Newbie to the Akorn smoker.

[XD40CHRIS]

I just got my first Akorn put together and will be seasoning the grates tomorrow. Thought about a pellet cooker but I have seen so many positive comments on this forum just had to give it a try. Wish me luck on the learning curve.

 

[Mars]

I've really enjoyed mine! Good luck to you and show us what you cook up!

 

[XD40CHRIS]

Thank you sir, guess I will try ribs first.

 

[Deerhead]

Congrats! Once you complete the short learning curve of figuring out temp control... you will really enjoy the great food.

Enjoy

 

[Hoss]

You are gonna love your Akorn. Does a great job. Here’s a website that provides a wealth of knowledge on barbecue.

The Ultimate Destination For BBQ And Grilling Recipes, Science, And Product Reviews

Meathead's AmazingRibs.com is the leading BBQ and grilling website, featuring 2100+ pages of recipes, techniques, cooking science, myth-busting, and hands-on reviews.

amazingribs.com

 

[elfiii]

Congrats! Once you complete the short learning curve of figuring out temp control... you will really enjoy the great food.

Enjoy

What he said. ^ I love mine.

 

[XD40CHRIS]

You are gonna love your Akorn. Does a great job. Here’s a website that provides a wealth of knowledge on barbecue.

The Ultimate Destination For BBQ And Grilling Recipes, Science, And Product Reviews

Meathead's AmazingRibs.com is the leading BBQ and grilling website, featuring 2100+ pages of recipes, techniques, cooking science, myth-busting, and hands-on reviews.

amazingribs.com

Thank you friend, I will check it out

 

[NCHillbilly]

Love mine. Been cooking on it for many years.

 

[XD40CHRIS]

Do you folks use a rib rack or just directly on the grate ?

 

[Stob]

Congrats! Once you complete the short learning curve of figuring out temp control... you will really enjoy the great food.

Enjoy

I loved the learning curve. The curve produced some mighty fine food and was better that restaurant quality all day.

I just got my first Akorn put together and will be seasoning the grates tomorrow. Thought about a pellet cooker but I have seen so many positive comments on this forum just had to give it a try. Wish me luck on the learning curve.

You're going to love it. It's not a smoker BTW. It is all that and a hot bowl of grits! Smoking, Searing, Reverse Searing, Pizza Oven, even cooked pot roast on it once.

And it will cook vegies better than anything in your house.

 

[NCHillbilly]

Do you folks use a rib rack or just directly on the grate ?

Directly on the grate here.

 

[Stob]

Do you folks use a rib rack or just directly on the grate ?

On the grate and I have a heat deflector for slower cooking. I tend to smoke at a higher temp than most so the heat deflector works well.

 

[XD40CHRIS]

I loved the learning curve. The curve produced some mighty fine food and was better that restaurant quality all day.



You're going to love it. It's not a smoker BTW. It is all that and a hot bowl of grits! Smoking, Searing, Reverse Searing, Pizza Oven, even cooked pot roast on it once.

And it will cook vegies better than anything in your house.

 

[XD40CHRIS]

On the grate and I have a heat deflector for slower cooking. I tend to smoke at a higher temp than most so the heat deflector works well.

I went ahead and paid the price for the Chargriller deflector stone

 

[NCHillbilly]

I went ahead and paid the price for the Chargriller deflector stone

It is 100% essential to smoke stuff. You can even bake bread and biscuits in there. Makes great pizzas, too. I also usually put a 9x11 disposable aluminum pan on top of the stone as a drip pan. I usually fill it about half full with a mixture of beer, apple juice, and water.
The one thing I hardly ever do with mine is direct grill on it. I use the Akorn for smoking and indirect grilling, and have a barrel grill for direct grilling stuff.

 

[XD40CHRIS]

I ordered the heat deflector along with the grill, got a little out of control on Amazon.

 

[XD40CHRIS]

It is 100% essential to smoke stuff. You can even bake bread and biscuits in there. Makes great pizzas, too. I also usually put a 9x11 disposable aluminum pan on top of the stone as a drip pan. I usually fill it about half full with a mixture of beer, apple juice, and water.
The one thing I hardly ever do with mine is direct grill on it. I use the Akorn for smoking and indirect grilling, and have a barrel grill for direct grilling stuff.

 

[XD40CHRIS]

I was hoping to cook it all on this cooker. I trust your opinion, I have seen your food many times on the forum it always looks amazing.

 

[Stob]

It is 100% essential to smoke stuff. You can even bake bread and biscuits in there. Makes great pizzas, too. I also usually put a 9x11 disposable aluminum pan on top of the stone as a drip pan. I usually fill it about half full with a mixture of beer, apple juice, and water.
The one thing I hardly ever do with mine is direct grill on it. I use the Akorn for smoking and indirect grilling, and have a barrel grill for direct grilling stuff.

Agree on the searing and direct heat. I did it a bit early on but have switched to cooking on the Akorn slow until the right reverse sear temp and then finishing in a blue hot iron skillet.

 

[NCHillbilly]

I was hoping to cook it all on this cooker. I trust your opinion, I have seen your food many times on the forum it always looks amazing.

You can direct grill on it too just fine. I just happen to have a few grills that are better for different specialized things. My main advice is don't heat it up too hot and fry those seals.

IMO, where the Akorn really, truly shines is for smoking and indirect grilling and baking. You can direct grill just fine over a pile of coals on the ground with a grate over it.