Jacky: "The smoky taste in Kokko is amazing! »

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Meeting around Kokko #1: Rendez-vous at Jacky's, 36 years old, who lives in Fleurieux-sur-l'Arbresle in France

You are the proud owner of a Kokko recently, why did you choose a Kamado?

Indeed, I received it the day before confinement! I've just had a house and a barbecue built, it's indispensable! At first, I hesitated between a gas BBQ, American style, and a charcoal BBQ. Then, while looking for a bit, I came across the Kamados. What immediately interested me was that you could grill but also smoke meat on them. As we are fans of smoked meat at home, I told myself that this was the best option.

What attracted you to the Kamados Kokko?

I had spotted several brands, including Kokko and when I saw that they had a showroom in Lyon, as I don't live very far away, I took the opportunity to go there. If in terms of quality the Kokko seems comparable to the other Kamados on the market, from an aesthetic point of view, it is above. It immediately caught my eye, and my wife's too!

What are your first impressions after a few weeks of use?

What I like about Kamado is the indirect cooking, i.e. without direct contact with the embers. You install the deflector, the grill and then you put the food into the cooking process before closing the lid. It cooks very slowly and in the meantime, you can enjoy a drink with your friends without risking burning everything! Cooking is slow but controlled.

Do you use it often?

For the moment, I light it at least once a week, but the terrace is finished so soon, it will easily be 2 to 4 times a week!

What is your speciality?

Originally from the island of Reunion, I was marked by this grilling culture. I remember all those people who used to grill on the side of the road. Their speciality? Grilled chicken. After being marinated - and everyone has their own marinade! - it is cooked flat, open in half, on the grill. I've taken up this idea with my own marinade based on soya, sugar and garlic, and every time I do it, I'm happy with myself... And my wife too, that's a good sign!

You are also a fan of smoking!

Ah yes! By the way, my first Kokko cooking was a 6-7 hour smoking session. I'm not a big fan of beef, I think it's too hard a meat, thanks to Kokko I've learned to cook it differently and to appreciate it. The meat is much more tender and melting when cooked at 110° rather than directly over the embers.

How did you carry out this smoking with the Kokko ?

After marinating a piece of rib-eye steak the day before in a rub Sopasco, which is a mixture of spices (paprika, cumin, coriander, oregano but also brown sugar, salt, pepper, garlic etc.) to give it flavour, I got up around 5:30 a.m. the next day to start this slow cooking process which is called 3-2-1 cooking. For 3 hours you smoke/cook at about 100°, then continue for 2 hours at the same temperature, wrapping the meat in aluminium foil and adding the liquid of your choice. I put apple juice and cider, but you can also add beer. It makes the meat melt. And finally, during the last hour, we take the meat out of the aluminium foil and brush it with barbecue sauce before putting it back in the oven for painting.

A tip for successful home smoking?

For long, slow cooking, large pieces of wood should be used. I add pieces from fruit trees to give flavour, usually fig and cherry, but honestly, I don't see the difference! I'm going to try the apple tree, which is the smokers' favourite wood! In any case, the taste of home-made smoke clearly has nothing to do with the taste of commercial smoke, it's amazing!

Posted in: The Kokko lover's diary