Have I it cleaned and covered and in the corner of my patio shed. Not going to drag it out and sell right now. Plus dealing with some health issues. New knees. One done and the other soon. Staged Bilateral.
Tips on Buying a Smoker for a novice?
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Have I it cleaned and covered and in the corner of my patio shed. Not going to drag it out and sell right now. Plus dealing with some health issues. New knees. One done and the other soon. Staged Bilateral.
So after looking forward to smoking ribs today all week, my cheap smoker quit working. Any recommendations on electric smokers that are under $150? I've seen the brand Landmann that isn't too much, but don't know if this brand a piece of crap or not
I bought Leggs smoked sausage seasoning. Followed the directions 225° until internal temp of 155° in my 30" Masterbuilt. I have had it for 3 months. So far so good. recomend the Masterbuilt for sure. ( already own a big Weber gas, couldn't justify a pellet grill. )
! got mine for 175 at bass pro sign up for their credit card get 25 dollars off instantly. Cancelled the card last week.
If you buy something with an electric heating element, like a MasterBuilt smoker, make sure you buy a cover and care for it religiously. They are really easy to smoke with, and they give good results, but they are very fragile regarding rain, snow, cold, humidity, etc.
Bought this today. Only $100.00 at Fleet Farm until the 27th, if you're looking for a deal on an electric smoker
https://www.fleetfarm.com/store/det...NNUFKeVsDxJYrOxiDZmJCDmKZma9HQaYaAupDEALw_wcB
https://www.fleetfarm.com/store/det...NNUFKeVsDxJYrOxiDZmJCDmKZma9HQaYaAupDEALw_wcB
I've never owned a smoker either, but if I were going to buy one, I'd make sure to get one that could also serve as a decent grill. There are several on the market, but the one I think I'd go with is the Kamodo Joe. It's similar to a Big Green Egg, except they don't nickle and dime you for accessories like Big Green Egg does, and I think has some better features, like a lid that will stay up when you open it. A Big Green Egg is less expensive, but then if you want any of the things that come standard on a Kamodo Joe, like a stand to set your egg in, or some end tables to do some prep work on your food or have some place to set your spices, and/or utensils, or different types of grilling services for different types of food, then the Big Green egg cost rapidly escalates.
The first time I smoked ribs, I used a gas grill (just turned on a couple burners to keep the heat indirect, and tossed a foil pouch of wood chips on the burner for smoke). They turned out perfectly fine. Then I used my Weber kettle grill for awhile, and now I also have a Weber water smoker. I still use the grill even when I'm using the smoker. For a larger party, I'll have ribs and/or chickens and pork butts on the smoker's main grates, then a pan of my mac and cheese on an extra rack, and another pan of mac and cheese smoking on the grill.
I wish I had a Traeger, though. Not because I've been dissatisfied with my Weber; honestly, if I'm able to dedicate the time to do things right, I prefer using charcoal. I like the taste a little better and there's a little more sense of pride in the results than using a "set it and forget it" smoker. But there are definitely times when it would be nice to smoke ribs, brisket, etc. without having to ever worry about inconsistent temperatures, etc.
I wish I had a Traeger, though. Not because I've been dissatisfied with my Weber; honestly, if I'm able to dedicate the time to do things right, I prefer using charcoal. I like the taste a little better and there's a little more sense of pride in the results than using a "set it and forget it" smoker. But there are definitely times when it would be nice to smoke ribs, brisket, etc. without having to ever worry about inconsistent temperatures, etc.
Don't buy a Traeger if you're looking to really dial in the temperature. Mine will vary from 200-300F when I set it to 225F. It mostly averages out to 225-250 but it's certainly not ideal, especially when it gets close to or over 300F.
The build quality is not there anymore either. I'd look into Pit Boss. Similar pricing but they use thicker sheet metal and the quality seems much nicer. Not sure about running one, but I feel like I've heard from others that they'd recommend it.
I'll stick with this Traeger for a while but won't buy another.
Up until last year I had a 11-year old Brinkmann charcoal grill, I used it for smoking ribs, shoulder, chicken, and it worked amazing. I just rigged it up for indirect heat and the results were great. I literally used it until the bottom fell out. Last year I got a Chargriller with an offset smoker box. I'd been wanting to try the offset box to see if I could get even better results, and also triple my capacity. I got it last spring and to date I'm still not happy with it. The first few times I used the offset box for the wood it wasn't great. It took gobs of wood to get the main chamber up to 225 F and keep it there for 5-6 hours. And the ribs just were off. So I've stopped using the offset box and put the wood/heat source under the main chamber off to the right side with the ribs on the racks over to the left under the pipe. I still gain some capacity. I just did some back ribs yesterday and, again, the result was good, but not great.
We like our ribs fall off the bone. I know that's not what the competition pitmasters go for, that technically 'fall off the bone' is overcooked, blah blah blah. But that's the way we like it, and that's the way I could get it with my previous grill. I can't get there with this one.
The Chargriller is probably 20% bigger in terms of space in the main chamber. With my previous grill I'd get it to 225 F and keep it there and it was perfect. I found that with the new one I needed to get it to 240-250 F to get the job done in the same 5 hour window (2-2-1). But I'm still not getting it to the fall off the bone place. So I still must be undercooking (or not properly overcooking ).
For those of you who foil the ribs after letting them take on as much smoke as they can, do you wrap the foil tightly or loosely? I spray with apple juice and wrap tightly, which is how I did it before, but am thinking maybe I should wrap loosely to let the ribs steam better. I think maybe I need to switch it up to a 2-3-1, and let them go with the foil longer. I'm not seeing the ribs pull down at the ends exposing more of the rib bone as I would before.
I do 3-1.5-1
When I foil I go tight and add some pats of butter, brown sugar, honey to top of ribs.
Middle bone slid out when I took them out of foil.
My Traeger really never strays more than +/- 5, once in a while 10. Maybe you need a new controller.
Also I dont trust any dome thermometer on any grill or smoker I own.
I do 3-1.5-1
When I foil I go tight and add some pats of butter, brown sugar, honey to top of ribs.
Middle bone slid out when I took them out of foil.
Are those spare ribs? What temp do you go at?
Baby. 225 whole smoke.
I use yellow mustard to stick the rub and let them sit on a cookie sheet on the counter for atleast an hour before hitting the smoker.
I very rarely use water in the WSM. I just foil the pan.
I'd rather inject a brisket and leave the smoker shut for 6 hours before I peek.
