it has got me thinking about smoke quality. The Keg is an extremely efficient smoker in that it requires very little fuel for long cooks, but that isn't necessarily good for smoke quality either because it's smoldering the charcoal instead of burning. I have seen some videos of the Kamado Joe III's being taller and actually a bit less efficient, which is actually good because you need a hotter fire for cleaner smoke.
Living in Arizona, I'm not sure how much hotter I can run the fire in the summer while maintaining < 300 temps for low-n-slow cooking on my keg. To be fair, with 114 degree temps I'm not sure a ceramic would be that much different either. Nonetheless, I'm curious what others who have a Keg (or even an acorn) have done to increase combustion while still maintaining < 300 degree temps. Seeing actual flame in the bottom of a Kamado Joe and still holding at like 275 is intriguing. Thoughts?
Been watching some youtube and watched Franklin's masterclass and it has got me thinking about smoke quality. The Keg is an extremely efficient smoker in that it requires very little fuel for long cooks, but that isn't necessarily good for smoke quality either because it's smoldering the charcoal instead of burning. I have seen some videos of the Kamado Joe III's being taller and actually a bit less efficient, which is actually good because you need a hotter fire for cleaner smoke.
Living in Arizona, I'm not sure how much hotter I can run the fire in the summer while maintaining < 300 temps for low-n-slow cooking on my keg. To be fair, with 114 degree temps I'm not sure a ceramic would be that much different either. Nonetheless, I'm curious what others who have a Keg (or even an acorn) have done to increase combustion while still maintaining < 300 degree temps. Seeing actual flame in the bottom of a Kamado Joe and still holding at like 275 is intriguing. Thoughts?