# Orion Cooker



## mofo

On a whim, I purchased one of these at Ace yesterday. Have not yet used it, but put it together. Am curious to see if it is all that it is said to be...


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## SmokinAl

Got any pics?


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## chef jimmyj

That is pretty cool....There is an episode of Dinner Impossible...where Robert Irvine made similar cookers out of a Metal Trash Cans...Charcoal around the Outside and a pile On Top!...JJ


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## etcher1

Here's some pics of mine.  It a bit of a charcoal hog.  It does cook quickly.  More of convection cooker than a smoker, but still pretty tasty stuff.

http://s947.photobucket.com/albums/ad317/etcher1/Orion/?action=view&current=DSC01083.jpg

http://s947.photobucket.com/albums/ad317/etcher1/fattie 12-6-09/?action=view&current=DSC01091.jpg

http://s947.photobucket.com/albums/ad317/etcher1/Orion/?action=view&current=DSC01084.jpg

http://s947.photobucket.com/albums/ad317/etcher1/Orion/?action=view&current=DSC01085.jpg

http://s947.photobucket.com/albums/ad317/etcher1/Orion/?action=view&current=DSC01086.jpg


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## jp61

Don't think I've ever seen one of those before, but it looks neat and seems to work well. Nice looking fatty!!... you just couldn't wait to cut it though, could ya? :)


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## etcher1

JP61 said:


> Don't think I've ever seen one of those before, but it looks neat and seems to work well. Nice looking fatty!!... *you just couldn't wait to cut it though, could ya? :)*




Ya got that one right


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## raptor700

They were sold at Bass Pro Shop a few years ago.


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## mofo

Etcher1 - ya got any suggestions or cooking times for me on anything?  How long did the fatty take? Do you recall? Any issues with using the remote thermos? Do the flames lap against the cable early on? I was worrying if that might be an issue for the cable on the thermometer.


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## etcher1

MoFo,

Sorry about taking so long to answer.

The manual that comes with it is fairly accurate as far as cooking times.  When you first start it the flame lap up a bit, but never has been a problem for me yet.

Seems like it took me about an 1 1/2 hour to do the fatty.  I would rather use a remote thermometer than go by time.  To get the smoke you put the wood chips around the outside of the water pan in side the cooker, also spray the water pan with some spray cooking oil it will make cleanup a lot easier.  You can use lighter fluid to start the charcoal because it never touches the food. It doesn't like the wind, so you may have to build wind block. It is definitely something to have in your outside cooking arsenal.  Here is a forum you can check out.    http://www.theorioncooker.com/forumrw/index.php#/discussions

Hope this helps.


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## frosty

I had heard they consume a lot of charcoal, but I have seen them and they do a good job overall.


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## raptor700

They are a variation of the red-neck cooker


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## JckDanls 07

I'm trying to figure out how the wood chips smoke inside with no fire on them ?


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## mofo

Keith

I think because the chips are next to the cylinder on the inside, the heat from the coals on the outside of the cylinder gets hot enough to start the chips smoldering. If I get Christmas lights finished in time, I may try a chicken this afternoon just as a test.


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## mofo

Well, I had some issues on my first attempt. I was going to do a whole fryer around 4.5 lbs. I used only salt and pepper on it. I loaded the lower charcoal ring about half full and filled the top charcoal ring full. I lit both. My charcoal was an opened bag probably 10 years old or so... I'm pretty much a propane guy on everything I do at this point. It didn't seem to be lighting real well, even though I kept applying lighter fluid to it. After about 15 minutes or so, I added more charcoal to the top of the ring and drenched it with fluid and re lit it. It finally took off pretty well. From that point on, it was 1 hour and 10 minutes and the bird temp was 170*. I pulled it out and let it sit for about 15 minutes or so. The skin was very dark in color. I sampled some of the skin and it was very bitter. I imagine it was due to creosote forming on the bird, perhaps when I was having trouble getting the charcoal going.I also think I used to much wood during the cooking process. I spread 1 - 2 cups of hickory chips on the inside wall of the cylinder. The meat itsself was actually quite good after I de-skinned it.


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## txbdyguard

You only put a small amount of smoking matrial in.   Get too much and it will be bitter. I use a chimney starter for charcoal then pour on top of coal ready to be burned.  20# turkey 2 1/2 hrs


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