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Testing kamado grills is an intense experience for a griller. It requires playing with fire (literally) and high temperatures, albeit in a controlled, responsible manner. The most critical element of kamado performance is heat, specifically temperature control and how well the grill heats up at a certain temperature. To smoke meat low and slow, that magic number is 225 F. Good smokers, kamados or otherwise, stay at this temperature for 12, 15 or 20 hours. This means that the temperature gauge is the key and so is the ability to control the airflow through air vents or dampers.
We monitor the internal temperature of the kamado grills as they go.
To get the temperature data, we put a thermocouple on each kamado grill. Essentially a sensitive temperature sensor made of a probe and a connected wire, the thermocouple hangs suspended 1 inch above the grill grate. It is connected to a data logger and finally a computer that records changes in heat levels over time.
Then it’s time to fire up each grill.
We try to run temperature tests on all grills simultaneously. We also use the same weight and brand of lumpy coal (4.4 pounds or 2 kg), usually from the same bag. That’s true of the fire starters, too (one per grill).
A stable heat level is the key to good performance for a kamado smoker.
After that, we will light them, as instructed in their manuals if available. Usually, that means letting the coals catch for 15 minutes, with the lid open, then closing the grill. At this point, the vents remain wide open until the grill comes within 50 degrees of the target temperature.
We carefully navigated through the holes to get there. Finally, we release the controls and observe.
We followed the same procedure for our higher temperature test with a target of 350 F. The idea here is to mimic the heat performance required for roasting chicken and other poultry.
We smoke ribs with other food for anecdotal tests.
And speaking of food, we do a lot of “anecdotal testing” too. We smoke a set of baby back ribs (225 F) on each grill. We butterfly (aka spatchcock) chickens and also roast them or cook them beer can-style. Picked up from the local Costco, they weigh roughly 5 pounds each. Finally, we grilled a set of four 8-ounce burger patties at high heat (600 F).
Burgers, anyone?
Want more options? Here are the other two kamado grill models we reviewed for this test group. They didn’t make it into my picks, but you can take a look for comparison:
Check it out: CNET Smart Home gas grills test
