We have been interested in a kamado-style cooker for several years now. The Big Green Egg was the first to catch our eye, but the price plus the accessories had always seemed a bit prohibitive. Last year I spotted a similar cooker at the local Costco but by the time I was able to get Joe to the store, they were all gone. Fortunately this time the grill was in stock and we found assistance to load the 200+ pound grill onto our rolling cart and into the car. Joe was able to get our purchase out of the car in pieces and had it assembled in a relatively short amount of time. With the assistance of a friend, the grill was rolled out on the deck and we were ready to cook.
The mushi (to steam) kamado (cooker, oven or kiln) is based on a Southern Japanese ancient clay cooking vessel. The mushikamado began as a round pot with a domed lid, originally used to steam rice for ceremonial occasions. This versatile cooker was introduced to the United States from Japan after the Second World War by the servicemen who brought them home. An enterprising American pilot began manufacturing the grills in the 1960’s and shortened the name to kamado. A damper and draft-door were added to bring temperature control to the device and the cooking fuel has changed from wood to charcoal. The cookers that once were made of extremely temperature sensitive clay are now constructed with a variety of materials including high-fired ceramics. Ceramic material provides excellent heat retention and more efficient fuel burning. Kamados can achieve consistent temperatures, as low as 225°F and as high as 750°F. and can hold heat for long periods of time. What started as a ceremonial rice cooker has evolved into a multi purpose cooker that smokes, bakes, roasts and slow cooks.
We are still in the process of learning the nuances of the kamado. We revisited a favorite that we usually cook in the oven, a slow roasted pork shoulder. The original post is here.
- The pork is broken into chunks and onion, garlic and carrots go into the roasting pan. It cooks for one more hour.
