Kamado Bono Grande Limited Review

Because of their clever design and their use of charcoal, all kamados deliver tender, smoky food. This is generally achieved by cooking very slowly (low & slow) or at very high temperatures. The Kamado Bono Grande Limited delivers charcoal grilling and smoking without the huge price tags found with other kamado brands. A Google search returns a price of €2150 for a XLarge Big Green Egg and €2000 or more for the Kamado Joe Big Joe. So, in my Kamado Bono Grande Limited review, I hope to discuss why there’s such a price difference between the different brands of kamado.

About the Kamado Bono Grande Limited

The Kamado Bono Grande Limited is the largest kamado produced by Kamado Bono. It has a whopping grill diameter of 56 cm (22 inches). Indeed, Kamado Bono say that this grill is so large that is can cater for groups or 15 people of more. I can apparently cook a whopping 40 burgers, 4 pork shoulders, 8 chickens, a 16 kg turkey, 20 steaks or 50 cm diameter pizza. Now, this kamado is massive. However, I don’t think there’s scope to cook as much as they state but nonetheless there’s ample space on the grill to cook whatever you like.

The grill size is even bigger than both the Kamado Joe Classic II or III both (18 inch) or the XLarge Big Green Egg (18.25 inch). And that’s food for thought.

With this kamado you can:

• Grill directly over charcoal using direct heat: chicken, ham, pork chops etc.
• Grill indirectly over charcoal using indirect heat: pizza, chicken, beef, ham, pork, lamb etc.
• Wood smoke meats using charcoal and different varieties of wood

Features & specifications

• Kamado ceramic grill (64 cm outer diameter), firebox, fire ring and lid with a fibreglass gasket
• 56 cm diameter stainless steel cooking grate
• Dual-zone stainless steel grill rack
• 2-piece ceramic heat deflector, for indirect cooking
• Pre-installed stainless steel dome thermometer
• A new and improved cast iron top vent for throttling airflow out
• Stainless steel bottom vent
• Sturdy wheeled iron stand, bamboo side shelves with hooks
• All tools required for assembly
• BBQ & Grill guide book
• A choice of colours: red or black

The Packaging

It’s essential that the ceramic body of the kamado is protected from any knocks or bumps during transport. This kamado was delivered in a heavy duty corrugated cardboard box which was on a pallet. As I’ve come to expect from Kamado Bono, everything inside was well packaged. The firebox, fire ring, cooking grates and grill rack were all stored inside the kamado for shipping. Each item was individually wrapped in protective plastic wrap. Other components such as the bamboo lid handle and tools needed for assembly were packed around the kamado. The wheeled cast iron stand and side shelves were packaged in a separate box.

What’s inside the box?

• The ceramic grill, lid with fibreglass gasket
• The internal firebox and fire ring
• Two-zone grilling system with 2 stainless steel cooking grids
• 2-piece ceramic heat deflector for indirect cooking
• Grill dome thermometer
• Ash catcher
• BBQ & Grill guide book
• Cast iron top vent
• Cast iron firebox ash grate
• Steel ash removal tool (fire poker)
• Sturdy wheeled iron stand with 2 shelves (needs assembly)
• Bamboo handle
• All tools required for assembly
• Protective cover
• Ceramic chicken cooking stand

Recommended extras

I have several accessories which I’d recommend buying too.  They don’t come as standard with the Bono Grande Limited but I get great use out of them.

• Looftlighter charcoal lighter €49.99
• Stainless steel grill gripper tool €14.99
• Digital food thermometer €17.99
• Heat resistant gloves €21.99

Kamado Bono Grande Limited Setup Process

Weighing in at a monstrous 128 kg with packaging, this is a seriously large and super heavy kamado. It’s essential to get some help when assembling it. I recommend assembling the heavy duty stand before even moving the kamado itself. Once I’d the stand built, I got some help to lift the kamado into the stand.

What else you need to start cooking

Aside from what’s in the box and the accessories I’ve mentioned, you’ll need some essentials. So, you’ll also need to buy a some lump charcoal, charcoal lighters and a lighter. I use Texas Club Charcoal and love the flavour.

Performance

This kamado its performs even better than I’d expected. So far I’ve cooked pork ribs, pork belly, legs of lamb, whole chickens and I’m yet to be disappointed. It can hold lower temperatures for longer is a pleasure to use. While it’s very economical on charcoal, it is quite a bit larger than the Kamado Bono Grande. This means that it does use a bit more charcoal. You still only need to add some of fresh lumps of charcoal before you cook.

Cleaning

With all kamados, cleaning is easy. Simply light your charcoal and with both the top and bottom vents fully open, leave the lid open for 10 minutes and then close the lid. Opening both vents fully will allow a roaring hot temperature to develop inside. Any grease, oil, fat or dirt simply burns off. And voila, you have a cleaned kamado. Make sure to put in the grill grates, deflector plates too and pizza stone too. I find myself cleaning out the ash after about 4 or 5 cooks.

My Kamado Bono Grande Limited Review Result: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The result of my Kamado Bono Grande Limited review is that this is an excellent value extra-large kamado and I really love it. As I’ve mentioned, this kamado its performs even better than I’d expected. It’s a big improvement on other Kamado Bono kamados I’ve owned. The areas of improvement are on the top vent and the firebox. The top vent is now a daisy wheel design which makes for easier airflow management. Also, the firebox has a clever slit in it to allow for expansion and contraction of the ceramic. This is an improvement because older fireboxes had a tendency to split after lots of cooks.

Also, when you consider that this kamado is substantially better value than an equivalent sized Kamado Joe or Big Green Egg, it’s a big plus too.

So there are just two things I’d like to see improved on this kamado:

• Firstly, the lid is heavy and, if someone closes the lid without realising that the weight of the lid is unsupported, it will drop with a thud. All you can do is hope the dome hasn’t cracked. So, it’s something to be very aware of.
• Secondly, the bamboo handle looks smart, but I don’t think bamboo is suitable for the outdoors. There’s no varnish or lacquer on the handle so over time it will discolour. The simple solution is to give it a quick coat or two or aerosol lacquer before you assemble it.

SO WHERE CAN I BUY ONE?

The Kamado Bono Grande Limited is available from KamadoBono.ie , BBQ4You.eu and in several stores for €1049.