smoker grill

[Moon]

All this talk in SasafrasPete's pork butt thread reminds me I need a smoker grill. Anyone have pics of their smoker they'd care to show off? Also links to smokers you can make yourself would be great.

Thanks,

Moon of Ohio

 

[anojones]

Probably not what your looking for- but this is a ceramic japanese style smoker/grill. It is very easy to do long slow cooks (pork butts/briskets). They aren't cheap- but this is one of the smaller, non-tiled ones that are not quite as expensive. It's one of the best purchases I've ever made. Their website has an active forum as well.KAMADO

 

[BB_TX]

My son bought one about a month ago. He got it at Academy Sports for about $300. Heavy. It takes two good men to lift it into the back of a pickup. He brought it over to the house during the holidays and we smoked a large beef brisket one day and 4 racks of pork ribs another. Now I am going to have to buy one. I was amazed at how little wood it takes to smoke meat for several hours at around 200 degrees.

 

[JRobyn]

The "big green egg" or kamodo smokers are a very worthwhile investment! The large ones sell for about $700, and will last outdors for years. Mine is about 15 years old and is just now starting to crack, plus it's one of the older thinner models. New ones are better. They are essentially a charcoal oven and nothing is beter for smoking meats, or just plain grilling. They completely seal, so flames cannot sustain. When your done cooking, simply close the dampers and the fire goes out, saving chanrcoal for the next use.

Get the adjustable cast iron top, a thermometer, and be sure to use the natural lump charcoal (leaves WAY less ash than "briquets").

 

[Moon]

Thats one heavy duty looking grill and cart. Impressive.
Could you do a whole pig on one of those?

 

[Moon]

Can you get the same smoker flavor with charcoal as you can with wood? I'm guessing you could use either charcoal or wood in the 'egg' smoker.

 

[Moon]

BB_TX, We do not have Academy Sports stores here. Do you know the make / model of your son's smoker? Does his have a built in thermometer?

 

[anojones]

Can't do a whole pig on one- just not enough space, although, some folks do baby pigs on the bigger ones. The ceramic cookers are usually used with charcoal (lump is better, no briquetts) and for wood flavor you just throw in some hardwood chunks- works great, and great smoke flavor. You can cook veggies, and brick oven type pizzas, some folks bake bread in them. For an inexpensive whole pig cooker try Chinese Box but you might be better off with a big metal offset cooker- they can range a lot in price and you have to enjoy tending the fire. However, they are the barbecue purist way to go (well, a true purist would throw an old box spring on some cinder blocks over a hardwood fire and get cooking). A good way to do a pig is to dig a hole, build a fire and cook the pig in the ground. Man, I'm getting hungry.

 

[Dozernut]

We have a small electric smoker that works well. We put green wood chips in the ceramic rocks for flavoring. Apple, Cherry, Hickory and Mesquite provide a real good flavor. The down side of this type of smoker is that you can not use it in the winter months. It's metal is thin and un-insulated and the temperature will not build enough to complete the cooking cycle.

 

[bmac]

For a top-notch electric smoker, check out CookShack ( CookShack ). I bought one about a year ago and have been very satisfied. Uses about 2 oz of wood and yields nicely smoked, very moist and tender meats. The neat thing about the CS is that it requires very little attention after you start. Large pieces of meat can be put on before you go to bed and be ready in the morning. Or put it on before you go to work and have it ready at supper time. Its low temp, long cooking time. And another benefit - its super insulated. You can hold your hand on the exterior without fear of getting burned. More accurately, you can barely tell that its on (very safe if kids are around). Also, because of its superb insulation, you can cook in the winter without a problem (just dust off the snow and fire it up). They have a 30 day unconditional money back guarantee, good customer service and plenty of accessories. The company has been in buisness for something like 40 years and they have a loyal customer base. Finally, the company sponsors a very active and helpful discussion forum where techniques and recipes are shared freely.

Now, I don't smoke often. But I everything I've done on the CS (pork butt, ribs, turkey) has been delicious and easy. Check it out.

After re-reading this before clicking on the "Post this Message" button, I thought it sounded like a sales pitch. So, insert the usual disclaimer here. I don't work for them, just like their product.