Do you find the day-to-day meal preparation methods boring? With the many innovations in the cooking industry, you can't get stuck in some average cooking procedures.
One of the ways through which you can breathe life into your meals is by smoking them. Smoked foods possess superior flavors that make mealtimes lively.
So, which smoker will you go for? Kamado grills are some of the widely known smokers due to their great flavors and smoking efficiency.
Table of Contents
Vision Grills Review
The vision grill cannot compare to ordinary grills. Some of the features that make this grill stand out from the rest include its electric starter and unique physical build.
Let us now see an in-depth analysis of vision grills features.
Construction
If you are a fan of traditional grills, you will most definitely like the Vision grill. You will be cooking on clay.
The vision charcoal grill is made from ceramic materials. This means that you can't lift it on an empty stomach; it has some weight.
This ceramic grill has a 252 lbs. standing weight. Also, it has a large cooking space to accommodate more food than the largest big green egg grill.
How about the stability of the kamado vision grill? You wouldn't want a cooker that can fall when you are cooking. The vision kamado smoker features a heavy gauge anti-tip cart for ground stability.
So far, we haven't spoken about the interior of this grill. So, let's see the interior parts.
Inside this smoker, you will find duo cooking grates. These grates are made from stainless steel, which protects them from corrosion.
In addition, this grill has a cast iron cover vent. This vent has a sturdy smoker knob.
Vision Grill accessories
This ceramic grill lands in your backyard heavily loaded. The grill package contains:
● An electric fire starter.
● A heat deflector.
● Two detachable wooden side shelves.
● A handle.
● Cooking grates.
● A removable fuel box.
These parts facilitate easy movements of the grill and smooth smoking experiences. The parts are easy to clean.
You can buy other Vision grills accessories separately for better smoking sessions, including a rib rack, BBQ utensils, grill gloves, vision cover, and charcoal/ash rake.
Set-up
Most vision grill smokers are sold whole. This means that you will not do much assembly work for the cooker in your backyard. Just unpack your smoker, place the few detached parts, start the fire, and smoke that steak!
Regulating temperature
It takes less than ten minutes to light the vision grill. After that, heating the smoker takes 10 to 30 minutes.
Keep the grill dome closed and the dual vents open. This way, you can regulate the internal temperature and keep the temperature constant for hours. A steady temperature is mandatory when smoking food.
In addition, the dual vents help you control the cooking temperatures when smoking, searing, or baking. This way, you can do your slow cooking for even more than ten hours.
However, regulating kamado vision grill temperature can be challenging during your first few smoking sessions, especially if you are completely new. But don't get discouraged. With continued cooking practice, you will master the whole thing.
Cleaning and maintenance
Who likes food cooked on dirty grills? Even veterinarians recommend clean feeding trays for animals.
Hence, you will need to clean your smoker after or before use.
This ceramic cooker has a convenient ash box that makes it easy to empty the ash. Emptying the ash after every cooking session is crucial in keeping your grill clean.
Also, this cooker's ceramic material makes the smoker a great dwelling place for mold, especially when you don't use your cooker for a long period.
Therefore, you will need to heat your charcoal grill at a maximum high temperature for about 15 minutes. This will burn up the mold and other dirt. You can then use a soft brush to remove dirt from the grates and other surfaces in the cooker.
To clean the exterior of this kamado grill, you will wipe it down with nonabrasive soapy water and rinse it with clean water.
As we have seen earlier, the interior of this charcoal grill doesn't require intensive cleaning and will season after some time.
Also, remember to keep your smoker covered when not in use. But don't cover it when hot; allow it to cool down first.
So, proper maintenance of your grill will give you a lifetime grilling experience. You will always enjoy that pizza on vision grill and other smoked foods.
And since no smoker is immortal, the ceramic parts of the vision grill may chip off over the years. Other parts of the cooker may wear off. In such cases, you can always seek replacements for parts like a BBQ thermometer, cooking grate, and heat deflector.
Vision Grills Pros & Cons
Pros
Cons
Kamado Joe Review
Kamado joe company was born in 2009. However, the kamado grill is more than three thousand years old since most of its aspects were borrowed from ancient food smokers.
The kamado joe classic concept has its roots in China, and Japan raised this charcoal smoker. In Japan, dampers were added to this cooker for better heat controls.
There are three kamado joe models today, namely kamado joe 1, 2, and 3. However, today we shall be focusing more on kamado joe 2.
Even today, the Kamado Joe Classic II grill rides on traditional smoking methods with several modern improvements.
Like other modern-day kamado smokers, the price of classic Joe II is a bit on the higher side. However, this price is justified by the grill's easy low-temperature control, high heat management, and user-friendly features.
Let's now see deeper aspects of this charcoal grill:
Heat retention
The physical build of Kamado Joe is primarily ceramic. This means that most of the parts of this cooker are ceramic, from the walls to the firebox.
