I have a turkey fryer, a Weber charcoal kettle grill, and a Weber gas grill. I am tired of fried turkeys and want to try something new. Been reading about the Orion cookers and saw COOLBREEZE mention one in a recent post. Anybody else used an Orion? If so, what’s your opinion? Is an Orion that much better than a Weber charcoal kettle grill? Thanks!
I have used one to cook a few racks of ribs and it worked PERFECTLY. The owner informs me that he doesn’t like it for cooking ALL things, but it works well for certain things, like ribs and whole birds or hams.
Wadmalaw native
16’ Bentz-Craft Flats Boat
Whale Branch;; my orion cooker does a better job than the oiless propane char broil that i used for turkey day. the bird always comes out so juicy, and brown. just remember it cooks at 7 minutes a pound. does not hurt to use a thermometer in the bird also. i quit frying some 5 or so years ago. then again; did a 15#er in the orion and also a 15# in the char broil oiless last year. hands down everybody liked the orion much better. they are available at three fountains hardware i would think. you cannot go wrong with one. i can cook 6 racks of ribs in one hour 30 minutes and they will basically fall off of the bone. i like to then put the wet sauce on them and burn that in on the grill or wrap them in foil and put them on the grill for a little bit. everything that i have ever cooked on mine came out just like it should have. good luck . give it a try.
I would wonder if it is missing the flavor the charcoal imparts in a conventional setup. It looks like it isolates the meat from the heat source.
A guy in college supposedly “had an idea” and we cooked some chickens inside an upside down metal trashcan with charcoal around the bottom and on the top. They turned out fine, but not worth screwing around with a metal trashcan and such.
BG
Thanks for the responses. So COOLBREEZE, you cook the ribs in your Orion (probably with some type of rub), then slather on the sauce and finish them for a few minutes on another grill, or finish them in the Orion? Has anyone cooked a boston butt or salmon with an Orion?
first i use a dry rub on them and let them sit for quite a while. i also use a couple of small pieces of mesquite chunks that i put in the bottom around the drip pan inside. do not use too much or you will get a very heavy smoke flavor. i have cooked boston butts, chicken, hams and even a briskett on it. the briskett did not do so well as it needs to be cooked on a lower heat and a lot longer. i will not do fish on it because i can grill fish on my grill and not waste the charcoal. you are correct on the finish. i take them off and sauce them and burn in the sauce on the grill or wrap them and put them on the grill for a little while.
You can completely control what flavor you want by the chip or chip blend that you use. (Apple, pecan, cherry) etc.
Probably have cooked more than 20 boston butts over the years in mine. Rub, smoke, enjoy.