Looking for a ceramic grill that’s right for you? It can be overwhelming given the options available. An important factor is size when you’re considering “how do I choose a kamado grill?”. Here I look the size of different brands and models to help you choose the right appliance for you.
I wrote about some popular options in big green egg type grills in my article that included some budget buys in kamado grills. It’s worth looking more at the capacity of these, as size can matter.
What size kamado should I get?
Here are a few pointers for you to weigh up in considering how big or how small a kamado you should buy:
- Space limitations — What outdoor space do you have? Are there restrictions? What about weather and winter protection?
- Portability – Will you be transporting it to and fro for park bbqs, for example?
- Number of people — How many are you likely to cook for at the one time?
If your outdoor area is cramped, you won’t want an oversized kamado. If you’re wanting something that’s portable, equally, you don’t want something that’s weighty or bulky. Ceramic grills aren’t as lightweight as their aluminum counterparts. If you plan on cooking for a family or a number of guests, you’ll want a kamado with the right capacity to do it with ease.
How do I choose a kamado grill?
Apart from price, quality, and added features, the weight of the appliance and the area it takes up are factors that can help with deciding which one to buy. A practical way to look at what size kamado to get…is to get to know the kamado’s burger capacity.
The burger capacity will give you an idea of how much food you can cook on the grill at once. Burgers are a common item to cook on grills and most people can easily picture capacity based on an average burger. So it’s a pragmatic approach toward understanding a kamado’s size compared to calling it extra large, large, medium, or small, which can vary between brands.
As well, it helps you to know the capacity you can expect from your purchase. For example, if you settle for a four burger capacity kamado, let’s say because of price, you’ll know you’ll need to keep cooked burgers warm somehow while the extras are being cooked for your guests (that is, if you plan on serving everyone at the same time).
Big Joe Grill does 20 burgers at a time
It’s available at Amazon
Kamado grill burger capacity compared
The following lists a number of brands and models of kamado grills and their burger capacity and weight. All of these have ceramic shells.
Kamado Joe
- Big Joe = 20 burgers; at 359 lbs
- Classic = 13; 193 lbs
- Joe Jr = 4; 68 lbs
Primo
- Oval XL = 19 burgers; at 230 lbs
- Oval Large = 13; 125 lbs
- Oval Jr = 10; 113 lbs
- Round = 13; 200 lbs
Coyote
- Asado = 13 burgers
Vision
- Elite XR = 13 burgers; at 244 lbs
Big Green Egg
- 2XL = 35-40 burgers; at 375 lbs
- XL = 24; 219 lbs
- Large = 12; 162 lbs
- Medium = 6; 114 lbs
- Small = 4; 80 lbs
- MiniMax = 4; 76 lbs
- Mini = 2; 39 lbs
No matter the size, to keep them working to expectations, they all require a little care — see my article on how to care for kamados, along with cleaning tips.
Summing it up
If you were to graph the figures you’ll see burger capacity is a decent representative of size, area, and weight when it comes to working out what size kamado should you buy. If you want the lightest ceramic kamado, you’re looking at a two burger capacity. If you want something lighter, but with bigger capacity, you may want to check out the aluminum-type kamado grills. Providing you have the space capacity, consider the larger grills if you’re catering for the large family or entertaining a party of guests, although the larger sizes are more expensive. It may be a compromise for you, but consider a good ceramic grill as a long term investment.