By adjusting the vents, you can easily control the air traveling into the firebox. This way, you determine how hot your Kamado Joe grill will be.
Then, the thick walls help in retaining the heat you have established. Therefore, you don't need a lot of charcoal to maintain your desired cooking temperature.
Design
The kamado Joe grill is egg-shaped, just like other Kamado cookers. It has a thermometer in its domed lid for monitoring the cooking chamber temperature.
It is easy to differentiate this brand from other brands due to its shiny and bold brick-red color that brightens the smoking moments. Indeed, the joe classic II stands out, not like a swollen forehead but like a sports car.
The kamado joe classic comes with a metallic stand with a locking capability behind the legs. This strong stand provides stability to your cooker and the foods you are cooking there.
This cooker has side shelves that are easy to put and flap down after use. The shelves have hooks for hanging your smoking tools.
Other features of this charcoal smoker include a thermometer with a great display for easy temperature readouts.
The racks in the cooking chamber are adjustable. This way, you can place your food near or further away from the fire. So, no need for the spacers to be used in other competitor brands.
Finally, the vent on the lid of this smoker won't shift with the opening of the lid.
Set-up process
Spring hinge
The kamado joe classic hinge is a great piece of creation. Have you ever closed the lid of a cooker with a bang unintentionally? This bang can damage your cooker or cause cracks on a ceramic cooker.
However, the joe lid spring hinge controls the opening and closing of the cooker. This means that you can never bang the heavy lid on your cooker. The spring hinge ensures that the grill dome opens and closes safely.
Included accessories
This ceramic grill comes with all the accessories necessary for smoking. So you won't miss finding in the package such grill parts as shelves, cart, cooking grate, heat deflector, a rack to customize grate placements, and a grabber for shifting the grates.
However, if pizza is among your favorite foods, you can invest in a pizza stone.
Other optional accessories you can buy separately include cast iron grill grates for those artistic patterns on your food. You can also buy a perforated steel pan for cooking delicate foods such as fish and vegetables.
Heating and cooling
It is easier to light the ceramic smoker than to cool it due to the cooking space's thick walls.
However, to cook your food at high heat, you will need to fill the firebox with a lot of charcoal and open the vents wide.
On the other hand, if you would like to cook in low or moderate heat, there is some work to do, especially if you are a beginner. So, don't open the vents widely; keep moving the vents until you get the desired cooking temperature.
Cleaning
The charcoal cooker knows how to clean itself.
So, leave the grates and the ceramic heat deflector inside the cooker, then cook them at 600 degrees for about ten to fifteen minutes. This will burn any foods or dirt particles that were stuck in the cooking space. Then, you can brush out the ashes.
Price
Like most kamado grills, the price of the joe smoker is a bit on the higher side.
Kamado Joe Pros & Cons
Pros
Cons
Features | Vision Grills | Kamado Joe |
|---|---|---|
Material | Ceramic, stainless steel cooking grate | Ceramic, stainless steel, cast iron |
Product dimensions | 32.5 In x 28.8 In x 47 In L x W x H | 26.4 In x 26.4 x 36 In |
Weight | 252 pounds | 250 pounds |
Color | Black | Blaze red |
Fuel | ||
Warranty | Metal parts – 5 years Shelves & handles– 3 Years Cover – 1 year Thermometer & Gaskets – 90 days | Metal parts – 5 years Ceramic plates – 3 years Thermometer & Gaskets – 1 year |
Temperature gauge | Yes | Yes |
Electric starter port | Yes | No |
Air vent | Yes | Yes |
Ash drawer | Yes | Yes |
Price |
FAQs
1. Which is the largest vision grill?
Elite Series XD702 Maxis is the largest vision ceramic Kamado. This grill has 724.5 square inches of smoking surface area. The elite vision kamado is not only the largest vision smoker but also one of the largest kamado smokers in the world.
2. Can you use wood chunks in a Kamado grill?
Yes, you can use wood chips or wood chunks in the kamado grill. However, you can soak the wood in water for slow cooking before using them.
3. Can you use regular charcoal in a kamado grill?
Hardwood lump charcoal is the best fuel for a kamado grill. Although charcoal briquettes also burn well, they are not the best for smoking due to their composition.
4. Which kamado grill is best?
The best overall kamado smoker is the Kamado Joe classic II, followed closely by the Vision grill.
5. What is the difference between Joe kamado classic II and Joe classic III?
The main difference between the two charcoal smokers is the size of each smoker's internal cooking area.
Kamado joe classic III is seven centimeters taller than classic Joe II. This difference may seem small, but it means a lot in classic III's grates are higher above the fire than the grates in classic II.
Conclusion
So far, you have received all the crucial information relating to vision grills vs kamado joe grill. You can go ahead and pick the one that pleases you the most.