Big Green Egg Large or XL
 

I have read the past posts on this topic, but they are years outdated and wondered what the opinions are now.

I am interested in venturing into the kamado cookers and think the Big Green Egg is the one, but which size is difficult. I really wish there was something between the Large and XL. I like to cook packer briskets, which a 15 lber will push the limits of the large, and I read that you don't want the meat going all the way to the edge of the grate, because of the way the platesetter is with its gaps on the edge. I also like to cook up to three 10 lb butts for pulled pork on occasions. Everything else will certainly work on the large I think.

Do I need to step it up the XL then?

Thanks

I have two larges. With the packer go Xl. For the butts no problem, I've put 7 8lbers on at once with extender.

Yep, I've got a Kamado Joe Classic and will soon have a Kamado Joe Big Joe, so we are talking same sizes here. The Classic works great for grilling and a lot of smoking jobs, but there are a few cooks that the Big Joe will do so much easier and not cramming the meat in the cooker.

As usual, get the biggest cooker your budget allows. Many people wish they had got a bigger cooker, very few wish they had got a smaller cooker.

I personally love my large and get 2 8-9 lb butts on it You can buy accessories that will allow you to cook more than 2 butts at a time. DFor the full packer you can put foil under the ends to prevent burning I have heard that the X Large uses a lot of charcoal but you can get a divider that allows you to cook with less I belive fingerlicken has an X Large Egg

That's kinda like chicken little yelling "The sky is falling" I keep hearing this but it is not true. Also you do not have to have a divider, just move the lump to one side if that's what you want to do. I do that for a reverse sear on stuff.

I would go with the XL and never look back.

If money is an issue at all look at the Kamado Joe Big Joe. Should be a couple hundred bucks less and the same size as the BGE XL.

I have a KJ Classic and love it. Look up Man Cave Meals on youtube for several reviews of Kamado Joe.

Go BIG. Can always cook a small amount in a big cooker, but not the reverse.

I have a Small, Med & XL. The XL is big and you can fit a lot in it. In terms of charcoal used, no more than my others, it just holds a lot more coal. You can, as mentioned above, divide or separate the coals in the firebox and cook indirect. I simply create a tighter ring of coal instead of filling it up to the sides.

It's a great cooker, a powerhouse.

Go big if you can, in my case I am trying to downsize an XL to a Large only because of space limitations on my new deck. :becky:

I had the same dilemma three weeks ago. Within two weeks I had put enough food on it to need the XL. I cooked one huge meal but I also cooked for three and needed the XL. I had four ears of corn, two hot dogs and a skillet for burgers. I needed the grill grate space of an XL to put all of that on there at once.

It's a lifetime purchase so if you can't see yourself EVER cooking a bunch of food go with the large. I'm extremely glad I went with the XL.

One potential consideration is whether or not you intend to move the egg around frequently. I have to move my large in and out of the garage, down a sloped driveway, each time I use it. I can't imagine wanting to do that with an XL, brisket room or not.

I would go with the XL, I have cooked on both and just prefer all of the characteristics of the XL. In particular, I have noticed that ribs, when I do 3 to 4 racks, cook a lot more evenly on the XL. Admittedly, I am convinced that air circulation around the meat is a very good thing, so I want a little more room than many want.

I have a large BGE and a medium, they are very good cookers but have the disadvantage of having small cook spaces. I would recommend that you take a look at the Spicewine , Backwoods, Stumps etc., I just picked up a medium Spicewine and the versatility and cooking area are much larger. One other thing i find as a shortcoming is that on the Kamado style smokers, you have to remove the platesetter,grates, meat etc. to add more wood. Because of the very small fuel consumption rate, coals impinging on wood may or may not happen. At the very least you need to have a long prod to stir up the coals. I am not trying to knock kamado smokers, but just give my observations i have made over many cooks.

I have cooked 18lbers on my large multiple times. I drape it over a roasting rack which solves two problems:
1. It makes it fit.
2. It creates a rounded top to the packer so that there is no chance for puddling of juices. Puddling means no bark.

second this

I have a Medium, Large, and XL Egg.
The Large gets used more then the others by far and I cook for 7 people.
If I were to only have one Egg it would probably be the XL in case I needed the larger space. You can get a charcoal reducing ring from the ceramic grill store which will help you save on fuel costs if you go with the XL. I have never used one but have read good things about them. The XL is a beast to move around and weighs much more then the Large. I believe it is about 205 lbs. Which ever BGE you choose, you will be happy with its versatility.