If you are a Weber Kettle fan (and why wouldn’t you be?) you are probably familiar with the Slow N Sear. Well, you should be familiar with it since it is probably the best Weber Kettle accessory you can buy. The Slow N Sear is a great tool for low and slow cooking, hot and fast cooking, reverse searing, and most any other cooking method you can think of on your kettle.
So how do the folks at Adrenaline Barbecue take their game to the next level? They build a kamado grill around the Slow n Sear and related accessories.
Let’s back up a minute…
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What is a Kamado Grill?
A kamado grill is in simple terms a heavy ceramic charcoal powered oven. They are generally somewhat expensive starting at around $500 and going up to almost $10,000 depending on what size you want and how fancy you want to get. Big Green Egg, Komodo Kamado, Kamado Joe, and Primo are a few of the better, more popular brands you might be familiar with.
Kamado grills are generally good smokers and very good roasters. They are very efficient since they are so well insulated and hold heat so well. Once you get a temperature dialed in they will stay at that temp for a long time. Many kamados are also excellent for cooking pizzas since they are built somewhat like a professional pizza oven.
Since they are so well insulated they are also great for cold weather cooking and windy conditions. I did a brisket cook this past weekend on my Ranch Kettle and the temperatures dropped to single digits overnight. With such cold temps I had to use a ton of charcoal (about a bag and a half of Weber briquettes) to keep the temp at 230. With a kamado I would have used a fraction of that fuel.
What are the weaknesses of a Kamado grill?
While they are great at some things Kamados do have their drawbacks.
- They are too efficient – Since they hold heat so well and are so efficient there isn’t a lot of airflow. This can result in “bad” smoke coming from your charcoal and wood. When smoking I usually prefer to get a lot of airflow moving through my cooker to provide the charcoal with plenty of oxygen to burn cleanly. I have found that more airflow also results in a better smoke ring for what that’s worth.
- Very difficult to do two zone cooking – When I am cooking steaks, tri-tips, pork chops, and most other smaller cuts I like to employ a two zone cook. I want the heat on one side of the grill and the meat on the other until it is time to sear. Then I like to move the meat right over the heat source. With a kamado the heat is all at the bottom of the cooker and it is hard to get a proper two zone cook. Some oval kamados help with this but it is still a problem on most kamados.
- Accessories – Since most kamados are odd sizes you are pretty much stuck buying specific accessories from the manufacturer. Some accessories like a deflector plate are pretty much a necessity and some kamados don’t include those. If they were to make a 22 inch kamado you could use accessories from a number of different manufacturers.
- Charcoal – Most kamado manufacturers recommend you use lump charcoal which is usually a lot more expensive than standard briquettes.
Now, let’s take a look at the Slow N Sear Deluxe Kamado
The folks at Adrenaline Barbecue took it upon themselves to take all the strengths of a kamado grill and improve on all the weaknesses.
The Slow N Sear Deluxe Kamado was designed around the Slow N Sear and the other related accessories like the Drip n Griddle, the EasySpin grate, and the elevated cooking grate. With these accessories in the Deluxe Kamado you can get true two zone cooking.
You can see the Slow N Sear which holds the coals on the left and the Drip n Griddle pan on the right. This will give you the same two zone functionality you will get in a Weber Kettle in a kamado. And since it is a kamado you will get the heavy ceramic cooker instead of thin metal.
The venting on the Slow N Sear Deluxe Kamado is also designed to increase the airflow in the cooking chamber. This will allow the coals and wood to burn hotter but since the meat is on the opposite side of the cooker you can still keep your cooking temps at 225, 250, 275, or whatever you want.
In this diagram you can see the airflow in the cooking chamber. The fresh air enters at the bottom (1), moves over to the Slow N Sear (2), some of it goes right up out the top vent (3) and some goes over to the food (4). Again, this gives you increased airflow compared to what you get with a standard kamado. A full Slow N Sear of charcoal will probably get you around 8-10 hours so you will probably have to refill it for longer cooks.
The Slow N Sear Deluxe Kamado can also be set up like a regular kamado so you get the best of both worlds depending on what and how you are wanting to cook.
One thing I really like about the Slow N Sear Deluxe Kamado is it comes with all the accessories you need. The Slow N Sear, Drip N Griddle pan, EasySpin grate, and elevated cooking grate are all included with it. Buy all those separately and it will cost you around $250. Shipping is also included which is awesome when you are talking about a very heavy item like this.
The price for the Slow N Sear Deluxe Kamado is $1419 (will go up to $1499 in a couple weeks) which puts it right in the ballpark of other good kamados. For comparison a 24 inch Kamado Joe runs $1900, an 18 inch Kamado Joe is $1200, a 24 inch Big Green Egg is $1200 (add in some accessories and it easily goes over $1400), and a Primo XL will run around $1400. So pricewise it is very competitive with some of the better brands.
If you want some more info on what makes this kamado better than the rest check out this video from Adrenaline Barbecue:
I have toyed with the idea of getting a kamado grill in the past but the weaknesses have always kept me from pulling the trigger. But the Slow N Sear Deluxe Kamado might be the one that makes me hit that buy button. I really love all the Slow N Sear products and trust that this will be the same quality.
Check out the Slow N Sear Deluxe Kamado and let me know what you think.
