WispyWales

Looks like you did a helluva good job there mate, haven't done suet myself but hard to beat a good suet pudding... not usually the low-calorie option, but eh, life's too short amiright? 😂 Judging by looks, I've had much worse in proper food pubs. Would have to try some first to give a proper opinion, of course... 😉 Cheers for sharing!!

Cheers guys, appreciate the warm welcome and all the tips - seems like this is a good place to be! Well... in all honesty I may have been considering the Classic 2 beforehand... may have had something to do with that air hinge 🤔 May have been talked out of it by someone who's better with money than me... I don't know, I can't remember, it was all so long ago... 😉

Yikes, looks like delivery is a flat-rate £35 fee unless you live in or very near Surrey - probably not worth it after all unless you're planning on buying tonnes of it! Sorry folks.

No idea on quality or anything like that but I came across this price from Hill's Quality Coals - I'd be interested to hear if anyone has any xp with these guys: https://hillsqualitycoals.co.uk/product/12kg-catering-charcoal/ The pretty generic-looking bag in the picture suggests it is 'restaurant charcoal' (perhaps notably, not 'restaurant grade charcoal') and the URL calls it 'catering charcoal' - but it's running at £12.95 per 12kg bag, clocking in at just over a quid per KG. Looks like the business has been around a while but this seems like the sort of thing they might've bought in a hurry due to running out of other stock - no reviews of the product and the Supagrill lump they seem to stock as normal is all gone. Might be worth a punt but definitely a risk of buyer's remorse as they're looking for a £60 minimum order... will let folks know if I bite the bullet...

Cheers for sharing the link Robdan, looks interesting - will be keen to see how your project comes on! Looks like you've got some good DIY skills there and sounds like you got a bargain too - that grill area is looking great! Roof probably a very good idea given how unreliable the weather is round these parts... may have to do something similar when my kamado gets here... 🤔

Cheers guys, really appreciate the steers! Looks like chicken for a first go then, hopefully with all this lockdown biz I should be able to get my cooks in pretty regularly (read as: every day 😂) Is it worth getting one of those ceramic chicken stand things? I've read that spatchcock is the best way to go for a chicken, never done that before but doesn't sound difficult! Just spotted there's a home brew forum on here too... planning to bottle some homemade cider this evening, my first batch using fresh cold-pressed Russet apple juice instead of AJ from concentrate - will post up some pics if I remember 🍏🥃

Pulled pork looking good there @AdamG! I was planning on brisket for a first kamado cook but based on the post above it sounds like that might be a bit ambitious?! Done my reading etc but no substitute for xp! Might be worth going for a bit of pork belly then I guess if there's a big risk of the brisket turning out bad... looking at £60 for the beef I was going to buy so might be better off with an easier cook to start with 🤔

Looks amazing man, guessing it's not your first time on a brisket eh! Still waiting on my kamado but probably looking to break it in with a brisket cook 😎 Just wish I could get down the butchers, thankfully there are a few online that look alright.

Cheers for the tip Adam, I'll look into it - been learning what I can off the web but I am a big fan of a good old-fashioned book when I can find one 🙂

Afternoon all, Just a quick message to say hello really! Have seen quite a few posts from other folks in Wales over the last few days so to all of them I say, shwmae! I'm in South Wales, keeping my fingers crossed we get some good weather this summer as it looks like I won't be leaving the garden much. No real barbecue experience as of yet except for the odd burger or sausage on a kettle grill, but in a moment of total boredom/madness after missing the cheap ALDI kamado sale this year I shelled out for a Kamado Joe Classic 2 - should be arriving in about a week and I can't wait 😁 Meanwhile I've been reading up on BBQ in general to get ready for the big day. Enjoying Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling (some great facts and explanations for the science buffs) but interested in any recommendations for kamado-specific books - let me know if anything comes to mind! Thanks to Wade and the other admins/mods for launching and running the site as I've been looking for a UK-based BBQ board for a while - been lurking for a few hours and this one looks awesome. Happy grilling, everyone! 😎 Wispy