Companion to the Big Joe Kamado?

[pit_man]

What's up everybody,

I am finally climbing down from the heights of a condo building and into a real home on the ground, so with that I also have a Big Joe on its way. Very excited.

This will be my first Kamado or a designated charcoal grill for that matter. I am wondering if it is enough to have the Kamado as a sole grill or is it highly advisable to have a companion gas/charcoal grill to go with it?

My thinking is once the Kamado is occupied with a low and slow cook, it's not feasible to also cook up a side dish or veggies etc at the same time and that would be a task for a side grill? Or is there a way to go around it?

Let me know your thoughts please and if you advise to get a companion grill for it, give me your suggestions. I was thinking either to stick to charcoal and go with a weber kettle (performer maybe) or to get an entry level gas napoleon/weber.

 

[chopsaw]

My thoughts . You need options . Kettle is a must have in my opinion . A good gas grill is too .

 

[retfr8flyr]

I have an Kamado Joe Big Joe, Traeger Timberline 1300, Chargriller Akorn Jr, and a Camp Chef Flattop 600 Griddle. For me this is the perfect combination of grills for anything I could want to cook. I do most of my cooking on the Big Joe and the Akorn Jr. if it's a small cook. Some times I'll use the 1300 for the smoking portion and do grilling on the Big Joe. The Camp Chef is nice for griddle cooks and the top is removable and I have a gas grill for fast cooks, or side dishes for big cooks.

Op I would recommend looking at the Camp Chef for your extra grill, it's like getting 2 grills in one. Then you can add more grills if you decide you want to expand.

PS. You are going to absolutely love your Big Joe!! I have tried most of the brands of lump available and I now stick with KJ Big Block for all my Kamado cooking. I can get it shipped for pick free, if they are out, at Lowes and it's worth the price for me.

 

[SmokinVOLfan]

Looks like you already got some great responses above. You cant go wrong with a kettle but I will second on the camp chef flat top. I have one as well and like retflyr said above you can take the top off and have a gas grill underneath it. Very versatile and IMO its nice to have something propane in the arsenal for quick weeknight grilling after work when you don't have much time. Congrats on the Big Joe and the new house!

 

[SlowmotionQue]

I have to give the Camp Chef FTG600 a third vote. I also have a Kamado Joe Classic I.

The Camp Chef truly is two grills in one.

I also have to give the Kamado Joe Big Block lump charcoal a second vote. It is some of the best lump charcoal I have ever used.

 

[pit_man]

Thanks for the help guys!

I looked into camp chef and looks like an awesome option indeed, only trouble is finding it in Toronto, and also I would love to have it run off natural gas which is a bit of a pain to convert.

I may just go with a weber performer as a side grill or just a kettle, will have to do some more thinking. From what I gather, none of you think just one single Kamado is sufficient haha

 

[MangiaCarne]

I have a Big Joe 2 , 4 burner weber genesis gasser a 18in weber kettle and a wood fired pizza oven and that covers everything I can cook with,...a man needs to have some options.

 

[lowcountrygamecock]

My thoughts . You need options . Kettle is a must have in my opinion . A good gas grill is too .

I have a kamado joe classic, a 36" blackstone and a 42" gas grill all out in the same patio area. I haven't used my gas grill in over a year but I use the kamado joe at least twice a week and the blackstone at least 3 times a week.