Smoking Meat

[goreds2]

I plan on putting pork loin in the Smoker tomorrow. Kroger had them for a buck 19 a pound over the weekend. A nice two dollar meal for us!

[goreds2]

I plan on putting pork loin in the Smoker tomorrow. Kroger had them for a buck 19 a pound over the weekend. A nice two dollar meal for us!

Turned out great. Nice and moist.

[Boston Red]

I got out the smoker for the first time in a while over the weekend. Ribs. And they were excellent.

[gonelong]

I have been smoking a lot of wings this year, a good number of chicken halves, some meatloaf, the occasional brisket, and a significant number of brats & sausage that end up in my Jambalaya.

My son has a group project going on this week so 3 other senior boys have been coming over. I smoked 30 drumsticks/wings as a snack for them and 5 minutes later my boy was upstairs asking if we had any more. :-) I dry rub them in 2-3 different flavors and put the smoke to them ... finish them off on the grill (to toughen up the skin). As good as they are, its not as good as the Jambalaya.

I started tossing on the brats/sausages when I did longer cooks like brisket or shoulder so I would have something for lunch. Now I rarely smoke just one thing.

I am finding that I can often smoke 2-3 things at once with good results. I made 2 meatloaf, 30 wings, and smoked a dozen or so sausages in one cook. The sausages only need about an hour, the wings need about 2 hours, and the meatloaf about 2.5. Worked quite nicely.

GL

[goreds2]

We plan on putting country ribs in the smoker tonight at the campground while watching the Reds game. Should I pay more attention to the smoker?

[Rdirtypirates]

Does anyone have any recommendations for a smoker for someone starting out?

[WVRed]

Does anyone have any recommendations for a smoker for someone starting out?

It all depends on preference. I’ll give you three to consider:

1. Weber Kettle or Smokey Mountain. The Kettle is extremely versatile in that you can smoke on it (just add a water pan) or fire up burgers, steaks, chicken, chips, whatever you want. Learn the minion method and you can make charcoal last for a multiple hour smoke. The Smokey Mountain is a pure charcoal water pan smoker but it’s one of mine that doesn’t get used as often as I should.

The downside is depending on how much time you have to spend you will be having to babysit it to make sure the temperature stays where you want it.

2. Electric smoker. Set it and forget it. I’ve done pulled pork, ribs, brisket, turkey. You’ll get a smoke taste but it isn’t as strong as a charcoal or stick burner smoker. Another advantage is you can cold smoke cheese and salmon and I’ve done jerky in an electric smoker.

3. Pellet grills. Best of both worlds in that you can smoke overnight or crank it up and fix steaks and burgers. A lot more control over temperature on some models. Traeger used to be the gold standard for pellet grills but there are some other competitors worth checking out.

Between pellets and looking for a grill itself the pellet grill is the most expensive option.

[Boss-Hog]

It all depends on preference. I’ll give you three to consider:

1. Weber Kettle or Smokey Mountain. The Kettle is extremely versatile in that you can smoke on it (just add a water pan) or fire up burgers, steaks, chicken, chips, whatever you want. Learn the minion method and you can make charcoal last for a multiple hour smoke. The Smokey Mountain is a pure charcoal water pan smoker but it’s one of mine that doesn’t get used as often as I should.

The downside is depending on how much time you have to spend you will be having to babysit it to make sure the temperature stays where you want it.

2. Electric smoker. Set it and forget it. I’ve done pulled pork, ribs, brisket, turkey. You’ll get a smoke taste but it isn’t as strong as a charcoal or stick burner smoker. Another advantage is you can cold smoke cheese and salmon and I’ve done jerky in an electric smoker.

3. Pellet grills. Best of both worlds in that you can smoke overnight or crank it up and fix steaks and burgers. A lot more control over temperature on some models. Traeger used to be the gold standard for pellet grills but there are some other competitors worth checking out.

Between pellets and looking for a grill itself the pellet grill is the most expensive option.

That's good advice. For what it's worth, I got my first smoker several years ago (18" Weber Smokey Mountain), and I've been pretty happy with it. After the first few uses, I haven't filled the water pan with water to avoid that cleanup.

[WVRed]

That's good advice. For what it's worth, I got my first smoker several years ago (18" Weber Smokey Mountain), and I've been pretty happy with it.

I’ve got a Smokey Mountain, Kettle, and an electric smoker. Can’t bring myself to go the pellet route although the electrical panel needs replaced on my electric smoker but I’ve been making it work.

Having two kids under the age of six makes it hard for me to spend hours watching temps so I’m in the set it and forget it camp. If not for that I’d either look into a stick burner or a drum smoker.

[Rdirtypirates]

It all depends on preference. I’ll give you three to consider:

1. Weber Kettle or Smokey Mountain. The Kettle is extremely versatile in that you can smoke on it (just add a water pan) or fire up burgers, steaks, chicken, chips, whatever you want. Learn the minion method and you can make charcoal last for a multiple hour smoke. The Smokey Mountain is a pure charcoal water pan smoker but it’s one of mine that doesn’t get used as often as I should.

The downside is depending on how much time you have to spend you will be having to babysit it to make sure the temperature stays where you want it.

2. Electric smoker. Set it and forget it. I’ve done pulled pork, ribs, brisket, turkey. You’ll get a smoke taste but it isn’t as strong as a charcoal or stick burner smoker. Another advantage is you can cold smoke cheese and salmon and I’ve done jerky in an electric smoker.

3. Pellet grills. Best of both worlds in that you can smoke overnight or crank it up and fix steaks and burgers. A lot more control over temperature on some models. Traeger used to be the gold standard for pellet grills but there are some other competitors worth checking out.

Between pellets and looking for a grill itself the pellet grill is the most expensive option.

I think I will go for the electric one. What is a good place to buy one? Thank you.

[WVRed]

I think I will go for the electric one. What is a good place to buy one? Thank you.

Lowe’s or Home Depot are pretty safe options.

If you have a Cabelas close by they have a pretty decent selection.

Masterbuilt makes an electric smoker that has a Bluetooth option and broiler feature:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Masterbu...3519/306683246

[Boss-Hog]

I’ve got a Smokey Mountain, Kettle, and an electric smoker. Can’t bring myself to go the pellet route although the electrical panel needs replaced on my electric smoker but I’ve been making it work.

Having two kids under the age of six makes it hard for me to spend hours watching temps so I’m in the set it and forget it camp. If not for that I’d either look into a stick burner or a drum smoker.

It doesn't eliminate the need to monitor temperatures, but I use a probe thermometer on my WSM to ensure the temperature stays within the range I set. If not, it'll set off an alarm, such as if it runs out of charcoal overnight.

[goreds2]

Does anyone have any recommendations for a smoker for someone starting out?

This is what I have. Not well insulated but can smoke good food as long as it is 60 degrees or higher outside. $129

https://www.cabelas.com/shop/en/mast...lectric-smoker

This will be good to see if you like the process then move up if need be. I am good with this smoker and have no reason to move up.

Edit: Read reviews on the link before buying - most had good results some had bad.

[goreds2]

Will be smoking a $45 prime rib today. No pressure !

[RiverRat13]

I use an Akorn Kamado. It's a much cheaper version of a Big Green Egg. The versatility is great as you can cook a steak at 600+ degrees or use it to smoke large cuts. I've done three eight pound pork shoulders at once in it. For fuel I use lump charcoal with wood chips. https://www.chargriller.com/collecti...20-kamado-6719

For low and slow cooks, I have an Auber Instruments temperature controller - https://www.auberins.com/index.php?m...roducts_id=341