Char-Griller E16620 Akorn Kamado Charcoal Grill, Graphite & Charcoal Grill Chimney Starter with Quick Release Trigger, 12-Inch

This is my first Kamado style cooker. I wish I had bought one years ago. Kamado Kooker works much better as a smoker that my old off set fire box Texas style smoker. We love smoking meats. I was first attracted to the Big Green Egg, but the $1,000 cost with stand was a bit much for me. I bought this Char-Grill Kamado grill smoker for $340 with stand and delivered. Very easy to assemble. Parts all fit well. It took about 40 minutes and the only tool you need is a 7/16" nut driver. I first heated it up to season the grills and then cooked hamburgers at 600 degrees. It takes some time to get used to heat control. The key is keep it low and slowly increase. It is very easy to raise temp, but slow to reduce. I next tried ribs and chicken in smoke mode on plate setter. I also bought the dual temp remote reading thermometer. This was great and I highly recommend. I am not sure you can hold temp at 200 degrees for a long time. I am trying smoking turkey today and I will start low. I also bought the automatic fire box controller and I will see how it works. So far I love the Char-Griller Kamado. I am not sure what else the BGE offers for $1,000. I suspect the bottom vent seal on BGE is tighter to provide better temp control at low temps. I also suspect the thick ceramic shell on BGE will provide better temperature control as a heat sink.I also suspect the BGE has an almost unlimited life span versus probably 10 or 15 years for the metal Char-Griller. I may need to add some high temp sealant on the lower vent. The ash removal is much easier on the Char-Griller versus the BGE where you have to scrape out the ashes. So far, I am extremely satisified. Best griller and smoker I have owned.I have now smoked a 14 lb turkey since my last posting. The Char-Griller Kamado worked very well. I put in 2 layers of hardwood charcoal and used a single Weber fire starter on top. I cooked for over 4 hours at about 250 degrees using indirect smoking with plate setter. Kooker held temperature extremely well. I never opened the lid until the meat thermometer reached 165 degrees in breast. We used a drip pan filled with water under the turkey rack. This was the most moist turkey we ever cooked. We always brine soak the turkey for over 18 hours also. I never added any charcoal during the entire cook and when I opened the Kooker after it was cold, most of the original hardwoodcharcoal was still unburned on the fire grate. It looks like the amount of hardwood charcoal used will be about 25% of the briquetts I used on my old offset Texas style smoker. I was initially concerned with the higher cost of the hardwood charcoal, but I am now convinced with the lower usage, my cost as compared to charcoal briquetts will be lower. I doubt you could ever maintain 200 degrees for a long period without adding additional heat sealing on lower vent. I am able to maintain about 225 degrees for a long period with no adjustments.I have now used my Char-Grill Kamato at least 15 times since my original review. I remain very satisified with the units performance and overall results. We cooked a Pizza on a Pizza disk with plate setter installed this weekend and brought the temp up to 600 degress and the results were excellent. I have now added a strip of 1"X1/8" Nomex self sticking tape to back of the lower air vent slide and this greatly improves temp control at low temps in the 200 degree range. I also found water (from moisture condensate)collected in the lower ash pan even thought the Kamaodo was sealed and covered. This water comes from the moisture laden air as the moisture condenses in the unit as the moisture laden air is cooled. I simply drilled a 1/4" hole in both the outer and inner shell and this allows any moisture to drain. I do not believe the small hole will impact amount of air entering the unit. I do not understand why Char-Griller does not add gasket sealer to the lower air vent slide and add a petcock type drain to ash pan. I purchased a lower vent temp automated electric air controller for about $150 and I am not satisfied with the unit at all. It was a waste of money. The Kamado can control temp for long periods with almost no adjustments. I can recommend the Char-Griller Kamado to anyone who does not want to spend $1,000 for a BGE. I am not sure I could ever justify this added cost beyond $340 for the Char-Griller. I am sure the BGE will last for ever and the Char-Griller will eventually begin rusting out. I have now sold my Texas style offset smoker and moth balled my propane grill. This is the only unit I use now and it so easy to start the lump hardwood charcoal and be cooking in 20 minutes and the food is much moister.

I got a pellet smoker and tried smoking during snowy winters but it used tons of fuel and struggled to stay even close to the programmed temp. I learned about Kamado grills and how insulated they are, but also learned how expensive and fragile they are. So when I saw this 20” kamado grill made with steel and for a fraction of the price, I had to try it. Turns out this was my answer. I’ve smoked a Boston Butt, a chicken, pork ribs, and they’ve all been amazing! I smoked for 11 hours and still had enough coal for my next cook! And that was in below freezing temperatures. This thing is so efficient it’s crazy. There is some frustration as you learn how to slowly bring it to temp and get it to maintain, but once you learn the grill, it’s life changing!So my other problems with pellet smokers besides the lack of insulation and amount of fuel needed, is the inability to grill over an open flame. My burgers were super juicy, easy and fast. Then the pizzas. I accidentally blew past the 700 degree temp when I opened it up all the way! You only need 625 for a Neapolitan style pizza so this grill is plenty capable! And even at that temp, the lid was not too hot to touch. The pizzas are amazing with this thing, and that was unexpected.So now for the cons. There is a lack of accessories I believe. Well, one in particular: a rotisserie. Kamadojoe makes a joetisserie that I want so desperately for this but they didn’t make a 20” grill. So I’m crossing my fingers someone starts making a rotisserie attachment that will work with this size.The other thing is the grate. And it’s really not fair to list it as a con bc it’s a quality cast iron grate. But trying to access your coals after it’s loaded up is a nightmare. I’ll be purchasing a wire grate that opens on the sides for my smokes. I’ll use the cast iron for steaks, burgers, and the like.Now for some tips. Pay close attention to you selection and arrangement of your coals. The manual did a good job of instructing to use only a pound of the larger pieces of coal for a low n slow smoke. Save the smaller coal for the hotter shorter cooks. I also like to put my coal in a ring or “snake” and ignite one end and let it burn across the circle in a controlled manner. I can hold 230 for hours with that. I also had the bottom vent open to 2 and the top to 1.5. Be patient and allow yourself an hour to slowly bring the grill up to that temp. When you overshoot, you have to bust out the spray bottle and spray down the inside of the grill and some of the coals and hope you didn’t put out the fire.Another tip is with the pizza. The manual also did a good job of telling you to spray the pizza stone to cool it some before adding a pizza. This will help TONS for an evenly cooked pizza.The diffuser plate is a must and you also need it for the pizzas plus, a very thick quality pizza round to lay on top of the grate.My last tip is to get a cloud enabled thermometer so you can go to church and be alerted if you have to go home to make an adjustment (until you master your kamado at least). I don’t feel like I have to stay home all day when I can monitor my smokes from afar. If your on a budget like me, look at the GrillEye Pro and google how to work past the current flaws in the product. It’s not perfect, but it’s close enough and for another fraction of the price of others.Good luck and enjoy the trial and error of becoming a master of outdoor cooking!